Game Development Tool: Panda3D

Game Development Tool: Panda3D "Game Design Tools for Independant Game Developers"

Popularity Vote

The overall popularity of this tool.

Indie Pricing

Is there a low cost version available for Indies?

Stable NoBugs

Is the software stable and mostly bug free?

Learning Curve

Is it easy to use and are good tutorials available?

Feature Set

Is the tool packed with useful features?

Indie Support

How well does the tool maker support Indie developers?

Panda3D was developed by Disney for their massively multiplayer online game, Toontown. Panda3D includes graphics, audio, I/O, and collision detection for the creation of 3D games. Panda3D is open source as of May 28, 2008 . Panda3D's intended game-development language is Python. The engine itself is written in C++, and uses an automatic wrapper-generator to expose the complete functionality of the engine in a Python interface. This approach gives a developer the advantages of Python development, such as rapid development and advanced memory management, but keeps the performance of a compiled language in the engine core.

Hacked from Wikipedia/tool maker, Please help by sending us a better 600c description, we'll credit you here.

2 comments found.

1) Pete on 2009-09-19

Very easy to use, nice sample programes, can create 3D application very quick and easy useing Python. Great for n00bs and pros. You ca use Python or C++ and best of all its Open Source, with a great community.

2) treeform on 2009-09-20

I would recommend using panda3d.org ( don't get fooled by the childish look of their site)

and really really like it smile

Why would some one not want to use it?

Its a 3d engine that was made to be scripted with python 1st and lots of parts are python only. While c++ support is there to write extensions for more speed!

It has 2 games written in it Toon Town and Pirates of The Caribbean.

Its open source with BSD license. Great forum and irc community support.

I myself ditched pyOpenGL and looked for python solutions like python-ogre (which is very buggy and does not run well on Linux and did not run for me that well on windows either).

My programs run without change on windows, mac, linux and soon on many different hardware such as iPhone. Browser plugin is also in the works.

Developing games is much easier with panda3d then pyOpenGL it takes batteries-included python mentality taken to the next level . Its a full game engine from Cg shaders to perlin noise, from reading zipped virtual directorates ( if you don't want to show your data ) to patching them, from network to sound FMOD and openAL , from openGL to DirectX7,8, or 9. It has lots and lots of stuff you would want from a 3d engine and then some! But if you are missing some thing you can always hack it together with python or c++; the engine is very modular.

I use the engine for my hobby game "Angels Fall First : The Second Antarean War" made with panda - with me being the only programmer ( aff2aw.com alpha site of the project )

Do look at it and don't be fooled by the ugly site like it did me at first! panda3d.org