State of GameSalad on 7-19-2017 (Web Version Semi-open Beta)

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Comments

  • MelodyCatsMelodyCats Member, PRO Posts: 128

    I understand the motivation behind the GS web tool and wanting to bring everything under one html5 code base that can be used cross platform - and if at some point they can package it to work offline so its not so slow then that would be great.
    I think most of use just want minimum updates on the current desktop creator until that day comes.
    It must be very frustrating for GS developers to read these comments when they're working flat out on the web tool and probably burnt out.
    The thing is we've also put our faith in GS - some of us for over 5 years and also have to deal with own angry/frustrated customers on a weekly basis without any certainty or feedback from the GS team as to where things stand and how they're progressing.

  • unbeatenpixelunbeatenpixel Game Developer Member, PRO Posts: 568

    @pHghost said:

    @squirrel42 said:
    Ad placement on iPhone X is incorrect and being rejected by Apple
    iPhone X specific screenshots/videos are not accepted as is not using the latest sdk

    Just don't build for iPhone X at the moment, not a problem. It's going to be a long time before supporting iPhone X natively will be necessary. From a revenue stream perspective, potential iPhone X users will be less than 1% of your total users, anyway. It's not like iPhone X arrived and suddenly all else is smoke.

    For some of us this is not the true at all. Three of my games are on the some front pages (today tab or games tab) of the AppStore( Wordgraphy, Polycolor, 20 Seconds ). Front pages are visiting by more than %1 percent of new users, this is not even close to actual number and revenue perspective, potential iPhone X users will give much more revenue than other iPhones( How does AdNetworks work 101) and I am not even start to thinking iPhone X Ad Revenue. Why did AdMob give 20 November as the deadline? If your ads don't fully comply with Admob Advertising Policies you can get out of the whole ad network, not just for iPhone X.

    Right know, because of the lack of New SDK support/ New Admob Policies, I look like someone who is not professional at all and I don't even blame the GS, I shouldn't trust them after all this time.

    @AlchimiaStudios said:

    iPhone X specific screenshots/videos are not accepted as is not using the latest sdk

    I'm a bit confused on this one, care to elaborate? GS itself is not using the newest sdk so apps uploaded as apps wont be recognized as supporting iPhoneX? Or?

    You'll get this error when you try to upload new build with iPhone X Screenshots and Preview. ''The app previews and screenshots for the iPhone 5.8-Inch display won’t appear on the App Store because your binary wasn’t built with the iOS 11 SDK.''

    Check out my games on the App Store!

    Wordgraphy / Polycolor / 20 Seconds / Minimal Maze

  • squirrel42squirrel42 Member, PRO Posts: 195

    @unbeatenpixel Thank you!

  • AlchimiaStudiosAlchimiaStudios Member Posts: 1,069

    @AlchimiaStudios said:

    iPhone X specific screenshots/videos are not accepted as is not using the latest sdk

    I'm a bit confused on this one, care to elaborate? GS itself is not using the newest sdk so apps uploaded as apps wont be recognized as supporting iPhoneX? Or?

    You'll get this error when you try to upload new build with iPhone X Screenshots and Preview. ''The app previews and screenshots for the iPhone 5.8-Inch display won’t appear on the App Store because your binary wasn’t built with the iOS 11 SDK.''

    Ah, good to know. Although it is pretty early in iPhoneX's life, this does seem like a critical fix.

    @adent42 @ForumNinja any word on this?

    Follow us: Twitter - Website

  • pHghostpHghost London, UKMember Posts: 2,342

    @unbeatenpixel said:
    For some of us this is not the true at all. Three of my games are on the some front pages (today tab or games tab) of the AppStore( Wordgraphy, Polycolor, 20 Seconds ). Front pages are visiting by more than %1 percent of new users, this is not even close to actual number and revenue perspective, potential iPhone X users will give much more revenue than other iPhones

    It doesn't make much sense to me what you mean.

    I said that iPhone X (which was only just released) will account for a tiny percentage of your actual users (because not that many people have one). How is that true for some of us and not others? How does that relate to front pages? How will iPhone X give more revenue than other iPhones, if they are just a fraction of the iPhones that are owned and used worldwide, thus will logically show a lot less ads?

    Of course, this will change as more people get an iPhone with the new format, but it will still be a minority of users for quite some time.

    Yes, the November 20th date is a potential problem, if through non-compliance they stop feeding you ads entirely. Is there more information on that?

