Member Avatar for joelsmith

Hi........,
Say that I have an idea for a simple game or a game mechanic that I want to try out, what are the best tools for quickly creating something playable that I can experiment with to try out the idea? The platform does not necessarily have to be easy to learn, that is not the issue, but once learned it has to be quick to use.

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There are three practical ways to prototype a game quickly, and the right choice depends on how you want to iterate: small code-first frameworks, full engines with editors, or visual/no-code tools. Many replies here point at those same tradeoffs (thanks to , , , , and ) — the important bit is to pick the tool that removes friction between idea and playtest, not the one that “looks coolest.” (learn.unity.com)

If you want an editor with rapid scene/asset iteration, try a mainstream engine (Unity) or a lightweight open-source editor (Godot). Both have editors and built-in workflows that let you get a vertical slice running fast; for pure 2D, GameMaker or Construct give the fastest path from idea to playable without heavy engine setup. Use these when you want scene tooling, quick exports, and visual debugging. (godotengine.org)

For programmers who prefer minimal layers, pick a small framework: MonoGame is a modern, cross-platform, code-first option (good when you want direct control and tiny iteration loops). For creative constraints that speed decision-making, try a fantasy-console (PICO‑8) or similar — the limitations force rapid choices and can produce playable ideas in hours. These suit mechanics-first testing. (monogame.net)

A quick, repeatable prototyping workflow: define the minimal playable loop and one success metric; timebox a first prototype (4–16 hours); implement only the mechanic with placeholder art; playtest immediately and record what feels off; iterate or kill the idea. Troubleshooting tips: if builds take too long, strip assets and test in-editor; if controls feel wrong, log inputs/timings and iterate on response only; resist polishing until the mechanic is fun. If a prototype survives playtests, plan a clean re-architecture for production. (learn.unity.com)

Summary: match tool to iteration speed (editor vs code vs visual), timebox experiments, and measure the mechanic — that combo gets “ideas” to “playable truth” faster than chasing engine features.

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Member Avatar for jtfrench

I would check out BlitzMax. Yes, it's based on BASIC, but don't let that fool you into thinking it's not powerful — it's essentially a cross-platform wrapper around C++. It builds upon OpenGL/DirectX and let's you do a lot very quickly. i *highly* recommend it for programming and getting visual concepts out there quickly.

Member Avatar for hieuuk

Blitzmax is amazing, another choice is XNA which is also good. A faster way, Game Studio maybe.

Member Avatar for ahihihi...

yes microsoft xna..

(Pygame is worth a try.. using a high-level programming language like Python to structure the game.)

Member Avatar for FireNet

If you want to try your hand at 2D game, you can use http://love2d.org/ . It's basically a lua game engine, which allows you to write games using lua scripts.

If you are fimiliar with C++ SFML ( http://www.sfml-dev.org/ ) provide a very good framework for games. It not a game engine, but has a lot of the basics required to write your own game, mainly resource loading (image, audio), video (opengl), input etc.

Member Avatar for Jen0608

If you want to try your hand at 2D game, you can use http://love2d.org/ . It's basically a lua game engine, which allows you to write games using lua scripts.

If you are fimiliar with C++ SFML ( http://www.sfml-dev.org/ ) provide a very good framework for games. It not a game engine, but has a lot of the basics required to write your own game, mainly resource loading (image, audio), video (opengl), input etc.

thanks for the links.. i love 2D games.

Member Avatar for lil_panda

If you are using Mac OS X 10.5, you can develop games for the iPhone. To deploy them, you'll need to pay a fee of $99.99 (I think), but you can make quite a profit for just a $.99 app. You will need to learn Objective-C, and/or Objective-C++, but they are extremely similar to C and C++. Apple claims you need to have and intel computer to install the iPhone SDK, but I have taken a few steps to make it work with my ppc mac. :D

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