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GameMaker: Studio?
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➔ GameMaker: Studio website
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Just an FYI, they recently made the 'standard' version free, which has no limit on the number of resources.
You only need the 'professional' version if you want to make games for platforms other than Windows.
I highly recommend GameMaker ( http://www.yoyogames.com/studio ). It has a fully featured free version. I taught myself basic programming when I was 10 with their drag-and-drop system (way back with GM6), but it also includes its own language called GML that's similar to Java and Python. If he ends up getting really into it, they also have modules to export games to iPhone, Android, Windows Phone, Linux, Xbox, Playstation, etc.
GameMaker is FREE. You pay $0 to make a Windows game. Even the Pro edition license goes on sale for $25 or less frequently but you dont have to pay anything to get started.
It was originally called Race 'n' Chase and was pretty good, but developers felt it was lacking something.
Someone accidentally altered the AI of the cops so it went absolutely mental - they'd nudge you, shoot at you, and generally just try and end your life. People playing it began to love this AI and just how crazy it was.
The second fun fact is that despite the original game being viewed from a top-down perspective, it in fact was made up three-dimensionally. One of the original developers, Michael Dailly, is currently in the process of building a 3D version of the original GTA in the game development software he makes, Game Maker.
No. It is not the same.
The old "Free" version had limits on how many game resources (rooms, sounds, sprites, objects, etc.) you could create, but it included the Windows 8 and Mac OS X exporters in addition to the regular Windows exporter.
The new "Standard" version does not have the resource limitations of the old "Free" version, nor does it include the Windows 8 and Mac OS X exporters that the old "Free" version had. It only has the regular Windows exporter.
The old "Standard" version that they gave away for free earlier was the same as the "Standard" version you would have paid $50 for, (and was not the same as the old "Free" version). No resource limits, and included the exporters for Windows, Windows 8, and Max OS X.
Here are the feature tables for the "new" and "old" versions:
Old version of GM:S (from Wayback Machine)
Best way to start, in my opinion:
Do the first few tutorials, up through the scrolling shooter one. This'll take three or four hours and will teach you all the basics you need to know about using the engine, even if you have no coding knowledge whatsoever.
Recreate Pong. Then Space Invaders. Then Pac-Man. You'll learn a TON from this.
After doing those three things, you'll wanna make a few smaller projects of your own. Something you could finish in a week or two, just to better learn how to use GameMaker, understand how much time it takes to make a game of a given scope, get a better intuitive sense for game design stuff... get a small idea, and then make it smaller.
Eventually your projects will get complex enough that you'll get sick of using the drag and drop functions and will want to start writing code to keep everything better organized. Luckily, Game Maker Language is incredibly simple, and pretty much amounts to variables, if statements, and functions. Once you're familiar with GameMaker, read up on some super-basic coding principles and play around with GML and you should get the hang of it in no time.
Having completed those steps, you'll have a better vantage point to decide where you want to go next. Shoot me a message on Twitter if you ever need more advice.
from there : http://www.yoyogames.com/studio
> *** Mac & Ubuntu export modules are currently bundled with all new purchases of GameMaker: Studio Professional at its higher price of $149.99. This offer runs May 18th - present. Purchases before May 18th will not receive the additional exports free of charge.
Maybe that explains your case ?
Check out the sidebar - http://www.reddit.com/r/gamedev/comments/1rs1s1/what_are_some_awesome_game_dev_tools_weve_never/
I recommend you get gameMaker - http://www.yoyogames.com/studio/download - as it can be relatively codeless - ie click/ drag and drop.
Also, brilliantly easy to use: http://www.clickteam.com/clickteam-fusion-2-5-free-edition
The scope of your proposed game is massive. You need to start way smaller. Focus on smaller components then work your way up.
Well and you can only make games for Windows. This is the pro version they're selling on the humble bundle, which includes mac, linux and html5, plus android export module:
Game Maker Studio Pro is being offered for $6, normally $150, and Game Maker Android Export Module is being offered for $12, normally an additional $300 on top of that $150:
http://www.yoyogames.com/studio
This is no hamby-pamby game maker program, this is the game making program for people who think they can program but just don't know any programming languages.
I've used it for over 10 years, personally I think it's great, although I've spoken to a few people that didn't like it or couldn't figure it out. It doesn't really have any limitations - if you find something the GML language can't do, you can just write a DLL in C++ and add that to the game.
This is the software suite that was used to make Hotline Miami 1 (and also why it didn't have customizable controls, those aren't easy to do in GML), so that's evidence you can make a kickass game in it. It also supposedly works for Android, although I've only tried the free version and never gotten it to work.
