Verge Vs Everything Else
You'll probably know that there are other RPG Creation Engines out there, and that you could go jump over to that foreign place and build your game. But why go there? Is there something malicious about those other engines, or are you just addicted with Verge? :P This article will explain this theory and evaluate some (not all) of the other game creators out there. It'll also explain why Verge is the best (IMHO) there is on the net.
First, on the tour, is Megazeux. Though, I haven't in this vendetta, Verge and Megazeux have not been "close buddies" for a very long time. Vergers always tell Megazeux makers that their engine and graphics sucks and vice versa. But really, Megazeux is totally obsolete in the 21st century and should be put down. The engine is only useful for people who like text adventures and/or want to make a quick, nasty game.
Next, I'm taking a look at DCGames. Unfortunately, I'm not impressed by the website. A webpage boasts, "DCGames is the premier CRPG maker on the market. Its powerful, user friendly, and very affordable. The engine is suitable for a wide range of tasks and games. It is simple enough that even the most inexperienced user can create high quality games,yet powerful enough that is indeed suitable for games of commercial quality."
Does this look like "commercial quality" to you??? Nah.
Though DCGames can be downloaded in a shareware version, the creator expects the user to pay at least $40.00 (!) plus shipping and handling (!!!) for the full version. This engine is only strictly used for customizable adventure games, and...must I say it...is even worse than Megazeux. :P
As a small sidenote, I've gone and looked at Larswood's new download....using RPGMaker2000. They originally wanted it for Verge, but had difficulties with Windows 2000. (which sucks) Though I haven't researched this engine enough, I can say that the file I downloaded was 12 MEGABYTES! And I have a 56k connection. 'nuff said. :P
The last foreign engine I'll look at in this article is Sphere. It brags about 32-bit support, allowances for new music file types, and is programmed in JavaScript. However, from getting the engine materials from the site, I was totally lost. (because I'm too addicted to Verge) But then I ran the engine and tried some of the "demos". I'm not sure what I was SUPPOSED to see, but all I saw was a screen shrunk to half my monitor size and a little green guy walking around. Is this 32-bit? I don't know...but it didn't seem any different from 16.
Generally, I'm starting to see little pattern coming up between Sphere and Verge. Verge 1 and 2 have made lots of games, from sucky to great. Usually though, these games are made by only one programmer/creator/artist with probably some help from a few people. Such examples would be GMW's Phage, Spram's Blimpo Warrior (I luv that game ^_^), Aquarina's TQFA, and Zara's Zeux's World.
But on the Sphere side, I'm seeing no great demos available for download. All I'm seeing are the large organized game teams like Fantasy Realms and . The reason behind all this? The teams who are trying to make their "high-end" games prefer high-end graphics, thus, 32-bit. But on Verge, the games don't have the greatest graphics, but are probably stronger in other areas such as story, music, playability, or humour. :) And, of course, there are a LOT more games for Verge, than NONE for Sphere, but we have yet to see what those teamsters are going to whip up. Time will only tell...
Well...that's about it. Now I'd better get back to building my hopeless game. I've been working on it for two years!...and still haven't released a demo. Gah! Why am I wasting my time writing this editorial??? :P
