際際滷

際際滷Share a Scribd company logo

Introduction to Game-Making Tools

Download as PPT, PDF
Cecily Carver
Cecily Carver

These are the slides from Dames Making Games' "Introduction to Game-Making Tools" workshop. If you want to make a game, there are lots of tools available to help you -- even if you've never made one before, and even if you don't know how to code! This presentation provides an overview of the tools that are most popular with DMG members.

1 of 63
Downloaded 247 times
So You Want to Make a Game A Short Introduction to Game-Making Tools
Introduction to Game-Making Tools
You can make a game Even if youve never made one before Even if you dont know how to code Even if you cant draw
What to ask yourself What kind of games am I interested in? What technical resources are available to me? What are my existing skills? Writing, illustration, music, 3D modelling, programming, design? What skills do I want to learn?
A note on coding Its not the only skill that matters. Games need artists, writers, designers, composers, and musicians too. Best benefit/time ratio will come from understanding logic flow concepts rather than coding
Tools that do one thing Twine (interactive fiction) iV (interactive art and video) RPG Maker (RPGs) Adventure Game Studio, RenPy (visual novels) Inform 7 (text adventures)
Tools that do many things Stencyl GameMaker GameSalad Unity Construct 2
THE ESSENTIAL TRADEOFF: Fast and easy vs. flexible and powerful
A note on free tools You can probably do this for free: Building your game and exporting to a single platform This will probably cost money: Multiple platforms Putting your game on a mobile device (especially iOS) Monetization
Twine
Twine in a nutshell A free, very beginner-friendly text-oriented tool for writing interactive stories with branching paths.
Introduction to Game-Making Tools
Twine Questions Is it free? Yep. Mac or PC? Both. Coding needed? Nope, although you can make more complex games with a basic knowledge of variables, if statements, and HTML/CSS/javascript. Where to get it? twinery.org What does it export to? HTML.
Some games by our members Penalties, Soha El-Sabaawi Even Cowgirls Bleed, Christine Love Phone Home, Jen Costa, Noreen Rana, Kaitlin Smith Im Fine, by Royel Edwards There are Monsters Under Your B , by Kaitlin Tremblay
Twine is worth trying if You mostly want to write Youre an absolute beginner Youre short on time Youre interested in nonlinear narratives Youre savvy with HTML and CSS
Avoid Twine if Youre making a game with avatars/movement/action You hate writing
iV
iV in a nutshell Twine with video. Create branching narratives/experiences with images and video as well as text. Developed by DMG as a fork from ScreenPerfect!
An important note iV is a fork from ScreenPerfect. ScreenPerfect concept and development by Alex Leitch with the kind support of the OCADu game::play lab. Engine produced to drive Hannah Epstein's synchronous multiscreen/device installation game PsXXYborg and completed in concert with Alex's thesis "ScreenPerfect: Accessible web tools for contemporary art."
Introduction to Game-Making Tools
iV Questions Is it free? Yes. Mac or PC? Both. Coding needed? Nope. Where to get it? bentobx.github.io/iV/ What does it export to? Web.
Games to check out PsXXYborg, Hannah Epstein, Alex Leitch, Sagan Yee
iV is worth a try if You want to focus on making art/video/story instead of the tech Youre interested in nonlinear narratives You want to help us out
Avoid iV if You dont like new things (cause theyre still rough around the edges) You want a game with action, physics, puzzles, etc.
RPG Maker
RPG Maker in a nutshell A tool for making RPGs in the style of early Final Fantasy games. With some creativity, adaptable to the adventure genre.
Introduction to Game-Making Tools
RPG Maker Questions Is it free? No. But theres a free, limited lite version you can try out. Mac or PC? PC only. Coding needed? Nope. But you can if you want to. Where to get it? rpgmakerweb.com What does it export to? PC executable.
Some games From the community Restless, Natalie Zed The Doctor is Ready, Megan Patterson, Kara Stone, Cecily Carver Actual Sunlight, Will ONeill
