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I'm interested in HTML5 game development and I found about this 2 game engines, I already know ImpactJS requires more programming experience and that Construct 2 has its own event and action system that can be extended with plugins made with JavaScript.

I want to know what are each engine's primary focus, when would someone choose one over the other assuming programming knowledge is not a concern.

Is it a matter of taste, features available, type of game or is it that each tool serves better for some kind of games or development process?.

I'm not looking to know which is better, just in which situations works better each tool, so people can have an idea of what's better for building the game they have in mind.

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    \$\begingroup\$ Are both within your budget? Construct2 charges for Android and iOS exporting, I believe. \$\endgroup\$
    – ashes999
    Commented Sep 5, 2013 at 21:07
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    \$\begingroup\$ Yes. ImpactJS charges $99 while Construct 2 asks $120 for the personal license (which is required to import to Android and iOS like you mention), Construct 2 free version lacks some features so definitely for a final product a license is required. \$\endgroup\$
    – Érid
    Commented Sep 5, 2013 at 21:12
  • \$\begingroup\$ Okay, thanks for clarifying. Good question, by the way. \$\endgroup\$
    – ashes999
    Commented Sep 5, 2013 at 21:30

3 Answers 3

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I never used ImpactJS, but I have used Construct2 quite a lot.

Wether or not you have experience in Game Programming. You should totally check out Construct2 IMO!

Many things work just out of the box. You plug them into your game and it changes. Perhaps some things to consider?

  • Do you know how to switch between several game screens? Are you able to utilize Webstorage? Can you write your own A*star algorythm and can you do Polygon Collision? Obviously nothing is stopping you from learning all of these things :) But not everyone does have that much interest in Programming. If you are more of a Designer Perhaps, or want to build your game (or prototype) with rapid speed. You should totally check out their free demo. Can't hurt.

Here are some nice features of Construct2:

  • No Programming: Everything is done via the Event System. You never truly interact with any real programming code. C2 Event Sheet
  • Addons! Loads and Loads of extensions by the Community. They are all written in JavaScript with the simple C2 SDK and obviously free of charge. You can add addons simply by dragging the new addon folder into the /Plugin or /Behavior folder.
  • Behaviors: Possibly the most useful feature of Construct 2.. You can give your Objects pre-built behaviors. So if you are creating a Super Mario Clone, simply add the matching Behavior to your Sprite: (ScrollTo is another Behavior, it focuses the screen on the Objects location)Platform Behavior
  • Plugins are just as important as Behaviors. Every Object in Construct2 is a Plugin. Your Spaceship is a Sprite Plugin with added Behaviors. And your Keyboard is also a Plugin: enter image description here

EDIT: I Would also like to address this misconception that Construct 2 somehow is only good for platformers. I think the reason for that is two-folded: 1. The Intro Video on their website shows how to build a Platformer. 2. Building a Platformer can take mere minutes. Here are some of the Pre-Build examples you get when you download Construct2. To give you some idea of its capabilities: (Couldn't fit all on my screen) enter image description here

