Hey guys im pretty new to programming like the past week or so new and im learning the basics of HTML and C++. I started looking into it because i love video games and was trying to think what i could do to get into the field of making them. I was just wondering what people think of as a way to get started like things to read or things to work on. I am still in highschool and my school offers a few classes in programming. Not many but a few. I was thinking about getting a couple books and taking the classes seeing if i enjoy it/understand it. Im also pretty at art so i was thinking more down the line of graphics programming. I was also wondering if were to enjoy/understand it then what would people with more expeirence or jobs in the field think i would want to take major in in college.

 

Thanks for the help guys

someone i know wanted to work with videogames because he loves playing them. Making and playing them are two huge different things. Unless you have patience and the love for graphics design i don't suggest it. On the other hand if you do love to use computers and would love to play a game you helped create then this is job for you. But be warned, you do not get to choose what the game is about and you are limited to the quality of graphics because of the disk you are using.

i knew that someone would tell me these things and i understand they are two hugely different things and i do have patience and love using computers and would love to play a game i helped design, i also enjoy problem solving which i know is needed a lot in this career. i have done a decent amount of research and am trying to learn about codes and am starting to make flash games which is not even close to as difficult as game programming from what i have seen so far. i do understand that i shouldnt jump into something without trying it first and i am going to talk to some adults i know who program to learn more about it and maybe buy a few books on codes to check it out. anyways, does anyone know a free or cheap program for learning how to do this kind of thing

thanks

I share the same love for videogames as yourself and am also a beginner. i was told by a profesional to get my start downloading free game software and trying out simple stuff like that (sorry, no link... try google). However, if anyone could offer some college courses it would be appreciated.

If you are looking for some basic C++ tutorials, I've found these to be quite :

http://www.cplusplus.com/doc/tutorial/

That is basically what was covered in my first year of computer science in Uni.

For basic graphics programming you could look at some OpenGL tutorials such as these:

http://nehe.gamedev.net/

(Scroll down and the lessons are on the left side of the screen).

You're probably looking at majoring in computer science if programming is what you want to do.

---

Windows 7 was my idea!

blender.com. bewulf showed me this site and i after watching a tutorial on youtube you can get the hang of it. Also, you have to have two things installed on your computer for this to work but it gives you direct links depending on what type of computer you have that it. But honestly check this out it's really cool and you don't even waste 1 GB installing this.

oh and its free

Blender doesn't have anything to do with programming.

---

Windows 7 was my idea!

I found that getting involved in some existing projects is always a way to learn!
Taking classes is also well worthwhile if you have the time.

There are also some great technologies for new developers like yourself out there new to making games. You could check out XNA, which uses C#. (http://creators.xna.com)

---

Joe Hegarty
Multiplayer Programmer - Fable III
http://twitter.com/JoeHega
http://blogs.msdn.com/joehegarty

fablier:

Blender doesn't have anything to do with programming.

wow i completly forgot the topic lol, i was also kinda tired so i wasn't thinking properly. But hey if you want to try out some designing blender is great lol. 

I would suggest buying a book and trying the problems in there first before committing yourself.  I like video games and enrolled in a few college programming classes. I did well in the first two classes, but it did not get easier. That was when I realized that I was not enjoying programming as much as I thought I would, so I started looking at other possibilities.

First you have your pre-requisites:

Geometry, Algebra, and Trig are going to be VERY helpful to you. Make sure you have a knowledge of your maths.

Then, make sure you have knowledge of programming languages. Learn some C, C++, or other object oriented language. Learn them thoroughly. Do plenty of examples of code that have absolutely nothing to do with gaming, but re-inforce programming concepts and techniques. Focus on understanding pointers, and learn how to use the STL (standard template library).

Next I would recommend learning Design Patterns, such as factories and other stuff such as abstract data types and the difference between the different types of sorting algorithims and when to use each one. I suspect the sorts will be extremely useful to you in the long run.

Modern day platforms use message handlers and threads, so I suggest learning posix threads and windows threads as well as windows message handling. This can get a little tricky.

I'd follow this up with non-blocking protocols and concepts of asynchronous design.

You'll also want to explore OpenGL fundamentals and direct3d. These are advanced topics so make sure your maths are solid and your programming knowledge is well founded.

There are many books on 2D game design, which is much simpler than 3D, but again you'll also find that math helps you a lot in squeezing out performance.

There are several frameworks using Lua ithink (a scripting language) or some other scripting language i don't recall... torque or something, that lets you get your feet wet without having as much of the overhead of programming knowledge. Having that knowledge tho will benefit you greatly in the long wrong when trying to track down a problem.

I also recommend learning x86 assembler. You may never use it, but the lessons you learn from how memmory is accessed at the low level, how the cpu performs operations given it's limited instruction set that even the most verbose programming language is reduced down to, you will arm yourself with that extra edge in pre-optimizing your code.

For the non-programming side, I recommend playing board games and table top games like DnD and other RPG games and try to look at how the rules work and interact with each other. Try to find exploits for the rules, and try to understand the reasoning behind the rules. Why does monoply force you to go to jail after 3 sets of doubles? Perhaps it is to prevent arguments over percieved cheating or loaded dice.

Sitting in my bookshelf somewhere, i have a very book, by La Mothe i think, that goes over the logistics side of game development. Design documents, asset management, marketing considerations, time management, etc.

Blimey, if you learn all that you'll be better qualified than I am...

Glen Watts1:

Blimey, if you learn all that you'll be better qualified than I am...

Then I shall consider myself overqualified

If you really want to learn assembler for games PowerPC assembly would be better than X86.

So have you learnt all that or is that just what someone told you you needed to learn?

I have learned it, tho my assembler is far from what i would consider braggable about, it does give heavy influence to my regular coding for my day job which has absolutely nothing to do with gaming sadly, but integration with various pieces of telco systems, DBs, webservice APIs (if i had a penny for everytime i had to explain proper design methodologies...), and other mundane corporate programming.

Game programming for me is a hobby up there with smashing skeletons with my lvl 7 halfling barbarian riding a velociraptor as a mount. It's a fun diversion and great for learning more efficient methodologies, but it doesn't pay my bills.