From 6d9b6971d226a274fe1262f0fd70fd9415bf499d Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: WebCrew Date: Sun, 13 Sep 2026 09:39:16 +0200 Subject: [PATCH 1/2] docs: record serious engine ambition and evidence-based quality bar --- docs/DEVELOPMENT-POLICY.md | 30 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 30 insertions(+) diff --git a/docs/DEVELOPMENT-POLICY.md b/docs/DEVELOPMENT-POLICY.md index 966366a..b7688e7 100644 --- a/docs/DEVELOPMENT-POLICY.md +++ b/docs/DEVELOPMENT-POLICY.md @@ -2,6 +2,36 @@ Parlyn is developed foundation first. The active scope is completed before optional new systems are promoted into implementation. +## Product ambition and quality bar + +Parlyn aims to become a serious, modern, high-quality open-source game engine +for independent developers and small teams, with a distinctive 2.5D-first +workflow and credible additional 3D support. A limited prototype is an +intermediate milestone, not the intended final product. + +Godot, Unity and Unreal Engine are reference points for workflow quality, +capability and developer expectations, not promises of feature parity or an +instruction to copy every subsystem. Parlyn should earn adoption through +dependable tools, coherent workflows and useful distinctive capabilities. + +Small roadmap steps constrain the current implementation scope, not the +long-term quality ambition. Evaluate completed workflows for usability, +reliability, data safety, rendering correctness, performance on stated target +hardware, documentation and practical usefulness. Validate progress with +automated checks, human Windows acceptance and, as runtime capabilities mature, +a small representative playable project. Do not substitute feature counts, +marketing claims or predicted future AI improvements for evidence. + +For asset authoring, choose deliberately between native tools, optional plugins +and dependable bridges to external applications. An external workflow must be +clear and well tested, not used as an excuse for an incomplete engine workflow. +A full native painter or mesh sculptor is not currently approved roadmap work; +terrain shaping, mesh sculpting and PBR texture painting must be assessed as +distinct capabilities at a future planning review. + +This ambition was explicitly reaffirmed by Andreas Holzer on 2026-09-13. +It does not bypass the scope, review or acceptance rules below. + ## First stable release rule The project's primary objective is a first genuinely stable release of the engine. This means a coherent, installable and testable Parlyn baseline rather than a collection of partially implemented ideas. From 9d18851e29c7db8be7e76940686c7d27a2c3c9d5 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: WebCrew Date: Sun, 13 Sep 2026 09:42:04 +0200 Subject: [PATCH 2/2] docs: require engine-reference review for each roadmap step --- docs/DEVELOPMENT-POLICY.md | 26 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 26 insertions(+) diff --git a/docs/DEVELOPMENT-POLICY.md b/docs/DEVELOPMENT-POLICY.md index b7688e7..dabcf9b 100644 --- a/docs/DEVELOPMENT-POLICY.md +++ b/docs/DEVELOPMENT-POLICY.md @@ -32,6 +32,32 @@ distinct capabilities at a future planning review. This ambition was explicitly reaffirmed by Andreas Holzer on 2026-09-13. It does not bypass the scope, review or acceptance rules below. +## Required design review — established engines and Parlyn's advantage + +Before implementing each bounded roadmap step, explicitly ask: +**How do Godot, Unity and Unreal Engine solve this workflow, and can Parlyn +make it better for its intended developers?** + +Compare the relevant behavior, interaction, architecture and limitations using +current official documentation where available. Record a concise conclusion in +the step's design notes or pull request: the reference approach, Parlyn's chosen +approach, any intended improvement and the trade-offs. Do not claim superiority +without evidence; validate improvements through tests and human acceptance. + +Godot's modular, extensible approach is the preferred realistic starting point +for Parlyn, not a mandatory architecture to copy. Consider optional plugins and +well-integrated external-tool bridges before adding large specialist subsystems +to the core. Native tools remain an option where the workflow clearly warrants +them and an explicit future planning review approves the scope. + +“Better” may mean clearer controls, fewer steps, safer persistence, easier setup, +more accessible defaults or stronger 2.5D/3D consistency; it need not mean more +features. Use the comparison to improve the active step, not to import unrelated +features or interrupt the roadmap. The maturity and resources of the reference +engines are context, not promises of immediate feature parity. + +This review rule was requested by Andreas Holzer on 2026-09-13. + ## First stable release rule The project's primary objective is a first genuinely stable release of the engine. This means a coherent, installable and testable Parlyn baseline rather than a collection of partially implemented ideas.