Below are answers to many of the basic questions frequently asked about the C4 Engine.
How do I know which edition is right for me?
Please follow the flowchart on the following page to select the appropriate edition.
What versions of Windows are supported?
The C4 Engine runs under Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7.
Does the C4 Engine work on the Mac?
Yes, the C4 Engine runs on the Mac, and Mac support is included at no additional cost. Mac OS X 10.5 or later is required.
Does the C4 Engine work on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360?
Yes, the Professional Edition of the C4 Engine runs on consoles. Please fill out the form on the following page for more information about console development with the C4 Engine.
Does the C4 Engine work on Wii?
No, the Wii does not have the necessary graphics capabilities to run the C4 Engine.
What are the minimum graphics hardware requirements of the C4 Engine?
The C4 Engine runs on graphics processors from Nvidia and AMD that meet certain requirements. For Nvidia hardware, a GeForce 6600 or higher is required. For AMD hardware, a Radeon X1300 or higher is required.
Can't we just turn off features so that C4 works on lower-end graphics chips?
To a limited extent, yes. The engine can run on one earlier generation of Nvidia hardware (GeForce 5200 and later), on two earlier generations of AMD hardware (Radeon 9600 and later), and on some Intel hardware (GMA X3000 and later). However, there is no support for terrain or shadow maps on these older chips.
How many polygons can the C4 Engine render per frame?
There are no internal limits to the size of a scene, but the number of polygons rendered is rarely a limiting factor when it comes to an engine's performance. Many factors influence the rendering speed, and these include the complexity of the materials used, the number of shadows drawn and their types, whether various kinds of special effects are enabled, and how heavy the load on the physics simulation is. There aren't any specific numerical limits for any of these that can be stated. As with any engine, speed will generally be determined by how well levels are designed.
What do I need to build the C4 Engine source?
The C4 Engine ships with project files for Visual Studio 2008 and 2010 (Windows) and Xcode 3 (Mac). Both of these development environments can be obtained for free.
Is there an evaluation version of the C4 Engine?
Yes, the standard evaluation package is included with the demo available on our download page. It includes all of the tools that ship with C4.
I have a publisher. Do I need a Professional Edition?
You only need a Professional License if you have received at least $100,000 in funding from a publisher.
What's the difference between the Standard Edition and the Professional Edition?
Please see the comparison chart on the following page.
Can I upgrade from the Standard Edition to the Professional Edition?
Yes, you can start with the Standard Edition for each user, and later upgrade to the Professional Edition for the difference in cost.
For how long do I get updates after licensing the C4 Engine?
All editions of the C4 Engine include one full year of free updates. Additional years can be purchased for a fraction of the initial licensing cost.
Is there a student version of the C4 Engine?
At this time, we do not offer an educational license for individual students. Students should purchase the Standard Edition. For teaching purposes, we offer an academic site license for educational institutions.
Is the C4 Engine open source?
No. All licensees are required to keep the C4 Engine source code confidential. You may modify the source code for use in your own products as much as you want, but you may not redistribute your modifications to anyone else.
Terathon Software LLC