Get started in AGS

Started by lucazani, Thu 18/03/2021 15:54:00

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lucazani

Hello, how can i get starte din AGS?

Danvzare

Download it, install it, follow the tutorial in the help file or look one up online, attempt to make a short game (don't post it online), enter the MAGS contest and try to make a decent game in one month.
Good luck.

Crimson Wizard

#2
Hello.

AGS Manual includes simple tutorial (manual also comes with the editor, where you can press F1 to bring it up):
https://adventuregamestudio.github.io/ags-manual/StartingOff.html

There are also video tutorials made by densming:
https://www.youtube.com/user/densming

They are bit old, but many things are still the same.

Blondbraid

If I may add my two cents, what helped me the most was to open up one of the tutorial games in AGS and look at the code for the room in it and compare it to the manual.

And as Danvzare said, start simple, my advice would be to just make a super simple test game with some default art and just make one room with;

1.An inventory item you can pick up.
2.A character you can look at + talk to.
3. A dialogue tree for said character with two different branches.
4. An object in the room that you can use the inventory item on (a door and a key would be the most obvious choice).

Once you've learned this, you've learned enough of the basics to try making a project worth sharing with the community!


deadsuperhero

Hey, welcome to the community!

The advice about starting a basic test game is really good. Experiment with making a guy walk around, picking up an object, putting stuff in his inventory, and adding a score. In fact, these things are building blocks that can teach you how to make a basic puzzle, which is kind of a big part of developing adventure games!

I also really must recommend the AGS Manual. It's so, so, so helpful. I constantly look stuff up when I'm coding and trying to figure out ways to do something. As you get more used to the engine, you'll want to eventually explore deeper levels of customizing how the game engine works - you can make it do all sorts of crazy stuff with how a game handles clicks, and how the game interface is put together. The manual is extensive, and covers just about anything you'd want to know.

I'd also recommend asking plenty of questions, either here or on the AGS Discord (the technical support channel in particular has helped me a lot). If you have any background with programming, that will help you understand the more complex parts of the engine, but I originally started with AGS having almost no experience at all. One thing that really helped me in the beginning, too: play AGS games! There's so many to choose from, and they can show you all kinds of wonderful ideas about what's possible.

My biggest piece of advice is to not get discouraged, to not take your projects TOO seriously, and to have fun! This community is all about encouraging each other and finding advice and inspiration as we all try to make games.
The fediverse needs great indie game developers! Find me there!

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