Hi Tom,
I have been looking forward to your game engine since I first heard mention
of it. For me at least, this is a no-brainer since even though I would have
to learn a new language, it would at least be based on something I
know--basic. It definitely seems the best way, especially when you talk
about the compatibility problems between the Python versions. One of the
most important aspects of game design for me is 3d audio. I'm not sure how
well Python could handle calculations of that complexity or if something
like OpenAl could be used with Python.
Also, I was pointed at a new ide for programming in .net called
SharpDevelop. My friend, Louis Bryant, recommended it to me and though I
don't even know where to begin with .net I know that he is quite experienced
with it and doesn't have any of the problems with it that others have with
the official Microsoft ide. I have a lot of time on my hands these next four
months--so maybe it's just time to look into learning .net.
Check out my games at
www.ThePionEar.net
and my music, and that of my band, at
www.ThePionEar.net/BlindLabyrinth.html .
If you want to reach me, you can call 419-744-0517, friend me on Facebook,
(KenWDowney,) or write me at [email protected] .
Crazy Ken
----- Original Message -----
From: "Thomas Ward" <[email protected]>
To: "Gamers Discussion list" <[email protected]>
Sent: Wednesday, September 04, 2013 7:36 PM
Subject: [Audyssey] The Future of the Evolution Engine
Hello everyone,
I guess this survey would mainly be for those game developers who
would like a say in the end product , but if this subject is of
interest to you as an end user please by all means let's have your
thoughts too.
Over the past month or so I am slowly getting back into software and
game development, and of course one project I am strongly looking at
is the USA Games Evolution Engine. At the current moment the Evolution
Engine is written in C++ and can be compiled as a dynamic library or
can be statically linked into a project as it currently is in
Mysteries of the Ancients, Raceway, and other games in development.
However, as I mainly wrote this for myself it is okay as is, but at
the same time I am consciously aware it isn't in a newbie friendly
form that can be taken up and used by just anyone which is the reason
for this survey.
One of the principle strengths of Philip Bennefall's BGT Toolkit it is
written in C++, but all the functions are exposed through a nice and
easy to use scripting language called Angelscript. The strength of
this approach is simply that a new game developer can just take up the
BGT programming guide and start writing a game without knowing how
SAPI works, how DirectX works, etc and all of the basic functionality
is right there to use without the overhead of languages like C or C++.
On the down side with BGT if a new game developer uses Angelscript
they aren't actually learning a full blown programming language, only
the scripting capabilities of BGT, and if they want to write something
else other than a game they still have to go out and learn another
language. In other words BGT is designed for one purpose, and isn't
flexible enough to design other programs and applications out side of
games. Plus if the end user is a Mac user or a Linux user BGT
currently isn't an option anyway. My approach falls somewhere between
those two extremes, and is in my opinion a better solution for all of
the above except for the fact it wasn't designed for newbies in mind
which brings us to the point of this survey.
I've been thinking for quite some time what I should do is rewrite the
Evolution Engine to be more newbie friendly as well as have some
cross-platform implementation in mind. Then, I could license it to
third-party game developers who want to just plug it into a game
project and get everything up and running with a minimum amount of
code and difficulty as possible. There are two ways in which I could
do this.
The first is I could rewrite the Evolution Engine in .NET like the
original version, but only using the latest versions of the .NET
Framework, SlimDX, and so forth. There are a number of advantages to
doing it this way.
One of the most important advantages is by creating a .NET library
someone using Visual C++ .NET, Visual C# .NET, or Visual Basic .NET
could simply incorporate my engine into their game project and have a
choice in what language they wish to use when doing so. If a developer
likes C# .NET they could use that, and if they prefer VB .NET they
could use that instead. The choice is really up to them. You don't get
that kind of choice with BGT which is one of the big advantages I see
in basing it on .NET.
Another advantage is thanks to the Mono Runtime C# .NET and Visual
Basic .NET code can be quite portable and cross-platform. If written
to be cross-platform using SDL .NET, for example, game developers can
write games for Mac and Linux even if they do not own or use that
specific platform. All they need to know is what to do in order to
make their game cross-platform. So once again another advantage for
this method of rewriting the Evolution Engine in .NET.
