Publishing on Steam

Discuss how to use the Ren'Py engine to create visual novels and story-based games. New releases are announced in this section.
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Swein
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Publishing on Steam

#1 Post by Swein »

My game is currently under development, but I'm making this game to release it on steam. I have a few questions, I will be very happy if you answer.

1-)My coding knowledge is very limited, I'm good at editing and solving algorithms, but I know very little. Do I need any coding knowledge to release games(with renpy engine) on Steam?
2-)Are games close-source after release? So, can someone else access the codes of the game after purchasing the game?


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Ocelot
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Re: Publishing on Steam

#2 Post by Ocelot »

Swein wrote: Fri Jun 24, 2022 3:50 pm 1-)My coding knowledge is very limited, I'm good at editing and solving algorithms, but I know very little. Do I need any coding knowledge to release games(with renpy engine) on Steam?
Not really, and there are step by step guides for releasing your games on Steam.
Swein wrote: Fri Jun 24, 2022 3:50 pm 2-)Are games close-source after release? So, can someone else access the codes of the game after purchasing the game?
Steam just delievers whatever you decide to release. If you release game with .rpy files intact, they can be easily read. If you decide to not distribute them, relying on compiled .rpyc, then it is not that easy, but they are still decompilable by someone who really wants to see, how your game works.
< < insert Rick Cook quote here > >

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Re: Publishing on Steam

#3 Post by Swein »

Ocelot wrote: Fri Jun 24, 2022 5:34 pm
Swein wrote: Fri Jun 24, 2022 3:50 pm 1-)My coding knowledge is very limited, I'm good at editing and solving algorithms, but I know very little. Do I need any coding knowledge to release games(with renpy engine) on Steam?
Not really, and there are step by step guides for releasing your games on Steam.
Swein wrote: Fri Jun 24, 2022 3:50 pm 2-)Are games close-source after release? So, can someone else access the codes of the game after purchasing the game?
Steam just delievers whatever you decide to release. If you release game with .rpy files intact, they can be easily read. If you decide to not distribute them, relying on compiled .rpyc, then it is not that easy, but they are still decompilable by someone who really wants to see, how your game works.
Thank you for your answer! So I guess I need to share the .rpyc not .rpy files. Good to know that. So is there any other way to encrypt them?

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zmook
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Re: Publishing on Steam

#4 Post by zmook »

Swein wrote: Fri Jun 24, 2022 6:13 pm Thank you for your answer! So I guess I need to share the .rpyc not .rpy files. Good to know that. So is there any other way to encrypt them?
Personally I don't recommend it, but if you really think this is important, see this thread for a way to make it annoying for people to decompile your rpyc files.

viewtopic.php?t=59725

Be aware, Renpy itself needs to be able to decrypt your code, and once it does that, someone who knows what they're doing can use the console to get access to anything they like. If you *really* need to keep something secure, like paid unlocks, then verify with an online API call. If you don't really need that, then I think you're making a headache for yourself for no good reason.
colin r
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Swein
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Re: Publishing on Steam

#5 Post by Swein »

zmook wrote: Fri Jun 24, 2022 7:12 pm
Swein wrote: Fri Jun 24, 2022 6:13 pm Thank you for your answer! So I guess I need to share the .rpyc not .rpy files. Good to know that. So is there any other way to encrypt them?
Personally I don't recommend it, but if you really think this is important, see this thread for a way to make it annoying for people to decompile your rpyc files.

viewtopic.php?t=59725

Be aware, Renpy itself needs to be able to decrypt your code, and once it does that, someone who knows what they're doing can use the console to get access to anything they like. If you *really* need to keep something secure, like paid unlocks, then verify with an online API call. If you don't really need that, then I think you're making a headache for yourself for no good reason.
Thanks for your answer. I don't want my work stolen as I will keep the scenerio and system too long and complex. So I wanted to encrypt it, but I don't know, maybe it's not needed.

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