7 replies to this topic

[Columbo]

Hi Guys,

Sorry for the ambiguous title (its not a lie :)), I've just registered after spending the afternoon mooching through your site.

I've just read "I want to make a game, where do I start?" so i think im aware of what and what not to ask, however i do need some help.

I'm 26, and currently employed as a systems engineer for quite a large company in central London. I've been in IT for 5-6 years after passing an IT degree in programming concepts and practice.

I love games.

I worked part time from the age of 16-18 and then full time from 18-21 in a games shop, Even at college i had been bitten by the "games dev" bug, writing games for most of my mandatory projects, at 15 I got majorly into Q3 Radiant and that whole scene, While I don't think I'm "great" at programming, i think I've got a great grasp on the basics and I'm really enthusiastic to learn.

Which brings me to my question, to quip the tired old cliché, I have a really really good idea for a game, i don't want to give away too much, but i need some advice on a possible engine to use, I've read some of the reviews on the main page but each one gets quite hyped up and im not sure of which suits my needs best.

My design goal is to have an engine with modern enough 3d graphics (i think DX9 is sufficient), networking capabilities and something that isn't a million miles away from c#, I've used XNA before with C# and although the framework is great, I'm not sure how it stands up to the other engines out there.

I haven't had a great deal of experienced with modelling programs, but as I say I have made levels before, do these Engines come with their own level/model designers or do you have to use separate ones?

Are the open source engines any good? some of the comments on OGRE make it sound less appealing, but it seems as though all of the OS ones don't support network connectivity?

Thanks in advance for any help, and great work with the site and the forums!

[Grandmaster B]

You should describe your game better otherwise its hard to give advices. I would give different recommendations for FPS, RPG, Racing etc..

Otherwise try Unity first. It can give you a high level overview how a game engine usualy works.

[Columbo]

Fair point, well very generally its a FPS with RTS connotations, think Savage but with a twist.

[Grandmaster B]

If you are good at C# you may try NeoAxis (http://www.neoaxisgroup.com/) its a damn nice engine but has drawbacks. The documentation is not very good, but this is true for many engines. Secondly you cant start creating a game from scratch (unless you are an expert with C# and that engine), you have to integrate the game into a framework. The framework is very good but you have to learn it first which takes some time. The lacking documentation is not big help here. There are some good games made with that engine and the SDK includes a stunning demo of almost all features (best engine demo around!). The graphics are modern but not cutting edge. Its actively developed and by a nice staff and also supported by a very nice community. If it wasnt for the learning curve this were a dream engine. However, if you want a C# engine this is no-brainer. Though there is no network support by now you'll have to do that seperately.

You may also try Esenthel (http://www.esenthel.com/). It is well made and is very complete. But dont expect it to be easy either way. You dont just need learn the engine, you also need to create a complete game and you need artwork. I advice you to get some help or keep the game VERY simple.

Write me a PM if you decided for an engine i can probably help you with the workflow and getting things started.

[Rofar]

NeoAxis and Esenthel are the ones I would suggest taking a look at also. However, for Esenthel you will need some C++ knowledge. There are a lot of engines out there to consider though so I wouldn't decide on anything until you have checked out as many as you can. You need to find the one that works best for your project, your skills and your price range. There will be no absolutely perfect solution but there should be one that fits your needs best.

[Columbo]

Perfect, just the lead i needed, thank you both <3

[alphadog]

Columbo said:

an engine with modern enough 3d graphics (i think DX9 is sufficient), networking capabilities and something that isn't a million miles away from c#, I've used XNA before with C# and although the framework is great, I'm not sure how it stands up to the other engines out there

Don't fret too much on which engine to use; it's really a form of "analysis paralysis". Any of the frequently-mentioned engines on this forum are more than enough to solve your initial needs, esp the open-source ones where you can drill-down on an as-needed basis to change or extend.

Columbo said:

I haven't had a great deal of experienced with modelling programs, but as I say I have made levels before, do these Engines come with their own level/model designers or do you have to use separate ones?

Depends. If you take NeoAxis, they have lots of various editors. Something like OGRE doesn't, but has a wide following that produce tools for importing from other programs into formats that an OGRE can eat.

Columbo said:

Are the open source engines any good? some of the comments on OGRE make it sound less appealing

What comments? OGRE has been around for a while and is a decent rendering engine. Also, check out Axiom as an OGRE port to C#.

Columbo said:

it seems as though all of the OS ones don't support network connectivity?

That may be because in the FOSS world, things tend to be more modular. With something like OGRE, you are expected to find a separate networking library, and there are plenty of people who have integrated OGRE with the various ones out there.

As previous posters have suggested, Esenthiel and NeoAxis are good choices. Unity is another, unless you are making an MMO. Torque and Visual3D.NET would be worth considering too. Leadwerks and Terathon's C4 would round out the list of good game engines. Now, for renderers, you'd look at OGRE, Axiom, Irrlicht and Panda3D.

[TaggM]

First, make your ideas work. Make a Web-based prototype (something like kingdomofloathing.com) to work through the mechanics and kinks, and even run through a couple of quick test player accounts. To start, all you need to get are a text editor, Perl/PHP, Apache/IIS, and MySQL/MS Access/Oracle Express Edition.

After your ideas are fleshed out and you can draft and revise a proper Game Design Document, then it will be time to play around with the current versions of OGRE or what not to make 2D and 3D graphics, sounds, music, other artwork.