Then, going with something that has visual scripting could benefit you alot.
Here's a list of more user friendly software you could use :
Stencyl is a powerful 2d development tool with visual scripting, great for beginners and veterans alike. It is 2D only and has a couple tutorials.
Craft Studio is a new engine with visual scripting. it's light easy and you can do everything (even 3d modeling) with it. it's worth a shot.
Game Maker is a classic game tool with a lot of support and time behind its back. It's a bit on the expensive side if you want to publish your game professionnaly though.
Those are some of the engines I can think off. Check them out, I think you could find something that suits you, and good luck !
1) if I didn't attend a school like full sail and just went to a university that didn't offer game designing. What degree would be the closest to game design.
If you're doing the coding, computer science. If you're doing the art, graphic arts. If you're managing a team of programmers, engineering management. If you're marketing/promoting a game, marketing.
2) what programs are used for character/landscape design and can you give me a brief description of how the process of designing both goes down
2d and 3d are going to be vastly different answers. There are also hordes of tools out there for both, not only for the actual design/modeling but for creating animation, tiling, texture mapping, artificial lighting.
For example, you might make a 3d model in 3d studio max, the textures in photoshop, and import it all into unity for animation.
3) what exactly does a game engine like unity/unreal do for a game
They create the basic framework for your game to be built upon. Things like drawing to the screen properly, allocating memory, loading animations, detecting collisions, etc.
4) what are good programs for a beginner like me to mess around in and get used to things
If you have no programming experience Gamemaker. If you have programming experience but are new to games then I would suggest following Unity tutorials.
If you have no experience, start by using Game Maker Studio free version. There's an abundance of tutorials on getting started there. The graphical programming system is an excellent way to start to understand the logic behind programming.
Once you're comfortable using game maker, I recommend learning C# first. You definitely don't want to learn C++ first.
Later down the road, you can dabble in Game Maker Language - a scripting language which offers more technical power.. I'd learn C# first though in order to understand the core concepts behind programming.
Once you're comfortable with Game Maker and basic C# programming, you can start learning Unity.
There are 1-man teams too working with Unity, but ya I understand too well (I have tried to get in to it for the longest time, it's just bit too daunting)
2 smaller-scale tools I've heard lots of good about:
You'll definitely want to check out the Godot Game Engine. It's arguably the best free open-source engine around currently, and is very actively developed (they just got a swanky new website too).
It can use either C++ or a Python-like language that is deeply ingrained in the engine, so it should be faster than regular Python. It can't do 3D very well yet, but that should improve massively next year. For 2D, it's nearly unmatched!
A good Python programming primer book would also be very helpful, something like 'Learn Python the Hard Way', which is also free :D
The Gamemaker Engine is also pretty good if you're only doing 2D, but it's not free like Godot.
Unity is great for 3D, but for 2D games it's actually quite lacking compared to the other two I mentioned.
You see, if I had a more extensive knowledge of C# or C++, I would make this using that, but I don't. Due to that, this is more of an extension to Game Maker: Studio. Later down the line, if I am feeling it, I will make this using Visual Studio or something, but now is not that time. Also, in case you don't know about Game Maker: Studio, it uses a language called GML (Game Maker Language). GML is a language that is basically a modified form of C.
Learn a musical instrument. Get into origami and learn to make a throwing star with your eyes closed, then make a hundred of them. Ask a friend to recommend one of their favorite books to you, but make sure it's from a genre you haven't read from before. Check out Game Maker and create a scrolling shooter, all the assets you need are right there. Get over to /r/WritingPrompts and pick something that sounds interesting, open up a word doc, and just start writing, don't even think about it. Pick a video game you love and try to break a world record in it.
These aren't hobbies on their own, just single activities - but if you love one of them, it can quickly turn into a hobby.
Well there are a lot of resources available to help people make games even if they don't know much about how to code.
There are resources like Game Maker Studio or Unity. I would definitely check out the video on that unity page.
It's not going to make it "easy" but it helps to get started somewhere, and the more you attempt the better you'll be for the experience. What's that saying, the master has failed more times than the beginner has even tried? It's like that.
I don't know if it will do anything to help your immediate situation, but think of it as sowing the seeds for something better down the road.
The more you build your skills now, the more able you will be to see and take advantage of an opportunity when it presents itself.
I don't think GameMaker supports Wii U exporting.
http://www.yoyogames.com/studio/multiformat/console
Edit: To add to this, GameMaker uses its own code so its not like you can just move it to another IDE either. If they did want to do it maybe they could export to HTML and make use of some of the Nintendo Web Services to fill in the gaps.
