On Tuesday 15th November, YoYo Games (more specifically – Shaun Spalding, Mike Dailly & Russell Kay) were on Reddit answering your questions about the recently announced GameMaker Studio 2.
The topics were varied with each member having their own agenda but here are some of the main talking points about the latest iteration of the game development software we’ve all come to know and love.
Audio – Russell acknowledged that the sound engine has been under continuous improvement and would continue to be developed with new functionality. However, he did stop short of committing to any specific enhancements but did mention that there had been discussions internally on “a sequencer, events, mix buffer access (for spectrum analysis, and effects), effects (reverb etc), tracker playback” so watch this space!
GMS2’s Target Audience – Reddit user twitterghost asked whether GMS2 was being aimed at more commercial such as larger studios. Shaun & Russell both confirmed that GMS2 remains and always has been about providing everyone with a platform to make games easily. Whether a beginner or a seasoned pro, the aim of the software is to strike the right balance between accessibility and power that no other game engine has.
The Main Driver For GameMaker Studio 2 – Mike commented that the primary goal “was to ditch Delphi” and to make the platform portable so they could release it on other platforms (Mac & Linux anyone? – Check out the Roadmap for GameMaker Studio 2).
GameMaker Language – The team were challenged with ditching GML in favor of more established scripting languages such as Python & JavaScript. Shaun was quick to highlight, and we’d tend to agree, that GML is a very accessible language for all and the losing this would lose what makes GameMaker the software it is today.
Upgrade Cost – A very obvious but valid point was made of the cost to upgrade to the new software. The point made by Shaun was exactly that, it is new software and has taken years to make, thus warranting the need to pay $300 to upgrade. He also added that there were no plans to halt support for GM:S which will be music to many users’ ears. For those users that picked up GM:S in the recent Humble Bundle (we’ll be giving away a couple of these bundles really soon!), you’ll be getting a pretty good deal, much to the dismay of user filya who felt that there should be some kind of further discount – which we don’t agree with. The cost is for the new software and the price you paid for GM:S is irrelevant.
This is a mere snapshot of the conversations that lasted a little over an hour. You can read the full thread on Reddit here.
