[Discussion] Pokemon Fan Games are Technically Proprietary

Pokemon Fan Games are technically not Freeware, because Pokemon Essentials, the only Engine capable of making a Pokemon Game, requires RPG Maker XP, which is a proprietary software that costs 30 dollars, so technically, Pokemon Fan Games cost 30 dollars.

You don't need RMXP to play a fangame made with it. You just need RMXP to make the fangame. And RMXP can make so many other games as well, in addition to being a half-decent introduction to coding (in Ruby) and logic and all that stuff. So it's not $30 just to be able to make one fangame.

Did you have a point here, or were you just saying random things?

Let's start with the obvious. Pokemon fangames are freeware in the sense that they are free to download and run(assuming that their creators are on the right side of the law, which they are if they're posted here on Pokecommunity). The tools you use to develop them may not be freeware(For example, RMXP).

However, I want to scream and shout and stamp my feet whenever anyone says that Essentials is the only engine capable of making a Pokemon game. Essentials is a kit in which the majority of the mundane legwork towards emulating a pokemon game has been done for you, but it is by no means the only way to make a Pokemon game. Unity, Game Maker, and Sphere(do people still use Sphere? I haven't heard of anyone doing so for a while) are all pre-built engines that you can use to make a Pokemon game.

And if you REALLY want to have total control of the game you're making? You could make the engine from scratch yourself using a programming language like C++.

Freeware is called freeware because it is free to obtain and use. It has nothing to do with the development and/or software costs. If I make a game in a paid engine with software I need a license for (Photoshop/Maya/Zbrush etc.) and release it for free, it is still considered freeware. Was there somewhere you were going with that statement?