Frustration with game making! Grr!

I have been playing with construct 2 now for weeks. Starting with the free version and decided to buy the full version to support the developers of this software. I don't regret my purchase but this has to be the most frustrating area (game development) I have ever ventured into.

I have spent hours and hours trying to develop games over the past few weeks and not managed to finish a single one of them. Today (Sunday) I have spent 3 hours working on a game only to find I can't finish it due to a lack of knowledge, lack of artistic ability and not sure if construct can handle the functions I need it too leaving me with yet another bodged game. I really would like to release something to the public that's of my own creation instead of a copy / paste job of someone else’s work or idea.

I'm sure I can't be the only one who finds game development hard, anyone else find this frustrating?

I just had to vent my anger and frustration somewhere

You've only just begun to learn it. C2 can do many things, even the most complex games.. just browse the in development forum and see the wonderous creations of others.

C2 is deceptively simple, making it easy to learn but hard to master. Keep at it and use the forum for help if you cannot implement your ideas.

Hah been there and done that ^^

I too am horrible at getting my ideas realised. While i can do some art and have some knowledge in Construct 2, I tend to put too much work on one thing and when I just can't seem to accept the current behaviour of that thing, then I either trash my project or put it on hold... which i have done several times already ._.

I study game design, prototyping and development and i'm quite good at it theoretically but when i venture into my own projects, alone and frustrated, it just doesn't seem to work

You've only just begun to learn it. C2 can do many things, even the most complex games.. just browse the in development forum and see the wonderous creations of others.

C2 is deceptively simple, making it easy to learn but hard to master. Keep at it and use the forum for help if you cannot implement your ideas.

I do find the forum useful. But there are thing's I just don't see construct being able to handle.

The game idea I am working on allows players to spawn units that move to the right while enemy AI moves to the left. When they collide they start to battle, but construct 2 doesn't seem to support any method of registering damage if there are multiple units overlapping one another as the collision and overlap functions become redundant. This does feel like a very big limitation

I also find it frustrating (if you are planning to sell it to mobile publisher, it can be even worse sometimes.)

However, if it is a lack of knowlegde, you can ask, nobody knows everything, it is why lots and lots of people says "you cannot make a game all by yourself".

On desktop, C2 mostly handle all kinds of 2D pretty well, with some adjustements in some cases, as for art... I cann8t draw anything pretty so I understand your frustration ^^"'

> You've only just begun to learn it. C2 can do many things, even the most complex games.. just browse the in development forum and see the wonderous creations of others.

>

> C2 is deceptively simple, making it easy to learn but hard to master. Keep at it and use the forum for help if you cannot implement your ideas.

>

I do find the forum useful. But there are thing's I just don't see construct being able to handle.

The game idea I am working on allows players to spawn units that move to the right while enemy AI moves to the left. When they collide they start to battle, but construct 2 doesn't seem to support any method of registering damage if there are multiple units overlapping one another as the collision and overlap functions become redundant. This does feel like a very big limitation

What you described is easily achieved by just collision check without using overlap check. On collision play an attack animation, minus health variables, bounce back wards a bit (only need a few pixels so the collision check can happen again fast) before moving forward again. You can have heaps of enemies and allied units meleeing it out like that and it will register damage for each units that collide, every time.

If you dont want them to bounce and just stay there, then spawn hidden collision sprite during an attack animation, and do the damage upon that sprite colliding with an enemy unit instead. And if you want even more filtering, enemies can only damage other units on the same layer, so add in a layer check for the colliding sprites. So you could have 10 layers and a whole bunch of units melee each other and they will only damage the enemy they hit on their layer.

C2 is very powerful, just think outside the box and most things are possible.

All the limitations newcomers see are mostly limitations of their knowledge, C2 doesn't solve every problem, it gives you the tools, but you gotta your hands dirty,

I suggest having a look at the tutorials section and the templates that come with C2, try to understand code you don't, that's how most of us learnt

>

> > You've only just begun to learn it. C2 can do many things, even the most complex games.. just browse the in development forum and see the wonderous creations of others.

> >

> > C2 is deceptively simple, making it easy to learn but hard to master. Keep at it and use the forum for help if you cannot implement your ideas.

> >

>

> I do find the forum useful. But there are thing's I just don't see construct being able to handle.

>

> The game idea I am working on allows players to spawn units that move to the right while enemy AI moves to the left. When they collide they start to battle, but construct 2 doesn't seem to support any method of registering damage if there are multiple units overlapping one another as the collision and overlap functions become redundant. This does feel like a very big limitation

>

What you described is easily achieved by just collision check without using overlap check. On collision play an attack animation, minus health variables, bounce back wards a bit (only need a few pixels so the collision check can happen again fast) before moving forward again. You can have heaps of enemies and allied units meleeing it out like that and it will register damage for each units that collide, every time.

If you dont want them to bounce and just stay there, then spawn hidden collision sprite during an attack animation, and do the damage upon that sprite colliding with an enemy unit instead. And if you want even more filtering, enemies can only damage other units on the same layer, so add in a layer check for the colliding sprites. So you could have 10 layers and a whole bunch of units melee each other and they will only damage the enemy they hit on their layer.

C2 is very powerful, just think outside the box and most things are possible.

I tried both methods by doing a "push back *random*" but it doesn't work as when they collide they hop around but doesn't seem to do damage. I'm not too sure why, the units on one side will stack up 4+ and then just wont do damage even though they get pushed back... it's odd.

The layer one didn't work either as some of the units just walked past each other as they were on different layers...

I'm sure I can't be the only one who finds game development hard, anyone else find this frustrating?

