Is this what I need?

[luaz]

I want to develop a game that visually and somewhat physically looks like Mario or Megaman, etc..

I have average knowledge of C++ and have created a few simple programs. I like the sophistication offered in the language.

I've noticed that Box2D is used for physics, however what else 2D-side-scroller-oriented is offered in this engine? I haven't found any info about that.

So apart from the latter question, how does it seem that Love fits my needs?

[tv_user]

Love is what one could call a "library", not a game engine. That being said, i believe Love matches your requirements: uses Lua (a super simple and intuitive programming language), it's cross platform (windows, OSX, linux), handles 2D graphics, has an implementation of Box2D physics engine (but I would recommend you not to use it for a project like the one you mentioned - it would be like killing a house-fly with a rocket), and it most absolutely ROCKS
Ok, I may be biased, but it's still pretty cool. See for your self - check the wiki and the showcase forum.
Happy coding

[luaz]

Love is what one could call a "library", not a game engine. That being said, i believe Love matches your requirements: uses Lua (a super simple and intuitive programming language), it's cross platform (windows, OSX, linux), handles 2D graphics, has an implementation of Box2D physics engine (but I would recommend you not to use it for a project like the one you mentioned - it would be like killing a house-fly with a rocket), and it most absolutely ROCKS
Ok, I may be biased, but it's still pretty cool. See for your self - check the wiki and the showcase forum.
Happy coding

Interesting! What would you recommend using instead of Box2D for physics?

I'm also wondering, does it have parallax scrolling feature, perhaps an easy console/menu integration as well?

I can't find a feature list... :/

[Nixola]

LOVE hasn't thing like those, you either have to code them yourself or to use other people's LUA libraries

[tv_user]

Interesting! What would you recommend using instead of Box2D for physics?

Well, I would recommend you to create for yourself the collision system best suited for your game OR you could use the amazing HardonCollider library or the lighter Bump.

I'm also wondering, does it have parallax scrolling feature, perhaps an easy console/menu integration as well?

Parallax scrolling is not an integrated feature in love2D but it is also easily accomplished either using cameras, canvases, etc - just search the forums for parallax scrolling. There are plenty of GUI libraries you can use if you don't have the time to create your own. Check out the wiki

PS: Creating your own stuff is always a great way to improve your coding and gain experience. Plus, it's a wonderful feeling being able to say - I did this!

[luaz]

Since I don't have 10 years of experience coding, for now I'm looking for pre-made code, as I'm afraid I can make a serious mistakes that I may not notice, or very inefficient code, etc.. Usually I can write code pretty well, but when I'm done and I look at the example, my code is either half of it in size or double the size of it. But yes, I do agree that it is VERY pleasant to look at a project and think "I've made this all by myself!", It's somewhat pleasing.

Anyway, I was looking for some examples to see how the code looks like, etc., and I ended up in "Game Distribution" page. Now, as far as I'm concerned, I cannot distribute my game without LOVE, it must be ran through it, hence a name and a link in the credits is not enough. I am looking at creating commercial products, as I have quite elaborate game plans on my desk written by me and consulted with a game designer. I don't think it's appropriate or, in fact, is good practice to distribute a commercial product like this.

Now so that you all wouldn't think that I'm real greedy, have in mind that our family is really poor. For example, the PC I'm using is the PC I bought 11 years ago, as taxes and basic food (little meat, eggs and bread) are the only things we eat for the last few years. That's how it is in Eastern Europe.

P.S. The back-story is there because when I was starting up with programming, I was often told in the forums that i should buy X or Y, etc., and a lot of people raged when I've told them that I can't and moreover when I've told them that I'm looking to create commercial products. After that, I'm always giving the back-story so this wouldn't happen.

[qaisjp]

Since I don't have 10 years of experience coding, for now I'm looking for pre-made code, as I'm afraid I can make a serious mistakes that I may not notice, or very inefficient code, etc.. Usually I can write code pretty well, but when I'm done and I look at the example, my code is either half of it in size or double the size of it. But yes, I do agree that it is VERY pleasant to look at a project and think "I've made this all by myself!", It's somewhat pleasing.

Anyway, I was looking for some examples to see how the code looks like, etc., and I ended up in "Game Distribution" page. Now, as far as I'm concerned, I cannot distribute my game without LOVE, it must be ran through it, hence a name and a link in the credits is not enough. I am looking at creating commercial products, as I have quite elaborate game plans on my desk written by me and consulted with a game designer. I don't think it's appropriate or, in fact, is good practice to distribute a commercial product like this.

Now so that you all wouldn't think that I'm real greedy, have in mind that our family is really poor. For example, the PC I'm using is the PC I bought 11 years ago, as taxes and basic food (little meat, eggs and bread) are the only things we eat for the last few years. That's how it is in Eastern Europe.

P.S. The back-story is there because when I was starting up with programming, I was often told in the forums that i should buy X or Y, etc., and a lot of people raged when I've told them that I can't and moreover when I've told them that I'm looking to create commercial products. After that, I'm always giving the back-story so this wouldn't happen.

I am 14 and have 3 years of Lua experience, I suck with graphics. I should tell you that even however young you are (or whatever "basic" skills you may have) - good luck with coding; to be honest, I am addicted to it - I just love know that I actually managed to do this and that... you can do anything you dream to do... as long as you have ambition. I'm not going to comment on your life quality, some have the luxurious life, some don't - some people are lucky with te lottery, some can't get clean water - it's life. Good luck with your projects, I will no doubt contribute to any project hosted on GitHub, I look forward to meeting you on there.

Commercial products can be made with LOVE, the Game Distribution page allows you to blend a .love (zipped contents) file into a EXE, as long as you ship the .dll's too. It's pretty simple. Read the page correctly

Good luck.

[luaz]

I am 14 and have 3 years of Lua experience, I suck with graphics. I should tell you that even however young you are (or whatever "basic" skills you may have) - good luck with coding; to be honest, I am addicted to it - I just love know that I actually managed to do this and that... you can do anything you dream to do... as long as you have ambition. I'm not going to comment on your life quality, some have the luxurious life, some don't - some people are lucky with te lottery, some can't get clean water - it's life. Good luck with your projects, I will no doubt contribute to any project hosted on GitHub, I look forward to meeting you on there.

Commercial products can be made with LOVE, the Game Distribution page allows you to blend a .love (zipped contents) file into a EXE, as long as you ship the .dll's too. It's pretty simple. Read the page correctly

Good luck.

Thanks.

As for commercial products, I have noticed that, I wonder if you can change the GUI and the icon though, or is it a must when using LOVE? Every project has DLLs, so I don't see why people would be unhappy about including them, by the way.

[Nixola]

You can change the icon by using love.graphics.setIcon(image)

[luaz]

I'm going to try it. Gotta read some material on LUA first though, as I know only C++.