Hi,

From the time I got into game programming I have heard of level editors. Everytime I tried to find to level editors I found something different. However now I know what level editors are and where they are used.

At the same time one question keeps propping up in my mind. Whether to code the level editor myself or use the one thats already been built. Could someone highlight which option would be better and why? Also if you do use level editors, which one do you use ? I have only used mappy. Are there any other intuitive level editors available.

Thank you.

I'm going to write my own. One advantage of coding it yourself is you can include your level editor in the full version, as one of the upgrade incentives (which is my plan). Never used Mappy (http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Vista/7336/robmpy.htm), although it looks interesting.

A lot of 3d games level editors are 3d programs like Max, Lightwave, etc. I know that Dark Forces, Shadows of the Empire, and Outlaws (early 3d LucasArts video games) used AutoCAD for their level editor. Even with games like this, sometimes the object placement and special triggers are added with a custom-written program or with a special build of the game itself.

If your game is not 3d, then you're probably going to have to write your own level editor. In fact I don't think there's such a thing as a third-party 2d Level editor for use with any game (until I just saw "Mappy").

Creating the level editor myself has worked out great for me; I was able to build a level editor for my game and build it right into the main game (I compile it out for the release version), and this makes testing the level very easy becuase I'm not switching between 2 different programs. And my editor uses the same rendering and scrolling engine so the editor looks exactly like the real game.

I find the most important part of the level editor is having it be flexible enough to work the way I want to. You don't want your level editor slowing you down when designing levels. I write new commands for it all the time when I find myself doing repetitive tasks or needing something special. For example, my level editor automatically randomly scatters 3 different types of tiles when laying down floors, so the floors in the game automatically have variation in the tiles. it was quicker to write that function than it was to keep switching manually between 3 different tiles when designing the levels.

Hanford