oh pls let me sign up for the beta test of native engine. haha. my games loads for a min switching scene and opening up. and there's nothing I can do about it.
cool road map. another reason for me to go pro. will decide after publishing my first game this month. 1)Just a question and interested. what do u mean by native code? is it an option to code or something???????
2) looking forward to project mint and hop. is this like project butter in android 4.1 where the galaxy nexus suddenly became almost as fast as the iphone 5? (not in benchmarks....)
This is all welcome news. And actually pretty exciting. I spend ALOT of time using GS so the changes to creator to make it quicker to work with and more stable - just that alone is really good news.
I go to more games industry and developer events now. Being based in London there are quite a lot of opportunities to meet and speak to developers and publishers first hand. Although I often mention I use GS I wouldn't say I have been in the habit of recommending it.
But with these changes soon GS will be a MUCH more professional tool.
Some of the recurring messages that I have been hearing are "Think of your games as a service" and "Always use data".
So the only thing missing on that massive list of features is the ability to use tools like Flurry so we can actually know how people are using our games. Do they actually play through all the levels? Is there a certain point they all get stuck and so quit the game? Do they spend more time on the endless mode or story mode? etc.
If you add the ability to use data services this will significantly help to improve our games.
Very much looking forward to the next few months of GS development.
Great work GS, I'm delighted to see this roadmap and all looks very positive, I can't wait. I have to fully agree with your decision to deliver Pro only features for advance users who use this tool for professional work. Guys GS are a private company and have to make money to support the development of GS and invest in new features. $300 isn't a lot of money for such a great tool, 10 years ago we paid in excess of $1000 for multimedia development tools, per seat!
In relation to Tables, searchable would be great and I am glad it is listed, but I really want SQL functionality here. As this would make Tables extremely powerful, incorporating Select, Distinct, Where, And & Or, Order By, Insert, Update and Delete statements.
Will Audio be improved in GS Creator? Currently it is very limited as you need to hard code in each sound from a drop down menu. I would like to see it more dynamic like how we can manipulate images.
Another area of interest is to be able to ignore the transparent portion of an image, so the transparent area of the image ignores any interaction (touch, click, etc). This would work great for irregular shaped actors, allowing for more complex games without the extra logic needed.
Also another area would be to stop interactions from passing through actors would be useful. So on a stack of actors, only the top actor would receive the interaction, as any touch, etc would not be passed through it.
Overall I am delighted with the roadmap, I am really looking forward to early next year, GS is already an excellent development tool and these extra features will take it up a gear.
@wanegroup - support for the iPhone 5 and iOS 6 will be included in the next (upcoming) release, so you won't be able to effectively submit an app for iPhone 5 (and by extension iOS 6) until that time, though it's on its way.
@SaladStraightShooterI just submitted an app for iOS 6 only about 2 days ago. I had tested it on an iPad running iOS 6 and it seemed to be working perfectly.
Several of the features listed herein will likely be Pro-only as well. (especially those reliant on the Native Code engine) We'll be able to clarify more on this when they arrive closer to release.
Well thank god! Something to value my pro account more, I just hope they'll be out before it expires!
@Photics - in short, the Native code engine will be Pro only, but the "old" engine will remain intact and free. I'm not sure why that wouldn't be a good decision on our part, considering the investment in resources to the native code engine. Are you suggesting that it should be free? I'm not sure what part of that doesn't make sense.
Well, here are my issues with that...
1 - Doesn't this mean that you'll be supporting two different sets of code? Why would GameSalad want to support the old version and the new version?
2 - It's not so much about giving away the software for free, but more about building up the GameSalad brand. If people start releasing more quality apps with GameSalad, then that builds up the popularity of the software. Right now, I think there are strong reasons for upgrading to Pro. And with the educational discount, it's somewhat more affordable for students. My concern is that Basic/Free users will still be launching slower games. Doesn't that ultimately hurt GameSalad's reputation?
For the final time, however - Admob - in the strictest sense - is unlikely to ever be considered as a viable solution for GameSalad. Take from that what you will. I know you'll chide us for this choice, but it is what it is. It is not being considered - nor likely will be - as a monetization option.
Actually, I can understand the decision to skip AdMob. The thing is, I thought I read somewhere that it was a possibility. Now it's clarified.
