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What Language Is Best For Game Programming? - I need some help

 
 Discussion by bigd1 with 53 Replies.
 Last Update: July 19, 2011, 10:10 pm ( View Rated (7) ) (View Latest)
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ok I am trying to get into programming and then into games. So i was wondering if anyone knows a good language except c++. I have started to learn it but the problem is its not user friendly for a first time programmer. So I would appreciate it if you can maybe name some languages and there weak points and strong points i would aprreciate it.









   Fri Jun 10, 2005    Reply         

GML (GameMaker Language, the language of the game-creating program GameMaker) is very user friendly and it's pretty much similar to C++, it's like a stripped version of it. You will like it I think. You can download GM here.

   Fri Jun 10, 2005    Reply         

A good choice...but an sort of expensive choice would be 3D Game studio. It has a level designer, model creater and it also has a stripped down version of C++. The *cheapest* version is $50 but you could spend up to $900. Check it out at www.conitec.net/a4info.htm. This is for 3D games, for 2D games I would go with GameMaker like warbird sugested.

   Sat Jun 11, 2005    Reply         


I would suggest giving Java a try. It is very similar to C++ as far as syntax and what you can go with the language goes. However, I think it is a little bit easier for beginners to learn. If Java is still to much for you at first, then try either some form of basic or a language like what warbird suggested. They should be even easier to learn. I like Java (and C++) because of all the power and freedom you have. If you have enough expierence you can do pretty much anything you want. Unfortunately, all that power and freedom does make them kind of hard to learn.

My best piece of advice for you is to not give up. Regardless of what language you chose it is going to take some time before you become good with it. And it will even longer before you master the art of making games. But if stick with it and don't give up then I think you will eventually succeed regardless of what language you chose.

   Sat Jun 11, 2005    Reply         

I agree with you fearfullymade, but if you start you better should start with GML, it's the same, but C++ (and Java) just have some more options that you don't have in GML but you will not need them if you are a starter so that's why I say GML. Another "problem" with C++: because there are more then one compiler you can use, the result will change a bit sometimes, that's not a problem with GML, it just has one compiler: GameMaker.

   Wed Jun 15, 2005    Reply         

I Downloaded GM I really liked it TY for the suggestion. :lol:

   Sat Jun 25, 2005    Reply         


Well, I have never really liked GM because it didn't seem like you were really doing what you had to to make a game. It felt like there was a little person inside your computer slaving away writing the code for you while you just point-and-click away. So I perfer C++ because you are doing alot more and you get more of a sense of satisfaction.

   Sun Jun 26, 2005    Reply         

If you don't like that, you have to use the script function and not the drop-drag thing, I don't like that either. You don't have any control of what you're doing.

-=Jeroen=-

   Sun Jun 26, 2005    Reply         

Hey!

Well with Video Games, I know it's always a good idea to have a roughg idea of what your game does and how it works, before you jump right into making it with any language. If you make a quick prototype on another easy language or programming language it's always easy to look at it and test it for kinks before you bring it forth and really do the extra and minute details with the more advanced languages.

Visual Basics is amazing for this. It allows you to do a lot of stuff simply which gives you a quick idea of what you want your game to generally look like, as well as how you want it to somewhat run. It's AWESOME for Adventure games and RPGs, you can make the scenarios and visuals and test run them in VB allowing you to do a consistant run-through with minimal game play just to let you see how your game flows and whether the graphics work with one another. Sometimes when using graphics it's tricky to really get them to mesh and flow with one another.

I've found using VB first and then going back and forth between it allows you to have something like a story-board for your game and it's a lot of fun. It's also great to send to friends, and others people to get them to test your game and see if it even appeals. Then you advance on it and dive deeper into coding and all that jazz.

Anyways, good luck!

   Sun Jun 26, 2005    Reply         

VB also has to be great, I never tried it myself but a friend use it and he say it rocks, maybe I'm gonna try it too, can you give me some handy information SadElated? I would appreciate that.
-=Jeroen=-

   Mon Jun 27, 2005    Reply         

GameMaker Language is a good choice... the best on my opinion.

   Sun Aug 14, 2005    Reply         

May want to consider Python. Take a look at BLender3D, which has an intergrated game engine to create 3d based games. Also blender can be used to export to the crystal space 3d engine.

Seems like there are alot of game engines, at least in Opensource land, that are using Python more and more.

   Wed Aug 17, 2005    Reply         

As a matter of fact, gaming is easier once u develop on top of a gaming engine. I gave try to 3D State engine and it rocks!!! Its available for many prog langs like VB, VC++, C# and Delphi etc.

I tried with VB. You have to accept that VB relieves lot of pressure from the programmer's head. Its case insensitive, has the world's most advanced IDE! what else needed?

