Who is using B4A for games development here?

[andymc]

I don't want anyone posting things like "you shouldn't use B4A for games", I'm only interested in talking to other users currently using B4A to write games.

I'm writing a series of old arcade classics using the LibGDX library. I published a short series of tutorials recently on writing a Flappy Bird clone using this library, and am now part way through writing a space invaders clone, you can find this in the test my apps forum here:
http://www.b4x.com/android/forum/threads/very-early-version-space-invaders-libgdx.39693/

So what's everyone working on? And would anyone like anyone to test their games before release?

 

[Informatix]

I'm working on a strategy/exploration/card game: "The Dark Continent". I know nothing similar on Android (but I didn't try everything of course).
Entirely done with libGDX and B4A. It's a big project and can be considered as a professional one.
A free beta version should be available this summer.
Example of artwork:

It's too early for a screenshot of the game itself.

 

[Peter Simpson]

Really nice artwork @Informatix 5/5. Did you create it yourself in Photoshop or GIMP etc???

 

[andymc]

Wow! That game looks great! Artowrk is my downfall really, which is why I'm focussing on older game styles. Although many of the top mobile games don't use high detailed graphics, so there's still hope for me! Thank you @Informatix for writing the libGDX wrapper, it works excellently and has made it so much easier to write games using B4A.

Where are you planning on advertising this game? You could jjust show it off oppn every Android programming forum you can find, and make sure to say it's written using B4A and LibGDX. I will be happy to show it on my YouTube channel which currently has 1,434 subscribers. I know that's not a lot, but it's a start.

 

[Informatix]

Really nice artwork @Informatix 5/5. Did you create it yourself in Photoshop or GIMP etc???

My wife uses Photoshop because her clients want her to use it, but it's a bit too expensive to my taste. My choice would have been GIMP without hesitation. For 2D animations (with skeletal animations), we bought Spriter. And for 3D models, Daz 3D.
Screenshots of cards:

 

[Informatix]

I will be happy to show it on my YouTube channel which currently has 1,434 subscribers. I know that's not a lot, but it's a start.

Thanks! The first step will be to publish a beta version this summer to try the game mechanics and see whether things have to be changed. The second step will be to finish the artwork because creating more than one hundred different cards need some months of work. So there's time before it is released on Google Play. I hope it will be before the end of the year.

And thanks for the nice comments about the artwork.

 

[LucaMs]

Informatix is a great programmer.

(Unfortunately, I'm still off topic, then you will not answer me.

He would reply to me: "I do not develop these projects to earn", but a job like this, which will be maybe ready by the end of the year, should be published for free? Should it allow you to earn a few dollars per month?

I decided: I'm going to be a farmer!!!

 

[Informatix]

Informatix is a great programmer.

(Unfortunately, I'm still off topic, then you will not answer me.

He would reply to me: "I do not develop these projects to earn", but a job like this, which will be maybe ready by the end of the year, should be published for free? Should it allow you to earn a few dollars per month?

I decided: I'm going to be a farmer!!!

We do that during our free time and do not expect anything from it (there will be no ads in the free version), except to make you happy with our work. We do not work every day on this and do not spend the full day on it. So it's slow.
The strong reason for doing all this is that I want to play my own game !

 

[andymc]

I think there are poeple here interested in making money from writing Android apps/games. I know I am. I always wanted to be a games developer when I was a child, I read Edge magazine interviews with developers and dreamed of going that way. Life happened though and now I'm a software consultant for a financial software developer. I do Android programming during my spare time, but I wish I could make enough from it to either help my wife work less or for me to quit my job and develop my own apps full time.

 

[LucaMs]

We do that during our free time and do not expect anything from it (there will be no ads in the free version), except to make you happy with our work. We do not work every day on this and do not spend the full day on it. So it's slow.
The strong reason for doing all this is that I want to play my own game !

