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[C#] Is MonoGame good for Windows 8?

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Started by KruSuPhy July 07, 2015 03:24 AM

5 comments, last by EddieV223 8 years, 9 months ago

KruSuPhy

170

Author

July 07, 2015 03:24 AM

Hi all, I'm trying to get back into game development(I used to make 2D games using VB6. *shudder*) I've been fooling around with Unity but I decided I'd sorta just rather make my own project being as I'm more interested in 2D than 3D. Unity seems a bit more geared towards making 3D and just a little too fancy for what I'm looking for, plus, what's the fun in making a game if all you get to code is some scripts?

Anyway, to the point, everywhere I look on the internet says that the c# graphics class(es) isn't/aren't really good for making games, and that I should instead use XNA(which I have discovered is actually dead) or MonoGame. So, looking up on MonoGame, it seems like it's got a pretty good reputation, but I've seen in a couple places that it has some issues with Windows 8 and I'm just wondering whether that's a thing of a past release that I don't have to worry about, or if I'm going to be running into problems. I'm currently using Visual Studio 2012 Express.

Also, one more question, and this is just out of personal preference from my VB6 days, but is MonoGame good for Windows Forms projects or will I have to use an Empty Project or whatever other options there are?

Take into consideration that I may sound completely clueless here, and that's because I am. I'm just looking for a good way to start off, and learning as I go has always been my favorite way to go, so I'm just trying to figure out what I should be using and doing to jump straight into learning as I go.

EDIT: just found on msdn.com or whatever that Windows 8/8.1 is indeed supported by MonoGame now, but my question still stands: are there hiccups with it? I'm just worried after reading from a couple different sources that people had to find workarounds to get Mono to work for them.

Eck

7,699

July 07, 2015 03:51 PM

This might be the post you found but if not, this looks promising: http://blogs.msdn.com/b/bobfamiliar/archive/2012/08/01/windows-8-xna-and-monogame-part-1-overview.aspx

And here's one that is claiming that XNA/Monogame is still viable: http://www.windowscentral.com/xna-dead-long-live-xna

You say that you discovered XNA is "dead", but that's not quite right. I believe it's more accurate to say that Microsoft is no longer going to actively work on XNA. For now, it seems possible to run XNA/MonoGame apps on Windows 8 and I don't know of any plans for them to stop supporting it altogether. And even if they do, the MonoGame community will actively keep working on it for quite a while.

If you're developing your game for fun or for learning, I think you're on the right path. If you're trying to release a game to sell, going with something like Unity will be much faster.

re: Unity vs. XNA

what's the fun in making a game if all you get to code is some scripts?

The fun for me is I get to work on actual game logic in Unity instead of spending a month or two on a dynamic UI panel with some "simple" controls like buttons, labels, and text boxes in XNA. :) I had been messing with XNA for a long time as a hobby then made a dedicated effort to put in some serious time for about a year. Then, I hit the Week of Awesome II, took the week off of work and developed a simple game (Toys: Guardians of Innocence). :) It was really cool, but I was absolutely blown away by the teams making use of Unity. Some of them even started learning Unity a week or two before the contest.

I'm happy for the time I spent in XNA, I'm proud of what I accomplished, and I have a deeper understanding of what goes on behind the scenes. But now I'm using Unity.

- Eck

EckTech Games - Games and Unity Assets I'm working on
Still Flying - My GameDev journal
The Shilwulf Dynasty - Campaign notes for my Rogue Trader RPG

EddieV223

1,840

July 07, 2015 05:06 PM

This might be the post you found but if not, this looks promising: http://blogs.msdn.com/b/bobfamiliar/archive/2012/08/01/windows-8-xna-and-monogame-part-1-overview.aspx

And here's one that is claiming that XNA/Monogame is still viable: http://www.windowscentral.com/xna-dead-long-live-xna

You say that you discovered XNA is "dead", but that's not quite right. I believe it's more accurate to say that Microsoft is no longer going to actively work on XNA. For now, it seems possible to run XNA/MonoGame apps on Windows 8 and I don't know of any plans for them to stop supporting it altogether. And even if they do, the MonoGame community will actively keep working on it for quite a while.

If you're developing your game for fun or for learning, I think you're on the right path. If you're trying to release a game to sell, going with something like Unity will be much faster.

re: Unity vs. XNA

what's the fun in making a game if all you get to code is some scripts?