RPG Maker is worth a try if... You want to make an RPG You want to make a game thats dialogue/story-heavy You like world-building Youre feeling nostalgic
Avoid RPG Maker if Youre on a Mac You dont like the early 90s RPG style You want to make something thats not an RPG or an adventure game
Stencyl
Stencyl in a nutshell A free tool for making Flash games using Scratch (codelearning tool for beginners) and ActionScript
Introduction to Game-Making Tools
Stencyl Questions Is it free? Yep (mostly). Mac or PC? Both (and Linux!) Coding needed? Depends. You can get pretty far with no code, and even complex/unusual games can be made mostly with the built-in Scratch interface, which is a simplified learn-to-code tool for children and beginners. Where to get it? stencyl.com What does it export to? Flash.
Some games by our members Icarus, Sagan Yee Having it All, Miriam Verburg Unicorn Justice Fighter/Unicorn R , Una Lee
Stencyl is worth trying if... You want to make a 2D platformer, action, or physics game You want to learn to code, or youre a beginner coder who wants to improve You want to eventually publish to mobile platforms
Avoid Stencyl if... You want to display a lot of text on the screen (i.e. a point-and-click adventure) You have no interest in coding and are easily frustrated by it
GameMaker
GameMaker in a nutshell A widely-used, well-respected beginner-friendly PC tool with some powerful advanced features.
Introduction to Game-Making Tools
GameMaker Questions Is it free? Not really. Theres a free version, but its limited. Mac or PC? PC (mostly) Theres a Mac version, but its limited. Coding needed? Nope. Theres a drag-and-drop interface that covers most simple actions. But you can code if you want using GML. Where to get it? yoyogames.com What does it export to? .exe
Some games by our members Cuddlegeddon, Gillian Blekkenhorst Seven Sins, Leisha-Marie Riddel Girl Sprout Camp, Carly Beath Golden Fall, Yuliya Boublikova
GameMaker is worth trying if You want to make a 2D platformer, action, or physics game You like lots of tutorials and online support Youre on a PC
Avoid GameMaker if Youre on a Mac You want your games to be playable in-browser Story is your main focus You hate ugly interfaces
GameSalad
GameSalad in a nutshell A beginner-oriented tool for 2D games with absolutely no coding. Exports to iOS out-ofthe-box.
Introduction to Game-Making Tools
GameSalad Questions Is it free? Yes. Theres a free version, but its limited. Mac or PC? Mac (mostly). Theres a PC version, but its not very good. Coding needed? Nope. Everything is drag-and-drop. Even if you want to code, you cant! Where to get it? gamesalad.com What does it export to? Mac executable, web (in the GameSalad arcade), iOS.
Some games by our members MedicationMeditation, Kara Stone So Youve Been Fridged, Izzie Colpitts-Campbell, Kat Verhoeven, Natalie Zed
GameSalad is worth a try if You want to make a 2D action, platformer, or physics game You dont want to code Youre on a Mac You want to make an iPhone/iPad game
Avoid GameSalad if Youre on a PC You want to learn to code You want to focus on story
Introduction to Game-Making Tools
Unity in a nutshell A free, widely used, very powerful engine for creating 3D games.
Introduction to Game-Making Tools
Unity Questions Is it free? Yes. Mac or PC? Both. Coding needed? Yes. Where to get it? unity3d.com What does it export to? Pretty much everything
Some games by our members Countenance, Carly Beath, Yuliya Boublikova, LeishaMarie Riddel, Pina Visconti, and Alex Wong Spy Jammer, Daniele Hopkins
Unity is worth a try if You want to make a 3D game You want a professionalgrade tool Youre comfortable with coding or want to learn how to code Youre interested in the Oculus Rift, EEG headsets, etc.
Avoid Unity if You dont want a steep learning curve You dont want to code
Unsolicited Advice
Cecily Sez Your first game is not your magnum opus Keep it as simple as possible Try lots of things Work in a spiral, not a straight line Back up your games
Programming Concepts to learn (If you want) Variables If/else statements Boolean logic Loops
Introduction to Game-Making Tools

