View Full Version : creating a game on ps3/xbox
ok! so recently i've been really into game programming. now i know it is probably harder than i think but.....ooh well! so i'm asking, does anyone know where i could possibly find the hardware or software for this? also i will need to find a book that teaches me how.......considering i know nothing about it. i know you're probably rolling your eyes now but i will give it a try anyway. i already have some ideas for a psn game and if anyone wants to help or anything just say. ..first i need to get the hardware though.:o.
Thier is the XNA games on the 360 now rebranded as Indie games
http://creators.xna.com/en-GB/
take a look, I don't know much about it.
I have not programmed anything since the Spectrum days so I can't realy help in that department.
thezombiemessia
13-08-09, 21:36
To get your hands on developer kits for the PS3 or the 360, you'd have to pay for them (as far as I'm aware), and then you'd also have to pay for the engine that you'd like to build the game out of.
And, sometimes, engines come seperately. So a sound engine, a graphics engine, A.I, etc, etc.
This is generally why it is done in teams.
It is best to go with XNA, or find something like the Source Engine and start working on MODs.
Work your way up first.
It really depends on what platform you'd like to develop for. For the 360, I'd recommend XNA, as already mentioned. We're using it in azurebot on our latest game, and from what I've gathered it seems quite alright! Probably the best thing to use if you want to make something more abstract and platform/puzzle based.
When making a game for the PS3, you can pretty much use whatever engine you want. You're probably best of using something fairly big and commercial, such as Unreal. Then it's just a case of developing a small, but polished, chunk of a game and submitting a pitch for it to Sony, and you might get lucky enough to get funded for a full PSN game.
Now, before thinking about the game, you should be aware of all licensing issues. When developing a game for Microsoft or Sony, you will have to purchase all tools you need in order to develop the game beforehand. [ie, Photoshop, 3D Studio Max] -At least the engine. You can probably get away with using freeware such as Gimp and Blender, but I suspect you might find some difficulties when exporting assets into the engine, as freeware applications are often a lot more limited than the ones you buy. So make sure you research what tools work together. It might save you some money.
thanks a bunch. the only problem i'm finding is where to purchase all of these engines and development tools. it's not like they're listed on amazon or anything. i suspect people at pc world or anything like that won't know either. so i probably have to go straight to the maker, like Unreal.
ya that was what i was thinking, - a psn game. but i don't see why i would get funding if it is already made, ......oh i see, if i create a taster for sony then they could fund me to create the full deal. that makes sense.
i am leaning twards a psn game, yet i still have no idea how to get my hands on the developement kit. i know what it looks like though and apparently they just cut the price of it which is good for me. - too bad it is 7500 pounds.
Suicidal Steve
14-08-09, 14:05
That Torque engine From Garage Games that was used in marble blast ultra can be used for indie developers. There are also a number of other engines on this website for you to look at if interested.
http://www.garagegames.com/
That Torque engine From Garage Games that was used in marble blast ultra can be used for indie developers. There are also a number of other engines on this website for you to look at if interested.
http://www.garagegames.com/
ya that looks cool, and more importantly, less expensive. too bad it cannot be ported to the ps3 though. the graphics on the wii and xbox live games don't really look that good but it seems to work well. do you need any other equipment if you are making a wii or XBL game or is Torque all you need?
what would be really good is an engine for psn games that has great graphics and nothing else is needed. not sure that exists though.:(
thanks for the info.:)
You might want to have a look at this:
http://www.unrealtechnology.com/licensing.php?ref=licensing-overview
Unreal isn't by any means easy to pick up if you have no experience in game making, but it's definitively one of the most supported engines, with a vast amount of handy tools. In other words, by using Unreal, chances are that you'll find help more easily in developing a game; especially for PSN.
Furthermore, it doesn't necessarily have to cost you too much if you're simply using the toolkit bundled with Unreal Tournament 3 [for PC]. It allows you to make a mod with custom maps, as well as play around with different game mechanics.
You should contact licensing@epicgames.com for more info.
thanks! ok i think i'm all sorted now. let's just get this straight, to make a full psn game, i will need:
1) unreal engine 3
2) sony ps3 development kit
.......is that it? ok i think i've got it. do you think i will need a pc? is that what everything is made on or can i do everything on the development kit and my tv, or my ps3?
Well, I'm heading for about the same as you on my own, just that I plan/am-at writing an engine myself (just gut chunks and debries here and there yet - waiting for my crystals to finish=).
