Exporting to C?

[Maximum]

I was just thinking... since most major commercial games are built in some variation of C (C++)... I know this would be herculean in terms of effort, but I'm curious to know just how impossible it would be for ClickTeam to create an export to some form of C in MMF2 Dev?

I just figured it would be a lot easier to pitch a game already built in the language the industry mostly uses.

[Pkeod]

Absolutely never going to happen. Learn C if you want C code. You don't need to "pitch" a game either, you can develop, market, and sell it independently.

[DavidN]

On the general Internet, I find that even though you will always get the people who denounce any sort of programming tool beyond traditional coding as impure, in reality no players actually care what was used to build a game.

I've no doubt that an export to C could technically be done, but that the resultant code would be so far removed from the techniques you would use if writing in the C family from the ground up that it really wouldn't be very useful.

It's worth mentioning that when remotely human-readable languages like C first came out in the 1970s, programmers who had been writing in low-level Assembly thought those were over-simple and infantile!

[Jeff]

And besides being an indie -- A smart company is going to look at your output and not your tool as a first indication of your game development skills. We have a number of big studios that use MMF for prototyping and we also have a number of idies like Pkeod out taking over the world.

So step 1 is -- Just make a good game - This speaks way louder then the tool thats used.

[Maximum]

Okay...

All of what's been said I agree with, but it's beside the point I was making...

My point had nothing to with a knock against MMF2 Dev which is a great program.

What I'm saying is, if you want to approach, say, Sega for a game on XBOX 360 with a game you made in MMF2 Dev, that game is going to have be re-written entirely. That costs, and by nature this will make your prospects less favorable.

I just know from my work in inventing and some work with major label companies like EA, easy transfer is very sought after. The easier the better because it costs the prospective company less money. For a video game, if it's written in a language the company is already familiar with, then your product is going to be more attractive since the cost of writing it from the ground up won't be an issue. That's one of the more attractive ways some smaller companies hook up with majors, the transfer is less painful when the common ground is already laid.

So, if an export to some variation of C existed, that would do nothing but benefit the indie developer (larger ones of course since the licensing fee is out of reach for most) looking to expand to into the console market. I realize that to a lot of indie's the majors are seen as the devil, but not all people think this way. If anything, it would just be another way to expose the world to how powerful MMF2 is, no different from having a flash export, or an iphone export, or an export for XBOX 360 (crossing my fingers). It's all beneficial for everyone in the end.

[uprize]

Well there is an XNA (xbox) exporter in the works (its at least being seriously considered) so you can export in a format ready to go from Xbox without having to re-code it

[Jeff]

that game is going to have be re-written entirely. That costs, and by nature this will make your prospects less favorable.

If the game is good enough it won't detour them -- Ask Nifflas a company ported his MMF game for the Wiiware system.

I do see your point and having runtimes for other systems would be a benefit but its more about your game being good (IMHO) -- If its that good and your target is the consoles, companies will want to port it regardless of the cost.

But additional runtimes are being considered so you may have some other options in the future, but never out to pure C++/C code, I can't see MMF doing that.

[Maximum]

that game is going to have be re-written entirely. That costs, and by nature this will make your prospects less favorable.

If the game is good enough it won't detour them -- Ask Nifflas a company ported his MMF game for the Wiiware system.

I do see your point and having runtimes for other systems would be a benefit but its more about your game being good (IMHO) -- If its that good and your target is the consoles, companies will want to port it regardless of the cost.

Agreed.

[Maximum]

Well there is an XNA (xbox) exporter in the works (its at least being seriously considered) so you can export in a format ready to go from Xbox without having to re-code it

I want it so badly. I so hope they do this.

[Shawn]

Also, keep in mind that to make a full-fledged game for a console (not XNA or Wiiware, but an actual console game) the dev kit costs thousands. So while an XNA exporter is feasible, to make a full fledged Xbox title isn't going to happen.