Ok, so this question has been popping up lately around some GM forums, mainly because of me posting this question there, lol. Anyways, many regular people still believe that GM is nothing but a newby program and has only pre-coded Actions/Triggers. They also believe that GM can only have Bitmap graphics and nothing more, and that it can't be played directly online like a flash game, which isn't true, there's G-Java, but it's hard to do.
So ask yourself, when it comes to making games, IS Flash(Actionscript) better than GameMaker(GML)?
The answer in my opinion: No.
Here are my reasons why, first of, GM can load almost any kind of image(except swf's >.<) aswell as it does take coding, and not just triggers to program a game. And, evne though it's kind of annoying and hard to do, GM games can be played in a web broswer. But, I also think GM is better because of the gameplay, no really, never have I played a Flash game for more than 20 minutes except a few games. But with GM, I have played many games, and I have sat and played them for even nearly an hour. Sure GM games need to be downloaded, but in a way thats good, now you have the g
ame on your computer forever, or at least until you delete it.
Now, Flash is good, don't get me wrong, but it just wasn't made to make games, end of. The coding language is called "Actionscript", and boy, is that coding hard as hell. Aswell as it takes more coding to do one thing than it does GML to do the same thing. Here, is the Actionscript for what I guess is up, down, left, and right:
onClipEvent(load){
moveSpeed = 5;
}
onClipEvent(enterFrame){
if(Key.isDown(Key.UP)){
this._y -= moveSpeed;
}
if(Key.isDown(Key.DOWN)){
this._y += moveSpeed;
}
if(Key.isDown(Key.RIGHT)){
this._x += moveSpeed;
}
if(Key.isDown(Key.LEFT)){
this._x -= moveSpeed;
}
}
(Grabbed that off a Actionscript Help Thread)
Heck, in fact that looks a bit like GML itself, doesn't it? Anyways, for GM, it would be this(these):
Left Event:
hspeed=-6 OR x-=6
Right Event:
hspeed=6 OR x+=6
Up Event:
vspeed=-6 OR y-=6
Down Event:
vspeed=6 OR y=6
___
OR
___
Step Event:
if keyboard_check_direct(vk_up)
{
direction=90
speed=2
}
if keyboard_check_direct(vk_down)
{
direction=270
speed=2
}
if keyboard_check_direct(vk_right)
{
direction=0
speed=2
}
if keyboard_check_direct(vk_left)
{
direction=180
speed=2
}
Now you see? Does the same thing, only GML took less coding, was less confusing(In my opinion), and more neat
Now, I also believe that GM, can make any game that Flash can, and maybe even more. Like Movie gif makers(Beneton Movie Gif 1.0), Paint programs(Myself, lol) Icon makers, Userbar makers(Ultimate Userbar Creator), Web browser, ect! Gamemaker can make more than just games, Flash, well Flash can only maybe do a few things that aren't games, including animations, lol. *wink*
But before we go off topic, many people still believe Flash is better than Gamemaker when it comes to making games, because of a few reasons, here's some:
Flash games graphics are always good.(Which isn't always true)
Flash games can be played in a web browser.
Flash games get seen by people more.
Now, before you go saying something like: "OMFG GM FTW!!1!1!!!eleveny!!1!" here are some threads about Flash vs GameMaker on variuos forums.
This one has a strong debate, the creator of the thread is a Flash Slave and doesn't like GM, doesn't believe its real programming.
<link>
http://stickpage.com/vb/showthread.php?t=34396&highlight=gamemaker</link>
Please, if you get tired of reading, at least read a few pages before the end of the thread, because some GM users come over the site and teach those noobs some lessons. I was at first the only guy defending GM.
Heres one where the creator of the Flash vs Gamemaker thread comes over to this site and defends Flash.
http://gamemakergames.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=16877&hl=And just another thread asking if GM is a nweb program:
http://gamemakergames.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=20193&hl=Ok, now I'm getting tired, and I usually don't write alot, but here are some final words:
Gamemaker is better than Flash when it comes to making games, but overall being a program, Flash is better than GM, lets face it. However since this is about which is better at making games, I think in my opinion that Game Maker is honestly better than Flash, for several reasons:
1.The gameplay is usually better and not something you've seen a 1000 times before.
