Game-Maker help

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Game-Maker poses a compatibility problem for both modern operating systems and modern expectations, as does any DOS-based program. For the interested user, however, it takes only a moment to get started. This page serves as both instructions and reference, to aid readers with installing, using, and making the most of RSD's design tools -- or simply the games produced with them.

Emulation[edit]

To run Game-Maker or play Game-Maker games in Windows 2000 or higher, you need to use a DOS emulator such as DOSBox. There are others, but DOSBox is the most pervasive. If you're familiar with game hardware emulators like MAME or Nestopia, you know the routine.

As with MAME, the easiest way to go about it is to use a good graphical frontend. For Windows, the standard is D-Fend Reloaded. You can also find frotends for Mac OS and other operating systems; just do a quick Google search.

If you have a copy of Game-Maker (you can find a demo version here),

Help with emulation -- tools, settings, suggestions


(What was the Mac frontend that I sent to Nick?)

Settings[edit]

  • Graphics: Surface rendering
  • Processor: Turn up CPU cycles
  • Sound: 44100, if possible. Tip for improved music quality: go into your DOSBox options, find the Sound Blaster section, and select "dualopl2" for your FM output. This gives you two OPL2 chips working together for the richest, most spacious sound possible -- yet it's not the default setting, as in later Sound Blaster cards it was superseded by the subjectively inferior single OPL3 chip. For dramatic examples of the difference, check out the linked thread. The "Castle Callahach" track is especially interesting to note.

Integrated design tools[edit]

Help with design tools, deferred to individual tool pages

External tools[edit]

Help with external programs: DPaint, Autodesk Animator, AdLib Visual Composer + ROL2CMF, various sound editors like GoldWave and Cool Edit...

Again, go to individual tool pages for tips.

Distribution[edit]

  • Help with distribution -- dosbox portable, etc.
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