Thank you
by Melv May · in Torque Game Builder · 03/03/2005 (1:33 pm) · 27 replies
Weee, what a ride!
T2D is almost a week "old" now and already we've got a thriving community of people all wanting to make games and I'm totally blown away (read that stunned). Trying not to sound all pukey and sickly but big ol' thanks to all of you, especially those of you who put your moniker on the product-page reviews.
I've spent the last 6 months somehow managing to get T2D (with a huge wad of help from GG) into this EA state whilst trying to raise a newborn baby and it's been hard (so very hard) work. So much time was spent thinking (rather than doing) about how to implement some of the features so that they'd be not only fast but intuitive. There's always the worry whether you made the correct decision and certain aspects of T2D still plague me now. That's slowly changing though now that you're helping me find bugs as well as comment on what's confusing and what's working.
Almost everyone who's purchased T2D has come into the forums and have made a comment on how great they think it is and how helpful they think the community is and that is only helping to keep the collaborative spirit high! I've been browsing (lurking?) other indie-sites and although we've not yet had any big announcements apart from on this site, they're generating lots of debate on whether T2D is good, bad or ugly. I'm not bothering jumping in too much on those sites as I've got work to do here answering all the questions that need to be answered.
I've spent the last week trying to reply to practically every post on the forums but I think it's getting to the point where I'm spending a third of my day doing so! From now on, I'm going to post just as much as I can manage on a budget otherwise I'll never get any T2D work done!! Everyone is helping everyone and I think some of the bigger hurdles are over and I've generated and nice list of bugs (most of which are now fixed) as well as some ideas for future development.
Sorry for the inconvienience of any bugs you may have encountered but you'll be pleased to know we're squashing them out of existence. With T2D being in newborn status, these problems have been raised and most resolved and so this first update will contain lots of fixes and I understand that everyone will be anxious to get it. I hope that you all understand that we want to ensure we've found a majority of the problems before we do another update as doing updates, on all platforms, alongside the testing needed on each is a big, non-trivial task. If we do updates too often, we'll be doing nothing but answering posts and doing updates and we won't make T2D any cooler!
We'll be working on compiling new tutorials and documentation as well as releasing new demos on a regular basis that will hopefully show you how to achieve new stuff. Maybe you'll be point out to us some shortcuts you've found as we're only human and make mistakes.
I want a forum where new people can come in and ask questions without being intimidated and we've definatley got a helpful bunch of people here who are helping each other and helping me by passing stuff along.
Sincere thanks for that!
Okay, I'm full of cold and I appear to have answered all the posts that are waiting for answers so I can finally go downstairs and have a whisky and feel sorry for myself! *sniff*
BTW: Please feel free to comment on your experience with T2D on the product page, good or bad, it's up to you! From reading other peoples posts on non-GG sites, I think that lots of people want to get T2D but they're afraid that if you've never used TGE before, it's going to take 6 months or so to be able to make something useful. I'm way too biased to be able to objectively post on these sites and probably wouldn't be trusted. Peoples honest opinions on what T2D has given them and their experiences in general would be wonderful.
Thank you everybody for showing your faith in T2D and being here with me during this most coolest of cool weeks.
Long live T2D!
- Melv.
T2D is almost a week "old" now and already we've got a thriving community of people all wanting to make games and I'm totally blown away (read that stunned). Trying not to sound all pukey and sickly but big ol' thanks to all of you, especially those of you who put your moniker on the product-page reviews.
I've spent the last 6 months somehow managing to get T2D (with a huge wad of help from GG) into this EA state whilst trying to raise a newborn baby and it's been hard (so very hard) work. So much time was spent thinking (rather than doing) about how to implement some of the features so that they'd be not only fast but intuitive. There's always the worry whether you made the correct decision and certain aspects of T2D still plague me now. That's slowly changing though now that you're helping me find bugs as well as comment on what's confusing and what's working.
