TGE or TGEA which is better?
by Tomas · in Torque Game Engine · 10/21/2008 (9:41 am) · 8 replies
Hi I just started with the demo ver of TGE wile following along in the book 3D game programming all in one and was considering buying an indi licence but when I checked out this website I noticed that there is now an TGEA out and the only two differences that I could really pinpoint was that TGEA has better graphics but it doesn't say that its capible of making wii games( not that im planing on jumping into that right away)?
and one other concern I have right now is if I buy an indie licence for one and want to later get the full licence do I get a discount or is there a way to up grade the licence with out having to buy a hole new one?
also just noticed wile typing this what is the difference between the TGE and the TGE pro ver?(same goes for the TGEA)
and one other concern I have right now is if I buy an indie licence for one and want to later get the full licence do I get a discount or is there a way to up grade the licence with out having to buy a hole new one?
also just noticed wile typing this what is the difference between the TGE and the TGE pro ver?(same goes for the TGEA)
#2
im still confused about the licencing but guess I should move that to the licencing forum
and still confused what advantages I get from getting the PRO ver of TGE and TGEA with either licence.
10/21/2008 (9:53 am)
O yea kinda but not the other two questions.im still confused about the licencing but guess I should move that to the licencing forum
and still confused what advantages I get from getting the PRO ver of TGE and TGEA with either licence.
#3
I think its a matter of semantics. You get the same code, but the licenses limit how you can use it, I think. The Indie license is for the independent game developer... the little guy. Its affordable, it gives you what you need to make a game. If you work for a major corporation, and you have a full development team, and you'll be releasing a huge title in the next three months, then you need the professional license.
I think the big companies have to pay more because Indies will release their games through GarageGames.com and so GG will do marketing and get a share of profits, but with the professional license, you get different rights for a game that will sell millions of copies worldwide.
I know I'm not helping much.
Bottom line, if this is new to you, go with Indie. Its all you need. Anything more is for the lawyers and accountants.
Tony
10/21/2008 (10:04 am)
Professional versus Indie?I think its a matter of semantics. You get the same code, but the licenses limit how you can use it, I think. The Indie license is for the independent game developer... the little guy. Its affordable, it gives you what you need to make a game. If you work for a major corporation, and you have a full development team, and you'll be releasing a huge title in the next three months, then you need the professional license.
I think the big companies have to pay more because Indies will release their games through GarageGames.com and so GG will do marketing and get a share of profits, but with the professional license, you get different rights for a game that will sell millions of copies worldwide.
I know I'm not helping much.
Bottom line, if this is new to you, go with Indie. Its all you need. Anything more is for the lawyers and accountants.
Tony
#4
For TGE and TGEA, you have Indie or Commercial. The Indie license is for developers (or their company) that make less than $200,000 a year. The Commercial license is for those who make over $200K. The two licenses have nothing to do with engine code or improvements.
Yes, there is an upgrade discount from Indie to Commercial. TGEA has an updated sound layer, which fixes a lot of bugs and makes integration of audio libraries (FMOD) easy. TGEA has a new graphics layer, GFX that supports shaders and other advanced rendering. TGEA 1.8 (coming out soon) will have GFX2 which will support the same rendering capabilities on a Mac. TGEA also has 2 new terrain formats that TGE does not have: Mega Terrain and Atlas Terrain.
There are more differences, but it's not just TGE + shaders anymore.
10/21/2008 (10:06 am)
There is no Pro license for TGE or TGEA. That is only for Torque Game Builder.For TGE and TGEA, you have Indie or Commercial. The Indie license is for developers (or their company) that make less than $200,000 a year. The Commercial license is for those who make over $200K. The two licenses have nothing to do with engine code or improvements.
Yes, there is an upgrade discount from Indie to Commercial. TGEA has an updated sound layer, which fixes a lot of bugs and makes integration of audio libraries (FMOD) easy. TGEA has a new graphics layer, GFX that supports shaders and other advanced rendering. TGEA 1.8 (coming out soon) will have GFX2 which will support the same rendering capabilities on a Mac. TGEA also has 2 new terrain formats that TGE does not have: Mega Terrain and Atlas Terrain.
There are more differences, but it's not just TGE + shaders anymore.
#5
10/21/2008 (10:13 am)
Nice. Thanks Michael. 
#6
Anything you learn in TGE can still be applied to TGEa, for the most part - but as time goes by it seems like GG is adding missing features back into Torque. Not to say anything is missing, just that some things got broken as a result of the different direction.
Neither is better than the other - they both have their merits. Which one is right for you depends on your skill, needs, and means. Some games need that little bit of graphical shininess, or need to make use of the larger terrains available in TGEa. The upgrade path is a good solution for someone just starting out. The older resources have a better chance of compatibility with TGE than TGEa, and that's your best means of learning how to add to Torque, because the community resources are still the best documentation for Torque.
10/21/2008 (11:13 am)
There have been rendering speed ups to go along with those shaders. A general optimization of the code and a more logical approach to the source layout also lays the groundwork for more componentization in the future.Anything you learn in TGE can still be applied to TGEa, for the most part - but as time goes by it seems like GG is adding missing features back into Torque. Not to say anything is missing, just that some things got broken as a result of the different direction.
Neither is better than the other - they both have their merits. Which one is right for you depends on your skill, needs, and means. Some games need that little bit of graphical shininess, or need to make use of the larger terrains available in TGEa. The upgrade path is a good solution for someone just starting out. The older resources have a better chance of compatibility with TGE than TGEa, and that's your best means of learning how to add to Torque, because the community resources are still the best documentation for Torque.
#7
TGE costs $150 for the indie and if you find you want TGEA later you can get the upgrade for $145 totally $295 which is the same cost as purchasing TGEA outright. I'd suggest if you're just starting out with game development that you start with TGE you won't need the bells and whistles that TGEA brings and there are more resources, knowledge and support for TGE as it's a much older and more understood product. If you find later on you want the fancy stuff then purchase the upgrade to TGEA.
10/21/2008 (1:57 pm)
It's not just rendering speed ups Mike the entire rendering system has been rewritten in TGEA, including the texture manager - Michael really didn't do justice to the huge amount of work that's gone into TGEA, especially the modularization of the elements so far, I'm hoping this work continues into other parts of the engine Physics for example.TGE costs $150 for the indie and if you find you want TGEA later you can get the upgrade for $145 totally $295 which is the same cost as purchasing TGEA outright. I'd suggest if you're just starting out with game development that you start with TGE you won't need the bells and whistles that TGEA brings and there are more resources, knowledge and support for TGE as it's a much older and more understood product. If you find later on you want the fancy stuff then purchase the upgrade to TGEA.
#8
Im not totally new to game creation with engines but I like Andy's aproach although im only 4 days into the trial ver wile following along in the 3D game programming all in one book so I'll see what I can acomplish in 26 days and them make my dision from there.
And thanks again for not only the info but the quick responce.
10/22/2008 (3:45 pm)
WoW thanks for the mass flow of info guys and sorry for replying a day late into the conversation most other forum sites usually take a day or more for at least one response.Im not totally new to game creation with engines but I like Andy's aproach although im only 4 days into the trial ver wile following along in the 3D game programming all in one book so I'll see what I can acomplish in 26 days and them make my dision from there.
And thanks again for not only the info but the quick responce.
Torque Owner Infinitum3D
I'm sure there are many more things to it than that, but that seems to have the most emphasis. TGEA code is more up-to-date. That is what the Professional programmers (employees) at garagegames spend their time working on. Its a more.... professional? engine.
Is that right?
Tony