Not just you - I think it's probably pretty common for game development to be frustrating at times. I'm currently frustrated with my rpg, Shards - it's turning out to be incredibly hard to design how it should play. I'm on my third prototype of the thing because each one has had some sort of significant design flaw - for example, the first one had a strategy that turned out to be a such an overwhelming advantage that there was no reason not to use it - which the ai could also use - which would result in the 'samurai standoff problem' with neither player actually doing anything because the player who went first had a disadvantage. Fixing that problem has been crazy difficult.

As for the problem with your events, if you post an example, I'm sure people can help you out with it. C2 can certainly do what you're describing.

> I'm sure I can't be the only one who finds game development hard, anyone else find this frustrating?

>

Not just you - I think it's probably pretty common for game development to be frustrating at times. I'm currently frustrated with my rpg, Shards - it's turning out to be incredibly hard to design how it should play. I'm on my third prototype of the thing because each one has had some sort of significant design flaw - for example, the first one had a strategy that turned out to be a such an overwhelming advantage that there was no reason not to use it - which the ai could also use - which would result in the 'samurai standoff problem' with neither player actually doing anything because the player who went first had a disadvantage. Fixing that problem has been crazy difficult.

As for the problem with your events, if you post an example, I'm sure people can help you out with it. C2 can certainly do what you're describing.

Yea this is what I find into a games development. For a really simple game I can see how construct 2 would be the best choice like a flappy bird design, pong or the likes. But for more complicated things I just feel like I am in a box and I can't seem to get out of it.

This is the save file for the project.

http://www.sendspace.com/file/sq3wkh

... I have spent hours and hours trying to develop games over the past few weeks and not managed to finish a single one of them. .....

I just had to vent my anger and frustration somewhere

No worries, the road to perfection is long ^_^

Some, like myself, spent weeks on end optimizing/fine tuning relatively small aspects of their game.

Rome was not build in one day

The best thing is these forums for help. Posting your .capx many forumers here will and can help you. I have noticed Construct 2 is especially hard if you come from a C++ background where you want to make all your functions when C2 already has most of them built in, just a matter of finding them.

I have posted many "idiot" questions just because I didnt know C2's name for the function. What I have learnt as a beginner is when you are working on your main project, have another C2 project up where you can test small functions such as character sprite fade on impact etc. etc. Then you can add the perfected function to your game/project.

The hardest part is Frustration getting to ya, just hang in there, eventually you'll get it.

Practice makes perfect! Boy would I love to kill whoever made that up

GL Too ya.

solado

Keep at it. You will get it. However the problems your facing are not a limit of C2. It's your own talent. It's young at still growing. I often say this and should be remembered. "It's not what C2 can't do, but what you can do with C2". There is no 2d game you can't do with C2 if you have the know how and time. Since your coming to head of what you think C2 can do. it is indeed not C2 limits.

Just to check out how awesome these games can be. And that's just a few.

http://aurelien-regard.blogspot.ca/

http://www.ourdarkerpurpose.com/wp/

http://www.airscapegame.com/

Anyways. Yes your in a box. And your doing the right thing by coming to the forum. Be humble, ask politely and you will get some help.

The problem your facing is perspective. Your looking at C2 to handle all your game design work. But C2 doesn't do that. It just gives the tools to implement your ideas easier that raw programming. Break down your problem, simplify and take the problem out of the idea that C2 solves it for you. Solve the problem in your head. Figure out what you need and how to go about in your head. Then integrate the solution in C2.

Arima

DO you ave a purpose for you game. Get a mandate of your game. The goal of the game for the player(ie not the game story or finish). Such as Pacman "a game about frantic chase". Pacman goal is "Collect pellets while avoiding ghost". Define the core problem of an experience you want the player has and work from their. Then figure out what the purpose of the choice is in your game.Good luck <img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_e_smile.gif" alt=":)" title="Smile">

What I suggest. And what I am doing.

I have my "dream games" "love projects" the games I really care about... I have those and know what I want to do with them.

If you are like me...those projects are rather...lets say ambitious. They will not be made overnight.

So work on those. Try to do things. Make certain gameplay elements work. But dont expect to finish them yet.

After you learn a bunch. And I really hate to say it. Stop the "dream game" for a bit.

Think simple. Very simple. Use what you have learned to make and finish a complete game.

I currently have 2 "real" projects. A large-scale mmo type game. And a simple spaceship game.

They are opposite in everyway possible. I dont hate the spaceship game, but it is not my "dream" game. It is a game I know would be fun, and profitable for my time. So I am making it simply to make it.

It is a learning experience as I get better to keep going with my main project.

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Oh, and yeah....art SUCKS.

Wish I loved art when I was little, because that is the one thing that really holds me back.

Spending 2 hours on some sad looking art and 5 minutes to get the code working really frustrates me. Im at a point where i know what I want to do and how to do it...but art is really holding me back.

Colorful shapes make for great placeholders I must say. Lets you get a project working quick. Sadly I don't use colorful shapes as often as I maybe should....

Just to update this since the thread is quite old.

When I posted my response, I was polishing my spacesim Star Nomad. I struggled to get a good combat AI with fluid dog-fight/swarm movement for a long time, I even posted on the forums and a few responded with inputs but it wasn't effective so I gave up and made it simpler.

Recently I started work on a sequel, and it took me 5 minutes of problem solving/logic and a few lines of events and I have a perfect swarm AI, it looks exactly like the Starcraft Protoss Carrier launching drones to attack and peel off then re-attack and was what I had wanted.

As you use C2 more, you learn a lot of clever ways to solve problems and you will get better at it.