Getting started

[Rusty-Knight]

Welll I'm getting off my ass and going to learn how to program. But unfortunately I'm at a bit of a loss as to what programming language would be able to produce a half-way decent game? Not no Oblivion or Major developer skull squishing ultra realistic graphics, but still tolerable.

I guess what I'm asking is... what language should I commit myself to?

[Bad Sector]

Plain and simple C (not C++) is a language that if you dedicate yourself in learning, you'll master in a couple of weeks. You'll need some good information on the language though. But desperate not, since Dev-C++ (the free IDE for MinGW) has a nice C tutorial which seems to be just what you need (i say 'seems' because i haven't read it in depth, i just browsed it to see what it looks like).

Alternatively, you could checkout Python. Personally i dislike this language, but there are people here that have written games with it and this tutorial for absolute programming beginners (http://www.freenetpages.co.uk/hp/alan.gauld/) is the only thing i managed to find that doesn't suck, but uses Python instead of C :-P. Still you could take the principles and apply them to C.

At the end, though, remember that the language is just a tool to create your game. As different languages are different variations of the same tool, developing with some languages may be easier for some tasks and harder for some others. With that in mind, you should never lock youself in one language, but try to learn others too.

Having said that, i think that plain C is the best language when it comes to a power/simplicity ratio. After that, it's Pascal (the Borland/FreePascal dialects) and then the chaos.

[Maupin]

I think the suggestion in a previous thread that you start out with a package designed specifically for making games still stands. I can't comment on any of them, but presumably they all have entry-level tutorials.

You'll see results quickly, whereas learning a programming language (I still recommend Python (http://www.python.org) if you make this choice) will take a long time before you see any game-related results. (Probably months, depending on your dedication.)

Start small.

[radishan]

After you get familiar with whatever language you're learning I'd recommend using an SDK (software development kit) to make your game.

I'm using PTK (http://www.phelios.com/ptk/index.html). It's a library with a bunch of functionality that'll let you create a window, load in bitmaps, draw them to the screen, etc. It's used with C/C++.

Start with very small projects (move a square around the screen) and work your way up to bigger things like tetris.

Good luck.

[Bad Sector]

It's used with C/C++.

PTK is only C++ :-).

[JoKa]

Plain and simple C (not C++) is a language that if you dedicate yourself in learning, you'll master in a couple of weeks.
Impressive, doesn't apply to people like me, unfortunately :)
Just a few words to creation tools:
Although these tools are usually less flexible and portable than a "real" programming language, Amanda proved that games made with RPG-Maker kann sell great and there are also developers using the Overmars Game Maker on this forum. Personally, I'm using Multimedia Fusion, which also gives fast results. If you're slow learning C++, a game creator could be an option to start with. Once you're familiar with C++, you can expand MMF with your own extensions. and if you really master it, there are many other engines to switch to :)

[radishan]

PTK is only C++ :-).

Shows you how much I know, hah :)

Also, if you ever get stuck don't be afraid to ask someone (after researching / trying to figure it out on your own, of course) or come back to the problem later. I've been stuck on things that seemed like I'd never be able to figure out, but seemed trivial when returning to the problem at a later time.

[gosub]

I guess what I'm asking is... what language should I commit myself to?

If I were starting today***, I'd get a free copy of the XNA development system from Microsoft and do everything in C#. By the time you're done with your game, XNA will be everywhere and you'll be able to run your game on the XBOX.

*** I started before XNA existed, so I used C# and MDX. FYI: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1KpOEiV0Uc

-Jeremy

[wazoo]

If I were starting today***, I'd get a free copy of the XNA development system from Microsoft and do everything in C#. By the time you're done with your game, XNA will be everywhere and you'll be able to run your game on the XBOX.

*** I started before XNA existed, so I used C# and MDX. FYI: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1KpOEiV0Uc

-Jeremy

W-O-W.

That is one impressive looking vid! Great job Jeremy!

[Rusty-Knight]

What programs would you suggest for computer animation?

**EDIT** I'm not too sure... but I think this post... is the 5000th post on this forum!

[Rusty-Knight]

If I were starting today***, I'd get a free copy of the XNA development system from Microsoft and do everything in C#. By the time you're done with your game, XNA will be everywhere and you'll be able to run your game on the XBOX.

*** I started before XNA existed, so I used C# and MDX. FYI: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1KpOEiV0Uc

-Jeremy
Can you use XNA to make games available online? Or is it just for the Xbox?

[gosub]

Thanks Erik. Keep an eye on the announcements section. Hopefully I'll be releasing a beta within a month or two or three.

Can you use XNA to make games available online? Or is it just for the Xbox?

Yes, you can make games for download on the PC. I'm not doing anything with XNA (yet...), so I won't be able to answer most XNA questions. What I can tell you is that C# is a great language and you can't go wrong learning it. Here's an XNA FAQ from Microsoft: http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/directx/aa937793.aspx

-Jeremy

[NathanR]

I agree with the C# (.net), DirectX, XNA suggestions.

We have had very good times with them indeed. Some annoying little issues here and there but generally they are popular enough that the community support itself is good too. Plenty of developer forums sharing knowledge, and that for me is crucial when going in to something new: how supportive is the userbase?

Also since its Microsoft, you can pretty much rest assured that you are learing a language that The Empire is forcing everybody else to learn and use too. It answers the "will this work on the majority of the machines out there?" question before you have to ask it. Now people with old hardware that doent support DirectX 9... thats another story...

[luggage]

If you use XNA you're making your minimum requirements quite high to begin with. If you're not bothered about that by all means use it, personally if I was just starting to learn to code I'd use Blitz Max or Blitz 3D.