Geex - Edit, Play, Game - 2D Game for PC/Xbox

[M.Roys]

Hello Game Creators

The Geex Suite (Game Editor and Engine for Xbox) is about providing tools for creators to quickly build a 2D games.

Geex is basically made of 3 parts:

Geex Edit

We provide a Tile and Event editor to design your game. Here some some features already included in version 1.0
- Menu system, to manage your skills, items, weapons, armors etc
- Message System, to manage dialogue and message window
- A map editor : 3 layers zprioritized map that includes background (panorama), foreground (fogs and effect), weather (rain, snow, wind etc)
- A pixel movement and collision
- A Non-playing-character database
- Keyboard and Pad management
- particle management
- The event editor helps you with
- Customizing characters movement
- change colors, hue
- manage pictures
- manage items database
- manage variables and conditions
- manage audio and music effets
- manage screen effect, zoom in and out, rotation, change tone

And many many more

Status:
Geex Edit is still under development
However in the meantime you can use RPG Maker XP to create your game. Under your request, we will then import your rmxp datas into Geex Play
Your game will be then ready for xbox deployement
this temporarly solution is called Geex Make (script and documentation available)

Geex Play

Geex Play is the main code of the engine, based on a copyright libray (Geex Run (c))
When your editor data are exported into Geex Play, you can play the game right away
However, you can customize bits and piece of the code, to make it fit your needs

Our forum is at your disposal for sharing code, or support

Status:
Geex Play is done and under testing.
To be released before end of year

Geex Game

We'll be providing support to deploy your games on PC or Xbox. Either for the deployement process but also by providing you with music, sprite, chipset

Status:
Geex Game is ready for Geex Contributors only so far


Geex is protected under copyright but we will grant a licence upon request, the model is not yet determined.
Still the licence will include:
- Geex Edit : Your Game Editor. Plus you will be able to propose new editors command
- Geex Play : You will be allowed to use and change the engine code for your own purpose. Plus you will get support from Geex Team
- Geex Game : You will receive custom musics, sprites, chipsets and art, free to be used in your game

Here are some videos of one existing game made with Geex Suite:
http://www.vimeo.com/17343308
http://www.vimeo.com/17051075
http://www.vimeo.com/14877173
http://www.vimeo.com/13933887


Geex Team
Roys and Gaetz

 

[opaj]

Ah, glad to see this project on an English board! Google translate was not working out for me. :tongue:

I look forward to hearing more of your progress. :thumb:

 

[hima]

Wow this is actually a very nice work! I guess this will work with any games made with RGSS? If so, I'm so going to convert U.S.G.!

 

[M.Roys]

Actually our first goal was to create 2D tools for xbox andour games. But as we have a pretty cool 2D engine, we had the idea of coding a module on top of that to Run a RPG just like RPG Maker (including everything)

So basically you just have to use a little tool of ours to transform your tileset/autotile and rxdata into our format, and there you go

It runs really smoother than RMXP with more options, one big constraint however is that we won't be able to import custom scripts. Indeed our engine is not meant to interpret ruby
That being said, we'll be integrating more event commands to compensate (to be used with our Editor or with RMXP insert script) but
MORE THAN THAT we will share the RMXP like code !!!

Which means we'll end up with new kind of scripters (c#, .net, XNA, DirectX) who'll be able to either translate ruby into c# or (even better) develop new powerful routines
I suppose this is far more interesting than ruby and rgss.dll...Thus we are pushing the limits

Also our RMXP module is very easy to use for rmxp scripters, indeed you can use the same module/class in a c# syntax, look
Ruby version

 

    @tilemap = Tilemap.new(@viewport1)

    @tilemap.tileset = RPG::Cache.tileset($game_map.tileset_name)

    for i in 0..6

      autotile_name = $game_map.autotile_names[i]

      @tilemap.autotiles[i] = RPG::Cache.autotile(autotile_name)

    end

    @tilemap.map_data = $game_map.data

    @tilemap.priorities = $game_map.priorities

C# Version

 

            tilemap = new Tilemap(viewport1);

            tilemap.tileset = Cache.tileset(Game_Map.tileset_name);

            tilemap.autotiles = new Texture2D[8];

            for (int a = 0; a < 6; a++)

            {

                if (Game_Map.autotile_names[a] != "")

                {

                    tilemap.autotiles[a] = Cache.autotile(Game_Map.autotile_names[a]);

                }

            }

            tilemap.map_data = Game_Map.data;

            tilemap.priorities = Game_Map.priorities;

        }

 

[M.Roys]

Hello
We keep going with tests
Here are some screens
The first is a screenshot of the RMXP like Menu. Here we have a 1216*672 resolution. Positions and dimensions could easily be changed by the Maker (without recoding)


Here is an example of our zoom engine. You can zoom in and out in game.
Before


After


See you soon

 

[Flickayy]

Wow, this is looking really good, and i cant wait to be able to use this.

I just hope its going to be easy to code in. But oh well, Any news on a release data? even an estimate??

