Which engine
by Matt Brasier · in General Discussion · 04/07/2009 (4:18 am) · 6 replies
Ok, so there are loads of these questions, and I have read the answers, but none of them seem to fit my circumstances, so here is my version.
I occasionally play around with game development as a hobby, I am a professional software type person (Performance tuning consultant), so am mostly looking to play around with code etc, rather than modeling pretty 3d things.
I have had a play with TGB, and have made a couple of fun games with the demo version, which is about to expire soon. I tried to use TorqueX, as I also play around with XNA sometimes, but it won't install into an XNA 3 environment, so is no use to me.
I bought the book "The Game Programmers guide to Torque", which is really about TGE (or is it TGEA?) however has some sections on TorqueScript etc.
I tried to download a demo of TGEA, but this seems to be a rolling demo type thing, rather than a demo of the product set.
So Im now not really sure where to go next. Money isn't a massive issue, it is a casual hobby, but I am prepared to pay to get a toolset I will use, rather than one I buy and then ignore.
*Does anyone have much experience with the Game Programmers Guide to Torque book, is it at all relevant to TGB?
*Is there an upgrade path from TGB to TGEA of I decided to start coding 3d stuff?
*Is there a real demo of TGEA that allows me to try out the toolset?
*What do people think my next step is?
I occasionally play around with game development as a hobby, I am a professional software type person (Performance tuning consultant), so am mostly looking to play around with code etc, rather than modeling pretty 3d things.
I have had a play with TGB, and have made a couple of fun games with the demo version, which is about to expire soon. I tried to use TorqueX, as I also play around with XNA sometimes, but it won't install into an XNA 3 environment, so is no use to me.
I bought the book "The Game Programmers guide to Torque", which is really about TGE (or is it TGEA?) however has some sections on TorqueScript etc.
I tried to download a demo of TGEA, but this seems to be a rolling demo type thing, rather than a demo of the product set.
So Im now not really sure where to go next. Money isn't a massive issue, it is a casual hobby, but I am prepared to pay to get a toolset I will use, rather than one I buy and then ignore.
*Does anyone have much experience with the Game Programmers Guide to Torque book, is it at all relevant to TGB?
*Is there an upgrade path from TGB to TGEA of I decided to start coding 3d stuff?
*Is there a real demo of TGEA that allows me to try out the toolset?
*What do people think my next step is?
About the author
#2
I noticed that there is an RTS pack for TGE, I guess this would not work for TGEA? I quite fancy having a play with an RTS, so perhaps TGE and the RTS pack would be a good first start, although I guess a 2D RTS would be possible with TGB too.
Im not really bothered about modern graphics, Im writing games as a casual hobby, and doubt that many people will ever see what I write.
Does anyone know if you can upgrade from TGB to TGB pro (I.e. buy the source code for TGB as an upgrade)?
04/07/2009 (9:28 am)
Thanks for the suggestions,I noticed that there is an RTS pack for TGE, I guess this would not work for TGEA? I quite fancy having a play with an RTS, so perhaps TGE and the RTS pack would be a good first start, although I guess a 2D RTS would be possible with TGB too.
Im not really bothered about modern graphics, Im writing games as a casual hobby, and doubt that many people will ever see what I write.
Does anyone know if you can upgrade from TGB to TGB pro (I.e. buy the source code for TGB as an upgrade)?
#3
As far as I can tell, the RTS kit hasn't been updated. If it gets updated for TGEA, the jump to T3D might be easy.
They're still waiting for the latest TorqueX to be certified. You'll get XNA 3 compatibility then. There's probably a 4.0 around the corner (such inflation in version numbers), but they'd be stupid to...ah, this is MS. May I suggest TGB or TGEA?
04/07/2009 (1:42 pm)
Yep, you can always upgrade GG's products from non-source to full, paying the difference. TGB and TGE are so very different in the inner workings that I bet they'll never make any form of upgrade path between the two. One uses sprite sheets and layered tiles, the other 3D meshes with textures. I think the networking has nothing automatic in TGB, either.As far as I can tell, the RTS kit hasn't been updated. If it gets updated for TGEA, the jump to T3D might be easy.
They're still waiting for the latest TorqueX to be certified. You'll get XNA 3 compatibility then. There's probably a 4.0 around the corner (such inflation in version numbers), but they'd be stupid to...ah, this is MS. May I suggest TGB or TGEA?
#4
How much of a difference is there between TGE and TGEA in terms of how it works? Is the book "The Game Programmers Guide to Torque" just as relevant to TGEA as it is to TGE?
Sorry for all the questions,
Matt
04/07/2009 (1:54 pm)
Thanks,How much of a difference is there between TGE and TGEA in terms of how it works? Is the book "The Game Programmers Guide to Torque" just as relevant to TGEA as it is to TGE?
Sorry for all the questions,
Matt
#5
04/07/2009 (1:57 pm)
Also, if I bought TGE first (to work through the exercises on the book), roughly how much would the upgrade to TGEA cost? 
#6
04/07/2009 (2:06 pm)
Quote:How much of a difference is there between TGE and TGEA in terms of how it works?A lot is similar. But the sound and graphics have seen a large amount of changes. Scriptwise, it's all almost the same -- a few console commands have been changed/superseded.
Quote:s the book "The Game Programmers Guide to Torque" just as relevant to TGEA as it is to TGE?It can be. That book and others were written for TGE but the majority of the usage examples and knowledge (which mostly deals with script) can be used seamlessly between the engines, with minor changes. Note, however, that there might/will be some things you would have to change/re-think -- but again, mostly minor in my opinion.
Quote:roughly how much would the upgrade to TGEA cost?The price of TGEa minus the price of TGE.
Torque Owner Daniel Buckmaster
T3D Steering Committee
As far as I know, there's no path from TGB to TGE/A, only TGE->TGEA->T3D But I don't know very far.
The demo that is available for download here basically is the toolset. If you go into the demo and hit F11, you can access the world editor. Hit F10 for the GUI editor. Also, you can open the .cs files in the demo directory with notepad and play around with the scripts.
When you pay for TGEA, you get the engine source code, which is what you'll need to modify if you're making a a game that's not just a mod of the demo.
My opinion, which you shouldn't trust implicitly, is that you should definitely go ahead and get TGB or TGEA - depending on whether 2D or 3D is your fancy. I wouldn't bother with TGE (unless you don't need modern graphics) or T3D (unless you don't mind the price and really want very modern graphics). I've heard TGEA has a bit more of a learning curve than TGE, but with your background and familiarity with TGB, that might be less of a problem.