Almost everyone who's purchased T2D has come into the forums and have made a comment on how great they think it is and how helpful they think the community is and that is only helping to keep the collaborative spirit high! I've been browsing (lurking?) other indie-sites and although we've not yet had any big announcements apart from on this site, they're generating lots of debate on whether T2D is good, bad or ugly. I'm not bothering jumping in too much on those sites as I've got work to do here answering all the questions that need to be answered.
I've spent the last week trying to reply to practically every post on the forums but I think it's getting to the point where I'm spending a third of my day doing so! From now on, I'm going to post just as much as I can manage on a budget otherwise I'll never get any T2D work done!! Everyone is helping everyone and I think some of the bigger hurdles are over and I've generated and nice list of bugs (most of which are now fixed) as well as some ideas for future development.
Sorry for the inconvienience of any bugs you may have encountered but you'll be pleased to know we're squashing them out of existence. With T2D being in newborn status, these problems have been raised and most resolved and so this first update will contain lots of fixes and I understand that everyone will be anxious to get it. I hope that you all understand that we want to ensure we've found a majority of the problems before we do another update as doing updates, on all platforms, alongside the testing needed on each is a big, non-trivial task. If we do updates too often, we'll be doing nothing but answering posts and doing updates and we won't make T2D any cooler!
We'll be working on compiling new tutorials and documentation as well as releasing new demos on a regular basis that will hopefully show you how to achieve new stuff. Maybe you'll be point out to us some shortcuts you've found as we're only human and make mistakes.
I want a forum where new people can come in and ask questions without being intimidated and we've definatley got a helpful bunch of people here who are helping each other and helping me by passing stuff along.
Sincere thanks for that!
Okay, I'm full of cold and I appear to have answered all the posts that are waiting for answers so I can finally go downstairs and have a whisky and feel sorry for myself! *sniff*
BTW: Please feel free to comment on your experience with T2D on the product page, good or bad, it's up to you! From reading other peoples posts on non-GG sites, I think that lots of people want to get T2D but they're afraid that if you've never used TGE before, it's going to take 6 months or so to be able to make something useful. I'm way too biased to be able to objectively post on these sites and probably wouldn't be trusted. Peoples honest opinions on what T2D has given them and their experiences in general would be wonderful.
Thank you everybody for showing your faith in T2D and being here with me during this most coolest of cool weeks.
Long live T2D!
- Melv.
About the author
#2
My game thanks you too because it's finally starting to stretch its legs and was pretty uncomfortable packed up in my brain.
Oh and I hope this is such a big success you can quit your day job (You do have a non-GG day job, right?)
03/03/2005 (1:45 pm)
Thanks for all your work Melv.My game thanks you too because it's finally starting to stretch its legs and was pretty uncomfortable packed up in my brain.
Oh and I hope this is such a big success you can quit your day job (You do have a non-GG day job, right?)
#3
Enough blubber!
Go have a whiskey and attend to Jess!
03/03/2005 (1:49 pm)
Thank you, Melv. You've given me the 2D engine that I always hoped for, and it's only in EA!Enough blubber!
Go have a whiskey and attend to Jess!
#4
... and you can take that to the bank! :)
- Melv.
03/03/2005 (1:50 pm)
Oh yes, gotta work all day as well. T2D in the evening and at weekends! If you guys want to go out and sell T2D for me *not very subtle hint* so I can quit my day-job and work fulltime on GG then I'll give you a 2D engine that you just wouldn't even be able to dream of ... period!... and you can take that to the bank! :)
- Melv.
#5
Once you adjust and get into the mindset of working with T2D (which hardly takes any time at all), the process of making games becomes much easier and allows time to be spent on the gameplay, rather than the implementation.
Viva le T2D revolution! :-)
- Dave
03/03/2005 (2:18 pm)
Many congrats and thanks again Melv, T2D really is something quite special. Once you adjust and get into the mindset of working with T2D (which hardly takes any time at all), the process of making games becomes much easier and allows time to be spent on the gameplay, rather than the implementation.
