When comparing GLBasic vs AppGameKit 2.0, the Slant community recommends AppGameKit 2.0 for most people. In the question“What are the best 2D game engines?” AppGameKit 2.0 is ranked 25th while GLBasic is ranked 76th. The most important reason people chose AppGameKit 2.0 is:
The AppGameKit Basic can now export to HTML5.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Easy to develop with
Language is easy to use, with a fast compiler.
Pro Fast 2D
Pro Easy to learn
Pro Support
Forum support is great. No advertising in program or forums. Company has been going for over 10 years.
Pro 3D
Unlike most multi-platform development systems, 3D is available across most of them.
Pro Multi-platform
Code can be written once and will work on supported platforms with very little modification.
Pro No hidden fees
PC version is free.
Full Multi-platform version requires one-off very reasonable price, and all further updates are free, however you can run a watermarked demo on your chosen platform with the free demo version.
Pro C/C++ support
C/C++ code can be included inline or as a DLL/.o/dylib file.
Pro HTML 5 compiling is now faster and works better
Pro Default GUI system works fine, and has all the needed widgets needed
Only problem is position is based on position of previous widget.
Pro Compiler is fast and produces efficient code
Pro Free for home development
Create apps for non commercial 2D programs running on Windows, Linux and Mac OSX. The extension to create programs for other platforms, 3D or network applications requires a license key. Otherwise the "Premium" programs are limited to 10 min runtime for test purposes. There is no trial limit for the development environment.
Pro Networking
Easy-to-use networking system with either TCP or UDP.
Pro Books
Programmers reference guide, user guide and various others are free.
Pro Gaming related functions
Viewports, sprites, rotating/animating and zooming sprites, collision detection and pathfinding.
Pro HTML5 support
The AppGameKit Basic can now export to HTML5.
Pro Cross platform
Supports developing games for Android, iOS, PC, Mac, Linux and now HTML5.
Pro You only need to to pay for the license only
There is no charge for upgrades, or for extra platforms (the HTML5 version just appeared in the latest version), there are no subscription fees or other usage charges. If you publish onto either Apple or Google's stores you will have to pay their costs, of course, but the makers of AGK do not take a cut of this themselves.
Pro Plugin support for Windows
Plug-ins can now be added to the Windows platform. Create your own Tier BASIC commands and call them using the AppGameKit Basic script language style.
Pro Instant testing on multiple devices at once
AppGameKit supports instant testing on all connected devices. With the push of a button you can run your game on any device connected to the development machine.
Pro Excellent documentation
Every function is fully documented with examples and exercises. The Tutorial PDF is a full Introduction to 3D game programming with integrated references to every functionality and its most important usecases. The documentation is regulary updated.
Pro Easy basic programming
Program in tier 1 BASIC programming for every 3D game need.
Pro Raspberry Pi free version available
A Raspberry Pi version is available and free. Users just need to register with the developer and then they can download.
Pro Very fast compilation
It is a compilation based language, but the compilation is very fast. A project of about 1800 lines of code, for example, can compile almost instantly. (That's because it does not compile, it's an interpreter)
Pro Support
Informed, timely and intelligent feedback from the AGK forum.
Pro Fast development
There are plenty of functions which facilitate development and deployment. For example, the AGK player immediately plays the updated bytecode on Android devices then the online site helps with building an APK file for Google Play Store in minutes.
Pro Uses a powerful scripting language built for game development
Software produced with the App Game Kit is written in a language called AGK Script. This language has powerful inbuild commands including commands for 2D graphics, physics and networking. The commands make use of the platforms' native functions to improve performance. They are also designed to enhance code readability. The AGK Script commands have extensive online documentation.
Pro C++ and Basic, you have the choice.
It runs fast with BASIC but if you want more you can use C++, it's also easy to use.
Pro Can be used for advanced games programming in C++
Libraries which provide the same functionality are available for the five platforms, so you can code in C++
Pro Comes with an Integrated Development Environment (IDE)
AGK comes with an Integrated Development Environment (IDE) based on the Code::Blocks IDE for writing AGK scripts. A key feature of the IDE is its ability to broadcast compiled programs to other devices for testing.
Pro Performance
Cons
Con Command set has hardly changed or been updated/improved over the years
Con Poor 2d collision detection with rotated sprites
2d sprite rotation with collision detection isn't present and requires some annoying run-arounds to achieve what is a staple of other game engines.
Con No multi-platform editor
Whilst Linux and Mac IDE's were started, they were never completed.
Con No clear way to monetize apps
It's impossible to place ads. There is a third party in-app purchase library hidden somewhere deep within the forums which hasn't been updated for years.
Con Issues don't get fixed
The Blender exporter and the 3D converter have been broken and remain unfixed for years.
Con Only supports .ddd 3D format
This format does not support bones and only keyframe animation. 3d files will become extremely large if there are animations in models.
Con HTML 5
HTML 5 compiling is rather slow, and doesn't allow all GLBasic features
Con Poor GUI creation library
Its library for GUI creation is abysmal and not acceptable.
Con Poor documentation
There is next to no documentation on using OpenGL commands in GLBasic.
Con Restrictive virtual buttons
"AppGameKit" does not grant editing the very basic parameters of virtual buttons such as font and text size. The only method some people suggest is to use an image for every single "button".
Con Terrible scripting language
MS Basic from the 70's has more features. Procedural, no OO, inheritance, basic user defined types with overloading. Nothing. It even has GOSUB.
Con BASIC language
Even though it supports C++, it's mostly C++ mapped to BASIC without OOP.
Con Can almost only do trivial games
The editor is rather limited, not fully polished, and 3D is missing some key functionalities (3D is work in progress).