Can Construct 2 make social games?

I've got a couple of questions.

First, is Construct 2 capable of making social games, similar to the likes of farmville? I realize this would require some custom PHP coding to integrate the social features. Is there a game engine out there that is better suited to this type of game?

I'm actually thinking of making a social game for mobile phones. Part of it is action/platform based, where you move around and attack enemies with weapons.

I realize there are many technical aspects involved that are beyond the scope of my post. So my question is; is Construct 2 the best fit for this kind of game, or is there an alternative that is better suited for this genre?

Thanks. :)

I don't know if there is an alternative, so I can't say if C2 is the best fit. I can say that C2 support for "farmville-like" features are very limited atm (besides facebook integration, which is very solid and easy to use). online player information storage can and has been done with the use of php/mysql and the ajax function (or ajax poster plugin)--but as you said--coding will be required. online multiplayer is also possible but even more complicated (look at the socket io plugins). i know a chat plugin has been made for c2.

overall, c2 is not made to build the type of game you want--but it is very customizable so anything is possible

Given time, C2 will easily be able to achieve this type of goal. Even now, with some plugins being developed by the community, it may be closer than expected.

Keep in mind, the main thing that will limit you at the moment is the fact that C2 is still in the heavy development stage... so a lot of planned features are not yet available. Do not let this detour you however, since development is pretty rapid and the community have already bolstered it's potential substantially.

~Sol

After doing a brief search, I may have found a solution: http://papayamobile.com/developer/engine

This is a game engine, which, conviently enough, makes social mobile games. The company is based in China, however.

Found something else that's very interesting: http://papayamobile.com/academy/index.html

Unfortunately, they're looking for 2-3 person teams that have experience making mobile games. Although I have a couple of great design ideas, I neither have a team nor any experience with making mobile games. :( Oh well.

Thoughts?

Nearest engine to C2 with social games capabilities that i can think is Stencyl. And damn, they're ahead of C2 in terms of supported platforms. There's Flash, iOS(appears to be native) and soon Android and HTML5 as stated on their site. I don't like the Stencyl workflow so i'll stay with my beloved C2 <img src="smileys/smiley14.gif" border="0" align="middle">

Also found this: http://roarengine.com/

It isn't like Construct2, it's an API of some kind that integrates with other technology, like flash and HTML5.

Do you guys think Roar Engine could be used in conjunction with Construct2?

EDIT: Found another engine, Spaceport. It creates games that are seamlessly multi-platform, and claims to be several times faster than HTML5. It appears to be well documented.

Thoughts?

Thanks for your feedback so far, I appreciate it. <img src="smileys/smiley1.gif" border="0" align="middle">

I think social games can be done in C2 at its current state, but it appears it will be easier if you wait for more features to be implemented in the native (or vanilla) version.

However, I wouldn't think about multiple platforms at this time - HTML5 in mobile devices has improved in the last months, but it has a long path before it runs as fast and as stable as a native iOS/Andriod app.

A question comes to mind: How easy it is to cheat in a C2 game? Would it be possible to code (event or not) safety procedures to avoid cheating?

Nearest engine to C2 with social games capabilities that i can think is Stencyl. And damn, they're ahead of C2 in terms of supported platforms. There's Flash, iOS(appears to be native) and soon Android and HTML5 as stated on their site. I don't like the Stencyl workflow so i'll stay with my beloved C2 <img src="smileys/smiley14.gif" border="0" align="middle">

It looks like stencyl is going to have IAP soon. That's a big one.

blog.stencyl.com

Joshua

Spaceport looks very promising, thanks! I might just give it a try some time. Roar engine can be combined with construct, as it's simply an API to "socialize" your game (I guess leaderboards, in game shopping, etc.). All about accessing their online API then rendering the response, then adapting this data to your game.

More generally speaking, yeah social games can be created in construct, however not natively... Shouldn't be all too difficult though with good, working knowledge of JS as you can write your own plugins and so on (tha a look at now.js: http://nowjs.com)

—

"Never trust the client" as they say haha. Anything on the client side can be exploited, manipulated, etc. Is it a single player game? Easily hackable and there's really nothing you can do about it. Multiplayer? Make your server the end authority point and validate each and every request (still, cheaters will be cheaters and cheating will still happen).

Cheers

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I agree talkinghead say "Never trust the client".

But I think the question is "how easy to create a multi-players game/social game?"

If designer does not have any networking knowledge, or does not know how to create a server. He/she can not create multi-players game, so there is no game to be cheated.

Thanks for your responses everyone. So Construct2 can't create social games natively...does anyone have any other recommendations on what APIs/SDKs that could be used on Construct2 to make it easier to make social games, or would it be easier to use something like Spaceport and code it from scratch?

Check out Scoreoid, social features are coming.

About Scoreoid - scoreoid.net

Scoreoid, developed by game developers for game developers, is a non-restrictive, reliable and easy to use gaming platform designed to handle but not limited to scoring, leaderboards and game management, including advanced functions such as platform content awareness, for multi-platform games.

Scoreoid?s goal is to make games better by handling advanced features, shortening game development time and costs, and freeing up developer time to focus on their games. Scoreoid is a free hosted solution

Good to see you Almog :D, Welcome to C2. Let me know if i can help you with anything :)

Thanks smitchell well do