Yo so, you made a game with RPG-Maker right? By any chance, if you’ve ever used game-maker, could you tell me the pros and cons to both? Or at least the pros and cons of using RPG-Maker? Also, loved your game dude! Keep it up, looking forward to Falling Water! :00
Thanks for the great question! Both engines are very popular with gamedevs who are just getting started. I have used both engines, RPG Maker more than Game Maker, but I have a fair understanding of both engines.
Game Maker allows for a much more ‘hands on’ way of developing. On startup, a new game file is completely blank, and you’re gonna have to build your game from the ground up. That means coding all of the systems from scratch, and making sure all of them work yourself. To make this a bit easier for beginners, GM includes a sort of ‘drag and drop’ mode for coding.
This can be very helpful for newcomers, but in the end, you’ll do much better learning the proprietary coding language of Game Maker, GML.
What all of this means is that you’re gonna have to really ‘build’ your game with game maker. This is more work, but it does allow for more customization in your games.
I would recommend Game Maker to any starting gamedevs with an interest in coding or learning how to code. If you have the skills, you can make some truly impressive projects with it.
RPG Maker, on the other hand, is heavily template based. Most basic systems (textboxes, movement, UI) have already been made for you, though they can be customized with a bit of coding knowledge. When you start a new project in RPG Maker, there’s already the basic foundation of a game there for you to customize
RPG Maker MV runs of Javascript. It is a coding language used by many applications today, so learning it wont be entirely an investment for RPG Maker. RPG Maker uses a ‘plugin’ system, where scripts are put into the game project externally and customized within the editor. There is a large community of coders making free to use plugins for gamedevs who aren’t really knowledgeable with coding.
The main problem with RPG Maker is that it is Heavily Restrictive. You wont be able to make a non-RPG game using it without bending over backwards and using some clever thinking. There are also many things which the engine simply cannot handle, such as 3D graphics and in Engine drawing. It is an engine to make RPGs first and foremost, and it’s not very kind if you want to stray away from that.
I would recommend RPG Maker to aspiring gamdevs who have more interests in the art side of development than coding. Musicians, artists, and writers thrive in the RPG Maker community.
+Great for coders+Allows for more customization+A more powerful engine+GML is a simple language to learn, great for beginners+Multiplatform support, can make games for consoles-Expensive, a license for publishing gamescan run for $399 or more-GML is proprietary, you’ll have to learn coding again to change engines-A lot more work in the early days of development-The graphics system leaves a lot to be desired, organization of sprites is a pain
+Great for artists, musicians, and writers+Allows for an easier development experience+Large community of developers to interact with+Uses Javascript, a non proprietary language+Fairly inexpensive, the software costs $79.99, includes publishing license -Can only make games for Windows and Mac computers-Restrictive, you’re only going to be able to make RPG styled games-Not as powerful, you’ll possibly face limitations on games
Overall, they are both valid engines, just for different kinds of people. I hope this helped you out! Both engines have free demos for you to test them out, and I’d highly recommend you do so.
Here they are for Game Maker and for RPG Maker
Happy Developing! I hope to see great projects from you all!
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