| Content Creation Applications
| The images, sounds, and cut screen movies used in game projects must be created in separate applications and imported into Power Game Factory. Compatible content creation applications are listed below.
Image Editing Applications | Although Power Game Factory includes built-in image editing functionality, third party graphics software is fully supported. Of the dozens of image editing applications available for the Macintosh, we can recommend Adobe Photoshop for professional customers, and Adobe Photoshop Elements or GraphicConverter for users on a budget. For users with the X11 windowing system, the open source GIMP is an affordable option. However, most image editing applications that support 24-bit, 72 DPI images are supported. •Adobe Photoshop, by Adobe •Adobe Photoshop Elements, by Adobe •Gimp (open source; Available at SourceForge) •GraphicConverter, by Lemke Software
Sound Editing Applications | Game sounds can be created in a wide variety of audio editing applications, and, prior to importation into Power Game Factory, they may saved in several different file formats, including AIFF, WAV, and MP3. However, it is recommended that sounds be saved to the System 7 Sound file format prior to being added to game projects, because System 7 Sounds load much more quickly than sounds of other types. The System 7 Sound file format uses the .sfil file name extension. Many major sound editing applications lack support for this format, but it is possible to use the Sound Studio application that is included with many Mac models to create sounds in the System 7 Sound format. Older versions of the QuickTime Player application (up to version 6.5) can be used to export System 7 Sounds, but more recent releases have not included this feature. Sounds may be created in any of the following applications, plus many more: Consumer music sequencing applications: •Easy Beat, by Macility •GarageBand, by Apple Consumer waveform sound editing applications: •Amadeus, by HairerSoft •Audacity (open source; available at SourceForge.net) •Sound Studio, by Felt Tip Software Professional sound editing applications: •Logic Pro, by Apple •Logic Express, by Apple •Pro Tools, by DigiDesign •Soundtrack Pro, by Apple
QuickTime Movie Applications | Motion graphics and video editing applications may be used to create the QuickTime videos that serve as cut screens that appear between game levels. Motion graphics applications: •Adobe AfterEffects, by Adobe •Motion, by Apple •Toon Boom Studio, by Toon Boom Animation Video editing applications: •Final Cut Express HD, by Apple •Final Cut Pro, by Apple
Icon Editing Applications | A game's icon can be created using any supported image editing application, but it is recommended that a dedicated icon editing application be used to create Mac OS X .icns files for use in game projects. Iconographer is especially well suited for this purpose, while Icon Composer is a serviceable free alternative, included in the Apple Developer Tools. (The Apple Developer Tools installer is included on most Macintosh models.) •Iconographer, by Mscape Software •Icon Composer, by Apple