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Thanks!, I've got no problems with programming, but when building a game I would rather worry on the game itself rather than the developing the engine, which is fun and I like that part but it's too much, as you mentioned. I would like to know how do you feel would it be to build an RPG or RTS game with this engine compared to doing a Mario-esque (platform) game?, How much you feel you can extend your game?, for example, can you program an online support or web store (it doesn't matter if it's hard, just if you could do it via plugins for example)?. \$\endgroup\$
    – Érid
    Commented Sep 20, 2013 at 21:32
  • \$\begingroup\$ Okay let me address the Store and Webstore first. The best Plugin for this out of the Box would be the Clay.IO Plugin. It comes with a leaderboard, share feature etc (like the Facebook plugin) and Server Data Storage and a build in webstore for ingame items or to unlock the full game. However you set it up. Then of course Construct 2 lets you export to tons of platforms. And you could sell it there. The other (and perhaps slightly safer) option. Would be to use the build-in Websocket plugin or Socket.io plugin. And write your own Server (fx NodeJS) to approve the purcharse. Or Ajax. Many ways. \$\endgroup\$
    – Oliver Schöning
    Commented Sep 21, 2013 at 0:43
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    \$\begingroup\$ RPG / RTS: It is all possible. And with Behaviors like A*star pathfinder, Turret, and Line of sight, it can be accomplished. Don't be fooled. Construct2 is not a Platform Maker 2000. Check the Addition I made to my Post. The many example Demos that come with the Software. So I would say it is possible. But all RPG's / RTS'es are hard to create IMO. My personal least Favorite part of Construct 2 are Arrays. They seem confusing in the Pseudo-Code-Language and straight forward when I write them in JavaScript. They still do work. But they look more neat in Code imo :) \$\endgroup\$
    – Oliver Schöning
    Commented Sep 21, 2013 at 0:57
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    \$\begingroup\$ Ps. There is a small, simple RTS example that comes with the Free Edition too :) \$\endgroup\$
    – Oliver Schöning
    Commented Sep 21, 2013 at 1:56
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    \$\begingroup\$ Great, thanks a lot for the answers, that's pretty useful, I totally forgot about the Clay.IO plugin (that's actually how I learned about Construct 2), if you can build something like that then there are a ton of possibilities. I'll definitely check the examples so I can get a better idea. \$\endgroup\$
    – Érid
    Commented Sep 25, 2013 at 20:01
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I have lots of experience with ImpactJS, but none with Construct 2.

ImpactJS is great for developing 2d games like platformy Metroidvanias or top-down RPG-types or card games or what-have-you.

ImpactJS has many pluses on its side:

You 100% need to know how to write JavaScript to use ImpactJS; your game will need a lot of custom behavior that you need to write, line-by-line.

I'm very interested in JS-based 2d games and have found it an excellent place to start. The code is very readable if you need to write your own modifications and the creator, Dominic, is an active member of the forums.

To get an example of what Impact-type JS looks like (and to let me get in a shameless plug), check out my event chain plugin on GitHub.

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    \$\begingroup\$ Thanks for the answer, it's a third of what I'm looking for, I would like some way I could know the strengths of each other and the ones that coincide which performs better for what, because I bet they can do some of the same things but with an entirely different focus. Too bad those platforms doesn't have a trial version, Construct 2 free version lacks too many features for me to consider it fair and ImpactJS doesn't have one. \$\endgroup\$
    – Érid
    Commented Sep 12, 2013 at 21:10
  • \$\begingroup\$ Dominic, the creator of ImpactJS, is very friendly to refunds. If you can spare the $100 to give it a trial run for a couple of weeks I'm pretty sure he'd refund your money if you're not satisfied: impactjs.com/forums/impact-engine/another-trial-version-topic \$\endgroup\$
    – drhayes
    Commented Sep 18, 2013 at 17:55
  • \$\begingroup\$ Thanks for the link, it's good to know that I can give it a try and get a refund if it's not what I need. For what I have seen Construct 2 seems more for platform-like games, but that's just what I've seen from a few videos. Hopefully someone whose used Construct 2 can comment on its capabilities. I'm not yet on the prototyping stage of my game (I'm just starting the concept), but I'll probably end up trying both out, if we don't get a definitive answer before that (which could take a while) I'll update this thread. \$\endgroup\$
    – Érid
    Commented Sep 19, 2013 at 17:21
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I agree with Oliver Schöning's response. I haven't used ImpactJS before, so I'll talk about C2:

C2 pros:

  • Very well documented. Many tutorials.
  • Dedicated plugins: Platformer games become very easy to develop.
  • The SDK is extensible with your own plugins and behaviors.

C2 cons:

  • To integrate some third party plugin in your game (e.g. Socket.io) you must create a plugin for it.
  • Plugins are relatively hard to develop.
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  • \$\begingroup\$ Oh plugins aren't hard once you got the gist of it :) \$\endgroup\$
    – Oliver Schöning
    Commented Aug 9, 2014 at 9:30
  • \$\begingroup\$ Oliver, in my project I've wrapped Socket.io into a C2 plugin and i would say isn't an easy task, especially when you have limited time - This is a personal opinion :) \$\endgroup\$
    – Marwen Trabelsi
    Commented Aug 9, 2014 at 11:17
  • \$\begingroup\$ What did you have trouble with if I may ask? \$\endgroup\$
    – Oliver Schöning
    Commented Aug 9, 2014 at 22:50

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