Viva le T2D revolution! :-)
- Dave
#6
Seriously though, superb job you guys have done. Theres a bright future for this community, and it's all thanks to you.
03/03/2005 (3:00 pm)
*sniff* That was so... poignant!Seriously though, superb job you guys have done. Theres a bright future for this community, and it's all thanks to you.
#7
03/03/2005 (5:57 pm)
No, Thank YOU!! :) 
#8
03/03/2005 (6:02 pm)
Get well soon Melv! Thx for a great engine! 
#9
03/03/2005 (6:21 pm)
Can't begin to thank you Melv! Hope you feel better. 
#10
Hope you get well soon.
03/03/2005 (8:09 pm)
Thank you so much for all that you've done and all that you will do Melv. T2D is the dream of making games I've been looking for, but never found until now.Hope you get well soon.
#11
And frankly, 2D games are easier to keep in scope, eaiser to keep focused on the core cool idea, and arguably have more mainstream appeal than full-blown 3D shooters or RTS's. I think in the medium to long term, there's no reason why T2D can't be huge!
03/03/2005 (10:39 pm)
Hey Melv, I think once this thing gets rolling, it can only be a success. It's clearly superior to everything out there I've seen, and I know I'm hoping that it accelerates interest in indy gaming to the next level. Partnering with Garage Games is a good move also, since they have some game product distrubution set up already. And frankly, 2D games are easier to keep in scope, eaiser to keep focused on the core cool idea, and arguably have more mainstream appeal than full-blown 3D shooters or RTS's. I think in the medium to long term, there's no reason why T2D can't be huge!
#12
Thank you so much :-) I'm really happy with T2D.
I can now make games without spend my time doing a engine (like SDL or Allegro)
thanks thanks thanks for your work, rest a little and make us dream again.
- Oliv, a French 2D Gamer
03/03/2005 (11:56 pm)
Hi Melv,Thank you so much :-) I'm really happy with T2D.
I can now make games without spend my time doing a engine (like SDL or Allegro)
thanks thanks thanks for your work, rest a little and make us dream again.
- Oliv, a French 2D Gamer
#13
GG has seen some truly amazing creations and contributors come from this community - Melv for one. The willingness to learn together and treat eachother with patience and enthusiasm for another.
One thing we've known and others have come to understand is that game creation even with powerful tools isn't easy. Getting a game done, let alone making it fun is extremely difficult. In 3space most games require a moderate sized team to finish a commercial quality game. This level of collaboration requires specialization and as an indie a large amount of generalization and wearing of many hats.
Gaining the skills, locating the talent you can collaborate well with and having a sense of scope your team can accomplish and marrying that to a game idea everyone can be passionate enough about to finish is not a small thing. It happens here, but not as often as we'd like.
T2D reduces the complexity, but no more guarantees a fun outcome than TGE, it just makes the dream much more feasible - I believe it also will be where new franchises are begun and new IP (think characters and themes) are built. Most of all I think it will be a place for teams to be created and collaboration to begin.
With another GID coming up again soon, and the option to use T2D as a possible too,l I know we'll see more explorations into fun game ideas and we'll get to enjoy the process as a community.
Thanks Melv for inspiring and empowering the 'indie' movement with a tool that makes the dream of building games that much more possible.
Jay Moore
GG Evangelist
BTW - It is no secret that GG went for a long long time between launching commercial games made with Torque. From ThinkTanks in May of 2003 to RocketBowl in Nov. 2004 (over 16 months later). I maybe one of the only people that measure GG's progress by the games we publish, but I would say that I'm looking forward to many more fun commercial quality games in 2005.
03/04/2005 (1:11 am)
Thank You - Melv & GG community Quote:Having been a Torque Game Engine owner since '02 without having made a lot of progress, I was overjoyed to find myself producing my own games, the way I want them, within days of diving into the Torque 2D SDK.
GG has seen some truly amazing creations and contributors come from this community - Melv for one. The willingness to learn together and treat eachother with patience and enthusiasm for another.