More Related Content

Introduction to Game-Making Tools

  • 1. So You Want to Make a Game A Short Introduction to Game-Making Tools
  • 3. You can make a game Even if youve never made one before Even if you dont know how to code Even if you cant draw
  • 4. What to ask yourself What kind of games am I interested in? What technical resources are available to me? What are my existing skills? Writing, illustration, music, 3D modelling, programming, design? What skills do I want to learn?
  • 5. A note on coding Its not the only skill that matters. Games need artists, writers, designers, composers, and musicians too. Best benefit/time ratio will come from understanding logic flow concepts rather than coding
  • 6. Tools that do one thing Twine (interactive fiction) iV (interactive art and video) RPG Maker (RPGs) Adventure Game Studio, RenPy (visual novels) Inform 7 (text adventures)
  • 7. Tools that do many things Stencyl GameMaker GameSalad Unity Construct 2
  • 8. THE ESSENTIAL TRADEOFF: Fast and easy vs. flexible and powerful
  • 9. A note on free tools You can probably do this for free: Building your game and exporting to a single platform This will probably cost money: Multiple platforms Putting your game on a mobile device (especially iOS) Monetization
  • 10. Twine
  • 11. Twine in a nutshell A free, very beginner-friendly text-oriented tool for writing interactive stories with branching paths.
  • 13. Twine Questions Is it free? Yep. Mac or PC? Both. Coding needed? Nope, although you can make more complex games with a basic knowledge of variables, if statements, and HTML/CSS/javascript. Where to get it? twinery.org What does it export to? HTML.
  • 14. Some games by our members Penalties, Soha El-Sabaawi Even Cowgirls Bleed, Christine Love Phone Home, Jen Costa, Noreen Rana, Kaitlin Smith Im Fine, by Royel Edwards There are Monsters Under Your B , by Kaitlin Tremblay
  • 15. Twine is worth trying if You mostly want to write Youre an absolute beginner Youre short on time Youre interested in nonlinear narratives Youre savvy with HTML and CSS
  • 16. Avoid Twine if Youre making a game with avatars/movement/action You hate writing
  • 17. iV
  • 18. iV in a nutshell Twine with video. Create branching narratives/experiences with images and video as well as text. Developed by DMG as a fork from ScreenPerfect!
  • 19. An important note iV is a fork from ScreenPerfect. ScreenPerfect concept and development by Alex Leitch with the kind support of the OCADu game::play lab. Engine produced to drive Hannah Epstein's synchronous multiscreen/device installation game PsXXYborg and completed in concert with Alex's thesis "ScreenPerfect: Accessible web tools for contemporary art."
  • 21. iV Questions Is it free? Yes. Mac or PC? Both. Coding needed? Nope. Where to get it? bentobx.github.io/iV/ What does it export to? Web.
  • 22. Games to check out PsXXYborg, Hannah Epstein, Alex Leitch, Sagan Yee
  • 23. iV is worth a try if You want to focus on making art/video/story instead of the tech Youre interested in nonlinear narratives You want to help us out
  • 24. Avoid iV if You dont like new things (cause theyre still rough around the edges) You want a game with action, physics, puzzles, etc.
  • 26. RPG Maker in a nutshell A tool for making RPGs in the style of early Final Fantasy games. With some creativity, adaptable to the adventure genre.
  • 28. RPG Maker Questions Is it free? No. But theres a free, limited lite version you can try out. Mac or PC? PC only. Coding needed? Nope. But you can if you want to. Where to get it? rpgmakerweb.com What does it export to? PC executable.
  • 29. Some games From the community Restless, Natalie Zed The Doctor is Ready, Megan Patterson, Kara Stone, Cecily Carver Actual Sunlight, Will ONeill
  • 30. RPG Maker is worth a try if... You want to make an RPG You want to make a game thats dialogue/story-heavy You like world-building Youre feeling nostalgic
