3 ms·

How are you supposed to make a level for a game if the engine doesn't support editing levels? A big part of the level is that it integrates features of the eng

by snarfy 4y ago

How are you supposed to make a level for a game if the engine doesn't support editing levels? A big part of the level is that it integrates features of the engine directly into the level, e.g. static light shadow rendering.

flohofwoe 4y ago
There are so many options which people are just blind to these days because the "Unity way of doing things" has become so entrenched in people's minds :D - you can build the level in a 3D modelling tool like 3DSMax or Maya and then write an exporter plugin to export the data into your engine-specific file format - you can write a simple DSL to describe your level through text - you can write a converter from another popular level file format (like Quake maps) - you can write a plugin for the Unity editor, and create your maps in Unity - etc etc etc... the possibilities are endless ...of course a dedicated level editing tool tailored to a specific runtime engine will always be most powerful and flexible.
- chongli 4y ago
  Or you can go down the roguelike path and generate the levels procedurally. This approach is incredibly powerful and gives traditional roguelikes a ton of replay value while being very easy to build compared to traditional static assets. Plus there are subreddits [1] [2], wikis [3], and more dedicated to the topic! [1] https://www.reddit.com/r/roguelikedev/ https://www.reddit.com/r/roguelikedev/ [2] https://www.reddit.com/r/proceduralgeneration/ https://www.reddit.com/r/proceduralgeneration/ [3] http://roguebasin.com/index.php/Articles http://roguebasin.com/index.php/Articles
  - ohgodplsno 4y ago
    Any good roguelike that came out in the last 15 years has had a visualizer for seeds, how map elements fit together if it's 3D, etc. You need tools to make a good game.
- tartoran 4y ago
  That’s true and in general conducive to going off the beaten path and building original games. I feel that with large game engines the cost is in ubiform putput: everything looks like everything.
w4rh4wk5 4y ago
Build it in Blender, including cameras and lights. Then build an importer for your game. This is substantially less work than building a whole editor. Especially when considering the editing capabilities of Blender. We kinda did that for our little ray-tracer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZSoVidqV2Q https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZSoVidqV2Q
- blooalien 4y ago
  Or build it in Blender, export it in GLTF (.glb), and import it directly into a game engine that supports GLTF import (like Godot engine for example). :)

by snarfy 4y ago

flohofwoe 4y ago

There are so many options which people are just blind to these days because the "Unity way of doing things" has become so entrenched in people's minds :D - you can build the level in a 3D modelling tool like 3DSMax or Maya and then write an exporter plugin to export the data into your engine-specific file format - you can write a simple DSL to describe your level through text - you can write a converter from another popular level file format (like Quake maps) - you can write a plugin for the Unity editor, and create your maps in Unity - etc etc etc... the possibilities are endless ...of course a dedicated level editing tool tailored to a specific runtime engine will always be most powerful and flexible.

chongli 4y ago
Or you can go down the roguelike path and generate the levels procedurally. This approach is incredibly powerful and gives traditional roguelikes a ton of replay value while being very easy to build compared to traditional static assets. Plus there are subreddits [1] [2], wikis [3], and more dedicated to the topic! [1] https://www.reddit.com/r/roguelikedev/ https://www.reddit.com/r/roguelikedev/ [2] https://www.reddit.com/r/proceduralgeneration/ https://www.reddit.com/r/proceduralgeneration/ [3] http://roguebasin.com/index.php/Articles http://roguebasin.com/index.php/Articles
- ohgodplsno 4y ago
  Any good roguelike that came out in the last 15 years has had a visualizer for seeds, how map elements fit together if it's 3D, etc. You need tools to make a good game.
tartoran 4y ago
That’s true and in general conducive to going off the beaten path and building original games. I feel that with large game engines the cost is in ubiform putput: everything looks like everything.

w4rh4wk5 4y ago

Build it in Blender, including cameras and lights. Then build an importer for your game. This is substantially less work than building a whole editor. Especially when considering the editing capabilities of Blender. We kinda did that for our little ray-tracer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZSoVidqV2Q https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZSoVidqV2Q

blooalien 4y ago
Or build it in Blender, export it in GLTF (.glb), and import it directly into a game engine that supports GLTF import (like Godot engine for example). :)