Open Source: Cross Platform iOS/Android 2D Game Framework Using The Squirrel Language
Not too long ago I mentioned the open source Moai SDK 2D game development kit that uses the Lua scripting language.
I’ve been watching another framework for some time that uses the Squirrel scripting language, and it was a bit rough around the edges. Today however, an update was just released, and in my testing appears to work extremely well on iOS devices (can’t say I tested it on Android yet).
Tutorial: Building Complete Games With SpriteHelper And LevelHelper
I’ve previously mentioned the excellent SpriteHelper and LevelHelper tools. These tools work with Cocos2d, Cocos2D X, and Corona SDK games and allow to quickly add graphics design levels, and physics to your games with drag-and-drop and parameter selection.
Together these tools are a very powerful combination, and save an incredible amount of time – while being pretty inexpensive. You can build your own games very quickly. I’ve always liked, but then run into issues whenever using drag’n'drop game dev tools. What I love about these tools is that you get the ease of development, but can still do whatever you want in code.
Open Source: 2D Isometric Action RPG Game Built With Cocos2D
Cocos2D has many features for those looking to develop isometric games. Handling of z-ordering, and tile maps are all built into the engine.
I’ve found an excellent open source game example known as KnightFight from Loz Archer of an isometric 2D tile based action rpg using Cocos2D. The game features a player controlled character that you move around the map, collisions between the player and map objects, simple computer controlled enemies, and basic player improvement through leveling.
Tutorial: Augmented Reality UFO Shooter Game With Cocos2D
Augmented reality is one of those buzzwords that is driving sales in the app store. You could argue that in some cases adding a little reality into a game doesn’t really improve things – but clearly there is a segment of the market that disagrees.
I’ve posted about a basic augmented reality tutorial previously, and found an in-depth step by step tutorial on creating a simple UFO shooter game using the camera, gyroscope, and Cocos2D.
News: Open Beta For Free 3D Objective-C Game Engine Nineveh
On this site I’ve mentioned many different iOS game engines on the open source iOS game engines list, and the commercial iOS game engines list. For the most part the free game engines are all 2D.
I recently found out about another game engine known as Nineveh from this forum posting that has entered into open beta. It looks great so far, and is well documented so if you want to play around with it you can just dive right in.