An Introduction to Point-and-Click Game Engines Jonathan Martin.

An Introduction to Point-and-Click Game Engines

Jonathan Martin

Game Development

• Write from scratch• Use middleware

package• Modify existing game

engine• Specialized game

construction software• Genre-specific

construction software

All Code

Point and Click

Doom, Source (Half Life), UnrealGame Maker, Torque 2D

RPG Maker XP, AGS, NWN

Renderware

Genre-Specific Construction Software

• No Need to Reinvent the Wheel

• Requires the least amount of programming

• Tend to have the nicest user interfaces

• This all comes at the expense of freedom

Adventure Game Studio

• What can you do with it?– Adventure games (“point-and-click”)– 2D only, though you can do “quasi-1st person”– Can import many graphics/sound formats– Breaks “meaningful play” down to basic level

• Example games

Adventure Game Studio

Adventure Game Studio

• Easily create point-and-click interfaces

• “C-like” scripting language for advanced functions

• Lucasarts-style conversation system should you want to use it.

• Inventory Support Built-In• Plugin System for Advanced

Users

• File Types Supported:– Audio: OGG, MP3, WAV,

MOD, XM, MIDI– Video: BMP, PCX, PNG, GIF,

TGA

• Display Modes Supported:– 320x200, 320x240, 640x400,

640x480, 800x600– 256-color, 16-bit color and 32-

bit color – Anti-aliasing and alpha

blending supported in certain modes

• Available for Windows, Linux and Mac OSX

Adventure Game Studio

• Room Creation Demo

Adventure Game Studio

• The Adventures of Fatman– First commercial game

released using AGS– Features full voice-

acting– Professional-Quality

Animation

Also see…RPG Maker XP

• Create 2D tile-based RPG’s

• Point and Click interface similar to AGS

• Also has databases for Monsters, Weapons, Items, Stats, Characters, Skills…just about anything you’ve seen in a 16-bit era RPG

Notable RPG Maker Games

• Not Many– Most Are Crappy FF7

Spinoffs– “The Adventures of

Reptile and Sub-Zero”– Most Developers are

using 3D engines now

Neverwinter Nights

• Create RPG scenarios in the 3D Neverwinter Nights engine

• Possible to create original content, but requires a lot of work

Such as…

Neverwinter Nights

• Demo

You can also check out…

Game Maker

• Room/object paradigm

• Doesn’t have built-in functions like RPG Maker and AGS

• Simple but powerful scripting language

Remember…

• 3D graphics not necessary!!

• Use the tools you are most comfortable with, not what you believe is inherently “better”

• Small amount of programming knowledge still required

• Test your game as you are making it—Iterative Design!

Resources

• http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/

• http://www.gamemaker.nl/

• http://www.enterbrain.co.jp/tkool/RPG_XP/eng/

• http://nwn.bioware.com/builders/