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Game Maker iOS Compiler Video


This video shows the progress Zach Reedy and Brad Triebwasser have made so far on their project to enable Game Maker games to be playable on iOS. The ‘compiler’ project, which follows on from their recently released Game Maker iOS decompiler, is coming along well and is expected to be released within a week.

The left hand side of the video shows a Game Maker game running on PC and the right hand side (poor lighting!) shows the same game, albeit a slightly different version, being played on an iPhone 3GS.

What do you think?

36 Comments

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  1. I absolutely love how YYG tries to port it’s GM runtime to as many platforms as possible, keeping the tools private, just to sap as much money as possible from the whole prospect.
    Meanwhile, Game Maker has been getting no updates, the YYG site (Especially the immensely deprecated Beast-powered forums) is riddled to shit with glitches, and the OS X users are lagging an entire damn version behind.
    It’s a shame too, because the next update (whenever that is..) will probably unnecessarily amp up the GMK encryption even further, so that Mac/Windows users will have to wait for the format to be cracked.. all so they can use a tool like LateralGM (Thank you ismavatar) to transfer their GMKs.. (And let’s not forget the completely hopeless Unix/Linux users. Love how I cannot use my desktop at all for anything GM-related)
    I support the development of a compiler, frankly. I do not support the use of a decompiler to crack someone’s rightfully created game.. but that can never be fully avoided. It would just be nice… to be able to fully use my Linux comp for GM development.
    That being said.. I am happy for my copy of GM8. I know I paid for GM8.. nothing more. I can’t truly expect more updates, a fully functioning site, and portability. I wish everyone here the best.

  2. I wish you two the best of luck with this compiler and i would love to see it released so everyone can have the pleasure of their portable games. And the best creators of us all can also benefit by submitting our games the official way.

  3. Just to clarify, as my comment brought drama to the Glog: I support YYG and am a happy customer, but this could have easily been avoided if they would have listened to us in the first place. Do they deserve this? No. I do, however, find this very fascinating even though it is a slap on the face.

    Sides are being taken in this dispute. You’re either for or against. The people who are opposed to someone else cannot be suede. It’s their opinion; just like everyone else. But the fact of the manner is that there is no solid evidence said things were happening and/or being released to the public. The EULA is vague, but not necessarily wrong. Does this make Zach and Brad’s actions illegal? I’m not fully sure as I’m not a lawyer and have not looked into it well.

    However, it seems as they’ve dropped from “heroes” to public enemies in a matter of 24 hours as their (quite popular) GMC topic was locked and they were banned unfairly. If this was just a solo project with no intentions of releasing it to the public, then actions past a firm warning wouldn’t (won’t) be taken most likely.

    I think because this has gotten fairly popular, YYG is being overprotective. I wouldn’t blame them, however. If I made something as cool as this, no matter how poorly coded, I’d be pretty damn proud.

    With that said, I hope to see the best out of this situation. I, personally, would like to see the compiler released with no legal actions taken as nothing they’ve done was illegal. However, I know many beg to differ. Even though it may not be technically illegal, it’s “morally wrong” as some put it.

    • I completely disagree with Smarty, saying what you said was ‘total crap’. It was considered and valid.

      There are simply no arguments against what you said. YoYo didn’t give a shit until they heard it might affect them as a business.

  4. Seems strange to me that Yoyo are going after the decompiler and not the compiler; after all it’s the compiler combined with the runner-used-illegitimately that’s going to cause the most damage to future income streams – as I understand it with this combo people could publish games to the app store (and without the 50/50 profit split I imagine this is tempting). I’m pretty naive, but I can’t see how the decompiler damages potential income (though don’t get me wrong, I don’t support the decompiler, the compiler or unauthorized use of the runner).

    To me, I don’t see how all this time spent on the compiler adds anything constructive to the community. The legitimate uses are very limited. Seems some internet people just want to undermine businesses for the sake of getting their hands dirty. This whole Robin Hood notion of “justifying dodgy behaviour because the company isn’t handling themselves right” is so typical nowadays, everyone is looking for a fight.

