[comp.sys.mac.programmer] Writing your own entertainment software.

romeo@lindy.Stanford.EDU (Patrick Goebel) (01/01/90)

Can anyone recommend a programming language for the Mac that would be 
especially well suited for writing one's own arcade/simulation games?
In particular, access to the Mac QuickDraw routines should be quick
and easy.

I'm curious because I just acquired a two-page display and
every action game I have (e.g. Ferrari, Falcon etc.) sends all its
graphics to a dinky little window the size of the original Mac 9"
monitor.  This seems like a terrible waste of a big screen so I thought
I might just try writing something of my own.

Many thanks in advance!

patrick goebel--romeo@lindy.stanford.edu

chewy@apple.com (Paul Snively) (01/04/90)

In article <6800@lindy.Stanford.EDU> romeo@lindy.Stanford.EDU (Patrick 
Goebel) writes:
> Can anyone recommend a programming language for the Mac that would be 
> especially well suited for writing one's own arcade/simulation games?
> In particular, access to the Mac QuickDraw routines should be quick
> and easy.

Given just these constraints, it seems clear to me that the language that 
you'll need is assembly language.

In article <6800@lindy.Stanford.EDU> romeo@lindy.Stanford.EDU (Patrick 
Goebel) writes:
> I'm curious because I just acquired a two-page display and
> every action game I have (e.g. Ferrari, Falcon etc.) sends all its
> graphics to a dinky little window the size of the original Mac 9"
> monitor.  This seems like a terrible waste of a big screen so I thought
> I might just try writing something of my own.

Good luck.  There's a good reason for sticking to the small window: the 
small window has fewer pixels to move around.  When you're doing 
arcade-type stuff, that's an important consideration.  It's so important, 
in fact, that most of the really quality arcade stuff, like the Dark 
Castle family from Silicon Beach Software, doesn't even use QuickDraw 
because it's STILL too slow.  So be warned.

In article <6800@lindy.Stanford.EDU> romeo@lindy.Stanford.EDU (Patrick 
Goebel) writes:
> Many thanks in advance!

Don't thank me for this; I wouldn't consider it encouraging news.  ;-)

> patrick goebel--romeo@lindy.stanford.edu

__________________________________________________________________________
Just because I work for Apple Computer, Inc. doesn't mean that they 
believe what I believe or vice-versa.
__________________________________________________________________________
C++ -- The language in which only friends can access your private members.
__________________________________________________________________________

uzun@pnet01.cts.com (Roger Uzun) (01/05/90)

hmmmm... I have never seen what one would call an "arcade quality" gam
(that's game) for any Mac.  Certainly Dark Castle with Monochrome
15-20 Frame Per Second animation cannot be considered anywhere near
"arcade" quality.  For example, any arcade game out since about 1986 or so
features at least 32 color displays, 50-60 Frame per second animation, stereo
sound, and detailed backgrounds over which the characters are animated.  I
have done animation routines for the Mac II series, and to get even 30
frames/sec I had to write directly to harware, limit the size of the objects
and, FORCE 8 bit pixels.  Even  then the Sound Manager routines seemed to slow
things even more so, of course that was about a year or so ago.
Does anyone think an arcade quality Mac II game would sell at all?
(if such a thing is even possible)
Certainly other computers are capable of arcade quality games, but they have
default video hardware that aids this greatly, it is too bad the Mac II's do
not have this as well, since it would speed up OS graphics as well.  I know
such boards are available to Mac II users but one has to develop to the lowest
common denominator and so one cannot release a product that requires such an
add on board, to be compatible with all such software one must use the toolbox
calls and these will just not cut it for even a moderate game so....

Of course with its default 640X480 screen and 256 color out of 16+ million
color display, Mac II games would look MUCH better than any competing systems,
and even better than 99% of all commercial systems, too bad they would be so
slow as to be unplayable!

-Roger

UUCP: {hplabs!hp-sdd ucsd nosc}!crash!pnet01!uzun
ARPA: crash!pnet01!uzun@nosc.mil
INET: uzun@pnet01.cts.com

gosselin@CLIK.QC.CA (Pascal Gosselin) (01/07/90)

I have played Crystal Quest v2.2 on a Mac II and the IIcx at work quite
a few times, and the action+sound are FAST.

I must admit that the objects on the screen are small, but there are quite
a few of them.

The other decently fast color game on the Mac II is Chuck Yeager's Advanced
Flight Trainer. The graphics aren't that hot, but the speed is there.


 


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