guys i'm going to need to ask for some serious help
although the question (and others similar) has been asked hundreds of times all over the internet, there has never been a definite answer, only a narrowing-down of results until the person questioning it has needed to make their own choice about what they'd like to use.
what i'm looking for is a
video game engine.
i want one that is
programmed with C or C++, is
multi-platform for Windows and Mac, and preferably
can be used with SDL.
i couldn't go into further detail about this as i hardly know the difference between what an API is (DirectX and OpenGL) and what a video game engine is (see above).
i learned this tidbit of information from
this forum's topic, which led me to
this site with a "2D Game Development Course" and has a huge tutorial to use with the:
-
Allegro 5 Library- works with windows, unix/linux, osx, ios, android
- "supports 2D graphics primitives natively"
- can be used alongside a 3D API
- modular; can substitute libraries
but then it states that
Allegro is not a game engine: you are free to design and structure your program as you like.
so i'm confused again.
okay so Allegro is an API
BUT WHAT EVEN IS AN API?
well,
API (Application Programming Interface)An application programming interface (API) is a protocol intended to be used as an interface by software components to communicate with each other.
nope that didn't help
that video game engine list brought to my attention a few other engines that do something similar to what i would like:
-
ClanLib Game SDK- works with windows, linux, osx
- C++ toolkit
- high level 2D graphics with fonts, sprites, animations, collisions
- sound supporting wav, tracker formats and ogg-vorbis
- last updated: November 13th, 2012 (pretty recently)
-
CRM32Pro- works with windows, linux, osx
- "it is perfect to create games in 2D quickly"
- can be used with OpenGL for 3D
- all the modules (main, video, audio) i need
- last updated: July 31st, 2012
-
HGE (Haaf's Game Engine)- works with windows (only)
- it's a 2d game engine what do you know (include most of the good stuff from above)
- apparently very easy or "beginner friendly" to use
- last updated: March 18th, 2008 (wow old)
hey whatdoyaknow
-
Torque 2D- it's a 2d engine, folks!
- "Torque 2D's Level Editor provides a suite of WYSIWYG tools" (yeah and here's where i really back out of this idea)
- C++ scripting
- physics (nice to hear, the others never specifically mentioned this)
-
Cocos2D-X- holy loving stuff this site is absolutely balls to the walls all over the place nutso crazy.
- uses C++ and Lua
- works with JUST ABOUT EVERY PLATFORM IN EXISTENCE (windows, linux, osx, ios, android, and even bada)
- 2d engine with use of SDL
- constantly available community (always a plus for when you get stuck)
- made primarily for mobile (oh)
Game Maker, Multimedia Fusion 2, and even RPG Maker XP was in the mix, but they were all linked to odd pages that were either broken or weren't specifically about the source.
okay so take this information and put it to use (make a game, give me advice while you're at it). opinions are appreciated, i've been searching far and wide for too long now and would love to get even a hint of direction.