how to get into programming?

hagsmire

Member
OP
Newcomer
Joined
Jul 31, 2022
Messages
22
Trophies
0
Age
18
Location
Texas
XP
117
Country
United States
i want to make my own game but im not sure where to start. and i feel as if my only resource is youtube tutorials but i still feel lost. i would love to make a game like pokemon gen 1-5 or digimon world (i love pixel sprites) not necessarily focused on combat but more on the collecting and raising. wouldnt mind making it a browser game i just want to hoard little monsters with like minded people
 

hagsmire

Member
OP
Newcomer
Joined
Jul 31, 2022
Messages
22
Trophies
0
Age
18
Location
Texas
XP
117
Country
United States
You can start with a programming language and watch youtube tutorial or read textbook.
imo this barely tells me anything. what is the right programming language for me or what game im aiming to make? what should i be looking for on youtube? what kind of textbook and where can i find them?
 

Hayato213

Newcomer
Member
Joined
Dec 26, 2015
Messages
20,058
Trophies
1
XP
21,219
Country
United States
imo this barely tells me anything. what is the right programming language for me or what game im aiming to make? what should i be looking for on youtube? what kind of textbook and where can i find them?

Let see Pokemon Gen1+2 are written in assembly. Gen 3 was in C, gen 4 a mix of C and C++, and as of gen 6 it's C++ all over. In term of learning C/C++ and Assembly you can look for books online, either via PDF or buy them, learning C++ would probably be the best way to get into programming.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Maximumbeans

Delerious

Well-Known Member
Member
Joined
May 10, 2018
Messages
538
Trophies
0
Age
36
Location
California
XP
1,940
Country
United States
Step one: Pick a language. People often recommend Python as a good starter language. Though if you're going with object-oriented, Java and C# are also good options, while C and Assembly are more for low-level stuff. Some programs will also use Javascript or Python as companion languages. A large part of what you want to learn will depend on what you you intend to use programming for. For example, Python perfect for scripts, while full-scale applications are more commonly made with object-oriented languages.

Step two: Read/watch/look for some learning resources (books, YouTube videos, etc). There's plenty of free content on the internet available that can help you get your feet in the water.

Step three: Get a compiler and start coding.

Step four: Code often to practice and retain your knowledge, and work on ways to refine your code and methodology. Learn what you can from your more advanced peers, and never be afraid to ask questions in your community when you're in a rut - as long as you're not annoying about it.


Ultimately, there is hardly a perfect guide or one-size-fits-all method of learning programming. Find a way that best suits your own learning methods and your schedule. I.e. whatever way is most effective for you. Everybody learns a little differently.
 

master801

Well-Known Member
Member
Joined
Feb 24, 2011
Messages
1,167
Trophies
1
XP
2,518
Country
United States
The main game making languages are C++ (Unreal Engine) and C# (Unity Engine). This depends on whatever game engine (Unreal Engine, Unity Engine, etc) and platform (PC, PS1, Game Boy, etc) you're working with. Some may use C++ like Unreal Engine, some others may use Python like PyGame, or Java, like Minecraft.

Or if you want to go on the most difficult route, make your own engine in whatever language you're working with. There is no exact answer.

Generally however, using scripting languages (Javascript, Python, Lua) to make games is not recommended, although you can use them if you really want to.

Some may say "assembly", but "assembly" is a vague term. Assembly is a language layer higher than bytecode (0s and 1s), meaning it is highly dependent of the platform's CPU. For example, "assembly" for the Game Boy would be Z80 assembly. (However this is technically not true, since the Game Boy's CPU is custom and has extra functions than the Z80.) For the PS1, it would be MIPS assembly. This also depends on the CPU's variant since assembly instructions can change between generations.

Chances are, you won't be dealing with "assembly" unless you're making a game for anything older than the PS1.

Books are an okay source, but in my personal opinion, only for the C languages. Any books for other than the C languages is just a bad idea, since not many authors may understand the programming language themselves, or it becomes outdated info in a year.

Videos tutorials... I don't really recommend them unless you have to.

tl;dr Pick a language for the platform you're targeting and run with it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DanTheManMS

Veho

The man who cried "Ni".
Former Staff
Joined
Apr 4, 2006
Messages
11,407
Trophies
3
Age
42
Location
Zagreb
XP
42,168
Country
Croatia
Ooooo-kaaay, lot of people saying you absolutely have to learn complex programming languages and work from the ground up to start making games, which is not true. It doesn't hurt, but it's not a requirement. There is a whole bunch of literally drag and drop game development tools, that let you assemble your own game from ready made functions, scripts and objects that you just insert where required. I'm pretty sure "Pokemon Gen1-5 clone" is already a template in the software, along with "Metroidvania" and a few other classics. You just import your character sprites.

Most of those tools also let you get inside the blocs of code and make tweaks, and have a scripting language for more advanced work.

They are not as powerful or versatile as coding in a programming language, and you will never make an AAA game in them, but they are more than enough to make a simple pixel art game.

Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw has a series on YouTube called "Game Dev Diaries" where he talks about game development. Last year he tried (and arguably succeeded) to create and release 12 games in 12 months, and had weekly videos talking about the dev process. The games were different genres and mechanics - shooters, adventures, idle games, all kinds of things.

