AppGameKit is a very beginner friendly game engine with a secondary C++ tier for those that want to get a bit more advanced. Today they announced the release of version 2017.12.12. For the record, I really like chronological naming conventions for releases, it is immediately
obvious what the most current version is at a glance. Back to the release… this release greatly expands Box2D physics support, adds a new template with free assets, adds C++ support for Visual Studio 2017 and much more. We featured AppGameKit in the closer look series if you are interested in learning more about this engine. Keep in mind, that review is now a couple of years old.
Details from the release:
What’s new in Version 2017.12.12?
Box 2D
- Updated Box2D to version 2.3.2, but without the auto convex hull code, polygon vertices must still be convex
- Multiple 2D collision shapes can now be assigned to an object without it being set up for physics
- Shape properties like friction, restitution, and collision filters can now be modified on a per shape basis instead of one value for all shapes
- The SetSpriteShape commands can now change previously added shapes on a per shape basis
- Added GetSpriteNumShapes command to return the number of shapes currently assigned to a sprite
- Added GetSpriteShapeNumVertices command to return the number of vertices in a polygon shape
- Added GetSpriteShapeVertexX/Y commands to return the X/Y coordinates of a polygon vertex
- Added SetSpritePhysicsDensity to set the density of a shape
- Added SetJointMouseMaxForce command to limit the amount of force the mouse joint can use
- Added SetJointDamping command to set the softness parameters for distance, line/wheel, weld, and mouse joints
- Added CreateRopeJoint to limit the max distance between two sprites
- Added GetSpritePhysicsCOMX/Y to get the current center of mass for the physics shape
- Added SetSpriteShapeChain and AddSpriteShapeChain to create 2D chain shapes, these are the most suitable shape for 2D terrain
- Added ChainShape example to the Physics folder to demonstrate a simple 2D terrain
Text To Speech
- Added TextToSpeech commands for iOS and Android
- Added TextToSpeech example project to the Sounds folder
iWatch
- Added commands to communicate with an Apple smart watch, the smart watch app must be created outside of AGK
Sprites
- Added GetSpriteTransparency to return the current transparency mode of a sprite
- Added SetObjectBlendModes to set the transparency blend modes manually, also added SetObjectTransparency mode 3 to use these manual values
Skeletons & Tweening
- Added new commands to pause and resume tweens
- Fixed SetSkelton2DFlip causing an incorrect animation if the root bone has a positional offset
Shaders
- Added DeleteShader command and GetShaderExists commands
- The GetTweenPlaying commands will now return 1 if the tween is currently playing as part of a tween chain
3D
- Fixed shadows disappearing or causing a crash on Android when the app goes to the background
- Fixed shadow artifacts on some Android devices when the scene has large polygons
- Fixed animated objects causing incorrect shadows if an object with more bones was loaded after an object with less bones
Screen Recording
- Increased audio quality on Android when using StartScreenRecording
JSON
- Improved the speed of to JSON for both arrays and types when using large data structures
Windows
- Fixed XInput1_3.dll missing error when running the 64-bit version of the player on Windows 8 or above
- Fixed GetDeivceID on Windows returning different values on the same machine in some cases
Edit Boxes
- Tapping outside an editbox to stop editing will now record a touch press with the GetPointer commands
- Fixed editbox text shifting slightly after using SetEditBoxText and then editing the text
- Fixed arrow keys adding characters to editboxes on Mac
- Fixed SetEditBoxCursorPosition not working on iOS until the editbox regains focus
- Fixed GetEditBoxLines not counting a new line unless a character existed on it, the line will now be counted as soon as the return key is pressed
Networking
- Added GetNetworkExists command
- Fixed calling CloseNetwork whilst a connection was still in progress causing the app to freeze
Arrays
- Array .sort() now accepts an optional parameter to ignore case when sorting strings, e.g. sort(1) to ignore case
Linux
- Fixed SetWindowAllowResize being called after SetWindowSize on Linux causing the window to revert to its original size
Android
- Fixed Android apps closing when a hardware keyboard is attached or removed
Images
- Fixed GetImageChosen returning the last valid image choice when the user chooses cancel
iOS Export
- Please note that the iOS export now requires XCode to be installed on your Mac due to iOS 11 changes, and the app icon must now be 1024×1024 pixels in size
Tier 2
- Added VS2017 template project and AGK lib to the Tier 2 folder on Windows