But as far as I've read, Sony will give the respective hardware just to licensed companies or whatever like that - or am I wrong?
I would yet have a couple of questions my own, like, is there a language bound once writing for consoles (I recognized the SNES had its own sort of assembly=), like, are there c++ compilers or stuff? - right now I'm comfortable with a neat linux distribution providing all the libraries (SDL ;)) ... (Zenwalk) ... vim rocks!:slamdoor:- and basically I don't really get the point of a difference to payware (but supporting the market) once I just have to eventually port filetypes to the matching ... but I also believe I am sometimes too much of thinking too simple. So, wether it is luck or bad luck that I was caught up with a Stoneage computer will become clear, eventually. (Oh yeah, I don't like messing around with data that I in the end consider being too unordered/chaotic - perhaps a little foolish... - since it's just a process of mapping the ressources, it's doors and gates, and positioning the army a way that it will have an easy way in.)
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uh oh. if you're right about sony only selling to licenced companies then that isn't good for me. i dont see why not. i mean, it would bring in more revenue and more independent developers making games for their console.
i am still unsure tho, is there anything else i need besides ps3 development kit and a game engine?.....anything? .......anything?
Ok, to make things clear and simple~ :)
1. Get Unreal 3 [costs about £10]
Unreal wiki: http://wiki.beyondunreal.com/
2. Get Blender 3D [free and can be used commercially!]
www.blender.org
3. Get Gimp [free and can be used commercially!]
www.gimp.org
4. Set up a website and workspace
Cheap websites: www.one.com
Quality file-syncing/sharing application: www.getdropbox.com
Recommended wikis: phpoverlord [personal favorite!], wikispaces, pbworks
5. Develop a universal and well planned out Game Design Document/Macro Document [GDD for short] and submit it alongside with a small, but polished Unreal mod and pitch it as a PSN game to Sony.
I honestly wouldn't start thinking too much about getting a PS3 devkit anytime soon. If you're new to Unreal, 3D and digital art, you ought to focus purely on getting the game to work [as a mod on PC].
Lastly, be creative, but not overambitious! Bear in mind that most projects have a team of 40+ people, working 5-6 days a week. Make something for a specific [but preferably wide] demographic. Make something universally visually appealing. Make something easy to pick up, but hard to master.
Yes, it becomes definately perceptual while programming this - and this is destined for that, and requires a, b, and c, and to c you need x, y, and z, and so on, and well, before you get any order in it you twist around and wish you had a team ready for that, that and that.... oooh, well, and the detailed artworks - ...
But on the other hand side I have a really large, hopefully wide hermetically sealed own little space where I can by the way live by happily with success and mis-success. Once mastered the one, still left the rest - and one day - ... either it's the complete chaos or the perfect order. Zen harmony! I mean, I had that many contemporary results I was glad of they run, but after a moment of living with that certainty have been top unhappy about how it came to be and still was smashed down after they failed for some unbelievable reason. True! I have a formula for a Sphere, rather a Globe, and it definately is written to the end, yet the program won't show the last square unless I wrote it's coordinates by hand (and the vectors are shared, fo coorrrrrse!). I guess there should be at last some crooked whereabout of the last lines if it were just the coordinates that got wrong (
http://www.capcom-europe.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=441&pictureid=3511
http://www.capcom-europe.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=441&pictureid=3511
(the 6-cornered ones are Meridian-transitional shortcuts - well, a little unripe though=about 8 month old - since then deqeued!!! (Intentionally supposed to meet at the middles, but some sort of technique makes it better like that.)
) - and it can't be! I can mail it to you if you want, it's open source (to be). Oh wait, sooner or later it's gonna end up at some Capcom desk)top/filesys/folderwork) anyway! - And I know this ain't proven, but I believe mine is the only one that is not gonna work according to code! Reminds me of some old story.... with wheat crops that bowed themselves to one... or ... .:shhh:
But honestly I can be glad that such - accidents - happened to me since it made me look a little sharper on the code. That is what I can advise any programmer to do: Rather sit down and plan your code on paper by drawings - than just sitting down and writing what comes down to your mind. Of course that won't always help the experience, but better don't be afraid to restart in case and therefore rather think modular than wholistic. And don't be mad at me once you designed your modules and you then find something you forgot! - And if you're aspiracious enough to even bother the layout of your loading sequences, ..., welcome to the club!