I do not agree, but I can not continue the discussion here

 

[Informatix]

I do not agree, but I can not continue the discussion here

You disagree with what? I was just expressing what motivates us. It doesn't mean that we refuse to earn money. There will be a paid version and probably in-app purchases, but we don't count on that to fill our bank account. My previous hobby was excellent for that (trading currencies and futures) and I was pretty good at that but it was not fun at all. I prefer creating games for nothing!
My first app (My playground) was made for my son. This one is for me.

 

[Informatix]

I think there are poeple here interested in making money from writing Android apps/games. I know I am. I always wanted to be a games developer when I was a child, I read Edge magazine interviews with developers and dreamed of going that way. Life happened though and now I'm a software consultant for a financial software developer. I do Android programming during my spare time, but I wish I could make enough from it to either help my wife work less or for me to quit my job and develop my own apps full time.

I understand your point of view. But trying to earn a living on the Android market appears to me as playing to a lottery. Millions of players, only a handful of winners each month.

 

[LucaMs]

I understand your point of view. But trying to earn a living on the Android market appears to me as playing to a lottery. Millions of players, only a handful of winners each month.

This happens because the prices of the apps are too low (when they are not zero) in spite of the development time is relatively long (although divided in their spare free time! )

 

[andymc]

I like the "my playgorund" app. I have a child arriving in a few weeks and I'm starting to think of app ideas for when it get's a little older.

 

[Peter Simpson]

I completely see where @Informatix is coming from. Up until about 4 weeks ago, I always thought that @andymc was a games developer, I presumed that because of his YouTube channel, but was I wrong.

I make okay money from developing bespoke android apps for clients, they find my website and either give me a call or just email me. Android apps is the way I would like to go full time, but games are beyond me for the moment my personal specialities are database design and connectivity, invoicing and bookkeeping, stock control systems, on the road sales staff apps etc, all things that cliets have asked me to design on Android and I create on Windows all the time.

Anyway back to games, sorry @andymc. I've looked into developing a game on a number of occasions, I've already had good advice from @andymc and I'm sure that one day I will follow up on it. But spending hundreds of hours creating a game and not getting any money for it just does not motivate me one little bit. I've created widgets for myself and I've put them onto the Play store, but that because I wanted them for myself. But to activity create something like a game, I usually just find games on the play store and that's that. Maybe I just do not have the imagination(and graphical skills) to think of something new as everything that I've ever thought of previously has already been done before, well except for my widgets

 

[andymc]

I do get people assuming I'm a games developer sometimes. I wish I was! All I do is pass on bits of information I pick up in the hope it will help other hobby developers. I wouldn't spend hundreds of hours developing a game though. I'd spend about fifty at the most, simply due to it being a hobby and not something I can devote fulls days to like a job. Some people do write games in their spare time and then leave their full time job to pursue games programming full-time, I'd like to end up doing that, but it has to be secure, and that's the problem.

My videos have helped a lot of people, but I have never claimed to be a professional games developer so I can't say I'm giving the "best" advice for people, it's just what works for me. I have dozens of emails from people thanking me for the videos and helping them get started in understanding programming, and for me, that it good enough. I like teaching and am happy to be able to help people.

 

[JordiCP]

I had never developed games up to now, but needed to do something different since my current and my previous B4A projects (which I am still improving in the dark) are getting more and more complicated, or perhaps I want them to do too many things.

So, last week I decided to do a pause and try to develop my own version of the 2048 game, which is quite simple (but highly addictive!!). I discovered it some weeks ago and since then I always find myself playing with it

It is just a clone with some variations, but wanted to try. It uses Informatix's Accelerated surface for the tiles movement and some sound effects. Next week I will release it if everything goes ok.

 

[Jim Brown]

I am using B4a with my own GameSprite libray. I wrote this library because I found LibGDX too heavy and cumbersome for my purposes.
For me I prefer straightforward commands, a little bit like Mark Silbly's Blitz Basic approach.
The only 'game' I have so far is Pocket Invaders (included in the library) which I rewrote to test how the library holds up.

 

[LucaMs]

And you earned "six million dollars"?

(do not pay attention, I joke too much)

Very nice.

 

[PhilN]

Hi Info, Very nice artwork indeed. You can be proud to have a wife like yours who can help you do the graphics! All of the best with your new game!