    Just plain irritating.

    • I should rephrase, I’m not taking sides, I’m just upset that the first big development of the year is going to be some legal standoff rather than something constructive for the community.

    • scoz said:
      “To me, I don’t see how all this time spent on the compiler adds anything constructive to the community. The legitimate uses are very limited.”

      Well what if I want to try my game out on my own personal iOS device before submitting it to YYG with the hope that they might dain to publish it? What if I make a quick app for my own personal use on my iPhone?

  5. The decompiler has been around for years and has taunted us game developers. What do you do about it? Nothing. But wait! As soon as something happens to you guys (YYG), you want to take legal action? If you actually put the customer first, then what do you know, none of this would have happened.

    Taking legal action for this is silly and quite expensive. Plus, the evidence to back up all these fancy terms is minimal.

    Anyways, I support the third party iOS development tools. Good job and good luck.

  6. I am suprised, no one is remembering that YoYoGames plans to put the best games onto the ios. So if you’re game isn’t one of those best games now, lol…then it most likely won’t be too successful on the ios platforms.

  7. As I stated on YYG:

    *****
    You (YYG) _must_ be joking right?

    1. The only reason the R4 case was lost is because the courts have not yet caught up with technology (and he probably couldn’t afford a good lawyer). People who sell guns do not have the intention of their customers to kill people, just as those who distribute R4 chips do not have the intention of their customers to commit piracy. The EULA for the DS states that the unit cannot be opened, but the R4 chip does not require it, it fits into the port that strictly states it as a connection point for external “games”…and R4 can be seen as a game in itself (an empty one).
    2. The apple EULA is limited to the _action_ of decompiling and distributing _other_ people’s works. Having a gun is not the same thing as shooting someone between the eyes, making the decompiler is not malice intent to suck the life out of YYG or any of its users.
    3. The phone store sucks, no one hardly buys anything on their phone, and if so, it is cheap and short-lived. I personally do not know why you think it’s important to move into that sector when you cannot even fix the areas you currently market for.

    I do understand the ramifications of having the software in public hands, and that distributing the source files of other people (including YYG) is illegal…but the decompiler itself is a piece of software worked on by intellectuals and they have just as much right and protection that the same IP laws that protect your works. IP…it’s a double-edged sword here.

    You and your lawyers must find it “very clear” that you can only issue a smoke and mirror warning and hope for the best. Also, just to clarify by your “UK” laws that I just looked up:

    A. Computer programs are not defined under UK law as a result of the rationale that a codified definition would quickly be overtaken by developments in technology. An implied license to use the program for ordinary purposes is implied into the normal contract of sale and purchase if no express provision is otherwise made. Further to this implied license or express license (as the case may be), certain acts in relation to computer programs are permitted by statute. As such, these rights may not be overridden by agreement — they are inalienable rights for lawful users, and therefore do not infringe copyright by carrying out the specified acts.
    B. Lawful users of software are entitled to:
    * back-up said software (a contract agreed to counter this voids this contract part)
    * decompile (reverse-engineer) to produce the higher level language
    * decompile for sole purpose to alter it in order to ammend other abilities seen fit to the user (although the results of those files cannot be shared with others unless the original creator of the software has open information on it)
    * edit software to correct errors (and contract agreements against such are void on contract)
    Whereby a “lawful user” is the one who is given rights to use software…aka, the customers that you sell your product to has those rights.

    (exerpt and paraphrased for laymen from Gillhams — Law Firm Copyright Lawyer page)

    p.s. This action you have taken alone has negatively affected your public relations, I for one now refuse any further purchase from your company, and those who wish to follow me in this boycott may do so. There are plenty of FREE language tools and tutorials, and you won’t get any blanketing statements like this from those companies.
    *****

    I also find it funny that they only mention the decompiler, yet not the compiler that they truly seek to block. Good for the team in not distributing the runner with the compiler, but it will be of no good except get OTHER people in trouble with YYG (because you force them to obtain the runner on their own). I give you congrats on the knowledge you gained writing such software, but I urge you guys to realize that a lot of people _may_ get hurt. Cheers!

