ID:1926223
 
Hey everyone,

I used to be an avid BYOND developer, and I'm thinking about getting back into it.

Part of the reason I stopped were various limitations of the platform (such as really heavy input lag, and a very confined approach to handling movement, if I recall correctly there wasn't a way to have super-fast movement).

So I was just wondering some things:

* Is the input lag in BYOND still a serious problem?
* Can fast movement of objects be handled better now or not? (Ember Spirit's fast travel from 'DotA 2' would serve as a good benchmark; but it wouldn't NEED to be quite that fast)

-- And the main question: What other platforms currently exist that are similar to BYOND but may offer more in terms of functionality?
I don't mind if any particular platform requires the user learn a new language, I'm prepared (and already know a bit) to learn C++.

The thing that I've always liked about BYOND was that it makes creating multi-player games a breeze. That aspect is crucial.

I've heard of Unity, but I'm not sure how easy that would be to use, and more importantly how easy that would be to create a multiplayer game.

Thanks in advance.
I'm a frequent Unity3d user who primarily uses c#. There are some decent tutorials out there for both multiplayer and single player games. The community there is very supportive and is dedicated to game design and programming.

For creating proof of concepts, BYOND is quicker. Based on what you're looking for, BYOND seems fine. But I have to say, Unity3D is fun to work with and is better overall. If you opt with diving into Unity, feel free to ask me anything. I've made a 2d round-based online shooter and some 3d proof of concepts.
In response to Mr. RJT
Thanks for your reply!

If there's a wealth of knowledge to fall back on, that's more reassuring.

As a rough, and very crude benchmark/example - I would like to create a top-down 2D MMORPG, that has controls analogous to DotA/LoL/Diablo. I.e. spells and commands on left hand, player movement and spell targeting on the mouse (edge map scrolling isnt needed). With client-side controls (to remove input lag). BYOND is still incapable of this, right?

But on Unity I could pretty much do this, and have it online multiplayer essentially the same as your typical BYOND game?