  • IceboxIcebox Member Posts: 1,485

    We might get lucky and get a response November 20th :) dont worry too much

  • pHghostpHghost London, UKMember Posts: 2,342

    @Icebox said:
    We might get lucky and get a response November 20th :) dont worry too much

    Hopefully by the 16th, if we need to re-publish.

  • The_Gamesalad_GuruThe_Gamesalad_Guru Member Posts: 9,922

    @squirrel42 said:
    @The_Gamesalad_Guru Your input was a great loss too. As a matter of interest, what do you use to code now?

    I’ve spent quite a bit of time learning swift. Haven’t been doing much game development lately. Mostly focused on my job and paying those college bills for my youngest son, who is a programming major, with a minor in game design. He has also developed a few card games, one of which is going to be available publicly in the near future.

  • pHghostpHghost London, UKMember Posts: 2,342

    @The_Gamesalad_Guru said:
    I’ve spent quite a bit of time learning swift.

    How's that? Would you recommend that as something worth dipping into?

    @The_Gamesalad_Guru said:
    one of which is going to be available publicly in the near future.

    Looking forward to seeing that!

  • The_Gamesalad_GuruThe_Gamesalad_Guru Member Posts: 9,922

    @pHghost said:

    @The_Gamesalad_Guru said:
    I’ve spent quite a bit of time learning swift.

    How's that? Would you recommend that as something worth dipping into?

    @The_Gamesalad_Guru said:
    one of which is going to be available publicly in the near future.

    Looking forward to seeing that!

    Built two really basic one lever games with it. It takes a while to learn all the calls but it is very powerful. I would still recommend using a game engine unless you have lots of time to learn and build prototypes. It was just something I wanted to learn and acomplish some basics in.

    Will post when we get the cards formally printed. My son is doing well and his projects have been voted best by his classmates several times. He’s very good at designing large world RPGs and such.

  • Bowhill GamesBowhill Games Member Posts: 191

    Sorry if these has already been asked / answered.

    1) when will the web version be available for us to try.
    2) will you be able to open existing projects in it?
    3) Does it follow the Mac or Pc app build or is it a totally new creation / a combination on the two

    (site currently under construction)
  • IceboxIcebox Member Posts: 1,485
    edited November 2017

    @Bowhill Games said:
    1) when will the web version be available for us to try.

    It is available , try creator.gamesalad.com

    2) will you be able to open existing projects in it?

    Yes , publish your project from the desktop version, then you can find it on the web version >> Published projects >> import

    3) Does it follow the Mac or Pc app build or is it a totally new creation / a combination on the two

    It looks different , i think it looks more like the windows version , not sure what other users think .Test it or watch it on youtube just search Gamesalad 2.0

  • BBEnkBBEnk Member Posts: 1,764

    @The_Gamesalad_Guru said:

    @pHghost said:

    @The_Gamesalad_Guru said:
    I’ve spent quite a bit of time learning swift.

    How's that? Would you recommend that as something worth dipping into?

    @The_Gamesalad_Guru said:
    one of which is going to be available publicly in the near future.

    Looking forward to seeing that!

    Built two really basic one lever games with it. It takes a while to learn all the calls but it is very powerful. I would still recommend using a game engine unless you have lots of time to learn and build prototypes. It was just something I wanted to learn and acomplish some basics in.

    Will post when we get the cards formally printed. My son is doing well and his projects have been voted best by his classmates several times. He’s very good at designing large world RPGs and such.

    I played with swift a bit, made a breakout game for testing file sizes compared to GS/Corona was surprised to find it was 2 times larger on a device then GS.

  • JapsterJapster Member Posts: 672
    edited November 2017

    @AlchimiaStudios said:
    After all, GS only provides us a tool. Not a promise of supporting every developers needs so that they can survive financially. Game development is a very very tough market after all.
    ...
    ...
    Also, when the community goes into a rage, it doesn't reflect on the tool well. The ranting gets bad sometimes, so much so that it could even hurt GS business... Which in turn hurts it's developers. You know?

    Don't shoot yourself in the foot just to prove a point.