Personally, I can just give away my games for free as promotion for my books and developmental resources. I'm not too worried about adding advertisements to my games. Yet, I look at "monetization" as a weak spot for GameSalad.
The apps produced by GameSalad are locked boxes. I think the software would attract more serious developers if there could be customizations... like adding your own advertisers.
However, GameSalad is what it is... an easy way to make apps. That seems to be the consistent vision for the software and you're sticking to it. I can't really fault you for that. But if someone asks me if they should use GameSalad, the locked box issue is an argument against GameSalad.
Fyi.... Asynchronous multiplayer is turn based multiplayer. In other words, it's not simultaneous multiplayer. However, it does have a huge advantage that can be exploited. To play you don't have to be consistently online. Just needs to get online for your "move". Plus, in reality, due to lag time simultaneous multiplayer over anything other than wifi or 4g would suck for the most part.
I am aware that Asynchronous Multiplayer is turn based... and that's just fine for lots of games. However, is it cross-platform or is this just part of Game Center?
Also, could messaging/chatting be part of Asynchronous Multiplayer games? Can players send messages to each other, in addition to moves?
It's not as good as access to a database. But wow, it could open up a lot of possibilities.
@photics: I really do appreciate your comments but as to HTML5 for gaming the standard is simply not even close to ready speed wise. I mean Facebook with all it's resources simply could not get it working fast enough and had to move back to a native app. And Facebook needs nowhere near the speed of a game. Microsoft does look like it is doing some promising things with HTML5, IE10, and multitouch in its new OS. But I bet it's still just going to be too slow in the near future.
Yes, HTML5 is a bit of a mess. Even the latest version of IE is still pretty pitiful with HTML5 support. That means getting consistent experiences across multiple web browsers is a difficult thing to do. And yes, it's terribly slow. Yet, if a GameSalad projects could be exported to the web — like an SWF file is exported from Flash — it would open up a lot of possibilities for the software. Yet, it seems that's not the vision for the software. It's just an easy way to make apps.
I think that sums up my frustration with the software. I'd like to see it do more, be more open, but it seems it's not supposed to. I'm learning to accept that. It's like getting mad at a hammer because it doesn't work well with screws. If someone asked me, "What's great software for getting started with App/Game development?" I could easily recommend GameSalad. The most recent moves for GameSalad have been good ones.
@SF I have no words after got the news that native code coming in 2-3 months. I am so much happy to hear that. And @SaladStraightShooter sorry for trouble you for posting again and again on same topic. Finally I got my answer...:)
And This features only for PRO member is right decision because you guys deserve revenue after this native engine.
I dont understand about Mac Ui What is that? Means its related to Mac game or Gamesalad Mac Creator?
Didn't SF answered my question? im sure i saw a post from him answering about my Ice Cap question , but i didn't had the chance to read it at the time , and now i cant find it.. was his comment got deleted?
After my partner's and I pro license expired I was hard pressed to re-invest in another Pro subscription until this came out. Now I am validated, I just purchased a Pro account and am excited for the future! My generative music game chugs a lot on load times (even on iPad 3) and since I'm planning on releasing it the beginning of next year it will coincide nicely. Awesome work GS, hopefully these timeframes stay true.
tenrdrmerMember, Sous Chef, Senior Sous-ChefPosts: 9,934
edited October 2012
@valan Joints mean you can hook actors together without a bunch of crazy logic. you would need something like the make say a chain thats flexible or add arms and legs to a torso for example.
No this will not give us access to Xcode or any iOS api's not already included with GameSalad. Me personally I'm hoping this native code engine kinda opens the door for more complex plugins like that in the future though. doesn't appear to be planned for now but I'm hoping GameSalad is considering such a thing. Also I don't think the new behaviors you mentioned are in the plans right now as well.
Thanks for the update guys. Looks like you have it nailed. IMHO.
Some things I'd preferred to have scored higher in term of community priority but what we have in the roadmap is exciting. The main thing for me is the clear and transparent communication. Great Stuff!!!!
For the final time, however - Admob - in the strictest sense - is unlikely to ever be considered as a viable solution for GameSalad. Take from that what you will. I know you'll chide us for this choice, but it is what it is. It is not being considered - nor likely will be - as a monetization option.
First of all from a game design perspective I can understand the game salad team to be very excited about these new changes to the engine, etc, etc.