Since finally everything is handled by the gaming engine, all you need to do is call the functions and program the world behaviour. Lets you focus more on actual gaming rather than having u wonder "what the heck is the problem with retained mode?"

   Sun Sep 18, 2005    Reply         

QUOTE (unimatrix)

May want to consider Python.  Take a look at BLender3D, which has an intergrated game engine to create 3d based games.  Also blender can be used to export to the crystal space 3d engine. 

Seems like there are alot of game engines, at least in Opensource land, that are using Python more and more.
view Post: 48891



Totally agree. There are some amazingly good opensource 3D game engines incl Crystal Space, and a lot of other useful libs that use it (e.g. for animated character controls, etc). To me, this is the main benefit, since you can be up and running very quickly, yet all the source is there for you to tweak it once the basics are mastered.

If you're doing something in 2D, Java is fine. In 3D, I wrote some code ages ago using VRML2 with Java. And now there's Java3D. Both are very easy, and have a lot of programmability. I've seen some impressive 3D Java games, with racing game that looked like 1995's Screamer. The only downer is that performance isn't near C++, unless you're prepared to spend a lot of time tweaking, and in the end you'll probably only get to 1995's graphics standard. There's not been that much done in J3D for a while now, probably since most people use D3D/OGL instead. Also, there are books on performance optimisation for Java & C++, and there are some tools to compile down to binary .. which defeats the purpose of Java but saves time in trying to speed it up!

http://rss.slashdot.org/Slashdot/slashdot/to?m=256
and
http://harkal.sylphis3d.com/2005/08/10/mul...ackless-python/
is a fairly recent discussion/article on python scripting for game engines. Some commercial engines even have Python scriptability :P.

I've also played around with UnrealScript in Unreal Engine v2. But I ran into a brick wall and decided to DIY something simpler yet customisable. If I get the change to start from scratch again I think I'd most likely go down the above route with Crystal Space 3D B).
Kam.

   Mon Sep 19, 2005    Reply         

If you don't like the GML (Game Maker Language) then use so called Dark Basic. It's easier than any other programming language. I'ts just made for making games but ofcource you can make some little programs.

   Fri Sep 23, 2005    Reply         

I started out game programming by programming simple applets with java. Java was not very difficult to learn and it's easier than C or C++. I used jGrasp to write and compile my java programs. You can download jGrasp here. Happy game programming.

   Sun Sep 25, 2005    Reply         

QUOTE (FearfullyMade)

I would suggest giving Java a try.  It is very similar to C++ as far as syntax and what you can go with the language goes.  However, I think it is a little bit easier for beginners to learn.  If Java is still to much for you at first, then try either some form of basic or a language like what warbird suggested.  They should be even easier to learn.  I like Java (and C++) because of all the power and freedom you have.  If you have enough expierence you can do pretty much anything you want.  Unfortunately, all that power and freedom does make them kind of hard to learn.

My best piece of advice for you is to not give up.  Regardless of what language you chose it is going to take some time before you become good with it.  And it will even longer before you master the art of making games.  But if stick with it and don't give up then I think you will eventually succeed regardless of what language you chose.
view Post: 38669


Yeah, Java is pretty good with programming games. Be warned, Java can be a pain...because it requires a lot of actual code, but once you get the hang of it, its more or less a breeze.

   Sun Sep 25, 2005    Reply         

So im the only one is going to recomend C/C++ ???

C/C++, Multi-Purpose, Fast, supports in-line assembly (for eliminating performance bottlenecks), hightly optimisable.

   Mon Sep 26, 2005    Reply         

I would say GML. It's fairly simple and designed with games in mind. Plus, the Game Maker is a fairly good program. I use it, and I''ve made some decent games. That's why i need a site. So ya, go GML!

   Mon Sep 26, 2005    Reply         

It's definatley GML, let us go over some of the many uses of GML...

    -Online programming (mplay) that can be used to make program updaters, online multiplayer games, chat programs, or even browsers with the right initiative and a .dll or two...
    -3D drawing functions (d3d) draw your 2d game into a 3d world, or make 3d models or 3d modeling programs.
    -ini functions (.ini) write, open, and/or read .ini files to store variables in them and then read them later for dynamic saving systems.
    -instance activation/deactivation for making games run faster and smoother, or making an enemy stay still until you near them...
    -Much, much more, so much that
everyone reading this who uses Game Maker would have at least one thing to add to it. :mellow:

   Sun Oct 9, 2005    Reply         

QUOTE (bigd1)

ok I am trying to get into programming and then into games. So i was wondering if anyone knows a good language except c++. I have started to learn it but the problem is its not user friendly for a first time programmer. So I would appreciate it if you can maybe name some languages and there weak points and strong points i would aprreciate it.
view Post: 38575




You can use any programming language. The soul of game is not the language but the graphical engine. You should have a look at DirectX and OpenGL (2 popular graphic library). If may take a while to learn, so make the right choice or you'll waste your time.

