Owing to years of talk therapy, recent effective health treatments, and the free time afforded by having no stinking job (thanks, covid-19), I have some new inspiration that's making me want to start again.
I've gotten loose permission to base the game in Martha Wells's Three Worlds. I can't make it public til she gives the go-ahead. So, I should make sure I can flip a switch and change the location/appearance.
I've got an interesting idea for gameplay. But also, I want to weave print-making into the story. If I can't make the gameplay work, it'll just be another MORG, but I'll put in real herbalism.
I found a cool (though old) article comparing game engines. I wanna move slowly, comparing the top three that I choose--probably Unreal, Unity, and Source. Something is blocking me from choosing CryEngine. Probably something silly.
https://worldofleveldesign.com/categories/level_design_tutorials/recommended-game-engines.php
It warmed my heart to see Torque3D there. I LOVED that game engine, and I loved writing the tutorial they published back in 2012. I wonder what became of that. Looks like the engine is open source now, under MIT license. Hmmmmmmmmmm. Their networking code (for multiplayer services) was ahead of the other game engines at the time.
Maybe I should start with, like, 5 game engines, and then let 2 drop off over time, based on the ease of use.
Man, there's so much to learn. I've just gotta remember--I don't have to know everything before I need to know it. I can learn JIT. :D
Update: 12/31/2020
I just spent an hour online, chatting with old friends and co-workers from a game company I worked for a few years ago. The consensus seems to be:
- Unity
- Unreal
- Source
- CryEngine/Lumberyard
- Torque3D
- Godot
One person thought I would come to eliminate all but Unreal fairly quickly. :) Some also said the proprietary engine we all worked on would be choice #1, and I agree, but unfortunately I can't use that. :(
Some interesting aspects were brought up which might effect my list, like target audience (ie, GameMaker isn't really for AAA game makers, but has been used as such), and track record for publishing (ie, Lumberyard, or rather Amazon, has had some challenges when trying to publish a game that they eventually cancelled altogether). Sounds like I need to keep my ears open for game and game engine news while I do this.
