I’ve made fun of HTML5 game engines in the past and don’t plan on stopping anytime soon. (Basically, my feeling is that everybody claiming HTML5 is the future are the same guys who have been claiming Linux desktop is the future. Nobody wants it except a few vocal geeks.)
However, if I were ever going to stop my tirades, it would be because of something like this:
Phaser – Desktop and Mobile HTML5 Game Framework
Some of the features of Phaser that I really like are:
- WebGL and Canvas – So you can target both desktop and mobile browsers.
- Built-in Physics – Allows you to make your own Angry Birds. Or something.
- Groups – Bundle bunches of sprites together to make less work.
- Particles – A particle engine is built in to give your game razzmatazz.
- Tile Maps – Supports Tiled tile maps out of the box. Woot!
- Device Scaling – Want to support multiple screen sizes? Phaser has you covered.
Lots of other cool things as well. If only it wasn’t HTML5 I could really love it. But if I ever compromise my game dev principles it will be for Phaser.
I also appreciate (as much as I am able to appreciate anything that uses Javascript) and even purchased ImpactJS but tend to use things that are free so that I can make a living selling tutorial videos for them.