how can my team make a game engine from scratch?
Author
hello, i am wondering how can you make a game engine from scratch, my team is making one and well I'm not in the programming department so i am wondering how can you make a game engine from ground up? is there any tutorials or articles about how to do this? that is uptodate not from 2000. Thanks
Steven
Once you finish making your game, if there any parts of the code that could possibly be re-used to make a 2nd game, then those parts are your "engine".
your team will be split into 'departments', each responsible for their side of the game. Rendering, physics, audio, gamecode, scripting, tools, networking... Some of those bits get re-used. If it is done right, a lot of it can be reused, and that's an engine!
Game engines ca take a while to make, maybe months..
[Edited by - BadgerManufactureInc on June 26, 2009 2:12:08 PM]
[Edited by - BadgerManufactureInc on June 26, 2009 2:12:08 PM]
Yes, your team can make an engine from scratch... if you are willing to put in the time and effort to learn/do it properly. It takes a lot more design than just hacking a system together... you need to design subsystems with re-usability in mind. Still, if you are so compelled, go right ahead! Writing a game engine is a great way to improve programming and design skills, and can be a lot of fun as well (especially if you are the kind that likes to sandbox new features to see them in action right away).
A typical place to start is by evaluating someone else's engine to see what you like about it and what you don't. There are quite a few free engines out there, so download one and do a code review with your team to see what you think should be improved - then improve it!
What is your budget? And have you considered the Unreal Engine? It is mmog ready. Also maybe middleware, like for example 'SpeedTree' on Oblivion: re-use doesn't have to be limited to code, it can be game assets too, after all a 3d modeller thinks like a traditional artist and in fact a coder in many ways, they should be dynamic enough to do a tribute or remix of somebody elses work, as well as create from scratch.
[Edited by - BadgerManufactureInc on June 26, 2009 2:58:41 PM]
[Edited by - BadgerManufactureInc on June 26, 2009 2:58:41 PM]
Engines and libraries are there to be re-used. Algorithms tend to get reused more and more rather than redesigned such as the A-Star pathfinding routine, so reuse is the way ahead and until you can improve on someones code, dont bother trying. Just focus on the design so you can envision your dream rather than get bogged down with debugging etc. It depends on the size of your team and if you make the engine then use say Ogre for dual-platform Mac/PC graphics gard compatability (I assume your game would be for those formats) if not consider XNA, but with any option still consider using open-source 'objects'. Having a coder who is dynamic enough to mix, match and develop existing library assets is perhaps more important than a solid engine.
[Edited by - BadgerManufactureInc on June 26, 2009 2:01:43 PM]
[Edited by - BadgerManufactureInc on June 26, 2009 2:01:43 PM]
Quote:Original post by medevilenemy
you need to design [engine] subsystems with re-usability in mind.
Quote:Original post by BadgerManufactureIncWhat?
Not necessarily true, since engines ... are there to be re-used.
Engines don't have to be designed with re-usability in mind because they're supposed to be re-used?
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