Well, even if you can't program and/or don't know anyone who can you can still play around with the Unity Standard Assets and have a lot of fun making levels and stuff for the different character controllers. Unity's Editor makes it really easy to make levels for games, you just drag and drop objects where you want them in the scene. However, I don't recommend learning to program for the first time with Unity. Their tutorials and docs will tend to assume that you already have some programming ability.
A decent tutorial series to gain that ability would be thenewboston. I personally have only watched his Java tutorial and I remember some of his programming habits that he teaches are odd, like not capitalizing his method names, but he explains things well. Looking through his C# playlist, I figure you should be ready to start Unity programming with ease after just about 30 tutorials or so.
If you know the basics Unity's tutorials are pretty good, so to be honest once you know how to program at least a text game in C# or some other Unity compatible language you might already be ready to move onto Unity scripting.
On a side note, since you don't know how to program yet, if you get bored just making levels in Unity and you're eager to make your own games from scratch you could try using GameMaker because you don't need to know a programming language to use it. It has drag and drop scripting tools for people to get an idea of how game programming works on a surface level. You can experiment with that until you're ready to start learning code, but you could also just skip using GameMaker entirely.
I make my games in HTML5, writing on top of a custom game engine I created myself. My editor of choice is Sublime Text 2 for JavaScript (HTML5)
Are you good with programming already? If so, choose any game engine in your language and get started. If not I would recommend you take a look at GameMaker to get you started and into scripting :)
Gamemaker Studio has a free edition. Making a game isn't picking and choosing or conducting. It's hard work. Be prepared for a ton of work for small steps in progress. You will get frustrated and most likely give up. If you don't, you'll cross the threshold and become a god of your own world.
The standard version became the free version, removing a bunch of limitations for free users. There is still a pro version. You can see the differences between the versions here. The Steam version and the version on the YoYo games site should be the same.
You can create commercial games with any of the versions, including the free one and the Steam one. The only bad thing about the free one is that there is a "Made with GameMaker" splash screen when the games you make are started.
Since I feel you are lacking the basics.
This is a super simple program to get you started. I use UE4 but this should give you a base line. if you want to take a different approach, Learn C# then come back.
I downloaded it from here.
When I installed the software it asked if I had a CD key or would like to use a free version, which requires you to input email for promotional purposes and then input the key they send you.
Thanks for the good new about the functionality.
He is using Javascript to draw the game on the HTML5 Canvas object. He could use HTML5 Local Storage to keep track of a player's progress.
His code is pretty wtf though. 53690 lines of code for something simple like this is pretty weird. You could probably write it in <500. His choice of variable and function names is also suspicious. Humans don't really code like that. Maybe advanced programmers, but not 'noobie indie game devs'.
I think our OP used some sort of WYSIWYG or drag&drop game maker to create his game.
Edit: Well now I feel stupid. There is a link to the software he used right on his front-page.
Yes. game maker Your probably not going to make anything good with it but its a great start.
If you want to really make games you are going to need to know programming. Take a look at this guide for some tips on getting started.
I'm looking at using GameMaker Studio and have been watching Extra Credits for theory. Once I get through that and my backlog of videos - I'm gonna pack up my dreams and let them ferment for a while as I just focus on learning what I can do mechanically. Probably by cloning other games. This isn't a fast thing and isn't something I'm willing to let someone else down with by dropping in and out of production.
I have made board games and used level creators and thought of rulesets before, but I learn things very independently and have lots to learn.
>The compiler is now part of the standard package and price is built into add on exports.
Really? According to this page it's a $300 add-on to the Professional version of Studio.
It really depends on what language you want to program, or whether you want to use a framework/engine. This is one of the best guides to learning C++ as far as I'm concerned, but I recommend you start by using an engine like GameMaker Studio before trying to learn an advanced programming language.
I am not entirely sure what you mean. I think you might have more luck on the Unity3D subreddit :)
This one is for Game Maker
The code you posted is also pretty simple. Try to include all the relevant code when you post there.
Also try out Game Maker! It is easy to make games with it, and there are a lot of nice and helpful people on this subreddit.
AFAIK there is no way to make a game in Unity with no code unless you use PlayMaker or something like that. Or you could try Construct 2 or Game Maker Studio.
Welcome to gamedev!
For your first project I'd stay in gamemaker. I prefer my old copy of 8.0, but studio is free, the workflow is really good, and GML is easy to understand if you have any programming experience. It won't give you the most efficient code or the tools of Unity or UE4, but you shouldn't bothering with all that stuff because it'll quickly become a timesink.
