10 replies to this topic

[glhf]

I have decided that I want to make a game as a hobby, so sometimes I might spend a lot of time on it and sometimes nothing at all.
Just when I feel like it. Work on it alone too.

I was thinking between making singleplayer rpg or an mmorpg.

I think mmorpg is better because then I can let players play the game while I am making it casually.
But I can't really let players play my singleplayer game while its in development because that would ruin the experience for them.

I'm thinking of an mmorpg in style with older ones like tibia but with graphics a bit more like ultima online.
isometric camera.

I want an engine that makes it as easy as possible to code everything.
Like for example game maker is easy to use if you use it to make very basic games but not for mmorpg.
And unity is good too but it doesn't have netoworking for a mmorpg so it's not really good choice either.
unity is great if just making a multiplayer or singleplayer.

engine world I've read is the best but it needs something like 300 dollar annually subscription so it's not really ideal for me who just do it as a hobby whenever I feel like it casually.
hero engine also needs subscription.

I'm kinda a newbie at networking but I have good basic understanding of c++/c# etc so it's mostly networking im worried about but should be able to learn it if it's a good engine and there's some good guides.

[jbadams]

You could try Realm Crafter -- you're unlikely to ever make a big successful MMORPG with it, but if you just want to make an online RPG you can play with a few people as a hobby it would be a nice easy-to-use option with an up-front purchase price.

BigWorld is a more capable product, but you pay an annual subscription, which seems to conflict with what you want.

HeroEngine is probably the most capable option that's suitable for what you're after, but again it's based on a subscription -- at $99 per year it's pretty affordable though.

You could also take a look at Multiverse, which is free and open-sourced, but I'm not really familiar with it's capabilities, so you would need to do your own investigation.

There are also some "MMO kits" available for Unity that might be an option, but I don't know anything about them, so again you would need to do your own research.

One last possibility I can think of would be the sourcecode for Ryzom.


I'd really suggest that if you're after a hobby project and you aren't willing to spend much that you should reconsider approaching any sort of MMORPG however. With hard work and the right tools it is possible for a hobbyist or indie developer to create a fun online game, but it's not something that's typically possible in erratic bursts of free time. For a part-time hobby project I'd really suggest a smaller, possibly single-player game, or perhaps something playable in the web-browser.


Hope that's helpful!

[glhf]

You could try Realm Crafter -- you're unlikely to ever make a big successful MMORPG with it, but if you just want to make an online RPG you can play with a few people as a hobby it would be a nice easy-to-use option with an up-front purchase price.

BigWorld is a more capable product, but you pay an annual subscription, which seems to conflict with what you want.

HeroEngine is probably the most capable option that's suitable for what you're after, but again it's based on a subscription -- at $99 per year it's pretty affordable though.

You could also take a look at Multiverse, which is free and open-sourced, but I'm not really familiar with it's capabilities, so you would need to do your own investigation.

There are also some "MMO kits" available for Unity that might be an option, but I don't know anything about them, so again you would need to do your own research.

One last possibility I can think of would be the sourcecode for Ryzom.


I'd really suggest that if you're after a hobby project and you aren't willing to spend much that you should reconsider approaching any sort of MMORPG however. With hard work and the right tools it is possible for a hobbyist or indie developer to create a fun online game, but it's not something that's typically possible in erratic bursts of free time. For a part-time hobby project I'd really suggest a smaller, possibly single-player game, or perhaps something playable in the web-browser.


Hope that's helpful!

oh yeah thats helpful.
I will take a look at the engines you linked.
99 dollar per year on heroengine isnt too bad really.. will think about.
Reason I dont like paying money specially subscription is because it kinda makes you stressed and feel like you need to put it more time to get money worth.
And because i also know that the game has high chance of failing totally and even if it becomes a success it probably wont make much money at all.
So this makes me not want to have to pay too much upfront but 99 dollar per year is possibly ok.

edit:

Can you tell me more about realm crafter?
it looks really nice at first glance on their website.
Why do you think its unlikely to create a big successful mmorpg with it?

They say on their website it's possible to make your mmorpg as unique as you want and that its a mmo engine

edit 2:
i been reading some reviews and realm crafter isnt for me it has real problems handling "larger" amount of players.. its not really a mmorpg just morpg lol
I still like to keep my options open incase it would turn out to a good game.

going to look into multiverse now

Edited by glhf, 20 November 2012 - 12:07 AM.

[jbadams]

One more to research: XtremeWorlds -- this was suggested to me (for my list of game makers) by someone else who suggested it was reasonably capable, but again I don't have any personal experience. Supposedly it's pretty similar to RPG Maker but for MMOs.

If you research some of these options, let us know what you find out, I'm sure others would be interested in more detailed information!

[glhf]

i think i willtake heroengine.
because its probably the best..
and the price includes them hosting and running the server the game will be on... herocloud.
and theres sooo much help and support and great community on heroengine.

xtremeworlds is just 2d so no thanks to that.

[glhf]

I think i fucked up because i bought hero engine but they dont only support maya or 3dsmax... if you use anything else to make art in you are fucked.
And maya and max are so expensive to buy.

[jbadams]

You should ALWAYS check the requirements and features carefully before paying for software.

That being said: those are the officially supported options, but have you looked at the possibility of exporting or converting to their formats from other tools?

If you're really not happy with the purchase, politely explain your mistake and ask for a refund - there's no guarantee, but many companies will honour such a request.

(Posted from mobile.)

[glhf]

You should ALWAYS check the requirements and features carefully before paying for software.

That being said: those are the officially supported options, but have you looked at the possibility of exporting or converting to their formats from other tools?

If you're really not happy with the purchase, politely explain your mistake and ask for a refund - there's no guarantee, but many companies will honour such a request.

(Posted from mobile.)

do you have suggestion for other tools that can convert my art? i think its dds files ? at least i know it has to be maya or 3dmax files.

[jbadams]

I believe HeroEngine uses a proprietary format and don't provide any official support for other tools -- I don't know if there's unofficial support for other tools, I was just suggesting it as a possibility you could research if you're unable to get a refund -- your best bet is to try asking for a refund as soon as possible if you're not happy with the purchase, but unfortunately you're not guaranteed of anything, as their website makes those requirements very clear before you make your purchase.

I take it you no longer "have a lot of money to invest".

[glhf]

I believe HeroEngine uses a proprietary format and don't provide any official support for other tools -- I don't know if there's unofficial support for other tools, I was just suggesting it as a possibility you could research if you're unable to get a refund -- your best bet is to try asking for a refund as soon as possible if you're not happy with the purchase, but unfortunately you're not guaranteed of anything, as their website makes those requirements very clear before you make your purchase.

I take it you no longer "have a lot of money to invest".

i do have money but this isnt really investing this is just for entertainment lol
anyway, i ended up buying 3dsmax hehe

[glhf]

Hero engine is great but its really hard to get into and started with hero script language.
i have read so much and i still dont understand what all these different types of nodes is and complicated things.
unity and gamemaker is so easy compared to hero engine.

but i think once you have understand how do do basic stuff in HE then it will be much easier than unity or gamemaker.

edit:
starting to understand it all now.
Im right now working in making character creation system.

edit again:
I am starting to give up I havent even written 1 line of code yet hero engine is super confusing to get started with.
unity is super easy compared to hero engine.. in unity i can make simple games but in hero engine i cant even make 1 line of code.

Edited by glhf, 01 December 2012 - 03:08 AM.