Call it what you like, Update, V2 or whatever TGC have indicated, suggested and indeed said on a number of occasions they are committed to future development of FPSC. That may not be the case now, but I have not yet heard TGC officially say they wont be doing anything more to develop or support FPSC further.
Unless you are talking about designing a brand new game engine from scratch - from the very base up to be something more than anything TGC currently have then no one wants or needs another mirror product that does the same things and has the same or very similar capabilities presented in a different package - TGC have enough already.
Its not quantity but quality that counts in game engines as with anything else. I would not mind a top of the range engine but if TGC want to make one I dont want to know about till its ready in about ten years, or it would just be another constant case of "whens it going to be released then " - being realistic, theres plenty of room for improvement to keep FPSC developing for ten years and if TGC is not prepared to do it or its considered not worth developing further for whatever reason, then another similar development is just likely to end up going the same route as previous products and running out of steam. Thats not needed. What is - is committment to make a good product and sustain its development to its maximum potential before embarking on further brainstorm ideas.
In the world of game engines there are only a couple of options for developers.
Either you design a product for the future with the intention of supporting it with further development and that to the best of your knowledge at the time will support expansion to meet with future technology advances, you design a stand alone product that is an end in itself or you mix n match with a pot shot product that you intend to support or not if you can patch it, fix it, or otherwise as the case may be depending on prevailing circumstances.
The decisions to be made when thinking of developing a game engine are obviously many and the route throught with difficulty. Good long term planning, committment and credibility of the product are just some things which need taking into account for its long term success or failure.
Honestly I have no real idea how far FPSC could be taken and for how long it mught be sustained as a viable engine in the game making arena, ones thing is for certain currently it has room for some considerable improvement and further expansion of features and functions which dont seem to be impossible for TGC to consider implimenting if they so desire - before its reached its potential.
Given the committment FPSC I am sure could progress to become an improved product that would sustain TGC supporters and game makers for some time at least until that top of the range elusive engine comes along in ten years time.
Making games is what game engines are all about.....continually swapping engines or waiting for new ones or indeed waiting for that next upgrade will never get your game made which is in large part why there arnt many made with indie engines, users are always waiting for development advaces or fixes to bugs or features or code or engine which dont work correctly, always expecting a better product which gives them the stability to develop with peace of mind. Unfortunately in reality in the indie world - that kind of engine is rarely if ever to be found.
If FPSC was developed to its full potential to include some of the obvious missing capabilities required for modern game making that would be about as good as you are going to get.
Well something like that anyway....
In the mean time its back to making games.
