What is the performance like on mobile?

gamedesignersage@gmail.com

For the past few weeks I've been using Construct 2 and I like what I've used. Very easy to get into and the tutorials are many and easy to read up on. My concern is the performance of the engine on mobile devices. C2 seems very much like a desktop first, mobile second sort of engine when it comes to exports (indeed, most completed projects always seem to be google play releases rather than android, etc).

Now, I'm not expecting magic performance out of the hat or be able to do hundreds of physics enabled balls bouncing in all their heavenly glory. However, I do want an engine that is built for the hardware (mobile) and C2 does not fill me with confidence.

So, how is Gamesalad in this respect? I judge the value of a platform by its content and I am impressed by how many popular games have been made with Gamesalad (C2 does not look to have anywhere near the same presence). So it has my interest there. Does GS generally fare better on mobile performance than C2? I'd like to know as much as possible (perhaps examples of how it fared with your own projects) so I can make a decision and commit fully to one engine. Thanks for reading.

jamie_c

I've never used Construct 2 so I can't compare performance but the games I've published with Gamesalad on mobile devices have all run fine, no slow downs and no performance problems.

Of course as a developer its possible to create a game that is too processor intensive for a mobile device to run but part of the job of the developer is to optimize their code and assets so they run well on the device they are played on.

tatiang

One thing to consider is that with an Apple iOS Developer License ($99) you can download the free version of GameSalad and preview GameSalad projects on a mobile device. There are many free templates and demos available that would give you an indication of how performance stacks up.

gamedesignersage@gmail.com

Thanks for the comments so far. What's frustrating for me is I can't even test if C2 is ideal for me since testing on a device is locked out of the free version as is many things, like only having 100 events, no grouping objects under a family behaviour, etc. So, to be able to know how well it performs on mobile I have to shell out, which seems counter-productive to me.

Are there any such restrictions with GS?

jamie_c

You can build and test or sell games on iDevices with the free version of Gamesalad. In order to test on an iDevice though you'll need to be a Certified Apple Developer, that means you'll need to pay Apple $99 per year. But that is an Apple requirement not Gamesalads.

I know you are specifically talking about mobile, but you can publish completely free to the Gamesalad Arcade, their version of HTML 5.

gamedesignersage@gmail.com

That seems fair. I think I'll put C2 on hold for now and give GS a couple of weeks. Get to the same point in this game I'm working on and see which one rubs me the right way. Is it possible to test on Android for free or is that only for the Pro?

jamie_c

To test or install on Android you need to be Pro, see the exact differences between free and pro here:

http://gamesalad.com/creator/pro#pricing

see which one rubs me the right way

I think that is the key, sometimes its best to try multiple pieces of software and see which one connects with you the best. In the past I tried many different 3D packages and none seemed to feel comfortable, but finally I tried a demo of Cinema 4D and it just connected with me so now I've been using that for years.

gamedesignersage@gmail.com

Thanks for the comments so far. Is the windows version on par with the mac release? I do have a mac mini but a lot of the time I'm on the laptop and that's not of the Golden Delicious variety.

Well, let us see how far I can get in recreating my game to the same point. Will be interesting to see how the two engines compare. Wish me luck. I think I'll need it!

jamie_c

The Windows version works fine as it is, but it is lacking some of the features of the Mac version. I understand an updated Windows version is due out sometime soon, but I have no idea when that will actually be.

Honestly if you have access to both a Mac and a PC, I'd go with the Mac hands down.