Starting From Scratch
by Aaron Varshney · in Torque Game Engine · 03/05/2005 (3:12 pm) · 7 replies
Hi, I've only just bought TGE and I'm wanting to make a Top Down (well a more isometric look) Vertical Scrolling Shooter, I know T2D would probably be the best bet (and a lot easier) though I'm wanting to use 3DSM models.
I've tried the demos and looked through the source code, however there's one thing I don't know how to do and that's to start a project from scratch, or do I have to use the current 2 demos and modify them to start a game from?
I've tried the demos and looked through the source code, however there's one thing I don't know how to do and that's to start a project from scratch, or do I have to use the current 2 demos and modify them to start a game from?
About the author
#2
But like you said, T2D would be good to have. Personally I find it the best way to get into scripting as it is more of a controlled enviroment and a lot easier to read and see what exactly is going on.
But that's just me
03/05/2005 (4:46 pm)
Yeah and there good!But like you said, T2D would be good to have. Personally I find it the best way to get into scripting as it is more of a controlled enviroment and a lot easier to read and see what exactly is going on.
But that's just me
#3
03/05/2005 (9:00 pm)
We're doing a 3d scroller of sorts also. I'd suggest not starting from scratch. Over the last three weeks or so i've gotten the scrolling portion working starting from the Starter.fps mod. You got alot for free... the main menu... level loading... options screen... mission/particle/terrain editors.. etc. IMO the "start from scratch" mentality that programmers tend to get into is similar to "i'll build my own engine". You may learn something, but you're wasting time that could be spent making the game fun.
#4
Cheers for the help and ideas, I'll move onto TGE when I get more used to T2D.
03/06/2005 (6:46 am)
I guess I may as well start with T2D then and get used to that first, static PNGs it is then.Cheers for the help and ideas, I'll move onto TGE when I get more used to T2D.
#5
03/06/2005 (7:20 am)
It's currently cheaper to purchase TGE and then T2D, as having a TGE license allows you to get T2D for $80 instead of $100.
#6
03/06/2005 (8:42 am)
I bought both of them a few days ago and over the summer I'll be able to get into both of them with all that spare time. :D
#7
I also recommend running the debug version and placing breakpoints at places you're confused with, follow the code execution and watch some variables. That helps a lot in learning how things works.
Read the engine.overview.txt file inside the engine folder. It'll teach you a lot of things.
Get used to the client/server structure, and how are things being interpolated in the client. Do not try to fight it, you'll only get tired and frustated. Instead, learn how to take advantage of it.
Player.cc can be scary at first, and will remain scary for a long time. But it's not magical: it's just a glorified shapebase. All shapebase objects can be controlled by a client, but it's just that the player class got a bunch of code to respond to the client commands that is not present in raw shapebase objects. With a little work, you can create other kinds of client-controlled objects derived from shapeBase that suit your needs better (like ships).
03/07/2005 (5:33 am)
Well, you'll have to understand a bit of Torque first. I suggest you take some time, make a list with everything you want your game to do (scrolling camera, ship control, enemy movement etc), and how you want it to do, and start searching inside TGE for components that can get you closest to your objectives, check how they work, how much they can do, and what changes they need to do exactly what you want.I also recommend running the debug version and placing breakpoints at places you're confused with, follow the code execution and watch some variables. That helps a lot in learning how things works.
Read the engine.overview.txt file inside the engine folder. It'll teach you a lot of things.
Get used to the client/server structure, and how are things being interpolated in the client. Do not try to fight it, you'll only get tired and frustated. Instead, learn how to take advantage of it.
Player.cc can be scary at first, and will remain scary for a long time. But it's not magical: it's just a glorified shapebase. All shapebase objects can be controlled by a client, but it's just that the player class got a bunch of code to respond to the client commands that is not present in raw shapebase objects. With a little work, you can create other kinds of client-controlled objects derived from shapeBase that suit your needs better (like ships).
Torque Owner Wysardry