However, For the final time!!! from a business perspective not having Admob, or any other monetisation option in Android is not acceptable!!!
Further more, how can we track profitability of our apps if play haven is supposedly the best form to monetize free apps (in iOs only I hasten to add), yet there are no, I repeat no daily statistics!!! Arrrrrgggg,
These should surely be number 1 and 2 priorities in your roadmap. Don't get me wrong, I do love Game salad, but 99.9% of pro users is trying to make money, and not doing this as a hobby!
Your advertising banner for the pro version reads:
Pro Member Benefits
Android Publishing App Monetization iOS In-App Purchase Apple GameCenter Priority Tech Support iAd Revenue External Links Twitter TweetSheet
There is no disclaimer for the complete unavailability of monetisation options for Android!!!
On a positive note, we are very excited about using your product and are already working on 2 more apps to be published in the next few months.
Looks like very solid progress! Be patient people the LUA free version, as Steve said, will open the doors wide for access to all IOS features. I like what you've done Steve, it finally seems like a firm course is set and now full steam ahead!
I was really excited about this list until I saw how Lau Free would be Pro only. When Lau free was announced, this was not stated. I have been working on a game now for almost a year and it was going to need the new engine. Now I have a choice. To spend $300 and make very little profit, or to release it as is and have a game that will only run on the iPhone 5 if at all. Please don't misunderstand me, I completely understand GameSalad's reasoning, but I just think they are other options. Maybe it could be Pro only for 6 months or there could be a cheaper price for just the new engine. So maybe just $100 for the engine and the $300 for everything.
Comments
1)Just a question and interested. what do u mean by native code? is it an option to code or something???????
2) looking forward to project mint and hop. is this like project butter in android 4.1 where the galaxy nexus suddenly became almost as fast as the iphone 5? (not in benchmarks....)
I go to more games industry and developer events now. Being based in London there are quite a lot of opportunities to meet and speak to developers and publishers first hand. Although I often mention I use GS I wouldn't say I have been in the habit of recommending it.
But with these changes soon GS will be a MUCH more professional tool.
Some of the recurring messages that I have been hearing are "Think of your games as a service" and "Always use data".
So the only thing missing on that massive list of features is the ability to use tools like Flurry so we can actually know how people are using our games. Do they actually play through all the levels? Is there a certain point they all get stuck and so quit the game? Do they spend more time on the endless mode or story mode? etc.
If you add the ability to use data services this will significantly help to improve our games.
Very much looking forward to the next few months of GS development.
P.S Asynchronous Multiplayer + Android IAPs + Searchable Tables = great news.
Now you just need roaming data access so we can have cross platform games!
In relation to Tables, searchable would be great and I am glad it is listed, but I really want SQL functionality here. As this would make Tables extremely powerful, incorporating Select, Distinct, Where, And & Or, Order By, Insert, Update and Delete statements.
Will Audio be improved in GS Creator? Currently it is very limited as you need to hard code in each sound from a drop down menu. I would like to see it more dynamic like how we can manipulate images.
Another area of interest is to be able to ignore the transparent portion of an image, so the transparent area of the image ignores any interaction (touch, click, etc). This would work great for irregular shaped actors, allowing for more complex games without the extra logic needed.
Also another area would be to stop interactions from passing through actors would be useful. So on a stack of actors, only the top actor would receive the interaction, as any touch, etc would not be passed through it.
Overall I am delighted with the roadmap, I am really looking forward to early next year, GS is already an excellent development tool and these extra features will take it up a gear.
Well thank god! Something to value my pro account more, I just hope they'll be out before it expires!
1 - Doesn't this mean that you'll be supporting two different sets of code? Why would GameSalad want to support the old version and the new version?
2 - It's not so much about giving away the software for free, but more about building up the GameSalad brand. If people start releasing more quality apps with GameSalad, then that builds up the popularity of the software. Right now, I think there are strong reasons for upgrading to Pro. And with the educational discount, it's somewhat more affordable for students. My concern is that Basic/Free users will still be launching slower games. Doesn't that ultimately hurt GameSalad's reputation? Actually, I can understand the decision to skip AdMob. The thing is, I thought I read somewhere that it was a possibility. Now it's clarified.