    • Robert Caldwell :
      3. The phone store sucks, no one hardly buys anything on their phone, and if so, it is cheap and short-lived. I personally do not know why you think it’s important to move into that sector when you cannot even fix the areas you currently market for.

      Really? I’m pretty sure that hundreds of thousands of apps are purchased every day on iOS, Android, BlackBerry, Windows Phone 7, and other mobile OSes. I’ve purchased plenty of games and apps on my phone, and none of my purchases have been “short-lived.”

  8. It’s been brought to our attention recently that some individuals have created what they openly refer to as a “Decompiler” specifically for the games we’ve been publishing on iTunes.

    There is no doubt that the people involved are potentially committing a criminal offense and I thought it would be useful to issue a public “friendly warning” to stop doing this.. I have also reposted the content of this message on other sites to make sure that the message is clearly understood by the people involved in this “project”.

    The games we publish on iTunes are COPYRIGHT of YOYO GAMES Limited. That means the games (including our proprietary technology used in them) are protected by international copyright law.

    You have no rights whatsoever to distribute any of our proprietary technology without our prior permission and it would be very foolish to do so as the punishments for copyright infringement can be very severe.

    In case you were wondering and have a legally purchased copy of Game Maker (Windows or Mac), The Game Maker EULA does not apply to any technology that is not part of the standard distribution of GAme Maker and very definitely does not permit you to use any technology we’ve developed for Apple’s IOS, for example. A validly purchased Game Maker license only allows you to distribute technology that comes as with the version of Game Maker and that is required by any game you create using Game Maker. The Game Maker EULA does NOT allow you to use or distribute any other technology developed for or on behalf of YoYo Games Ltd . THAT VERY DEFINITELY INCLUDES THE GAMES OR APPLICATIONS OR ANY PARTS OF THEM THAT WE SELL THOUGH iTUNES, EVEN IF WE CHOOSE TO DISTRIBUTE THEM FREE OF CHARGE.

    YoYo Games is a BUSINESS and we will protect our assets. We really don’t want to take this any further, but we will protect our investment if you force us to.

    If you’re involved in the “IOS Decompiler” project or any similar operation, then this message is a formal “CEASE AND DESIST” notice to you. If you are involved (we know who you are) and you do not abandon this work you should take legal advice before you take this any further. You clearly don’t understand the gravity of what you have done and your stated intentions to distribute YoYo Games’ technology or to facilitate it.

    Just because you may live outside of the UK, you are not out of the reach of UK courts. The UK has bilateral extradition treaties with most countries, including, but certainly not limited to The USA, Australia and Canada.

    The UK courts take a very dim view of copyright valuation and UK law is particularly clear in that area. They are more than prepared to issue prison sentences in copyright cases. Here’s a recent games related case where a 12 month prison sentence was the result. http://www.bit-tech.net/news/gaming/2010/01/19/uk-r4-importer-sentenced-to-one-year-in-pri/1

    We REALLY don’t want to be sending strong messages to you like this, however our lawyers have advised us that we will need to take action sooner rather than later. To prevent this I expect to see a CLEAR message that this project and ALL support for it has been terminated. Those involved can send notice of this in writing if they wish to YoYo Games Ltd, Kydd Building, Bell St DUNDEE, SCOTLAND DD1 1HG.