Next, obviously languages like C# .NET and Visual Basic .NET are full
blown programming languages, but are no where as difficult as C or
C++. The advantage of my Evolution .NET library is while you may
primarily rely on it for game development the stuff you learn in .NET
can be used in other types of projects too which means you are
learning to write more than just games which can come in handy.
Finally, as Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8 already come with
the .NET Framework and it can be updated through Windows Update its no
where near as much of a problem as it was a few years ago when it was
new. You can be assured that anyone who has purchased a new system
with one of those operating systems can run your game without much
problem and should have the basic requirements installed. All they may
need to do is install any extra runtime requirements like SlimDX or
SDL .NET which do not come with Windows by default, but the .NET
Framework itself should be installed and ready to go, and is the
preferred development platform of many software developers today
anyway.
With all those good things in mind I'm obviously personally in favor
of this project. However, it is not perfect and comes with a few down
sides I should mention up front.
First, while .NET games can be cross-platform via Mono Mac OS has a
problem with .NET applications. One problem is that program
executables can't be simply clicked on and launched as is the case on
Linux and Windows. Instead someone must actually open a terminal and
do
"mono program.exe"
to launch the program. This is a bit of an annoyance for Mac users as
they can't just click on program.exe to launch it, but it should work
fine once invoked from the command line. The other issue is that .NET
forms are accessible on Windows and Linux VoiceOver still is unable to
read applications written with .NET forms. So its not the ideal choice
for Mac game development obviously, but is easier than doing it in say
C++.
Second, depending on how many third-party APIs you use in your game
there may be a lot of extra Runtime packages your end users may need
to install.This remains to be the bane of game development as things
like SlimDX, for instance, don't come with Windows and therefore needs
to be shipped with your game or installed prior to downloading and
running your game. Some people may or may not have a problem with
this, but it is a good thing to keep in mind.
Finally, .NET applications are easy to crack if a developer is not
careful. If security is a serious issue then you will need to purchase
a third-party .NET obfuscation tool to scramble your .NET code to keep
crackers from disassembling your game, changing your licensing info,
etc and then recompiling it and releasing it on the web for any
two-bit pirate to play. This is by far the most troubling issue a
commercial .NET developer has to face.
There is however another option I have been considering, but am
uncertain if it is really better than the .NET version of the engine
above. The idea would involve rewriting the Evolution engine in
Python, and releasing it as a third-party module or API for the Python
interpreter. It has both its pros and its cons too.
To begin with it would obviously be cross-platform as Python works
equally well on Mac, Linux, and Windows if designed that way which I
would certainly do. Python is generally considered easy to learn, easy
to use, and is a very newbie friendly programming language. All good
reasons to target this language with the Evolution Engine. However, it
has its cons which are problematic.
The most irritating issue is version conflicts. If you were to compile
your Python program as *..pyc files and redistribute them to others
they would have to be running the exact same version of the Python
interpreter you are running else it won't work. If you happen to
compile your game with Python 2.7.5 and your end user is running 2.7.3
it will bomb out. Therefore you really have to build a platform
specific executable that will work, but puts you in the position of
building executable versions for every platform you intend to support
and target. Not something I find particularly ideal if cross-platform
development is your aim.
The other issue here is that Python was designed primarily for open
source development. It lacks real security for commercial developers.
It is a piece of cake to decompile a *.pyc file and get back the
Python code it was written in. Were .NET does have obfuscation tools I
am unaware of a similar tool for Python to secure your code from theft
and piracy. So from a security standpoint it isn't a good choice.
However if you aren't thinking of a commercial product then none of
this really matters a whole lot.
The last choice is to simply compile and sell my C++ version of the
Engine library as is. Obviously it offers many things BGT does, but in
order to use it you either have to already know C++ or learn C++ to
use it. As I am uncertain if people really want to do that I am
offering up the other options above to make it more newbie friendly.
So now that I have given you the options would you rather I rewrite
the engine for .NET, make a Python version, or sell the C++ version as
is?
---
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