EDIT:::::It's definately not gonna be that open source that anyone can come and change it - perhaps not even at all - I got to clarify the exact meaning of NOT open source! Sorry! And it's definately not editable by anybody by me and my girlfriend (if I had one)....
EDIT2:::: the Game I mean (Myth of Agoraeyah - or, Legend of Agoraeyah) - the engine .... is another thing. When it's on then it's on!
EDIT3::::sorry, this occasion was just too fat!
:blink:........... i have no clue what you just said Natea. nice sphere though!
thank you Clayonite!!! that makes things a lot simpler now. after i heard about the challenges of making a game with the ps3 development kit i started thinking about instead making a psp game. but now that you said that it makes things more clear.. and a psp development kit is impossible to find anyway.
and all this equipment and software is on the pc yes?
i submit this to sony by burning it onto a CD or USB device then mail?
thanks so much for the help everyone. i will keep you posted on my success.....or failure :o
Don't mention it. I'm only here to help. :)
I think it's worth saying that making a PSP game doesn't necessarily have to be easier, as a game can be as complex or focused as you want regardless of the platform. Take FlOw for example, in which almost works the same on PS3 as it does on the PSP.
My point is that you shouldn't restrict yourself to any console at this stage. Getting a concept together and a game running is the most important thing right now. Having a game on a PC means that you have far less boundaries to worry about in terms of memory and streaming issues, which can be a bit overbearing if you're relatively new to game development.
Also, there is already a big community for Unreal mods, and it's something you can easily benefit from. You can look into scripts for interesting game mechanics and exciting rendering parameters to fit your game.
This is obviously way ahead, but when the time comes for submitting your work, anything goes. Sony, like most other companies, gladly accepts any media. A disc would do fine [as you can't accidentally delete the files, like you could on a USB stick]. But I also recommend having the files zipped and password encrypted on your website, and provide them a link [and the password] to your work online; so it's easily accessible for anyone within the studio.
Just make sure you have a professional, sophisticated and easy to install package, that is both well documented and sells your idea.
thanks soo much. so now all i have to do is download all the software technologies you mentioned earlier, create a little taster, and get it to sony. :D
shadow86sk
17-08-09, 11:36
there are also game maker programs.. I know its not as pro as programing but its fun, like FPS Game creator http://www.fpscreator.com/demo.html ;)
thanks, i'll look into it. it looks fun :D
What's to stop Sony from stealing your idea's though?.
Would you not have to have a patent on this?.
thezombiemessia
17-08-09, 13:59
All you have to do is copyright it, and make sure you're able to prove that it is your idea.
This is simple enough with computer stuff, because your computer should keep a log of activity, and when the items were first made.
shadow86sk
17-08-09, 15:49
What's to stop Sony from stealing your idea's though?.
Would you not have to have a patent on this?.
but then again when a company like Capcom comes and wants to use your Idea and they give you credit and Cash dont forget cash :D and a work place for them then great for you :D and ofcourse the copyright is a good idea. well copyrights are tied to technology not games wll that also but you know :P
how am i supposed to get a copyright?!
i heard they are expensive and need a lawyer or something like that.:confused:
wouldn't sony just be scared enough that if they take credit i will sue them and the proof will be on my computer? if i were sony i wouldn't take any chances, and just pay the guy, pay them little though..... hopefully that's not the case for me :p
If you submit work to any company, they wouldn't want to steal your concept for a number of reasons. Mainly because there is no profit in it. It's far more sensible to a company to have someone simply do the job for you, rather than going through lots of lots of legal issues and setting up a team that needs constant managing. Paying you to finish the game is a lot cheaper and quicker.
As far as copyright goes, if you keep a website and a workspace with your own game content, there is no way people could take ownership of your game as you have all the assets.
However, for internal demos and documents, it's very wise to watermark all your work with either a name or a personal logo.
thezombiemessia
17-08-09, 20:06
how am i supposed to get a copyright?!
i heard they are expensive and need a lawyer or something like that.:confused:
wouldn't sony just be scared enough that if they take credit i will sue them and the proof will be on my computer? if i were sony i wouldn't take any chances, and just pay the guy, pay them little though..... hopefully that's not the case for me :p
Basic Copyright doesn't need to be paid for. You just need proof of ownership and creation.