One thing we've known and others have come to understand is that game creation even with powerful tools isn't easy. Getting a game done, let alone making it fun is extremely difficult. In 3space most games require a moderate sized team to finish a commercial quality game. This level of collaboration requires specialization and as an indie a large amount of generalization and wearing of many hats.
Gaining the skills, locating the talent you can collaborate well with and having a sense of scope your team can accomplish and marrying that to a game idea everyone can be passionate enough about to finish is not a small thing. It happens here, but not as often as we'd like.
T2D reduces the complexity, but no more guarantees a fun outcome than TGE, it just makes the dream much more feasible - I believe it also will be where new franchises are begun and new IP (think characters and themes) are built. Most of all I think it will be a place for teams to be created and collaboration to begin.
With another GID coming up again soon, and the option to use T2D as a possible too,l I know we'll see more explorations into fun game ideas and we'll get to enjoy the process as a community.
Thanks Melv for inspiring and empowering the 'indie' movement with a tool that makes the dream of building games that much more possible.
Jay Moore
GG Evangelist
BTW - It is no secret that GG went for a long long time between launching commercial games made with Torque. From ThinkTanks in May of 2003 to RocketBowl in Nov. 2004 (over 16 months later). I maybe one of the only people that measure GG's progress by the games we publish, but I would say that I'm looking forward to many more fun commercial quality games in 2005.
#14
First off, I must also send my thanks and congrats to Melv for his work. Even the limited amount of time I have spent with the code has proven that this project is clearly a labor of love.
What I see in T2D is a lot of potential. The engine looks spectacular and the feature list is very comprehensive. What I think surprised me most when I first started working with the engine is that I was somewhat underwhelmed by the "workflow". I'm going to make a very broad assumption here and hypothesize that the initial focus for the EA release was the engine and not the tools. I think I'm guilty of playing into the hype and getting really excited about the potential for a GameMaker (excuse the reference to a competing product) style interface with a powerful, customizable core. I sincerely hope that this is the future of T2D, but I feel it somewhat necessary to point out to those who are looking for the same things I was looking for that it's not quite there yet.
Hence the reason I don't think these comments belong on the product page. I see no sense in openly criticizing a product that has yet to see it's offical 1.0 release. However, part of the reason I want to say these things is because I want to be certain that Melv and the staff at GG are aware that there are people like me out in the world with high expectations for the future of T2D.
I will continue to play with T2D and gain more experience in anticipation of the full release. My only concern is that T2D will become "just another engine", accessible only to those with a programming background. My hope is that you see a higher purpose for T2D and that you remain dedicated to "changing the way games are made and played".
03/04/2005 (2:31 pm)
I really don't like the idea of raining on parades. In this type of environment it certainly puts you in the "troll" category rather quickly. On the other hand, I have a few things I'd like to say about my experience with T2D but I don't think they are fit for the product page (for reasons I will explain).First off, I must also send my thanks and congrats to Melv for his work. Even the limited amount of time I have spent with the code has proven that this project is clearly a labor of love.
What I see in T2D is a lot of potential. The engine looks spectacular and the feature list is very comprehensive. What I think surprised me most when I first started working with the engine is that I was somewhat underwhelmed by the "workflow". I'm going to make a very broad assumption here and hypothesize that the initial focus for the EA release was the engine and not the tools. I think I'm guilty of playing into the hype and getting really excited about the potential for a GameMaker (excuse the reference to a competing product) style interface with a powerful, customizable core. I sincerely hope that this is the future of T2D, but I feel it somewhat necessary to point out to those who are looking for the same things I was looking for that it's not quite there yet.
Hence the reason I don't think these comments belong on the product page. I see no sense in openly criticizing a product that has yet to see it's offical 1.0 release. However, part of the reason I want to say these things is because I want to be certain that Melv and the staff at GG are aware that there are people like me out in the world with high expectations for the future of T2D.