    It might help to save a lot of legal hassle if anyone involved would read the iTunes EULA, http://www.apple.com/legal/itunes/appstore/dev/stdeula/ Here’s a cut and paste of one section for you :-

    a. Scope of License: This license granted to You for the Licensed Application by Application Provider is limited to a non-transferable license to use the Licensed Application on any iPhone or iPod touch that You own or control and as permitted by the Usage Rules set forth in Section 9.b. of the App Store Terms and Conditions (the “Usage Rules”). This license does not allow You to use the Licensed Application on any iPod touch or iPhone that You do not own or control, and You may not distribute or make the Licensed Application available over a network where it could be used by multiple devices at the same time. You may not rent, lease, lend, sell, redistribute or sublicense the Licensed Application. You may not copy (except as expressly permitted by this license and the Usage Rules), decompile, reverse engineer, disassemble, attempt to derive the source code of, modify, or create derivative works of the Licensed Application, any updates, or any part thereof (except as and only to the extent any foregoing restriction is prohibited by applicable law or to the extent as may be permitted by the licensing terms governing use of any open sourced components included with the Licensed Application). Any attempt to do so is a violation of the rights of the Application Provider and its licensors. If You breach this restriction, You may be subject to prosecution and damages. The terms of the license will govern any upgrades provided by Application Provider that replace and/or supplement the original Product, unless such upgrade is accompanied by a separate license in which case the terms of that license will govern.

    We (and our lawyers) think this is VERY CLEAR.

    Sorry to be posting such a stern message here. We genuinely hope that this message will convey the seriousness of their potential error to those involved and we can all get back to the more interesting task of making great games 🙂

    Note, our lawyers have taken a copy of this post and will continue to monitor the conversation. For legal reasons I will not respond to any further comments made here.

    em…. Happy New Year,

    Sandy Duncan, CEO, YoYo Games Ltd

    • Well, there you go – that’s the official word. Despite my question above, I figured as much, and I am glad we have a stance from YYG now. I’ll make sure we don’t see any of this popping up on GMC.

  9. There is absolutely not question that this is illegal. With or without a EULA.

    The iOS runner is YYGs property. They have obtained the runner, without YYGs permission, recreating a executable with the runner is creating a derivative. Distributing the compiler with the copyrighted iOS runner is absolutely illegal. Anyone who uses it and distributes the resulting executable is also taking part.

    I’m glad their full names are known, they’ve also been posting to the GMC, their IP addresses and ISP’s are known. YYGs publishing games on the Appstore can be used to demonstrate damages. I hope they seek damages including punitive against anyone involved.

    What I find disturbing is how these guys have been openly talking about it on the GMC. There’s currently a topic where this iOS compiler is likely to incorporated, perhaps via a plugin.

    Instead of the members being banned, they’re being elevated to heroes.

    • YoYo gives out the runner with the games. If either 1) the game they obtain the runner from is freely available or 2) they don’t distribute it with the compiler, there’s an awful lot less certainty to things, without looking at iOS/App Store policy.

    • “DVD ripping software” … which somehow people are still using at virtually no risk. The DMCA is hardly enforceable.

    • Perhaps you should do some research into the Digital Milleneum Copyright Act or the EU’s equivalent Copyright Directive. Simply withholding the copyrighted runner doesn’t create a safe-haven for copyright infringements.

      An infringement can be award by providing the technology for infringement.

      It was through these acts that judgements were awarded for DVD ripping software.

  10. Why do you keep posting illegal stuff? I just think it’s rather useless, just tell people to keep their games safe and maybe some tools to keep them safe, instead of going around and showing everyone how to use it, how easy it is, and where to get it. <.< Are you trying to help distribute it??

    • This is not necessarily illegal and is not something games need to be kept safe from. In the case of the decompiler, vaguely telling people to keep their games safe but not from what they need protection is rather useless.

      I think the real problem is that people are over-protective of their non-existent, low-quality and/or worthless creations, and want something to whine about to YoYo.

    • Bret, you realize that it’s not illegal because he’s press? He’s protected to report news worthy of being known by the common consumer.

  11. I’ve skimmed over the EULA, and aside from some vague language concerning decompiling games, I didn’t find much about whether or not this kind of thing is legal or not. I don’t even think the word “runner” is used in that document, and “the Software” only refers to what is installed with Game Maker, and not specifically any part of the games created with it.

    I can see how YYG will be upset and will do what they can to stop it, but short from asking Apple to block anything containing the iOS runner, which I suppose is still their property to distribute, I’m not sure what they can actually do.