    @AlchimiaStudios - you mention providing a tool? - it's more of a FULL solution that we pay for, than a tool - everything counts, not just creating a game, but also being able to rely on functionality to monetise (and hopefully recoup the GS fees) from it. Personally, I'm pretty peeved with the whole state of GS and the Ad networks at the moment, including that all or nothing deadline from AdMob, and hanging apps using Chartboost, at the moment - still no resolution to my Revmob issue (works in Android perfectly, iOS always fails unless the ad is actually clicked/followed!) - could be GS, could be Revmob, waiting to hear ANYTHING on this (since the confirmation from GS that it is indeed an issue), for the last 2-3 weeks, then Admob doesn't seem to work for me (I've made the account, set App Id, etc, run my app with Admob selected, tried to launch videos many times) but Admob is not showing any requests made - again, could be me, could be Google, could be GS side, but it all looks fine...

    As regards the 'shooting yourself in the foot' point, I think it boils down to a point where you don't really care if it hurts their business - it's their own fault really, if they won't listen/fix stuff - you shout yourself hoarse trying to get through to them, or to make issues/concerns known, because YOU love the product enough to care what's happening, you pay / invest in it, or at least are concerned enough to want to help steer to keep the car on the track, and can SEE just how awesome it COULD be if, as @Hypnorabbit suggests, we were helping by having some kind of say in making the right decisions from a customer / user / usability standpoint - and you're met with ignorance, dismissiveness (and sometimes sheer arrogance- remember the none-GS user-generated templates community, market and tutorial videos ultimatum / cease and desist stance?), or a wall of silence...

    Lately, with the ads issues and other stuff, I can honestly say that I'm THIS close to just jacking it all in - my dev mojo is at an all-time low... All I ever wanted was the product I was paying for, to be supported and kept up-to-date as required (iOS version / Apple requirements, ads integration, etc, etc) just so I could work on it and release my games, and try to help pay the bills.

    As it stands, it seems that more and more stuff is breaking (yes, some due to external factors, but again, this isn't OUR responsibility to accept it and put up with a now-broken product - it's the software supplier's responsibility to accommodate changes to their product for the continued working functionality for their paying users, be it as a fix for changed/broken/removed functionality in the underlying OS or App Store etc, but no, we just sit here and accept it. Personally, I don't think it's even a money issue, I think it's one of two things - can't be arsed to fix it (after all, subs are still coming in), or worse... there's no-one left at GS with knowledge or ability to fix what's broken, and this 'stance' is just a stalling tactic re. the desktop version.

    ...and no, I'm not even going to start on enhancements, when even critical fixes aren't applied these days.

    Just out of interest.... ...wondering just how long ago the last actual update to Mac Creator was published/released?...

  • ToqueToque Member Posts: 1,187

    @Japster said:

    ved with the whole state of GS and the Ad networks at the moment, including that all or nothing deadline from AdMob, and hanging apps using Chartboost, at the moment - still no resolution to my Revmob issue (works in Android perfectly, iOS always fails unless the ad is actually clicked/followed!) - could be GS, could be Revmob, waiting to hear ANYTHING on this (since the confirmation from GS that it is indeed an issue), for the last 2-3 weeks, then Admob doesn't seem to work for me (I've made the account, set App Id, etc, run my app with Admob selected, tried to launch videos many times) but Admob is not showing any requests made - again, could be me, could be Google, could be GS side, but it all looks fine...

    I updated some apps last week. I found video admob adds previously were not showing. I selected in admob static adds only and they are showing. Less revenue of course but at least something......

    I gave up on chart boost as it wasn't working for me but haven't tried it for awhile now.

  • PhilipCCPhilipCC Encounter Bay, South AustraliaMember Posts: 1,390

    @Japster said:

    Just out of interest.... ...wondering just how long ago the last actual update to Mac Creator was published/released?...

    The first page of the sticky thread beneath this one "Mac Creator Release 1.25.80 is Available" provides a clue: February 15, 2017! :o

    A search can't find any earlier mention of it... but as we know, even the Search is not 100% reliable. :D

  • pHghostpHghost London, UKMember Posts: 2,342

    If you open up the .dmg of 1.25.80, the Created date of the application is February 13, 2017. So that is the official date of birth. :wink:

  • IceboxIcebox Member Posts: 1,485

    I wonder how long will it take them to visit the forums :) I have been spamming the refresh button 24 / 7 waiting for a reply from GS. We need a new state of gamesalad thread.

  • MelodyCatsMelodyCats Member, PRO Posts: 128

    I've seen them around in the last few days on the 'Who's Online' widget... maybe they're just busy writing a super comprehensive update post.

