>> but more about how you''re designing the engine for your game in the first place

Sure, using scripts to allow the designers the flexibility to modify AI, add gameplay features etc is a definite benefit. Most of the time however these scripts rely upon some form of hard-code in the engine itself, and are programmed in on a per-need basis. Designing and structuring the engine to be modifiable from the beginning can add quite a lot of work to an already hectic schedule.

>> I would be more concerned with the programmers opinion on this modularity.

Its always valuable to get the programmers opinion, but what Im speaking about is designing with feature potential in mind. Can the programmers make it modifiable without taking too much away from the actual game?

>> Ship a game with all your in-house proprietary editing tools, give the buyers of the game the ability to play it, then make their own version of it.

Thats a lovely perspective. Unfortunately, its not quite that simple. You have to also ship the tools with sufficient documentation, and that documentation can be a whole world full of work. Some tools have features which are added in but only work for the site that the tool was developed for, so then you end up with more than one version of that tool (internal/external) etc etc etc. I dont think its quite as simple as "give em out!". Theres a lot of hidden support costs in releasing such tools, and thats money that could be spent elsewhere.

Drew "remnant" Chambers
Game Designer
Irrational Games

quote: by Kylotan
at which point the question is not "should we make it modifiable?", but "why shouldn''t we allow the user to make the same changes we did?"

Or how far should we go will allowing the player to see through the game using these tools. Maybe this is the next best thing in game development. I don''t think developers should be stingy by not making these tools and yes they should be as user friendly as possible. It can also be seen as a great source of feedback for a game by looking at what your fans have made with the tools you gave them.


A designer doesnt need to know everything about code, they just have to have an appreciation for its limitations and how those limitations affect features they may wish to include in their design. - Drew

Unreal is the mother of mod-ability, ohh yeah... can anyone say TC? that was a great game.

ANDREW RUSSELL STUDIOS