what is the easiest game to make

missm

Hi
what would be the quickest or easiest type of game to program in Gamesalad ?

Is it the platformer?

Photics

With GameSalad, I don't think it's about difficulty. I think it's about enjoyment. It's basically dragging a bunch of pictures and sounds into place and telling them what to do. With a sandbox like this, it becomes more of a question of what do you want to make.

I chose a Space Shooter as my first game. It could be considered difficult, but I'm having a lot of fun with it. With each addition, my game feels more alive... radar, thrust, explosions, scoring... you have to believe in your project. Thinking about making a Super Mario game, just because it seems easier, might actually be harder. Creating the artwork/music/sound effects, making your game unique, sticking with your project until it's finished... I think these are the hardest things to do with GameSalad.

One of the hardest things I had to do with my game was the sound effects. But wow... when I got it right... I started laughing hysterically/manically. To hear the rumble of multiple explosions was such a delight. My game felt real... it felt fun.

I'm not sure the goal of making a quick/easy game is the right approach to Game Salad. "What do you want to make?" I think that is a better question.

JamesZeppelin

Yeah it's not the type of game at all becuase even the simplest game could have intense taken for granted details in the interface.

I myself just found out how hard it was to add a pick up anywhere you left off button so you can close the app any time and jump back in.

It's really you presentation that makes a game take a LNG or short time

(in my opinion anyways since I'm still kind of a noon here)

synthesis

tic-tac-toe would probably be the easiest...but is it the most fun?

synthesis

Actually...I was JK above.

My recommendation...
Plan to spend 1 month building the game of your dreams.
By the time you get to week three...you will know 60+% of GameSalad and you will know exactly what kind of game you SHOULD be doing.

ORBZ

yes, synthesis has a good point. Try really hard for a month to make the game of your dreams, then you'll understand how GS works and what you can and can't do with it. Then make a game within those bounds.

But a really simple game to make is a classic asteroids type of game.

Crazybreadman

I think a platformer might get a little complex if you plan to do much variety in gameplay. If you want a simple game to show off your art, then maybe a trivia game or simple puzzle game could work and would be simpler.

Hunnenkoenig

I am working on a wallvbreaker game since almost a month and I had all the graphics and sounds already finished :-)

The simplets game.... I am not sure, but I am sure, if you want to do it in one day, it will be a crap and nobody will want to buy it :-P

So I rather advice, don't even start with it :-)

quantumsheep

@Hunnenkoenig:
Heh - one of my projects is a wall breaker game too - but in the finest Quantum Sheep tradition, it's a bit 'different' and as a consequence probably unsellable!

@MissM
Photics and Synthesis have given some good overall advice. One thing I'd add is to have a look at the templates that are available for different kinds of games on GameSalad.

Muck about with those for a while. Maybe just make some graphics to replace those in the templates as a start.

This will help you learn about importing images, and will give you an idea of how games can be made with GS.

Then throw all that away and start from scratch! It's a lot easier to fix/add things when it's all your own work in there!

Above all, just experiment. It's a lot of fun to use!

Good luck, and welcome to the forums!

QS

SDMG

pong

synthesis

I disagree with quantumsheep on the point of using a template and just modify it. I wouldn't do this until you understand GS. The point of the first month is to LEARN. I recommend doing a freeplay style game that doesn't have levels or a journey. Just do a game that never ends and happens on one screen...like a balloon popper game.

By starting from a blank screen...it will force you to approach several different logic and algorithm challenges along the way...you will learn MUCH faster.

yes...GS is still programming...just without the code. You will still need to work through complex math logic and algos.

Sparkyidr

here's what I did when I forst got GS.

I had looked at all the videos and whatnot and decided to have a look.
But I didn't plan to make a game.

1st off, I thought to myself, how do i make a player controlled actor.....and I did that
Then I thought, well, I am controling this actor, but what about having other stuff on screen to dodge around maybe....so i made some enemy type actors
Then i decided i should keep track of how long i had been avoiding the bad guys, and show it on screen

After a week of messing aorund and trying stuff, I realised I had made a game....with a score.
So I then decided that would be my 1st game, and I carried on adding to it for a month or so.

So my advice....Start by learning the ropes of what you can do, and how you can do it, and if that starts to morph into a game, then go with it.

debugdesign

A lot of great advice so far. My first attempt at a game was nearly 100mb, full of redundant code, the images were too big, the logic was scattered among all the actors and I had sunk a few weeks into it... But I learned a lot.

My 2nd game was an attempt of a top down shooter for the macworld competition... I had 3 levels done and hours before the close I tried to upload it and found out the 10mb limit a mine was 50mb...

Using the knowledge (and some of the artwork) my 3rd game was my new first game... And it was a single screen, top down shooter.

Sadly there is no 'get rich quick' nor 'shortcut' to a gaming career and just pick something you might enjoy and give it a go as it takes a LONG time so it's easier to do if it's a game you enjoy.