  • JapsterJapster Member Posts: 672
    edited November 2017

    @Toque said:

    I updated some apps last week. I found video admob adds previously were not showing. I selected in admob static adds only and they are showing. Less revenue of course but at least something......

    I gave up on chart boost as it wasn't working for me but haven't tried it for awhile now.

    Yeah mate, I know what you mean - the trouble is that I have no banner real estate, and Rewards are the only way I can do this based on the way that everything now works in the game, as people will earn rewards / credits, but not necessarily watch the videos otherwise.... :(

  • AlchimiaStudiosAlchimiaStudios Member Posts: 1,069

    @adent42 @bdusing @ForumNinja Today would be a great day for a State of Gamesalad post... Just saying! The unrest is pretty high around here.

    Follow us: Twitter - Website

  • Two.ETwo.E Member Posts: 599

    There are developer(s) working on fixes. Unfortunately there are a lot of things that need fixing or that keep breaking. Which means a release deadline can not be predicted yet (from what I have heard).
    I am sure when a more foreseeable date is in sight, there will be an post. This is one benefit of the web creator. No longer have to update 3 different platforms.

    Furthermore, GS has taken massive strides into the education market. This new web creator provides more benefits for the education users. No need to have tech support to install/upgrade GS on all computers, provides a great stepping stone between not knowing anything about coding and understanding the basics etc.

    They have constant lectures and tutorials to help teachers with their work. They are constantly working with many school and events.

    The only thing lacking is support for the developer at this time.
    Unfortunately for me, I can not understand or use the new web creator efficiently to make the switch over. But if you are serious about GS, learning the new web tool is essential.

    However, once it becomes the sole focus, I expect things to really kick off as they can focus on improving their education focus while also benefiting developers all in one.

    That being said, I would like to see creator work in safari :)

    Best,
    Two.E

  • JamesDJamesD Member, PRO Posts: 12

    Hello All,
    I personally wouldn't have subscribed to GS (Windows) had I known the main focus was going towards Education or had known all the other issues. The few day trial I had doesn't help one become aware of a lot of the problems. The web creator has yet to work for me as well, it always hangs and all but one template actually loads (still hangs eventually). Then seeing the site, or portions of, go down (the key is "consistently" for days at a time), makes me believe GS's priorities may be skewed. I'm guessing GS sites are running on shared a server. If so, then that's seriously lame.

    I've only joined within the last 6 weeks or so, but there always seems to be something new I run into making GS a lot less impressive than when I first joined.

    Most of the active community members seem more concerned about the state of GS than the company and I appreciate all the work/tutorials from those members that have contributed to help new peeps like me. I feel I've already wasted a considerable amount of time for an unstable, possibly dying, product or one that changes/focus without mentioning their future intentions on their sales pages. I may be missing something, but right now I just have a bad taste from the experience within the short time I've been with GS.

    Unfortunately, I''I probably just chalk off the year of GS as a loss and move on.

    Thanks again to all of you helping new GS'ers again.

    Just my two cents, I'll crawl back under my rock. :-)

  • JapsterJapster Member Posts: 672
    edited November 2017

    @JamesD said:
    Hello All,
    I personally wouldn't have subscribed to GS (Windows) had I known the main focus was going towards Education or had known all the other issues. The few day trial I had doesn't help one become aware of a lot of the problems. The web creator has yet to work for me as well, it always hangs and all but one template actually loads (still hangs eventually). Then seeing the site, or portions of, go down (the key is "consistently" for days at a time), makes me believe GS's priorities may be skewed. I'm guessing GS sites are running on shared a server. If so, then that's seriously lame.

    I've only joined within the last 6 weeks or so, but there always seems to be something new I run into making GS a lot less impressive than when I first joined.

    Most of the active community members seem more concerned about the state of GS than the company and I appreciate all the work/tutorials from those members that have contributed to help new peeps like me. I feel I've already wasted a considerable amount of time for an unstable, possibly dying, product or one that changes/focus without mentioning their future intentions on their sales pages. I may be missing something, but right now I just have a bad taste from the experience within the short time I've been with GS.

    Unfortunately, I''I probably just chalk off the year of GS as a loss and move on.

    Thanks again to all of you helping new GS'ers again.

    Just my two cents, I'll crawl back under my rock. :-)

    THIS... ^^^^^ is a great example of exactly what I'm talking about - new developers' experiences too - hardly complimentary, but it seems once you've committed, and paid your money, who cares about supporting you when (not if) things constantly break (even due to external factors) and aren't fixed, when they SHOULD be easily fixable if the mindset/attitude to do so was there?...

