I will fully dedicate all my summer time on blender.. but.. what version to start?

Hi ppl,

I have 1 year on blender , and I don’t learned nothing in one year , only I have maked stupid tests… but I have decided to learn blender and python at all my summer time (2 months starting this night).

Mi major question for you ppl is…

What version can I use for create a FPS Game?
I have started with 2.58 now , but I have some bugs on subdivision surface modifier… because when I press te “P” key to start the game , the object that I applyed subdivision surface modifier disappears…

This make me to thing on 2.49b , because is the ONLY version I have fully tested and don’t have important bugs… but obviously , in 2.58 the difficulty to make a game is small.

I say another bug on 2.58… the Action Editor doesn’t work FOR ME in the Game Engine , when I apply an action to the object I have applyed bounds before doesn’t play the action. And yes , the action is on always and all the logics are connected.

Any advice to start this new project?

Thanks,
Midgardh.

I would personally use 2.49b, i hate the way 2.5x is laid out. 2.5x has more features, but 2.49 is a lot nicer in my opinion.

2.49b is good. Part of the reason people don’t change is because they have to port scripts to 2.5x, so this will not be a problem for you. Also 2.49 is the old version, and regardless of how much you like it, your games are already going to be outdated.

I agree with Alan, the layout for 2.49 is way better. But whatever you do, learn the python version for 2.5 (I think it’s python 3.1.) While their are a few extra functions that will not work in 2.49 the vast majority of python 3.1 can be used in 2.49. And it will save you the time required to port the code to 2.5.

Use Blender 2.5. It has more features, and it will only improve. It should be easy enough to port your project to future releases (there are no breaking changes planned). However, the same cannot be said for 2.49. If you use 2.49, you’re probably stuck with it. So, while people are drooling over and playing with new features, you’ll be stuck an old, out-dated version of Blender/BGE.

Furthermore, I find the 2.5 interface to be a lot nicer (not just visually). I think the people that complain about 2.5 mostly just haven’t given it enough time; most people don’t like change. That, or they’re waiting for a bevel tool. :stuck_out_tongue:

Edit:
Also, actions (aside from shape actions) should be working just fine in 2.58. If you’re having problems, please post a blend so others can help you.

If you are new then go with 2.5x, the only reason to have around 2.49 is for some special importers that will most probably not work on 2.5x, or to see some old python scripts that you may need to translate to 2.5x.
A important reason to have 2.49 is (this may be wrong though) that 2.49 has the fbx importer that works with Unity engine, but if you aren’t into Unity it’s not a problem then.
Anyways size wise blender installed uses less than 50 MBs, having both around is not going to stress a computer nowadays xD, (but leave 2.5x installed and 2.49 as zip file download).

If you’re only interested in FBX export, then 2.5 has a working FBX exporter (it was initially ported from 2.4x, but I think there have been improvements made). However, there isn’t an FBX importer. The one available for 2.4x only supported meshes as far as I know, so it wasn’t all that useful anyways…

Okay… I started the project now on 2.58 , but I have the problem with the subdivision surface modifier on game engine , when y press the “P” key the object disappears.

And , I can’t use the ACTION EDITOR to make the actions of the characters? In 2.49b , the Action Editor is all of it , but Shape Editor is some… difficulty to make actions to walk , jump , shoot , etc etc etc.

Any advice?

EDIT

I don’t have the subdivision surface modifier bug more :smiley:

Now , the only question is HOW TO MAKE TE ACTIONS , Walk , Jump , shoot etc? Action Editor doesn’t work , and shape editor is some difficulty.

EDIT 2

Awesome… Action Editor works now… thanks guys , I will be making the game now :stuck_out_tongue:

Regarding subdivision surfaces in the game engine… This a real performance eater. the game will be recalculating the sds every time the mesh is deformed. From a performance perspective you should apply all modifiers that you can before running the game. For tests and development then the fps hit you get will probably be ok, but as your game gets bigger and closer to release you’ll want to apply those modifiers.

A better alternative to sds is to retopo your characters/objects (there are some good retopo tools in Blender and many tutorials on how to use them on the net, try googling “blender retopo” without the speech marks). Maybe model them, apply sds to smooth out the rough edges, but then retopo over the smooth sds mesh. Another reason sds is not a good idea is it introduces a lot of polys that are not really necessary. The more polys you are processing every frame, the slower your game will run. Good topology is a far better solution than sds for realtime graphics. :wink:

Good luck and have fun. We’re here to help. :smiley:

Edit: Incidentally, the game engine and scripting in 2.5x is by far superior to 2.4x. Most users of the game engine switched to 2.5x when it was still even in alpha for just this reason, regardless of the ui changes. You’ve made a good choice going with 2.58a, imho.