Can't code? Make games anyway, with the right tools

In today's Gamasutra feature, artist Jay Weston writes about how he was able to ship his first iOS game with almost no programming thanks to using a Unity plugin called Playmaker, and he details the process.

"My main passion is game design, but without code, you can't make a game, right? With tools like Unity and Playmaker (a visual scripting system for Unity) this isn't necessarily the case," Weston writes.

While he began the game by trying to program it himself, "being the most hopeless coder of all time, progress was slow and infuriating," he writes. "Not only was I trying to get my head around 3D physics and vectors, but also Unity itself, AND JavaScript!"

In the feature, Weston outlines how he used Playmaker to create Unknown Orbit , which launched this week on the iOS App Store.

He adds this important note: "strangely enough I've found that using Playmaker has actually solidified my understanding of things like object oriented design and other programming/design concepts. So I think it can be helpful in learning these concepts as well!"

Have you found any tools that help you make games but limit the need for programming? Read Weston's feature, and then add your comments!