I will continue to play with T2D and gain more experience in anticipation of the full release. My only concern is that T2D will become "just another engine", accessible only to those with a programming background. My hope is that you see a higher purpose for T2D and that you remain dedicated to "changing the way games are made and played".
#15
What I hope we did before we did any release was provide enough information to accurately portray what T2D EA will ship with and therefore we provided details on the core API because that's 95% of what we were releasing. The product is in the early stages but what we wanted to do was show the core platform. We don't have an integrated set of tools or a defined art pipeline or workflow, we never said we did or at least I hope that wasn't the impression. Sure, we advertise the ability to edit-tiles and particles and that's what we've got and you can achieve pretty impressive stuff with them but they're more placeholders than anything; expecting people to programmatically editor particles/tiles is just way too crazy, even for EA1 so that's why they're there, that's all.
The risk here by releasing an EA is not meeting peoples expectations but unless we've actively lied about what we're providing, there's absolutely nothing we can do about that.
If you have read the plans leading up to T2Ds release, you would definately understand what we were releasing and what we were not. You'd also know about the plans for a product similar to what you're describing, based upon the T2D API. This is something that will be developed in parallel to the T2D SDK and so people can choose what product (if not both) they want to work with.
If your expectations were for such a product now, then I understand your disappointment fully and nobody can criticise you for that.
if we wanted to release "just another engine", we'd have done it in a similar vein to them. We release all source code, we've got a powerful scripting-engine, we're multi-platform, we'll have cutting-edge networking, we're looking at working on a broad-section of computers both low-end and high, we're opening up some of the design decisions to the community, we're actively encouraging people without much experience to make simple games, we're talking to important people in the games industry, we're just a few guys with good intentions and alot of talent, we've not even got started yet.
I really hope to continue our discussion in a few months as we take major strides towards our goal of being a leading 2D engine, not just another one.
- Melv.
03/04/2005 (3:01 pm)
@Greg: Your post is all good for T2D. Healthy criticism is welcome otherwise we don't learn anything at all in my opinion.What I hope we did before we did any release was provide enough information to accurately portray what T2D EA will ship with and therefore we provided details on the core API because that's 95% of what we were releasing. The product is in the early stages but what we wanted to do was show the core platform. We don't have an integrated set of tools or a defined art pipeline or workflow, we never said we did or at least I hope that wasn't the impression. Sure, we advertise the ability to edit-tiles and particles and that's what we've got and you can achieve pretty impressive stuff with them but they're more placeholders than anything; expecting people to programmatically editor particles/tiles is just way too crazy, even for EA1 so that's why they're there, that's all.
The risk here by releasing an EA is not meeting peoples expectations but unless we've actively lied about what we're providing, there's absolutely nothing we can do about that.
If you have read the plans leading up to T2Ds release, you would definately understand what we were releasing and what we were not. You'd also know about the plans for a product similar to what you're describing, based upon the T2D API. This is something that will be developed in parallel to the T2D SDK and so people can choose what product (if not both) they want to work with.
If your expectations were for such a product now, then I understand your disappointment fully and nobody can criticise you for that.
if we wanted to release "just another engine", we'd have done it in a similar vein to them. We release all source code, we've got a powerful scripting-engine, we're multi-platform, we'll have cutting-edge networking, we're looking at working on a broad-section of computers both low-end and high, we're opening up some of the design decisions to the community, we're actively encouraging people without much experience to make simple games, we're talking to important people in the games industry, we're just a few guys with good intentions and alot of talent, we've not even got started yet.
I really hope to continue our discussion in a few months as we take major strides towards our goal of being a leading 2D engine, not just another one.
- Melv.
#16
that is the way criticism should always be put :)
on the other hand, as much as I know people are looking forward to a "Gamemaker" interface and Melv has mentioned the idea as well...
I do , but don't
I think that sort of interface is good when you use it to speed up your work, not depend on it to complete your work.
I think T2D is great in that it allows people who are very intimidated by lots of scripting and code to have a middle point where they can break into learning script easy.