   Sun Oct 9, 2005    Reply         

I've always believed that Visual Basic was more of an .. "application" coding language. Database management stuff, office programs, etc. I suppose those if you wanna code a game with it, go ahead. But if you're gonna be a "serious" programmer C++ is the way to go. You'll probably find that it's syntax is similar to many, many other languages. And, if you master C++ you'll have a firm grip on the "language" of programming. Variables, objects, functions, etc. You'll probably be able to move pretty easily from C++ to any other language. It'd just be a matter of days to get a grip on which words in the new language mean the same as in C. Whatever path you take, good luck!

   Sun Oct 9, 2005    Reply         

The bigd1 guy asked for a language that is a newbie friendly, so i recommend GML. It is easy to learn, and there are many tutorials out there.

I would also suggest 3DRAD. 3DRad is a 3D game development program. Like GameMaker for 2D. It is easy to use and fun also.

But!
If you want to be a serious game programmer you should use some harder to learn and more powerfull language. Like Pascal for example. Many people say that pascal is death language, but Delphi and FreePascal don`t think so. It makes sence why many schools teach pascal in programming classes.

Another But!
If you want an optimised game running on most PC`s, you should use C/C++. Why? It is fast! It is the fastest language. All the good games in the shops are written in C++.

Of course there are many more programming languages like Java, Basic and so on, I just recommend GML, 3DRAD, Pascal and especially C++.

   Wed Oct 12, 2005    Reply         

Visual basic is equally fast on Windows machine as C++. Read the book called Advanced Visual Basic (available free on net) and it gets u an insight into probably the most powerful/easy windows programming language ever. It beats C++ in performance at times, and ofcourse, cuts teh development time into nearly half.

But ofcourse there are other better languages too... and C++, undoubt fully rules the lot in power and flexiblity, and ofcourse portability.

   Thu Jan 19, 2006    Reply         

Visuall basic is ran off of C++... It's a more simple version of C++ that is. I use C++, VB, GM, And I am having alot of fun with that 3DRAD that stylius posted about :D ty.

   Thu Jan 19, 2006    Reply         

I am a 3d animator 1st, game programer about 51st, but I downloaded Game Maker and it seems like a great application and pretty cheap too to create simple and complex games for non-coders. Which could be a blessing if you have some technical skills, but are a better storyteller or creative type that doesn't need 5 years of C++ classes not to mention how to write a graphics shader from scratch.

I typically use Python with Blender 3D because I'm familar with Blender 3d and the game engine is intergrated. But the only time I use the game engine is to conduct rigid body simulations (we do car wreck animations for greedy trail lawyers...yeah, yeah, scum of the earth, but they pay upwards of $5000 per job).

The nice thing about Blender is that it is cross-plaform compatible. SO if you code on a windows machine, it will work in OSX, Linux, FreeBSD, Solaris, or anyother platform supported by Blender3d. Which is kinda cool.

The basic functions are somewhat limiting, but if you learn Python (which isn't as bad as say any version of C) you can do some really powerful stuff and customize just about everything.

Again Blender is designed to create 3D FPS and even RTS games and has a hefty learning curve if you want to learn how to model, texture, and animate. These days developement of Blender is more towards competiting with application like 3D Studio Max, Lightwave 3D, and Maya not as a game creation utility like it was originally designed for, but the game engine is still alive.

   Thu Jan 19, 2006    Reply         

I use VB a lot and it's extremely easy to use... but really the best language is C++ with asm routines.. every game toolkit is basically based in C++ too.. but if u don't care about speed of your program and if it's okay to run 40 times slower use something else :o

   Thu Mar 2, 2006    Reply         

it IS dead
What Language Is Best For Game Programming?

Replying to stylius Pascal IS a death language. It's incomplete, and is taught because it's simple. I remember the pascal version taught at my college didn't support numbers larger than 65535 no matter the data type..
Actually come to think about it, that was free pascal that had the issue with me. The one taught in class was Turbo pascal (I wasn't paying for their compiler...)

As far as easy languages, my friend tends to use Dark Basic Pro. He's not really the best programmer out there either.. So the fact that he learned it has to mean something..

-reply by NovaHorizon

   Sun Nov 9, 2008    Reply         

I think it's C++.
I try many open source graphic engine and most of them are only written in C++. There are many advantages when you program with C++ language, C++ has an excellent memory managament system, which is very important in game programming.
Hope this helps!

   Sat Dec 13, 2008    Reply         

game development in C#What Language Is Best For Game Programming?

I'm hoping to develop a simple computer game for kids. Would C# be a good choice

best language for game development

   Mon Feb 16, 2009    Reply         

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