<cat>Play.Intro</cat> <title>General FAQ</title> ⤶ # General Info⤶ ## Is there a release date? What about early access? A developer preview is currently available through a queue system. For more information, visit the [s&dev site.](https://sbox.facepunch.com/dev/.login/) A developer preview is currently available through a queue system. For more information, visit the [s&dev site](https://sbox.facepunch.com/dev/.login/). ## What platforms will be supported? The game will not be available on Mac at all. Dedicated servers will be able to run on Linux but no official game client will be available for it. Even though Linux isn't officially supported it does run without issues using [Proton](https://wiki.facepunch.com/sbox/proton). ⤶ <upload src="aa125/8d9acf8c2e4eb28.png" size="6682" name="428618c248b285560697f6b03b16f39d2248c2ee.png" />⤶ <upload src="aa125/8d9acf8ca829aa8.png" size="14465" name="188d43499d46ab263be2ba926f8a5743b4ac8a0c.png" />⤶ The game will not be available on Mac at all. Dedicated servers will be able to run on Linux but no official game client will be available for it. Even though Linux isn't officially supported it does run without issues using [Proton](/sbox/proton). ## How much will the game cost? ⤶ We don't know and probably won't know until the game is made available to the public. ⤶ s&box's price has not yet been announced. # Game Info ## What engine does the game use? ⤶ A version of Source 2 based on the Half-Life: Alyx branch of the engine. Early development was done on Unreal Engine 4 but this has since been discontinued. ⤶ <upload src="aa125/8d9acf8d39cf395.png" size="6448" name="91d7a33a6f4c313fb2c2abea54803acbe14e474e.png" />⤶ ⤶ s&box uses a version of Source 2 based on the Half-Life: Alyx branch of the engine. Early development was done on Unreal Engine 4, but this has since been discontinued. ## How many players can the game handle? What about map sizes? Map sizes have been lifted and are much larger than they were in Source 1. The game supports a maximum of 32 players - however, you can go above this through the use of bespoke networking. ⤶ <upload src="aa125/8d9acf8da94f6fd.png" size="6265" name="08de51bd96b7cdb8508b8a1519cd34c1b61b9666.png" />⤶ <upload src="aa125/8d9acf8e17f7040.png" size="7933" name="daf5df473a8cb103e0b25e230e3fa26894c77d72.png" />⤶ <upload src="aa125/8d9acf8e70248ab.png" size="7713" name="3b4869813d54ed80067279aa5c5a6dd7e3720a9a.png" />⤶ The game supports a maximum of 32 players - however, you can write your own networking code in order to go above this through the use of WebSockets. ## Is level streaming possible? The world itself isn't as immutable as it was in Source 1. While Half-Life: Alyx did contain an unfinished system for loading/unloading levels at runtime, this isn't included in s&box as of right now. ## Will sandbox support VR? s&box currently has basic VR support, but it's up to each individual game in terms of the actual implementation for this. ## How will the multiplayer work? Can we connect via P2P? ⤶ There is currently a lobby system in place in which one person hosts a session and multiple users connect to them (through Steam Networking / P2P). ⤶ Multiplayer is done through Steam Networking and supports both listen and dedicated servers. ## Will we be able to mount games like we can in Garry's Mod? ⤶ <upload src="aa125/8d9acf8eebd340d.png" size="15665" name="63241a40de3641dfbf75b8b8d2e3538f4ea672f5.png" />⤶ <upload src="aa125/8d9acf8f3ec230e.png" size="9342" name="07417959ee0641be610ba5069faeb03cd29cd04d.png" />⤶ <upload src="aa125/8d9acf8f926ab5a.png" size="11763" name="2090cc7f908d40c4d6575da509d55fb21db80bd7.png" />⤶ ⤶ ## What style will the game use?⤶ ⤶ There are likely going to be multiple styles shipped with the game, including at least one 'realistic' and one cartoonish. Not including any other styles added by people through the workshop.⤶ ⤶ <upload src="aa125/8d9acf900dff8a1.png" size="8646" name="955895cc55ee4e967d32f022f132276a981b1106.png" />⤶ ⤶ Mounting other Source-based games is neither possible nor planned.⤶ ## Will we get dedicated servers? Currently, the only official way to find a match is through the lobby system - you click on a game and are given a list of lobbies you can join. In future, however, games will be able to have servers. # Content Creation ⤶ ## How do I open the editor?