The fun for me is I get to work on actual game logic in Unity instead of spending a month or two on a dynamic UI panel with some "simple" controls like buttons, labels, and text boxes in XNA. I had been messing with XNA for a long time as a hobby then made a dedicated effort to put in some serious time for about a year. Then, I hit the Week of Awesome II, took the week off of work and developed a simple game (Toys: Guardians of Innocence). It was really cool, but I was absolutely blown away by the teams making use of Unity. Some of them even started learning Unity a week or two before the contest.

I'm happy for the time I spent in XNA, I'm proud of what I accomplished, and I have a deeper understanding of what goes on behind the scenes. But now I'm using Unity.

- Eck

I've had very similar experiences. I went down the directx/opengl route. Spent years trying to piece together an engine. In the end it was only good for learning purposes. I use unity now and I couldn't be happier with that choice. I'm actually making games now instead of wasting time reinventing what modern and free engines like unity offer as a starting place to make your game.

Believe me there is more than enough work when making a game with unity to keep you very busy for a long time.

If this post or signature was helpful and/or constructive please give rep.

// C++ Video tutorials

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wo60USYV9Ik

// Easy to learn 2D Game Library c++

SFML2.2 Download http://www.sfml-dev.org/download.php

SFML2.2 Tutorials http://www.sfml-dev.org/tutorials/2.2/

// Excellent 2d physics library Box2D

http://box2d.org/about/

// SFML 2 book

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Programmer16

2,321

July 08, 2015 02:33 AM

When speaking of Windows 8, there are 2 groups: Windows Store apps and desktop apps. The desktop portion of MonoGame is pretty solid, I can't really speak for the Windows Store side. I do know that it "works" in that you can develop and deploy games to the store.

I can also state that they have a great bunch working on it, but it's open source, so the best route for bugs is to fork it, fix it, and put in a pull request.

KruSuPhy

170

Author

July 09, 2015 04:15 AM

Thanks for the replies everyone, and sorry it took me a couple days to check the thread - we had a storm hit and knocked out the internet in my entire town til about 3 AM this morning and I'm just now getting home to get online.

I am using this project as a learning experience that one day may turn into a game that is worth being sold, but currently I'm just interested in developing skills that I need to be able to successfully make a good game.

However, using Unity isn't out of the question. If it's really just not worth my time to learn the things needed for making an entire engine when I could just use Unity, by all means, I'd rather not waste my time. But is it standard for everyone to just use an engine to make their games these days, or are people writing their own games from the ground up?

Also, thanks for the responses on Mono actually working on Win8. I don't care about the Windows Store apps, really. All I ever use is the desktop part of this OS anyway. hahaha.

Lactose

11,696

July 09, 2015 07:32 AM

But is it standard for everyone to just use an engine to make their games these days, or are people writing their own games from the ground up?

Don't worry about it. A lot of people use engines (Unity. Unreal, GameMaker, etc), and a lot of people write their own stuff (either because they enjoy doing it, or they feel like their game isn't suited for the engine, or for other reasons).

Really, either option is fine, although writing your own stuff will most likely require more low level work, which you may or may not be interested in, while using an engine can give you a head start when it comes to getting something running.

Hello to all my stalkers.

EddieV223

1,840

July 09, 2015 06:44 PM

The main issue is going to be time. Even if you had it in you to make an engine ( which is an extraordinary feat ), do you really have the time? Writing an engine would very likely take years, and that's just to make the engine, not including the time to make the game too. The second biggest problem you'd have is education. It takes a hell of a lot of complex knowledge to make a game engine. Most people who make engines at studios are only experts in 1 field of game engines. I've read it's not normal to have a single person at a large game studio who knows how the entire engine works from the ground up.

All that said, you could just start your journey below and know that it really is your best shot at learning game design and being successfull.

Watch these to really understand what you are getting into http://unity3d.com/learn/tutorials/modules/beginner/your-first-game

You can learn c# from here, or pick up a nice intro book on c# from a retailer http://unity3d.com/learn/tutorials/modules/beginner/scripting

If this post or signature was helpful and/or constructive please give rep.

// C++ Video tutorials

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wo60USYV9Ik

// Easy to learn 2D Game Library c++

SFML2.2 Download http://www.sfml-dev.org/download.php

SFML2.2 Tutorials http://www.sfml-dev.org/tutorials/2.2/

// Excellent 2d physics library Box2D

http://box2d.org/about/

// SFML 2 book