    That said, I could have just skimmed over the important stuff, and completely misjudged this, haha. Either way, this is quite an interesting situation which is unfolding.

    • “… the software contained in this installation package and the accompanying associated media and applicable documentation (“Software”).

      1.2 You must not: … j. create data or executable programs which mimic data or functionality in the Software;”

      Game Maker does not build iOS games, so from that angle they’re not “mimicking the Software,” but it does build games for other platforms in the same way.

    • But the installation package does contain the runner. Not the iOS runner, but I would say it would count in the case of e.g. a Mac cross-compiler or something.

      Also, it’s the Game Maker tool itself that does the stitching of game data and runner, which is what this compiler is mimicking.

    • “… the software contained in this installation package and the accompanying associated media and applicable documentation (“Software”).”

      That’s exactly what I was talking about, actually. It’s completely vague. The “installation package” doesn’t install the runner itself – it just installs the Game Maker creator and “associated media and applicable documentation”, which refers to any royalty free media and the manual.

      “1.2 You must not: … j. create data or executable programs which mimic data or functionality in the Software;”

      If I am interpreting the definition of “the Software” as I have above, then this only applies to the Game Maker creator, and not the runner.

      I know it’s quibbling, and frankly, I feel like I’m only playing devil’s advocate here, but I think that, thanks to the (probably intentionally) vague terms of the EULA, a case could be made that there’s no legal reason why you can’t do what they are doing, at least as far as Game Maker itself is concerned.

      It’s probably against the terms of use for iTunes or the YYG iGames themselves to rip the runner off the iOS application and then attach it to another (which is what I am assuming they are doing here), but as far as GM8’s EULA is concerned, it doesn’t seem like it adequately protects them from this situation.

  12. Me and Zach have done nothing illegal.

    This is not theft. Why? The Runner is provided on a FREE application from the app store, freely available to anyone with a .zip file extractor. We are NOT distributing the runner, YYG is. The runner will need to be obtained by someone developing the iOS game on their own terms. By distributing a free application, YYG is also distributing their runner. No reverse engineering required.

    Everyone is talking like “obtaining the runner” is such a huge, and illegal task.

    Let me explain exactly what the compiler does:
    You input a GMK file, it spits out a .ios file which can be read by YYG’s runner. None of these are illegal in any way shape or form.
    Should YYG sue, they have ABSOLUTELY NO proof that we have distributed, or even “obtained” the runner. Absolutely no proof (Good luck in court). Secondly, they would have to work with 3 law systems to do anything (US, Canada and EU).

    NakedPaulToast :
    The iOS runner is YYGs property. They have obtained the runner, without YYGs permission, recreating a executable with the runner is creating a derivative. Distributing the compiler with the copyrighted iOS runner is absolutely illegal. Anyone who uses it and distributes the resulting executable is also taking part.

    Again, who said we were distributing the compiler with their runner?

    So I suppose instead of distributing the runner, we can just distribute the link to the free Solitaire game then, eh? Same thing.

    What I find funny, is that none of you know how iPhone apps work, and you haven’t the slightest clue how the compiler works. You automatically jump to conclusions that we are distributing the runner with the compiler, which is a false statement.

    I should also add that YYG hasn’t even said a WORD about the whole compiler yet, which leads me to think that they couldn’t care less.

    Oh, and one last thing. The EULA on YYG’s website refers to Game Maker and possibly it’s PC runner. It doesn’t mention anything about the iPhone runner. If anyone has read otherwise please let me know because I can’t be bothered to read that wall of text.

    • So you are saying that it’s perfectly legal to distribute resources created by software and freely distribute them without permission? This is quite obviously illegal.
      If you provide a link, you are encouraging people to commit illegal acts, which happens to be illegal.

  13. Ugh, why Comic Sans again? Is this trying to represent YoYo’s font choice as a joke or GM games that go to iOS have to come with bad fonts? /jk 😛
    Seriously though this is looking promising, it will be interesting to see YoYo’s move of the situation.

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