I've actually been pretty interested in Programming and Game Design lately. Anyone have any ideas on how to get started with this? :?
Try giving this thread a read. viewtopic.php?f=4&t=4493 An Uber Dev even gives his thoughts. Though there were a few other posts on the subject I am too lazy to really look for them.
My advice: It is good that you are also interested in programming because game designers are not in huge demand. #1: Everyone and his or her dog believes he is a good designer, so there is a ton and more competition. #2: With so many choices, and with so many people believing they are good at game design, companies prefer to hire people who already have experience and a few shipped titles. Coming from nowhere and saying you are good at game design is not going to impress anyone. #3: Most companies dont have projects that justify a full-time designer. Most game companies are actually into outsourcing, and will take projects from clients. The clients also provide the game specifications and design. Even when they do want to make an in-house game, they are not major studios and only have the resources for small games such as iPhone games, typically. In these cases again it is not justified to hire someone to do full-time design. #4: Only a handful of game companies are actually large enough to have justification for a full-time game designer, limiting the potential for your application distribution. #5: A game designer is always more valuable if he or she knows at least one other trade, such as art, music, or scripting. On the other hand, most game companies big and small need programmers. It is common to start as a programmer (among others) and move into designing over time, as the company has time to assess your design capabilities over several projects while you are still providing a use to them through programming. My advice on getting started is to start as soon as possible, and to assign yourself personal projects that both push you to improve and leave you with something to show future employers. Whether or not it is in your best interest to take class at a school is actually up to your personality, but in the very least you should get a degree just for the sake of having papers. Papers help, but still it is more important to be able to show your abilities. That is why personal projects are necessary. If you are close to the age where you should be thinking about which college to attend, you need to hurry up and start studying programming on your own via online resources. And taking classes may be more crucial in this situation, so your choice in universities/colleges should be easy. Do you need to go to Full Sail or similar? Unlikely. Any programming college, including vocational 2-year ones, will suffice. L. Spiro
Might as well ask since we have an expert here. Are C and it's other variations (C++ and stuff) still the preferred programming languages? Also: What games have you worked on L-Spiro? Just ask out of curiosity.
When I learn a programming language, I will make a Facebook game and become rich. Great thing is that it's not entirely implausible :shock:
99% of all the code I write is C++. Less than 1% is C, unless you count the parts of C++ that are compliant with C (which I dont). C++ will generally take you everywhere you want to go. For iPhone games you will need Objective-C or Objective-C++, but in fact you can keep the amount of code you write in these languages to a minimum, and write 99.9% of your game in C++. Android wants you to code in Java, but again you can still code mostly in C++ with just a Java interface. But if you go to a larger game company you may instead be asked to code in a scripting language that depends on whatever game engine the company uses. Only once your C++ skills are good will you be allowed to actually code in C++ (upgrade the engine, add game code not supported by the engine script, etc.) So it is a good idea to understand programming concepts in general rather than just learning C++ concepts. I was a developer on Heroes of Might and Magic, Ghost Recon 2 Online, 187 Ride or Die, Catz 5, Dogz 5, Imagine Happy Cooking, Ready Steady Cook, Leisure Suit Larry Beach Volley, HOT PIXEL, After Dark: Flying Toaster, Bakugan, Love Plus, and more. I also did the story for this game. Always good to dream big. L. Spiro
I'm still only 13. :lol: But I'm definitely considering Game Programming as a career choice. I mainly wanted to start now so I could start getting a little experience before I hit High School or College and get to take some classes. EDIT: Alright, so I got a compiler (Dev-C++), and I'm looking at a series of really good video tutorials by Inkcoder and learning a ton. Thanks Spiro!