I think the goal shouldn't be using a gamemaker interface, rather that it should be knowing how to completely use the scripting interface, which will help you in using other engine immensely, and then use that sort of interface when you can do it manually and just utilize it to speed up the workflow.
I guess this could be compared to Math teachers showing you the long way by hand, then allowing you to use quicker methods or tools...
I've seen "Gamemaker" interfaces cripple the potential of some very skilled programmers... Its a good step, but not the last step and too many people get too comfortable with that... plus learning new things is a good lesson to learn, when you learn how to learn you can accomplish many things much quicker...
but then again this is just my opinion...
on another note, I don't think GG was gearing T2D towards that, it seems like they have it planed to support that type of interface, but T2D has so much more power than Gamemaker or similar, the interface is just an "code generator"... we work as much better code generators ;)
03/04/2005 (3:09 pm)
@Greg Rozon: For one, I think you put it extremely well, relayed your opinions and concerns while being completely respectful...that is the way criticism should always be put :)
on the other hand, as much as I know people are looking forward to a "Gamemaker" interface and Melv has mentioned the idea as well...
I do , but don't
I think that sort of interface is good when you use it to speed up your work, not depend on it to complete your work.
I think T2D is great in that it allows people who are very intimidated by lots of scripting and code to have a middle point where they can break into learning script easy.
I think the goal shouldn't be using a gamemaker interface, rather that it should be knowing how to completely use the scripting interface, which will help you in using other engine immensely, and then use that sort of interface when you can do it manually and just utilize it to speed up the workflow.
I guess this could be compared to Math teachers showing you the long way by hand, then allowing you to use quicker methods or tools...
I've seen "Gamemaker" interfaces cripple the potential of some very skilled programmers... Its a good step, but not the last step and too many people get too comfortable with that... plus learning new things is a good lesson to learn, when you learn how to learn you can accomplish many things much quicker...
but then again this is just my opinion...
on another note, I don't think GG was gearing T2D towards that, it seems like they have it planed to support that type of interface, but T2D has so much more power than Gamemaker or similar, the interface is just an "code generator"... we work as much better code generators ;)
#17
Greg, just a quick note: your analysis is spot-on. The T2D workflow is very underdeveloped at this point, but we were real up-front about that from the get-go. You are totally correct, the focus for the Early Adopter release was on core technologies, and we just tried to get enough editor workflow in place that peole could do some cool stuff (which they are), even if it's nowhere near where it will be one day.
Believe me when I say that we'll be working our butts off on the workflow / pipeline / editor side of things in the coming months. I think we already have the best tech around for 2D. In the next few months, we're not only going to make the tech even better (in so many ways, I can't wait to talk about them), but we hope to have the best workflow around too. Keep on watching for more news.
And Matt, we agree with you fully re: not *requiring* the use of GUI interfaces to get stuff done. They should be optional workflow-enhancement tools, but you should always be able to dig-in with code yourself. That's the way we'll keep it, that way, T2D can be used in whatever development style fits each person best.
As Melv says, he'll have to start posting not quite as much if he wants to get any actual work done! I've already had to start posting less frequently here, as you may have noticed. But rest assured we'll both at least read everything and keep up to date! We'll be around to put out fires, help answer tough questions, etc, and with a little help from everyone here, we should all get our questions, concerns, and comments addressed quickly! Things are going excellently so far.
Thanks again to Melv and the whole community here! This is so much fun. :)
03/04/2005 (4:04 pm)
Thanks Melv for all your hard work on this! You rock man, and I'd like to thank everyone here again as well. This community is just incredible already. Absolutely could not have wished for things to have gone better so far, and it's all because of you guys. *SO* exciting to see game dev screenshots already, and to see everyone helping each other out here.Greg, just a quick note: your analysis is spot-on. The T2D workflow is very underdeveloped at this point, but we were real up-front about that from the get-go. You are totally correct, the focus for the Early Adopter release was on core technologies, and we just tried to get enough editor workflow in place that peole could do some cool stuff (which they are), even if it's nowhere near where it will be one day.
