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Game-making is for everyone! Empowering people to take technology and culture into their own hands was part of Underground Arcade's mission, and I want to honor that mission here. You might be surprised by how easy it is to make a game with some of these tools.
Listed tools that use "visual programming" are those where you don't have to write code or learn a programming language to make the game - you program the game's logic by dragging boxes around and filling out fields and checking checkboxes and the like. While nobody should be afraid to learn to code (it's not that bad!), these are great tools if you don't want to, or you're not able to, or you're a younger kid. Tools that are "code optional" use either conventional written code or visual programming.
Genre-specific Tools
- Bitsy - A free tool for making 2D lo-fi games with dialogue. Popular. Visual programming.
- Flickgame - A free tool for making visual branching narratives. Code-free.
- GB Studio - A free tool for making Game Boy roms! Popular. I've dabbled a little and like it. Visual programming.
- nswengine - A free tool for making text-based games where you can move from room-to-room in 4 directions.
- RPG Maker - A tool for making SNES-style RPGs. Popular. Has a trial version. Code-optional. My favorite tool for RPGs.
- RPG Paper Maker - A tool for making 2.5D RPGs similar in style to RPG Maker, except it is free for non-commercial use. I've dabbled, and it's missing some features, but is in ongoing development and shows promise. Code-optional.
- Silent Works - Free 2D and 3D game creation tools for a number of genres. I made a half-dozen Silent Walk games in middle school. Code optional.
- Twine - A free tool for making interactive fiction - games that are just text and hyperlinks. Popular. I've used it and strongly recommend it. Code-optional.
- Puzzlescript - A free tool for making lo-fi puzzle games like Sokoban.
General Tools
- Construct - 2D game making tool. Has a trial version. Visual programming.
- GameMaker - (Wait, when did GameMaker: Studio go back to just being called GameMaker?) Anyway, it's a 2D game making tool with 3D functionality. Popular. Free for noncommercial use. Code optional. GameMaker has been my go-to general purpose tool for decades.
- Godot - Powerful free 2D and 3D game making tool. Popular.
- Hopscotch - A free game dev tool for kids. Visual programming.
- Multimedia Fusion - 2D game making tool. Has a free version. Visual programming.
- Pico-8 - A lo-fi fantasy game console and dev kit. Very affordable.
- Scratch - A free programming tool for kids. Visual programming. I teach Scratch to children, and it's better as an educational tool than as a game dev solution.
- Scrolling Game Development Kit - Free 2D game making tool. Code optional.
- Unity - Powerful 2D and 3D game making tool. Popular. Has a free version. I've made a couple of Unity games and recommend it for 3D work.
Audio
- Anvil Studio - My go-to tool for composing MIDI music. Has both a piano roll and staff editor. There's a free version with paid add-ons, although at the time of writing, you can get the add-ons for free.
- Audacity - A free all-purpose audio editor.
- bfxr/footsteppr - A free tool for generating 8 bit sounds! Expands on the functionality of sfxr.
- Lovely Composer - An accessible and fun tool for making 8-bit music. Very affordable.
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