And ignore those who say an RPG is too complicated. Simple menu combat in gamemaker is actually really easy. Jtake your time, make sure you understand every new system you build, and don't rush anything. I use gamemaker a lot so feel free to PM with questions.
Edit: Sorry mods, didn't realize that link wasn't allowed! I had linked to a website where you could find assets for fan game projects. I still recommend making a non-commercial fangame while you learn, but you can also design your own simple sprites. Here is one of my favorite tutorials on basic sprite animation.
Undertale was built in GameMaker Studio but I don't believe that you can decompile the game in a way where you can see the internal logic. In any case, if you're looking for any example at all, the best places to start are going to be finding source code for Space Invaders, Pong or Snake, in whichever language you have chosen to learn. You can do this easily with google searches.
~~Didn't they take away the price a while ago, sans for Professional version/modules? http://www.yoyogames.com/studio .~~ ^see ^replies
Anyway yeah I doubt any school anywhere would update any software during the school year. Either way, if there's a charge, they could probably stand a chance of arranging some kind of academic deal with YYG.
Gamemaker is on super discount http://www.yoyogames.com/studio
Not sure if you can buy it for that on steam but I would HIGHLY recommend you buy direct because they always update the steam version at a slower cadence
To be fair, Game Maker Studio has a free edition. If you are 14, honestly, the free version is more than enough to learn. By the time you need the features that the Pro version offers; the cost will be easily justified.
EDIT: I didn't see the Android module is at the next tier.
>GameMaker: Studio™ Professional unlocks the full power of GameMaker: Studio™, giving you all the added ability to collaborate within a team through subversion, monetize your game with an unprecedented amount of developer services, as well as being able to purchase and plug-in Android, iOS, Windows Phone 8 and HTML5 export modules.
From their website, looks like the pro version still costs an extra $299 for Android support.
Correct me if I'm wrong.
It absolutely isn't impossible. Telling people that is a dumb idea. Let him figure out where his limits are.
Dedicated game-making software does exist, free and proprietary alike. Some have both free versions and more fully featured proprietary versions. GameMaker is one of the most well-known.
That said, game-making software tends to isolate its users from the actual act of programming and all that entails. In a way that's the whole point of it, but that shouldn't be seen as a good thing except for people who are sure that's actually what they want.
If you're going to focus on the fiction element, then Twine is your best bet. If, however, you're trying to develop the game side of things you probably want to avoid Twine, and you definitely want to avoid Ruby and Lua. They're fine languages, but they're programming languages, and if you use them you'll spend all of your time programming instead of making games. It sounds that what you really want to use is a tool called Game Maker. It's free and is focused on 2D game development. It will let you get started making what you want easily, without having to write an engine and I highly recommend it. Your second option is Unity - it's also free, and is extremely powerful. It's effectively the industry standard for game development.
Game Maker - http://www.yoyogames.com/studio Unity - https://unity3d.com/
Windows Desktop Module can be used to export to windows desktop systems.
The additional package includes the Yoyo Compiler and Exporter, which you can find more information on here. It's not required to make a game for Windows.
I think GameMaker might be a good choice for you. You can get into it quite quick and if at one point you want to make a commercial game with it, you can easily upgrade and have a go at it.
If you're doing only for as a school project and doesn't intend to learn more, I'd go with something like GameSalad. It requires no programming language knowledge.
GameMaker might also be an option. It is possible to make a game without any coding knowledge too, but it allows scripting (if you feel like you need a more robust set of tool). I started here and do not regret, learned a lot with it.
At last, if you already know some C# or java, I'd definitely go with Unity. But it might not be ideal if this is your first game...
Best of luck!
If you don't mind the splash screen (I even think that the lite version of 8.1 has a splash screen or watermark of some kind) you could easily switch to GM:Studio: unlimited resources, almost all features are available (limited exports, and no advanced features like texture management...), but it should allow path_add, afaik.
Source: http://www.yoyogames.com/studio (scroll down for features)
Unreal 4 has quite a few tutorials for it as well. I know for certain that many can be downloaded from the same system that you get the Unreal 4 engine from(I'm sure that will help immensely when getting used to something as complex as unreal). Also consider something less complex like gamemaker or some other 2D engine. 2D games are considerably easier to make. I suppose design-wise not so much, but programming a 2D game is leagues easier than a 3D one. Definitely look into both of those things when you have the time.
I wish you good luck!