Believe me when I say that we'll be working our butts off on the workflow / pipeline / editor side of things in the coming months. I think we already have the best tech around for 2D. In the next few months, we're not only going to make the tech even better (in so many ways, I can't wait to talk about them), but we hope to have the best workflow around too. Keep on watching for more news.
And Matt, we agree with you fully re: not *requiring* the use of GUI interfaces to get stuff done. They should be optional workflow-enhancement tools, but you should always be able to dig-in with code yourself. That's the way we'll keep it, that way, T2D can be used in whatever development style fits each person best.
As Melv says, he'll have to start posting not quite as much if he wants to get any actual work done! I've already had to start posting less frequently here, as you may have noticed. But rest assured we'll both at least read everything and keep up to date! We'll be around to put out fires, help answer tough questions, etc, and with a little help from everyone here, we should all get our questions, concerns, and comments addressed quickly! Things are going excellently so far.
Thanks again to Melv and the whole community here! This is so much fun. :)
#18
Although it sounds simple to make a tutorial, it really isn't. Not one that makes it so easy to get running so quickly.
Personally I see a lot more structure on the way things are handled with T2D then with TGE.Clearer instructions, more straight forward object docs, etc... I guess a lot of comunity effort and time helps fine tune this sort of thing. I only hope that T2D keeps on rockin'
03/04/2005 (6:01 pm)
Yeah the docs where pretty cool. After going over the tut, it was easy to look at the code for the shooter demo and know exactly what was going on, why it was emplemented and how to do the same in my own project..Although it sounds simple to make a tutorial, it really isn't. Not one that makes it so easy to get running so quickly.
Personally I see a lot more structure on the way things are handled with T2D then with TGE.Clearer instructions, more straight forward object docs, etc... I guess a lot of comunity effort and time helps fine tune this sort of thing. I only hope that T2D keeps on rockin'
#19
I do have one more thing I'd like to say on this topic before we leave it (for now). I think a lot of us base our opinions on GameMaker-esque tools from our experience with what is already out there. I truly believe there is so much more potential for GUI-based game development than we (the global we) have explored. When I look at T2D I see the possibility for what I like to call vertical tools. A tool that allows you to stay high-level when you want to but to also get right down to the core when necessary.
Apart from my interest in gaming, I am also keenly interested in software usability. In particular I am interested in the way a good piece of software can teach you how to use it by virtue of good design. I am eager to see how T2D's tools progress. If at any point in the future you'd like to have a conversation about tool development, count me in!
So thanks again GG, great work.
03/05/2005 (5:44 am)
I'm glad to see that those "in the know" are taking T2D in the right direction.I do have one more thing I'd like to say on this topic before we leave it (for now). I think a lot of us base our opinions on GameMaker-esque tools from our experience with what is already out there. I truly believe there is so much more potential for GUI-based game development than we (the global we) have explored. When I look at T2D I see the possibility for what I like to call vertical tools. A tool that allows you to stay high-level when you want to but to also get right down to the core when necessary.
Apart from my interest in gaming, I am also keenly interested in software usability. In particular I am interested in the way a good piece of software can teach you how to use it by virtue of good design. I am eager to see how T2D's tools progress. If at any point in the future you'd like to have a conversation about tool development, count me in!
So thanks again GG, great work.
#20
03/05/2005 (10:38 am)
Greg, are you a programmer and/or actual UI designer? If so, we'd be interested in talking with you about your ideas. Need help with all this GUI / interface / tool work! 
Torque Owner Gary "ChunkyKs" Briggs
I've been working with TGE for months, but every time I sat down and started to get something done, I'd get completely overwhelmed.
Since T2D came out, I had one substantial Aha! moment, and thanks to T2D, my personal project(s) are now forging ahead; something they were miserably failing to do before.
As I said; Thank-you VERY much for the fantastic system!
Gary (-;