  • 31. Avoid RPG Maker if Youre on a Mac You dont like the early 90s RPG style You want to make something thats not an RPG or an adventure game
  • 33. Stencyl in a nutshell A free tool for making Flash games using Scratch (codelearning tool for beginners) and ActionScript
  • 35. Stencyl Questions Is it free? Yep (mostly). Mac or PC? Both (and Linux!) Coding needed? Depends. You can get pretty far with no code, and even complex/unusual games can be made mostly with the built-in Scratch interface, which is a simplified learn-to-code tool for children and beginners. Where to get it? stencyl.com What does it export to? Flash.
  • 36. Some games by our members Icarus, Sagan Yee Having it All, Miriam Verburg Unicorn Justice Fighter/Unicorn R , Una Lee
  • 37. Stencyl is worth trying if... You want to make a 2D platformer, action, or physics game You want to learn to code, or youre a beginner coder who wants to improve You want to eventually publish to mobile platforms
  • 38. Avoid Stencyl if... You want to display a lot of text on the screen (i.e. a point-and-click adventure) You have no interest in coding and are easily frustrated by it
  • 40. GameMaker in a nutshell A widely-used, well-respected beginner-friendly PC tool with some powerful advanced features.
  • 42. GameMaker Questions Is it free? Not really. Theres a free version, but its limited. Mac or PC? PC (mostly) Theres a Mac version, but its limited. Coding needed? Nope. Theres a drag-and-drop interface that covers most simple actions. But you can code if you want using GML. Where to get it? yoyogames.com What does it export to? .exe
  • 43. Some games by our members Cuddlegeddon, Gillian Blekkenhorst Seven Sins, Leisha-Marie Riddel Girl Sprout Camp, Carly Beath Golden Fall, Yuliya Boublikova
  • 44. GameMaker is worth trying if You want to make a 2D platformer, action, or physics game You like lots of tutorials and online support Youre on a PC
  • 45. Avoid GameMaker if Youre on a Mac You want your games to be playable in-browser Story is your main focus You hate ugly interfaces
  • 47. GameSalad in a nutshell A beginner-oriented tool for 2D games with absolutely no coding. Exports to iOS out-ofthe-box.
  • 49. GameSalad Questions Is it free? Yes. Theres a free version, but its limited. Mac or PC? Mac (mostly). Theres a PC version, but its not very good. Coding needed? Nope. Everything is drag-and-drop. Even if you want to code, you cant! Where to get it? gamesalad.com What does it export to? Mac executable, web (in the GameSalad arcade), iOS.
  • 50. Some games by our members MedicationMeditation, Kara Stone So Youve Been Fridged, Izzie Colpitts-Campbell, Kat Verhoeven, Natalie Zed
  • 51. GameSalad is worth a try if You want to make a 2D action, platformer, or physics game You dont want to code Youre on a Mac You want to make an iPhone/iPad game
  • 52. Avoid GameSalad if Youre on a PC You want to learn to code You want to focus on story
  • 54. Unity in a nutshell A free, widely used, very powerful engine for creating 3D games.
  • 56. Unity Questions Is it free? Yes. Mac or PC? Both. Coding needed? Yes. Where to get it? unity3d.com What does it export to? Pretty much everything
  • 57. Some games by our members Countenance, Carly Beath, Yuliya Boublikova, LeishaMarie Riddel, Pina Visconti, and Alex Wong Spy Jammer, Daniele Hopkins
  • 58. Unity is worth a try if You want to make a 3D game You want a professionalgrade tool Youre comfortable with coding or want to learn how to code Youre interested in the Oculus Rift, EEG headsets, etc.
  • 59. Avoid Unity if You dont want a steep learning curve You dont want to code
  • 61. Cecily Sez Your first game is not your magnum opus Keep it as simple as possible Try lots of things Work in a spiral, not a straight line Back up your games
  • 62. Programming Concepts to learn (If you want) Variables If/else statements Boolean logic Loops