Comparison_of_ENIGMA

This article is a comparison of ENIGMA to other programming languages
and development tools.

Why Use Enigma Instead Of Game Maker

ENIGMA aims to be as compatible with Game Maker as possible. You can
load and save GM files in LateralGM, then
compile them with ENIGMA. When ENIGMA's function
set is finished it will have
practically all of Game Maker's capabilities, plus the following:

• Speed improvements from an interpreted language to a compiled
  language. (For a basic counter loop you're looking at an increase in
  speed by a factor of about 150x)
• Portability, having more available platforms and system options
• Increased security of being compiled. It would be insanely difficult
  to decompile back to C++, and impossible to retrieve comments and
  variable names anyway
• A reduction in starting size (Between 40 and 93 percent, depending
  on the platform)
• The ability to create and access C++ types, templates, and functions
• The ability to compile DLLs and other C/C++ scripts right into the
  program
• Improved debugging
  • Access to a number of C/C++ classic debugging techniques (print
    to console)
  • Ability to use debuggers (gdb)
  • Access to the resulting C++ code
  • ENIGMA's built-in Design Mode
• No YoYo Games. Which means it's:
  • Completely FREE
  • Open source
  • Has regular bug fixes
  • And developers actually listen to you
• Many other improvements, additions, increased flexibility

Why Use Enigma Instead Of C++

ENIGMA offers some major benefits from just using C:

• A prebuilt engine to base your creations off of, and a simple
  interface which accepts C/C++ code.
• High level functions, and variables with variant datatypes. Arrays
  with no risks of overflow.
• Resources are included for you in the engine, no additional work is
  required to load them.
• Lax syntax and a friendlier typing system. Semicolons aren't
  required, templates don't require parameters, and var can represent
  strings or numbers.
• Much greater ease of use, especially for those with little
  programming knowledge, allowing you to learn the logics of
  programming under a practical game development environment.

Understand, of course, that the processes ENIGMA takes to handle
instances and resources may be slower than a custom engine in pure C++.
Much care has been put into each system, however, and in the end, the
differences will most likely prove insignificant. In any case, our goal
is to have the simplicity the system offers justify any speed reduction.
Options will exist for further optimization, such as variables that some
may find a waste of space being removable.

Data types are dynamic if undeclared, but unlike in Game Maker, you will
be able to declare something you do not plan to change as one byte. Or a
short, double, string; whatever you like for optimal performance. This
way, it will use less memory if you declare it yourself, but you will be
able to switch between data types if you do not specifically declare it.