Game engine of choice

[Dr.izzt]

I pretty recently discovered a lot of these VN and RPG games on F95 and have really gotten into them to the point of where i now find myself creating a game outline and cracking open my Daz Studio. I may have an ambitious scope for my game but I think if it pans out the end result will be worth it. I would like to get a little feedback from others on the different options for game engine and see what people either like to play in or develop on.
I did start a sample game with Ren'Py having had some experience with Python and it seemed alright to work with. I will be curious to see what others say and if you have a difference of opinion on what you would like to develop vs play on I would love the input.

 

[Fragmentation]

I wish we could give negative votes. I can't stand RPGM.

 

[OhWee]

It really depends on what you need game mechanic wise.

If you like 'open world exploration' type games with the top down view, RPG Maker style games (and similar engines) lend themselves better to that.

If you want to focus more on storytelling, and a set number of locations, RenPy works pretty good for that.

Myself, I hate having to walk back and forth in many of the Adult RPG Maker games. This is wasted time where I could be interacting with characters instead, but a few games pull this off well enough. And I'm not a fan of puzzles in general. That being said, The Artifact (which had all of this) had enough fucking going on to make this less annoying...

The nice thing about RPG Maker is that the basic set of 'world assets' are prebuilt, whereas in RenPy you'll need to come up with your backdrops or scenes for all of your locations.

I personally like RenPy, because you can 'grow' into it as you learn more about the programming, but it's pretty easy to tell a basic story in RenPy, once you get the hang of the basic conventions. I also like it because it's more modder friendly, so that if something annoys me, I can just go in and change it (after using unren.bat to extract it as needed).

Having people making mods for your game generally indicates they like your game for the most part, and may generate more interest in your game.

Other engines protect your art assets to varying degrees, so if you don't want people poking around under the hood, well that's a consideration as well.

 

[Dr.izzt]

I agree with you on the RPG maker mechanics. I myself prefer the VN style used by most of he games I have enjoyed. As far as protecting assets I am not sure how much I will really care. My main goal is to create something that will be fun that has depth but doesn't become too much of a grind.

I am playing around with Ren'Py as I start to develop the story. I'll have to do some poking around at examples and maybe some of the existing games to get an idea how others have put their stories together.

I am curious how it is to build these out in Unity. I have used it while messing around with some VR stuff but would be curious to see how the VNs are put together.

 

[Papa Ernie]

I like the QSP engine the most to play with. Unfortunately, I've read that most of the code is in Russian. I think UNITY trumps Ren'Py with flexibility, but if you don't need the additional features and are more comfortable with Python, then stick with Ren'Py (especially if it's your first game). KISS method rulez!

Like OhWee said, use the engine that will best accommodate with how YOU want to create a game.

Good luck!

 

[DoubleProlix]

I've been using Ren'Py a lot lately, but I'd be lying if I was saying that it was my favorite. It's good for solo projects, though, especially if you're lacking in other resources.

 

[CeLezte]

Using Twine 2.1.3 with SugarCube 2.20 for my current concept game.
It's freeroam game, typically like the ones you see in QSP, such as SimGirl, School Girl, FemSim, Girllife, Big Kuyash, etc.

I have no idea when the game will become playable. I have a very high standards for game play and content amount. My philosohy is: "If the game is not fun for me it won'tbe fun for anyone else."

If it flops I'll move onto GameMaker Studio 2.1 or Unity 2017 and try an RPG or Platformer.