But as Clay says, the chances of it being stolen are slim to none.
shadow86sk
19-08-09, 13:39
how am i supposed to get a copyright?!
i heard they are expensive and need a lawyer or something like that.:confused:
wouldn't sony just be scared enough that if they take credit i will sue them and the proof will be on my computer? if i were sony i wouldn't take any chances, and just pay the guy, pay them little though..... hopefully that's not the case for me :p
I think also knowing someone in the Gaming industry helps no?
Just a random thought, well I am sure if the concept will be intresting someone will notice you. ^^
I think the worse thing happening is that they see your idea, think to have a better one than that, happily jump off and get to it on their own. Right Smith? But in respect for the creater - I guess there should then be som.........gshhhwuhhssssshhhhhhhhhh:worthy: (Got no specific blame to take! Am Just thinking out loud.)
Just a random thought, well I am sure if the concept will be intresting someone will notice you. ^^
I just think there is one large problem: They gonna pay you for your idea and what? You will have to maintain the project since you are the creater and do you have the know how? Besides, there are many many more besides you that do the same thing, would it be fair? Then, buying the rights... is a good point, but basically I believe that producing companies prefer projects that the creator is in control/"incore" rather than gathering around some "outcore documentation".
I'm trying hard to make people see that I am just doing too good for falling into that grid - and I believe it will be working since it's true, or is working already - whereby the problem is to convince those that have a degree from some University to really really want it - since they are those that make em. For, realistically you can only prefer people with a degree for they can proof their knowledge through grades, proof their honesty in taking up efforts, surviving the pressure, etc. well - like, you wouldn't send a guy forward into some mission just because he has a gun where else you would send in special task forces.
Believe it or not, if you get into tutorials on programming, and live with them for, let's say, 2 years, you most likely do not match the level of someone that has been at University for 2 years. Alone you got to try out, use it, and so your skill will only improove slowly, while in the University you get taught treats and tactics from am to pm, so I'm sort of lucky because of my X-Ray vision of things. I just need to ask myself: How is a CPU actually working and I can after a few days tell that it's got to be like so and so. The rest is then to be updated through "how they did it" (Just that I couldn't get to any transistor-techical resources I could build on - obviously it is not necessary). So I write and see that another way would be better and outdate my work while writing it (and once that implies every aspect of a program, well, the overdose of information will well, take you down for some while (because all your "faith"(old skills(knowledge)) gots to be updated also)). That I can proof by my sources, but who will get through it?(and actually the original attempt to get that sphere down, is well, scary! The beta versions are even, well, worse. Taught me yet not to get stuck to it at the screen though.) So you need an eyecatcher, that can't be just a good game or stuff - except for it being the next WoW eventually - for they will most likely not think it for worthy. And for my case I need a carrier large enough to tease them towards getting through a lot more. The Sphere thing is a good gimmik though. Well, so, given the amount I got, I even need a nice data infrastructure - else, it would be too much for getting into it. Hmm... so a nice tutorial would be too much, although good, and so, it's really stressing me now. Good idea!
Natea: i guess you're right. we need something with a wow factor, rather than just a good game, because anyone can make a 'good' game, but you need to get remembered. i'm already thinking about a good psp 'minis' game, because those seem easier and more likely to work. sony just said that they will not filter out the less significant games for the minis store so that gives me a good chance of getting it published. :D
:thumb:- Good lock to you then!
:thumb:- Good lock to you then!
THANKS!:D
you too!
THANKS!:D
you too!
Why don't you and Natea work together?.
Decide on what type of game you want to make, what platform, and just share the workload. This way you will get the game done quicker and will work out cheaper if you share the development costs.
I know you live in different countries, but surely you could communicate with each other via emails, web cam, etc.
Why don't you and Natea work together?.
Decide on what type of game you want to make, what platform, and just share the workload. This way you will get the game done quicker and will work out cheaper if you share the development costs.
I know you live in different countries, but surely you could communicate with each other via emails, web cam, etc.
it's a good idea but i will just slow everything down, i'm not that knowlegable.
also i'm sure we have are different ideas, and how can we make a game on 2 pc's then transfer them to one? just a bit to confusing. :confused:
How about if one of you can do the Design and Code, and the other Art and Sound?
seems good. only thing is i know nothing! it's a good idea possibly for our next projects but i am just a learner so i might want to take things at my own pace if you know what i mean.
but teaming up is a good idea though, gets it done a lot quicker i imagine.