Personally, I can just give away my games for free as promotion for my books and developmental resources. I'm not too worried about adding advertisements to my games. Yet, I look at "monetization" as a weak spot for GameSalad.
The apps produced by GameSalad are locked boxes. I think the software would attract more serious developers if there could be customizations... like adding your own advertisers.
However, GameSalad is what it is... an easy way to make apps. That seems to be the consistent vision for the software and you're sticking to it. I can't really fault you for that. But if someone asks me if they should use GameSalad, the locked box issue is an argument against GameSalad. I am aware that Asynchronous Multiplayer is turn based... and that's just fine for lots of games. However, is it cross-platform or is this just part of Game Center?
Also, could messaging/chatting be part of Asynchronous Multiplayer games? Can players send messages to each other, in addition to moves?
It's not as good as access to a database. But wow, it could open up a lot of possibilities. Yes, HTML5 is a bit of a mess. Even the latest version of IE is still pretty pitiful with HTML5 support. That means getting consistent experiences across multiple web browsers is a difficult thing to do. And yes, it's terribly slow. Yet, if a GameSalad projects could be exported to the web — like an SWF file is exported from Flash — it would open up a lot of possibilities for the software. Yet, it seems that's not the vision for the software. It's just an easy way to make apps.
I think that sums up my frustration with the software. I'd like to see it do more, be more open, but it seems it's not supposed to. I'm learning to accept that. It's like getting mad at a hammer because it doesn't work well with screws. If someone asked me, "What's great software for getting started with App/Game development?" I could easily recommend GameSalad. The most recent moves for GameSalad have been good ones.
I would also like that.
I am so much happy to hear that. And @SaladStraightShooter sorry for trouble you for posting again and again on same topic. Finally I got my answer...:)
And This features only for PRO member is right decision because you guys deserve revenue after this native engine.
I dont understand about Mac Ui What is that? Means its related to Mac game or Gamesalad Mac Creator?
@uptimistik ...
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Also fully agree with it being Pro Only. Seems like one of the best pricing choices I have seen GS make to be honest.
Ice Cap question , but i didn't had the chance to read it at the time , and now i cant find it..
was his comment got deleted?
Thanks
Roy.
Looking forward for some info about Ice Cap guys.
Roy.
I believe Steve said he'll have a post next week about submitting our games to Ice Cap for possible publishing.
ps: granted we survive 2012 :-O
Just wondering what is meant by 'Joints'.
Is it similar to Grouping?
Will we be able to use the native code in Xcode to take advantage of the iOS APIs?
Will we get new behaviours that provide things like touch scroll inertia, rubber banding, notification animations or image rotation?
Cheers
Valan
No this will not give us access to Xcode or any iOS api's not already included with GameSalad. Me personally I'm hoping this native code engine kinda opens the door for more complex plugins like that in the future though. doesn't appear to be planned for now but I'm hoping GameSalad is considering such a thing. Also I don't think the new behaviors you mentioned are in the plans right now as well.
Website ∞ Twitter ∞ My apps are available on: Apple iOS App Store ∞ Google Play App Store ∞ Amazon App Store
Thanks for the update guys. Looks like you have it nailed. IMHO.
Some things I'd preferred to have scored higher in term of community priority but what we have in the roadmap is exciting. The main thing for me is the clear and transparent communication. Great Stuff!!!!
Thanks.
Lee.
However, For the final time!!! from a business perspective not having Admob, or any other monetisation option in Android is not acceptable!!!
Further more, how can we track profitability of our apps if play haven is supposedly the best form to monetize free apps (in iOs only I hasten to add), yet there are no, I repeat no daily statistics!!! Arrrrrgggg,
These should surely be number 1 and 2 priorities in your roadmap. Don't get me wrong, I do love Game salad, but 99.9% of pro users is trying to make money, and not doing this as a hobby!
Your advertising banner for the pro version reads:
Pro Member Benefits
Android Publishing
App Monetization
iOS In-App Purchase
Apple GameCenter
Priority Tech Support
iAd Revenue
External Links
Twitter TweetSheet
There is no disclaimer for the complete unavailability of monetisation options for Android!!!
On a positive note, we are very excited about using your product and are already working on 2 more apps to be published in the next few months.
Any news on Sprite Sheets?
Also, this is all going to be with V1.0 of the Lua free or?
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