2.There are different styles of graphics, unlike Flash, Flash ahs maybe like a few different ones. Unless they person imports an image in it.
3.The coding is much simplier and neater, and can do the same thing, and in this case, because its easier, that helps make it better.
4.Flash games can't even use the right mouse button, but we can. ^_^
5.GameMaker can make many more things than Flash from what I've seen, who knows, maybe there is a Flash userbar maker, but I haven't seen any, Infact I haven't even seen a RTS flash game before, but I'm sure one is out there.
Ok, so those are my final words, but I
strongly suggest clicking on the first thread to Stickpage and reading most of that debate. And just to let you know, after that debate, many people over there stopped down looking GM so much, and infact, I teach many people over there Gamemaker myself. So it was a good debate for us GM users, and the real debates happen near the end of that thread.
(I wonder if anyone even read all that O.o)
(If you did, you deserve a cookie ^_^)
*Hands out cookie*
Woohoo I get a cookie!
GM FTW!Although Flash may be easier to use in some cases for making other things than games such as animations etc, It still doesn't beat good old fashioned gameplay!Well yeah, I find gamemaker better too. The reason why people see flash games more is only because loads of site put them into their site. I don't see much (nongm) sites that put's gamemaker games on them.
Oh, flash games still have to be downloaded. The data won't magically appear on your harddrive…CheersYOU CANT FUCKING COMPARE GM TO FLASH.
duh… gm. gm can handle much better graphics… like alpha blending and different blend modes and my favorite sprite_set_alpha_from_sprite not to mention the 3d capabilities
It's tough to compare GM to Flash. Although you can make games in Flash, that is not what the program was made for. So yes, ofcoarse GM makes better games than Flash, unless that game runs over the internet, needs to access a database, needs windows components (widgets), or if you need a small file size, or complex programming.
GM=high simplicityFlash=high power/utilizationFlash will probably always be better software than GM because of vast number of uses, and its ability to execute those uses well.I have an idea. Let's flood that forum and all vote for Game Maker! :)
But the topic's closed.
<hr noshade>GM is WAY better than Flash. You don't need anything to play the games except Windows, because it includes the runner in the exe. In Flash, however, you NEED Flash Player to play the games. And you can't do REAL 3d in Flash. All you can do with 3d in Flash is extremely limited, and the only kind I've seen really STINKS. It's only fake. No real models or anything like that. And GM DOES have high simplicity, but you can get to really complicated stuff, and I once saw a Media player that was almost better than WMP, so it can make things other than games just as well as Flash, if not better. And yes it does prepare you for later life, because it prepares you for many other languages by using much of their syntax. And, it can be in browsers with G-Java. So anyone who goes and says that Flash is better than GM, go boil your tongue and jump off a cliff and repent for breaking the commandment that says, "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor."<hr noshade>So basically, GM completely pwns and burns and rips up and murders and slaughters and anything-else-that-means-it's-betters Flash.All I know is in Flash its hard to make any fun game. Hell it took me 3 days to get a picture to move.
I agree, that GM is better. Partly because that's it's main fuction, is to make Games. Sure, Flash is good at other things to, but I'd rather use GM. Also, I agree with what you said about the gameplay. I would much rather play a game created by GM, partly because I like those games more, and also because they tend to give me inspiration for mine. If I can play a game made with GM, that means that maybe, just maybe, I can make a game just as good.
Sure, I agree that overall Flash kills GM, because it is used over the web so much, but when it comes to making games, I have not seen one game that was made with Flash that wasn't made with GM. And those people(At that time) believed that GM could do nothing but make little pac-man games, and that it takes no coding. God knows how many times someone has told me "GM has coding? I thought it didn't"! >.<