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Welcome Back GarageGames!

by Eric Preisz · 01/20/2011 (4:27 am) · 553 comments






You've been patiently waiting and the time has come. GarageGames is back! We've changed our name back to GarageGames and we are dropping the prices on all products to $99.00 to celebrate our new direction and return to our indie roots. It's been a storied ten years for the GarageGames name and we are looking forward to ushering in the next decade.

The return of GarageGames is much more than a $99 price point. It's a commitment to the community who grew with us over the years. It's a return to the values that brought people together to make great games without the burden of unbearable pricing or royalties. Our community is a diverse group of people who are willing and able to help each other grow as game developers and we can't wait to take that community to the next level. So before I dive into details, let's put some stakes in the ground:

We are committed to delivering you a full source solution without royalties at a price that indies can afford,

We are committed to a better out of the box experience: more intuitive tools focused on design, better tutorials and documentation, and web-site updates that support our most valuable feature…our community,

We are committed to bringing in more talent that can help us execute reliable processes, provide better quality, and set higher standards that exceed your expectation ( btw…we are hiring ).

You will find real evidence of our commitments scattered through this site that we updated late last night. The most obvious is the $99.00 price tag. We believe that this price makes the Torque product line available to everyone with a serious itch to make a game without opening the flood gates for free users who may not be as committed to the same goals as paid developers who rely on our support in the forums. You will notice that we are sun-setting TorqueX and providing refunds to those who pre-ordered iTorque 3D. We know that what we need more than anything is a more focused roadmap and these choices are a difficult, but necessary, step in that direction. You can find more product updates on this blog.

You may be wondering who the new owners are. First off, they are modest, so they asked that I not make them the focus of this blog. I'm guessing; however, that you do want to know that we are in good hands. Trust me...we are. Over the past couple of weeks I talked with dozens of interested parties but none of their values aligned as closely as they do with Graham Software Development. I can't thank them enough for suggesting and supporting the low price-point and the resurgence of the GarageGames brand. These guys are just like us; they are indie developers with the drive and desire to build something that changes the way people make games.

There's a lot for us to do. Setting and achieving a new, higher standard for game development tools won't happen overnight. On top of that challenge, we are switching over to new services ( web hosting, payment processing, etc. ) and moving into a new building (we are staying in Vegas, just moving to a bigger location ). We are also hiring and will be adding new people to the team ( did I mention that we are hiring? ). So you may see a few fresh company faces in the forums. Because of these moving pieces, you may notice the occasional web-site glitch or other disruption. So thanks, in advance, for your patience as we make these changes.

In closing, I can’t thank you enough for sticking with us during this time. The team stayed together through the transition and I can't help but think that your enthusiasm and kind words played a big role in making that happen. We look forward to meeting our new goals so that we can continue to deliver on the promise of bringing royalty free, full-source, game engines to everyone!

So let’s hear it in the comments. It's time to make some noise for GarageGames!

~Eric Preisz
CEO, GarageGames, LLC.

About the author

Manager, Programmer, Author, Professor, Small Business Owner, and Marketer.

#101
01/20/2011 (10:24 am)
The full price that I paid was WELL worth it, I do not begrudge having paid full price. Just like I cannot complain about the TV I bought 6 months ago going on sale for 50% off this week.

Just an FYI, I own Torque 2d binary and I cannot buy the source version as I get an error of Torque 2D is limited to 1 license(s) per account, please contact us at licensing@torquepowered.com for further assistance.

Downloads still point to torquepowered and emails are not working for those. I am sure they will get worked out shortly.
#102
01/20/2011 (10:25 am)
WOW! Great news guys, now perhaps I might come and apply(long move from Maine!)

WOOOOT! GG is back!
#103
01/20/2011 (10:31 am)
YAY!
#104
01/20/2011 (10:32 am)
@Julian
Not yet. I'll be checking with licensing on the finalization of the studio decision and where it will be going from here on out.

@Sean
Yeah, the webteam is working on getting all of this updated to point back to garagegames. Sending anything to support@garagegames.com or licensing@garagegames.com should get to us. My davidb@garagegames.com address is working as well.
#105
01/20/2011 (10:33 am)
Thanks David. Thought it was a grey area at the moment, but just eager to take advantage of the price reduction while stocks last :)
#106
01/20/2011 (10:34 am)
Great news........Now waiting for the official road map blog....
#107
01/20/2011 (10:35 am)
Congrats! Thanks Graham Software Development, Eric and everyone involved for making this happening.

I do however have a question on the product pages, it states "online only, for a limited time" underneath the pricing tag.

But what is "limited time"? and after this time, what will happen? (again high pricing tags?, or what will become the regular pricing tags?)

a little explaining would be nice...

thanks
#108
01/20/2011 (10:54 am)
@DMB - Woot I can start harassing you by email again :)
#109
01/20/2011 (11:03 am)
And the "new owner" is in IRC now :) Come say hi!
irc.maxgaming.net:6667 channel is #garagegames
#110
01/20/2011 (11:08 am)
Nice that you're back!
Just added T3D pro to my toolbox... Thank you!
#111
01/20/2011 (11:12 am)
@Everyone, the "limited time" language is sort of up to you. We want to see how the community reacts to such a low price. We would like it to stay around for a while since we think that the price ( or some number near it) is really beneficial for our community. We're in this together ;)
#112
01/20/2011 (11:15 am)
Congrats and welcome back GG, never really liked the TP rebranding, and wonderful news on the price reduction, kind of wished i would have waited now but hey nature of the beast, will be real nice to revitalize the T3d Source community knowledge base with some new talent to the group.
#113
01/20/2011 (11:21 am)
As soon as I can get access to the store i'll be picking up Torque3D. Hopefully DNS and Certs will work itself out shortly.

Congrats and welcome back GG.
#114
01/20/2011 (11:21 am)
Just wanted to state; I do not feel that the low price is a blow in my face at all. Paying up in the beginning, like I did for TSE, is what keeps the devs around. This new discount for the cheer of it is just a great event stirring the pot of engine stew.

I'm glad I supported, and stick around fellas ;)
#115
01/20/2011 (11:23 am)
Lol, my DNS must be faster, I have already bought things from the store!
#116
01/20/2011 (11:24 am)
Welcome back GG! As a hobbyist I didn't have any problem forking over an extra $99 for the source version of T3D even though I had previously purchased the binary! Thanks for returning to your roots!
#117
01/20/2011 (11:28 am)
@Everyone - yes, DNS and cert issues abound. Working them out as we speak.
#118
01/20/2011 (11:34 am)
Sure - wait until I go to bed to post this! Sheesh.

Love the GG Logo Kit! Can we still use the T3D logo too? I mean, I use the Full Color logo as first splash, but, you know - "Powered by Torque 3D" is kinda cool, too - as part of my product title splash.
#119
01/20/2011 (11:36 am)
@David: so that means us basic people will also be able to get this version of Torque without re-buying?
#120
01/20/2011 (11:39 am)
I am SOOOOOOOOO happy that the big GG is back!!! This community is awesome, and I appreciate all of the effort that went into getting this company back to its roots. Believe me, it will pay off big time. :)