What is the best way to deploy my game?
So you finished your game and want to distribute it now. But how?
The best solution is to use a Installation Program, as it will create the shortcuts, start menu group and uninstall information for you with ease.
How should I make the shortcuts for my game?
The best way is to create TWO shortcuts, one for launching the game and one to access the settings:
1.) The command line of the shortcut to run the game should look like this:
C:\Path\MyGame.exe
2.) The command line of the shortcut to allow the player to review his game settings should look like this:
C:\Path\MyGame.exe -detect
The “-detect” parameter will make WME display the "Settings" window at startup. Normally this window is only displayed at the first run of your game and it won't appear again unless the game crashes.
Additionally, you should let the Installation Program create an Uninstall shortcut in the start menu. It's a good practice, since the player doesn't have to unistall the game from some hidden place in the Control Panel.
Consider disallowing the windowed mode. The windowed mode is primarily intended for development purposes. You may want to disable it in the finished game to not confuse the player. Just set the “Allow windowed” property in the WME Project Manager to "No". Note that there are two “Allow windowed” properties in the Project Manager: One for the Debug mode, and one for the Normal mode. This way you can disable the windowed mode for the player, but you'll still be able to use it while developing the game.
Recommended software
Inno Setup – http://www.jrsoftware.org
This installer is very easy to use, yet still powerful. The latest version allows even such advanced features as multilingual support or scripting. Free, open source (Delphi).
NSIS – http://nsis.sourceforge.net/home/
This installer is scripting based, it allows you to create (almost) everything using the scripting. Unfortunately the scripting language is a little awkward, but very very powerful. NSIS also allows you to use custom DLL plugins. Free, open source (C++).
