Godot or Gamemaker 2

[JokeBoxHero]

Hello guys. I was thinking to make 2D mobile game by myself. I know little bit coding. Which engine you guys suggest for solo developer ?

[Valdar]

Godot is free. Unless you already own GM2, I suggest installing Godot and give a try. I started testing Godot a few years ago by creating a 2D game for PC and it was great for 2D (I found 3D a bit lacking at the time). I don't bother with mobile, so I can't speak to its performance on that platform.
Also, check out Defold if you haven't already. I've heard good things about it regarding mobile 2D development.

[HeizzeN]

;0

[-▽- Locke]

I have a little experience with GM1, but GM2 appears to be in principle the same in its fundamental parts. If someone sees a mistake in the explanation, feel free to point it out.

It depends a lot on the workflow you prefer: GameMaker is based on visual scripting, interwined with optional code blocks (written in the built-in language GML) at specific parts to add an advanced layer of logic. The disadvantage is that the code is scattered over several places. Say, you initialize some variables in the Create event, add frame-dependent logic in the Step event and also some stuff in the Destroy event, you later have to check every event one by one to find out how that entity works in its entireness. It may be easier for beginners though to have it separated like that.

Godot follows a more traditional approach. Each node can have one script that defines the entire behavior (including behavior from an inherited node which again can be viewed in its respective script). That means you have one file per node to maintain.
The scripts are majorly written in GDScript (Python-like) and C#.

Another important thing to remark is that GM doesn't provide a built-in UI framework while Godot does (it's the same as the one used for the editor). Unless you aim for simplistic UI or don't want to reinvent the wheel at all, go for Godot.

Also, GM is specialized for 2D, with some 3D support. If you ever should want to target 3D, the capabilities might be limited compared to other engines.

And finally there's the question about licensing. There are no fees tied to Godot while GameMaker will always charge for upcoming major updates and platform exports.

Performance-wise they both should be totally capable, so again it really depends on your preferred workflow and how much money you are willing to invest.