Creating 3D games usually require extensive coding skills, a bunch of experience, knowledge using several tools and tons of creativity. But that is not anymore necessary.
Google explained how 'Game Builder', its sandbox for desktops, allows users to create 3D games without having any coding knowledge or skills.
With Game Builder, creating 3D games is similar to playing games like Minecraft.
Coming out of Google's Area 120, the company's internal incubator for employee's ideas, the interface is simple to use, with palettes of objects and terrain available to create environments with. The idea is that it allows users to create games while playing them.
"What if creating games could be as easy and fun as playing them? What if you could enter a virtual world with your friends and build a game together in real time?," asked Google on its blog post.
"Game Builder aims to make building a game feel like playing a game. If you’ve crafted a fort or dug a mine in a game, you already know how to build a 3D level in Game Builder."
With Game Builder, users can create FPSes, platformers, or even racing titles
Available on Steam for free on Windows and Mac, Game Builder showcases drag-and-drop cards to answer specific things, such as, “How do I move?”
While using Game Builder to create games require no coding skills, those who do have some knowledge on programming language, can leverage the platform for even more customization.
Using JavaScript, for example, users can create their own cards. Game Builder comes with an extensive API that allows users to script almost everything in the game, as developers normally would when attempting to introduce or alter behavior and mechanics in the game.
All the code is live, so any change doesn't need compiling.
Apart from these features, you can also create levels with terrain blocks, edit the physics of objects, create lighting and particle effects, and more.
In theory, even someone with minimal programming experience can use Game Builder to put a game together in under an hour.
With Game Builder, Google has a different approach in game development.
Usually, game development requires extensive coding skills and creativity. With Game Builder, things are more abstract, allowing users to focus only on the creative aspect. It's also how Google wants to embrace the “no- and low-code” trend.
Game Builder features a ton of palette and themes. But if users worry that their creation look exactly the same as everyone else's, they should not worry, as Game Builder also allows users to import 3D models from Google Poly, the company’s library for virtual objects.
Additionally, users can create games in co-op mode, and even build them out for multiplayer action.
Before Google starts publishing Game Builder as as early access, the platform has actually been around since November 2018.
For future possibilities, Google suggests that non-prototype versions of Game Builder can include 2D UI creation tools, advanced audio controls, and even more templates.
While many people are commending Game Builder as an easy way for building games, this is in fact nothing new. There are other tools previously made available which can do things similarly. The biggest difference is that, Game Builder is a Google product.