 

[M.Roys]

Our guestimate is before end of first quarter 2010, at least for beta testers and friends. I am starting to test the RMXP interpreter-simulator and this might me a bit long.
Our main challenge would be to build a community around Geex, so everybody could benefit for others experience...
The code would be as easy as RGSS-ruby except you have to be familiar with c#. Compilation would be slightly more difficult though as indeed you need to use visual studio, but it's not a big deal
About the Editor, I don't really know

 

[M.Roys]

Hello

here comes a test screen from Geex, just to check fogs and Dialogues
I added text shadow by default in the Message window

 

[M.Roys]

Hi

We are still moving on. Here is a little screen with a small weather effect
So far we stay above the 40frames per second rate with big maps (160*120), big tileset (>8192height), more than 300events and a 1216*672 résolution
Still I have a little cache memory issue on my small config PC, and I'd like to improve that. Well I runs ok at the moment but I can make some performance improvements still
We should be able to release for the 1st of April normally

 

[M.Roys]

Hello

I spent some time learning HLSL and XNA pixel shaders and here we go
here is an example where I use 2 shaders
1- To apply an RGB + saturation effect on sprite and tilemap. Meaning that I tone each picture using R G B component and a saturation component
Herre saturation is 100% so the screen is black and white

2- To create transition effect, here a spiral. That's why you can see those black borders

These options are fully compatible with RMXP events commands

See you soon
Geex Powa

 

[formlesstree4]

This engine is looking really good guys. Keep it up!

 

[M.Roys]

Hi there
Geex is ready and under testing

As we have'nt done the Editor yet, we propose to use what we call Geex Make. It's actually scripts to include in your RMXP version that provide you with pixel movement and more than 50 new events commands.
Game made with Geex Make and RMXP is compatible with Geex

So, in the meantine I guess the message is RMXP+Geex Make = our Editor for RPG on xbox
The second message is you can create your Game and it'll work on Geex which means all pc config, xbox, and windows mobile

Geex Make has been released on our site (www.geexpowered.com) so you can download it. Unfortunately, the Geex Make documentation is in french, but we'll do an english version soon hopefully

The next release after that, would be Geex Play, which is the open source code of our engine (cf above)

Enjoy

 

[M.Roys]

TADA
First test for a rmxp+Geex Make project exported to Geex.
It's very exciting to see the first outcomes and it's very promising. Commands work well, a few minor bugs of course, but the engine is smooth.
I shall say it's pretty cool to see a rmxp game running on another platform

here are a few screen during my tests for my own game (FOG)

Here the intro, as I changed the screen resolution, we see I have to change picture coordinates

In game, Add Mode for picture works well, but we see I have to stretch the light fit into the new resolution ^^

 

[Xilef]

so we can make an RMXP game and this converts it to XNA?

 

[M.Roys]

so we can make an RMXP game and this converts it to XNA?

Yep
There's a + as you can use Geex Make, which is a rmxp version with a pix movement and more event command to manipulate events (see docs and download at www.geexpowered.com)
There's a - as we don't import custom script. However the version is open-source so coders will be able to move the ruby script to c#. It's even simplified by the fact we use our own dll (Geex Run) that allow you to use same module and method of RGSS but in c# (Sprite, Window, Audio, Cache, etc etc)

In other word, you can make a game with
- basic Rmxp version
- rmxp + geex make
- rmxp + geex make + transcode your custom script in c#

and it'll work on XNA

 

[Jason]

I took a look at this thread when you first made it but lost track for a while.

Sounds pretty good what you're doing/have done, and I like the idea of RMXP games being played in widescreen too.

Is the editor ready yet, to actually compile a game that can be played on the 360 directly? Because I'm assuming those screenshots are running on a PC, would it be possible to give us a photo of it running on a 360 at all?

 

[M.Roys]

I took a look at this thread when you first made it but lost track for a while.

Sounds pretty good what you're doing/have done, and I like the idea of RMXP games being played in widescreen too.

Is the editor ready yet, to actually compile a game that can be played on the 360 directly? Because I'm assuming those screenshots are running on a PC, would it be possible to give us a photo of it running on a 360 at all?

The editor is not ready yet, that's why we suggest you to use rmpx editor+GeexMake (our owm scripts for new event comands)
XNA IS compatile with xbox (as long as you do not use PC only classes). It was made for that purpose also and there's a simple option in VisualStudio2010."Package as a XNA creators club game"

That being said , I am not sure there's a point to give you a xbox screenshot. Indeed you would get the same screen, perhaps a bit stretch to fit in 1280*720, but moreover it would certainly depends on your TV-screen. What can I say though, is that the stretching is taken in charge by the xbox, and of course, you could set the 1280*720 resolution in Geex

 

[Xilef]

take a photo of it on a 360 and i'll rebuy my RMXP licence and become seriously interested in this.
Also your name and logo reminds me of this too much

 

[M.Roys]

Well, you seem very suspicious! I guess I must be flattered.
I can give you a snapshot with VS2010 and the window and my PC, but as I don't feel like proving stg to the point of exporting the demo to XNA live, taking a snapshot on my xbox, and transfer it back to my PC and then import the pic in the forum....
Anyway it doesn't prove a thing as a fake would have connected its PC to a TV set and you would have noticed nothing

 

[moog]

this looks amazing, i might have to make a rmxp game just to see in on the box