And the reason I'm saying this is that he made them all in a drag-and-drop game making software GameMaker. So if you watch the videos you'll see what you can do and make with such a tool, get an idea of the work flow, what the interface is like, where the scripting comes in, and so on.

The parts of the videos where he brainstorms story ideas and game mechanics and so on may not be as useful since you already have those laid out, but it's a decent watch overall.

Anyway, my point is, I won't dismiss what others have said, but something like this is not a bad place to start either.
 
  • Like
Reactions: hagsmire

Foxy26

Member
Newcomer
Joined
Sep 28, 2022
Messages
7
Trophies
0
Age
27
Location
Dnepr
XP
37
Country
Ukraine
Hello, I am currently learning programming through various courses, including lessons on YouTube. It would be nice to find a programming teacher and spend a few months working with him, because there are a lot of advantages in live communication. The teacher can answer your question directly to your code. I sometimes search for information on various forums on the Internet but it takes much time to analyze somebody else's code because very few people write descriptions.
 

JaapDaniels

Well-Known Member
Member
Joined
Apr 22, 2012
Messages
1,201
Trophies
1
Age
40
Website
github.com
XP
2,468
Country
Netherlands
A start point:
https://gbatemp.net/threads/so-you-want-to-learn-to-program.371255/
Programming a game is very hard without an idea of what you want.
on what kind of system should it run, i mean like the hardware, what outputs will you use, what inputs, how memory intense is your game, how much calculation power do you need, graphics...
graphics is a big part of any game, and in most cases these need to be drawnfirst an then you can explain in your code how these graphics respond to one and another. you'll need to declare your point of view...
it's depending on the tools you use on how you get there.
i'd suggest you first make a roadmap on what you want and take baby steps, this will help you overseeing what everything does.
I myself can't help much for i only understand assembly and turbo pacal code used to automate processes, like in done here:
 
  • Like
Reactions: AncientBoi

squabbled

Member
Newcomer
Joined
Nov 2, 2022
Messages
7
Trophies
0
XP
50
Country
United States
I very much regret that I did not go in time to study programming. Now it seems that there are a lot of different courses. It is important to choose the right direction.
honestly it's not too late, you can learn programming at any age by following a course online. i suggest starting with python if you've never programmed before since it goes over the fundamentals of programming fairly simply, then start to learn some other languages, and see what languages game engines use, and pick those and use those.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Maximumbeans

CMDreamer

Well-Known Member
Member
Joined
Oct 29, 2014
Messages
1,703
Trophies
1
Age
39
XP
3,534
Country
Mexico
Don't learn a programming language, learn the method.

Instead of focusing on a single language, learn the process of making algorithms, that should be your starting point.

After you learn how to solve problems (algorithms) and depending on what type of game you'd like to develop, you should learn about the currently available engines, which will help you increase your success rate. Pure programming should be used when there's something you'd like to implement that hasn't been done before or you'd like to improve an already made solution.
 

Site & Scene News

Popular threads in this forum

General chit-chat
Help Users
  • No one is chatting at the moment.
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    Biomutant looks cool tho, may have to try that
  • Quincy @ Quincy:
    Usually when such a big title leaks the Temp will be the first to report about it (going off of historical reports here, Pokemon SV being the latest one I can recall seeing pop up here)
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    I still like how a freaking mp3 file hacks webos all that security defeated by text yet again
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    They have simulators for everything nowdays, cray cray. How about a sim that shows you playing the Switch.
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    That's called yuzu
    +1
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    I want a 120hz 4k tv but crazy how more expensive the 120hz over the 60hz are. Or even more crazy is the price of 8k's.
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    No real point since movies are 30fps
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    Not a big movie buff, more of a gamer tbh. And Series X is 120hz 8k ready, but yea only 120hz 4k games out right now, but thinking of in the future.
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    Mostly why you never see TV manufacturers going post 60hz
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    I only watch tv when i goto bed, it puts me to sleep, and I have a nas drive filled w my fav shows so i can watch them in order, commercial free. I usually watch Married w Children, or South Park
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    Stremio ruined my need for nas
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    I stream from Nas to firestick, one on every tv, and use Kodi. I'm happy w it, plays everything. (I pirate/torrent shows/movies on pc, and put on nas)
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    Kodi repost are still pretty popular
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    What the hell is Kodi reposts? what do you mean, or "Wut?" -xdqwerty
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    Google them basically web crawlers to movie sites
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    oh you mean the 3rd party apps on Kodi, yea i know what you mean, yea there are still a few cool ones, in fact watched the new planet of the apes movie other night w wifey thru one, was good pic surprisingly, not a cam
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    Damn, only $2.06 and free shipping. Gotta cost more for them to ship than $2.06
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    I got my Dad a firestick for Xmas and showed him those 3rd party sites on Kodi, he loves it, all he watches anymore. He said he has got 3 letters from AT&T already about pirating, but he says f them, let them shut my internet off (He wants out of his AT&T contract anyways)
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    That's where stremio comes to play never got a letter about it
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    I just use a VPN, even give him my login and password so can use it also, and he refuses, he's funny.
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    I had to find and get him an old style flip phone even without text, cause thats what he wanted. No text, no internet, only phone calls. Old, old school.
    K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2: @BigOnYa...