Game Engines

[Blaze_Kick]

I would definitely recommend Unreal. I bought UT3 Special Edition and have been using the Editor for about a fortnight. I've been impressed with it all the way through - more stable and more features than previous versions and easy to get custom content working.

[Jimi]

I've got some question about Unreal 3 level editing. I've seen everyone do some floor, wall, ceiling, etc models that they place in the level editor. Some of these have looked so simple that I've wondered is it not possible to create anything with the editor. Can't you make textured blocks with it?

[Kinrove]

BSP, olds levels were done with it mostly.

UT3 Level Design: Simple BSP Level

[Cundmaethor]

i tried to mod medieval 2 TW,,,but it is so damn difficult...im still with Rome.......and maybe i will start modding TESIV Oblivion

[sgv3dmax]

Originally Posted by Jimi

I've got some question about Unreal 3 level editing. I've seen everyone do some floor, wall, ceiling, etc models that they place in the level editor. Some of these have looked so simple that I've wondered is it not possible to create anything with the editor. Can't you make textured blocks with it?

Usually, flat surfaces that are simple can be created within the editor. The advantage of using BSPs is that they are simple to create and has in-built surface property controls like tiling, panning etc. BSPs are not as efficient as static meshes or imported meshes. A major chunk of a level will be made with imported meshes.

[sgv3dmax]

Originally Posted by MPWatts356

as far as the three main mod engines go (CryEngine2, Unreal3, and Hammer/Source) what do you guys think is the easiest to use with the best final results? im currently using UE3 and find it really easy to use and to get my models and materials into the engine. i want to try all three but im wondering if it would be best to just stick with one for my portfolio. are the three completely different or do they share similar interfaces and features?

CryEngine uses a terminology of building a level out of water (i don't know whether there is any other way possible) and this creates islands and land masses, which looks like Crysis. There are tools for creating trees and foliage with just one brush stroke. But I feel that the Sandbox editor is good for creating exteriors which looks like Crysis.
Hammer (source) is really good, but you need a little bit of creating basic codes for bringing stuff into the editor. It is not straight forward (from my personal experience), and needs a bit of struggling to understand. Textures have to be converted into a source engine supported format before you can actually start creating materials. The method used for this was really difficult for me plus some other problems which i don't remember.
To me, Unreal was like working in Autodesk Maya. It is so easy to understand and there is no need to learn any coding. Creating materials in UDK is fun. Textures can be imported in their default TGA format. Everything is visual and straightforward. Even Unreal Development Kit (UDK) is free for personal use. It has some navigation key setup just like Maya. I highly recommend UDK.

[DELE OKENIYI]

Eh! everyone should pardon me for the question am going to be asking cos am new to game development but am a goood 3d artist in archi-viz and interactive designs. Please can anyone help me out, by explaining what a game engine is, or are they like rendering engine?

Many thanks!!!

[sgv3dmax]

Game engines use real-time technology to 'render' images, while a rendering engine is the algorithm used to actually render images inside a game engine. Game engine as a whole uses different types of programs to run real-time. For example, physics engine is used to make objects interact with the game world, Loading, displaying, and animating models, collision detection between objects, physics, input, graphical user interfaces, and even portions of a game's artificial intelligence can all be components that make up the game engine. Many new technologies are used to render game assets efficiently such as Normal maps, specular maps etc. which make the low-poly mesh look well polished and detailed.

[Michael_K_Schmidt]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned it yet.

Gamestudio game development system

Its made by a German company, and it is a full featured game development kit, consisting of a level editor, a model editor, and a script editor.

Pros:
1. All in one game development kit
2. Fairly easy to use, I learned on my own with the manual.
3. Able to import models from other tools like 3DS Max
4. Features its own scripting language called Lite-C
5. Able to use C++ (I never tried this)
6. Comes with some basic game templates for an FPS Game
7. Features multiplayer capabilities
8. Has it's own Physics engine
9. Large community and forums - some free game downloads and demos
10. relatively low price (Standard is around $50, commercial $200, pro $1000)
11. free demo version (30 Days)
12. Lots of 3rd party add-ons
13. Supports real time shaders.
14. New features are added regularly

Cons:
1. It's a bit challenging to get shaders to work, they are not included by default, but then I'm not a programmer.
2. You need to be able to program in order to make a good game. The template games included are rather basic. If you just want to make models or levels, your better off with unreal or some other sdk.
3. The model editor it comes with is easy to use, but is missing a lot of features you might be used to with more professional software.
4. Sometimes the manual is referring to an older version of the software.
5. Multiplayer runs really slow when you have more than like 4 players (but third party solutions are available)

I've had the commercial version for several years, and I like it a lot.

[C3H5(NO3)3]

Hey guys.
Can anyone introduce me a semi-pro game engine using C++ ?