    +1 @JamesD - good points, well put.

    I'm guessing that this is the general impression, and really, if GS are constantly ignoring the impact of this on their business and reputation, along with all of these posts / unrest, and not providing required fixes to the product, from the users that are paying their wages, then really - I completely expect them to start hemorrhaging users on an even greater rate as we move forward...

    Like I say, I WANT to root for them/support them with all of my heart because I love what COULD be possible with this fantastic idea of a product, but not if they won't support US.... :frowning:

  • MelodyCatsMelodyCats Member, PRO Posts: 128
    edited November 2017

    @JamesD said:
    Unfortunately, I''I probably just chalk off the year of GS as a loss and move on.

    I wouldn't give up on GS just yet. If you've spent any time with a real coding language you'll quickly marvel at how impressive it can be.
    Unfortunately I suspect that their new business model involving educational institutions no longer depends on individual subscribers, but I do think it would be a mistake to ignore the community completely.
    I hope someone on the GS team can give us an update very soon (whether good or bad) on how things are progressing.

  • ToqueToque Member Posts: 1,187
    edited November 2017

    @JamesD said:
    Hello All,
    I personally wouldn't have subscribed to GS (Windows) had I known the main focus was

    Thanks for discussing your problems. Sorry your experience hasn't been the best. Im not excited about the WebGS yet either. Have you tried the gamesalad Creator on your desktop?

    To be fair the Web Gamesalad version isn't even finished yet. It doesn't work because it isn't finished. Driving a car that is only 3/4 finished being built isn't going to go well. I think the WebGS is to let people try it out but I don't think anyone here is building full games with it yet.

    You can use the desktop creator and everything you learn can be transferred to the web version when its finished.

    Communication from staff isn't Gamesalad's strong points. The forums feel abandoned.

    I hope you try creator and give it a chance first.
    Thanks for sharing your impressions.

  • JamesDJamesD Member, PRO Posts: 12

    @Toque said:

    Have you tried the gamesalad Creator on your desktop?

    Yes (for windows, don't have mac) and for the most part it's slow and constantly crashes.

    Note: When I heard comments about GS crashing within the tutorial videos, I thought it was a once in awhile thing.... not literally like many times a day as if it's an expectation or feature of GS.

    After a period of time, one can get tired of having to re-load and see what was saved, what wasn't and where I was before the crash. I find it frustrating being so unproductive and wasting so much time on just the crashes.

    This is when I ran across the beta link to the Web version (I had no clue of ANY software changes to be made when I first joined... not until digging deeper in the forum).

    The main thing I liked with GS compared to other platforms I've messed with was the built-in Physics aspects/help. Yes, GS seems to help simplify things than other platforms and I had high hopes, but the simplicity is just a small portion of the software and actually useless if the software isn't working properly to begin with.

  • SocksSocks London, UK.Member Posts: 12,822

    @Two.E said:
    There are developer(s) working on fixes.

    Their communication is appalling.

  • Two.ETwo.E Member Posts: 599

    @Socks said:
    Their communication is appalling

    That's nothing new...which is why if you (anyone) has an issue or problem regarding publishing or access etc, to contact them using the appropriate means.

    Best,

  • SocksSocks London, UK.Member Posts: 12,822
    edited November 2017

    @Two.E said:
    That's nothing new . . .

    Sadly true.

    @Two.E said:
    . . . which is why if you (anyone) has an issue or problem regarding publishing or access etc, to contact them using the appropriate means.

    I'm just wondering if there is a future for GameSalad as standalone application, I've not really got a specific question, I just like to know what's happening in a general sense.

    I'd say it's more appropriate for a company like GameSalad to keep their users up to date with general messaging (email newsletters / update news / roadmaps . . . and so on), rather than have individual users contact them in an ad hoc sort of way - the problem with this approach (individual users contacting them) is that information is slow to disseminate and tends to be specific to that user's interest / question.

    There's probably a good reason why a company like Unity (or similar) keep their user base informed through generalised mail outs, newsletters, update news (and so on) rather than waiting for individual users to contact them on specific issues.

    I think we've long passed the point where you can expect enthusiastic engagement from GS on the subject of game design or optimising code, but you'd think someone could find 5 or 10 minutes a week to hop onto the forum, answer a couple of questions and let us know how things are going ? Even if they did it in their own time, at home ?

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