⤶ ⤶ Launch the game with `-tools` or open `sbox-dev.exe`. More info on the editor is available [here](/sbox/Editor).⤶ ⤶ ## What language is being used to make games?⤶ ⤶ Game creation is done using C#, with UI styling done through CSS and layouts done through HTML.⤶ ## What tools will ship with the game? A list of tools with explanations is available on the [Dev Tools](https://wiki.facepunch.com/sbox/Dev_Tools) page. A list of tools with explanations is available on the [Dev Tools](/sbox/Dev_Tools) page. ## Can we port over Source 1 content? There are third-party tools you can use to port over Source 1 content, but no first-party support is currently available for porting. Remember that you should **only port over content that you have permission for**. ## Can I move over existing Garry's Mod addons to S&Box? Not directly. Assets may be ported but code will have to be re-written entirely. There is no official GLua support planned and wouldn't be possible anyways because of differences in how almost everything is handled. ⤶ ## Will the game use the Steam Workshop?⤶ ⤶ The game will support multiple hosting methods. On top of using the Steam Workshop, you'll be able to host them using GitHub or by uploading them directly to the backend:⤶ ⤶ <upload src="aa125/8d9acf9192277f7.png" size="380846" name="c926c6cb-f146-4b7b-8cb4-a954155c7c75.png" />⤶ ## Where do I upload my games and maps? ⤶ Games and maps will be able to be registered using Facepunch's own backend which the game uses to show what maps & games exist in-game. Groups of content creators will be able to create/edit content under a single [organization](https://files.facepunch.com/garry/e11165c7-94a5-47b3-8b20-1b2a25ac72bb.png) and [configure](https://files.facepunch.com/garry/4368a512-4af6-4e46-8af3-3bdcb74f1707.png) various options like the type of release, summary/description and artwork. ⤶ ## What language is being used to make games?⤶ ⤶ Game creation is done using C#, with UI styling done through CSS and layouts done through HTML.⤶ ⤶ ## I want to keep my game's source private, is this possible with the new backend?⤶ ⤶ Since code is always downloaded directly from the server instead of an external source you'll be able to just omit the code from your upload and keep it in a separate private repository. This won't stop people from decompiling the code that gets sent to them by the server though, nothing will really.⤶ ⤶ <upload src="aa125/8d9acf92621d079.png" size="10751" name="f36b0bf785b3ecf7c86373190d20921c76ecead5.png" />⤶ ⤶ You can upload games and maps in-game using the [editor](/sbox/Editor). ## Is the game going to ship with some kind of database adapter for MySQL or the like? You can use WebSockets to interface with whatever server you want - having a WebSocket layer over your SQL server helps for various reasons. There isn't and won't be a direct SQL layer included within the s&box API. ⤶ <upload src="aa125/8d9acf92d828df0.png" size="11866" name="29feb489fa2e99824e3767e3dc8bfcd42fc6928d.png" />⤶ ⤶ ## Will we be able to monetize our servers/games?⤶ ⤶ [People will be allowed to monetise their content however they want](https://forum.facepunch.com/t/paywall-for-servers/239905/3?u=tanknut).⤶ ## How do I make addons? Is there an addon system? There is no addon system - s&box focuses on game creation rather than addon creation. A viable alternative to an addon system would be to use git submodules or to copy the code directly. A toybox-like system is planned for the sandbox game. The following diagrams should help outline the differences between GMod's addon system and s&box's game system. <upload src="aa125/8d99d59ceb712d9.png" size="65083" name="image.png" /> <upload src="aa125/8d99d59d0c06c04.png" size="74546" name="image.png" /> <upload src="aa125/8d99d59cb0883a1.png" size="42962" name="image.png" />⤶ ⤶ ## How will X work?⤶ ⤶ For info on various systems, you can check out the rest of the [wiki](https://wiki.facepunch.com/sbox/) and the [monthly blog posts](https://sbox.facepunch.com/news). If you have a specific question, you might want to try asking it in the [s&box Discord](https://discord.gg/sbox).<upload src="aa125/8d99d59cb0883a1.png" size="42962" name="image.png" />