Should I plan to support the game for other platforms?

switlle2012-06-16 22:20:22

Game development

switlle, 2012-06-16 22:20:22

I have a problem... I really need advice.
In a new toy aimed at an office audience + some male non-office I have options for choosing a game engine. In one option, I will be able to implement support for older computers, but there will be no way to port to other platforms other than Windows. Otherwise, I will not be able to support older computers.

I'm still leaning towards using DirectDraw, which means it's windows only. But this will make it possible to make high-quality support for old computers.

Thank you.

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7 answer(s)

5hr4M, 2012-06-16
@5hr4M

it seems to me that now a lot of people have switched to smartphones ... especially from the office audience ...
the port of the game for iPhone / Android will allow you to reach a larger audience and earn extra money on sales of the Pro version in the appStore :)

egorinsk, 2012-06-17
@egorinsk

1) Calculate the percentage of solvent users under other platforms.
2) Estimate the cost of time and money for cross-platform
3) Draw a conclusion.
For me, it's not worth it.
If the audience is office, support for old trash is 100 times more important than poppies (which are not so many) and Linux (which no one uses at all on a national scale). if in the future you want to port to an iPhone, this is where you need to think in the direction of OpenGL, and if not, then you don’t need to.

andreysmind, 2012-06-17
@andreysmind

I'm ambivalent about questions like "Should I?"
None of the respondents have enough information to indicate how to proceed.
Yes, it is worth it, but the amount of work will increase several times. Therefore, you can decide what is more important - for a long time and cross-platform or quickly and under WINDOS, you can only yourself.

Sergey Lerg, 2012-06-16
@Lerg

For cross-platform. Now there is a sufficient choice of engines. For example, the Moai SDK supports both desktops and mobile devices.

OnYourLips, 2012-06-17
@OnYourLips

Cross-platform is now needed, now there is no strong leading platform for casual games, as it was before (because mobile platforms have become popular).
I recommend the unity engine, its non-pro version has become free.

blackfox, 2012-06-18
@blackfox

As an option, write under Windows, and for linux / mac make an official port through wine. If you are using DirectDraw, then it should work fine in Vine.
PS I'm always a little surprised by the policy of many companies towards ports. An unofficial wine port of the same Skyrim for Mac appeared a few days after the release, everything works very stable and fast. But why doesn't bethesda itself make an offport, even if it takes a month (to test everywhere)? There, even one person can handle it, and if there is access to the source, then consider that there are no problems at all. Only some problems with license restrictions creep into mind.

hachik, 2012-06-19
@hachik

If I were you, I would use OpenGL, since there are thoughts of porting the game to other platforms.
Or would use some kind of cross-platform engine like OGRE.