EDIT: Adding Link
No. Download it from Yoyo's website. Always buy it from them and you get FREE Steam Keys. GM:Studio is the latest version of GameMaker. 8.0 is the last generation. http://www.yoyogames.com/studio/download
It's not really playing a game, but if they like the building aspect of Minecraft, they might like making their own computer games with GameMaker, which can be download for free at http://www.yoyogames.com/studio. I started learning this software when I was 11 years old (with some help from my dad), so you may need to wait a little longer for your younger one to make things on his own.
Most people will tell you that if you want to make a game, and you have no experience, then you are going to want to start small. The idea you have seems to have a pretty wide scope and would be very difficult to make on your own without any type of skills.
That being said, I would try to learn some programming and make a small project that you can easily see through completion, something simple like Asteroids. I would probably recommend trying something like Gamemaker if you don't have any programming experience and want to start making games right away.
You don't need much programming knowledge to start making games as it has a built in drag-and-drop system to get you started, and once you get the hang of it you can start learning how to write scripts in order to get more control of what you are making.
Of course there are tons of other routes you could go, but I find that gamemaker is good for beginners because the program is made just for building games and it has a lot of built in functions for making games. I believe there is also a limited version you can get for free, since you mentioned you don't have a budget for it, you could at least give it a try and see if you like it. It also has a built in sprite editor, although very limited you can at least make some simple art while you learn how to build a game. It will be very hard to focus on building a game and making really nice art for it, I would recommend focusing on building the game and worry about art later. Just make some simpler placeholders.
If you decide to go that route you will find some helpful folks over at /r/gamemaker that can help you out.
I wonder if there might be an issue with the code on their download page, the page with the "Download Gamemaker: Studio" buttons. When I tried the links there, for both the stable release and the "early access" version, the download failed with the aforementioned warning. However, downloading directly from the release notes page completed successfully for both 1.4.1474 (the same version currently delivered by the stable "download" button) and 1.4.1522 (the newest version on the release notes page).
download >>
http://www.yoyogames.com/studio/download
gamemaker:studio >>
http://www.yoyogames.com/download/studio/free
I believe (if I remember correctly) choices (free / pro / master) are given to you the first time you launch the program... I would have expected that the same happens from the steam version.
I would suggest getting the standard edition of game maker if the only on Windows thing isn't an issue. Any solution that you aren't familiar with is going to be a problem with such a short amount of time to learn it though.
If you want to make games without learning a ton of programming first, I recommend GameMaker. It has a really easy to understand UI and drag & drop features for making things happen. Once you get comfortable with the basics, there is also a pretty decent programming part to it too using it's own language. You could make a game like the one here in a few minutes if you really wanted to.
"Made with GameMaker Splash Screen in game" was added to the feature comparison table on June 6 when the announcement that standard was changing. It should have been in builds from then but has only just been added.
You don't neccessarely need to learn a programming language to make a game, just don't think it will be easy.
I can recommend GameMaker Studios. (/r/gamemaker)
It's a pretty cool software to make games. Primarely 2D games.
I recommend doing the inbuilt tutorials first, they're great and quite easy to understand.
I think the first Spelunky and Gunpoint was also made with this software.
You do realize there is a free standard version right? http://www.yoyogames.com/studio
With that in mind you could either do 2 different objects or have a variable that determines if it is a death collision in the block that relies on whether the room is room 1 or not.
if( this_is_not_room_1 ) { set variable can_kill_player to true; }
I took up game development about a year ago and I haven't regretted it! There's a LOT that goes into designing a game that, if you do it right, the player never even notices. Do these levels progress by a magnitude of difficulty that makes sense (sometimes a difficulty curve is not linear)? Am I keeping the player's interest the entire time, or are they getting bored? What kind of ambient sound should be playing in this empty room? Is the player getting enough feedback to show them they're succeeding/failing? Am I guiding the player through the game in a way that makes sense, without making them feel like I'm holding their hand? What kind of experience am I trying to capture, or what kind of tone am I trying to set?
These sorts of questions are NEVER answered on your first go at a game. But if you iterate, get feedback from your peers, and tweak your game over and over again, you'll see fantastic improvement and eventually end up with something you're proud to show people!
/r/gamedev is a great place to read up on stuff like this, and they have Feedback Fridays where people post their works in progress for some constructive criticism.
You don't even have to be skilled at programming to make a game! Simple game engines like Game Maker are free, simple to use, and very powerful for first-time devs. My first long-term game (3+ months) was made with it, and I'm really proud of what came out of it.
There might be a bit of a learning curve (as is the case with pretty much any hobby), but you already have a computer, so you're more than halfway there already! If you interact regularly with the people over at /r/gamedev, I'm sure you'll find the process of designing and developing games to be a humbling, rewarding experience. :)