Is it good practice for game development to learn multiple languages?

Luna Wu · 2016-04-11T13:56:12

I've been learning C++ for a while now, and I used SFML at first for game development and made a pong and a breakout game, , but due to problems with displaying images that I found no solution for, I switched to Allegro5, and I'm finding it quite hard to use, I only made a pong game in about 10 days (and it was very hard for me), and it's also kinda sloppy , I am now learning python and pygame besides c++ and allegro5, I've finished 4 games in python and pygame in the time I could have finished only 1 game in allegro/C++ that's also sloppy and badly made, I know the FAQ on this site advises using python first and not c++, but, I was wondering if that could teach me bad practices and not make me 'get used to' making somewhat more complex (to me) stuff in C++ that I think I will definitely need in the future. Could anyone please help/advise me ? Thank you so much :)

For Beginners

Started by Luna Wu April 08, 2016 06:14 PM

12 comments, last by Luna Wu 8 years ago

Norman Barrows

7,180

April 09, 2016 12:35 PM

As Sean says, as a programmer, its good to learn new languages for the reasons mentioned in previous posts.

for day to day game development you only really need to know the languages and libraries you're using at the moment.

you seem to be off to a good start, and seem to be getting a handle on python and pygames. i'd continue with that until you felt confident enough to start checking into the next level of development, whatever that is for you (C++, unity, etc).

in school i learned all kinds of languages (perhaps as many as 10-20 by now). for games, all i really needed was C++ and directx. and some PHP for a shopping cart software CGI script.

as others have said, if you find a library is not working for you, figure out why. either you'r not using it in the intended manner, or it can't do what you want, or the docs suck so bad its practically useless. only in the latter two cases do you need to switch to a different library.

when you feel confident, you might want to take another stab a SFML. i don't use either, but SFML seems to be more popular than Allegro.

and if you get stuck, that's what gamdev.net is for!

there's a fair number of SFML users here i believe. at least i see it mentioned pretty often in the threads.

Norm Barrows

Rockland Software Productions

"Building PC games since 1989"

rocklandsoftware.net

PLAY CAVEMAN NOW!

http://rocklandsoftware.net/beta.php

frob

46,226

April 09, 2016 07:02 PM

My recommendation is that programmers learn one new language every year to a passable level. You don't need to master the language, just learn how to use it.

A big part of this is keeping your skills current. If your only knowledge is C++, you are letting yourself get out of date. It is akin to doctors reading medical journals, lawyers staying current on new laws and major court decision, stylists looking over new fashion trends, or musicians listening to up-and-coming music.

Game programmers should learn the core languages currently used through the industry. In no particular order, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript+HTML, SQL, and Python should be on your "must learn" list. But they shouldn't be the only languages you learn.

After you know the core languages, do something to stay current. Learn languages like Go, OCaml, Scala, Dart, Haskell, Php, Swift, Rust, or some fancy new tool or technology. At least one per year.

You never know when it will happen, but eventually your boss will say "We need people who know X". Those who know X are part of the next team. Those who don't know it are laid off.

nfries88

1,154

April 10, 2016 10:40 AM

I know three programming languages well: C#, C++, and C.

I didn't touch C# until I'd been programming for over 5 years. I didn't program in plain C until a couple years after that. Sometimes I write tiny pieces of code in assembly, to squeeze a little bit more performance out of some function, but it's not something I'd say is required learning these days (usually I'm doing something way out of the ordinary to begin with if I'm resorting to assembly for performance)

Of course I've used probably a dozen other programming languages for this or that. C++ isn't even the first programming language I learned, Java was, and I learned Quick BASIC before C++ too. I learned all three by taking electives in high school. I avoid Java like the plague nowadays. I don't think anybody's actually used Quick BASIC for anything serious since long before I learned it in school. C++ is still my preferred language, probably just because I know it the best.

So yes, learn other programming languages. Maybe you'll try C# or Java and be like "why did I ever think it was a good idea to use C++?". But programming skills acquired in one language usually transfer over to other languages pretty easily. So it might be worth it to stick with C++ for awhile, just because you've already been using it, and learn other languages when you're a more experienced programmer.

I'm just a hobbyist though. If you want to get into the industry, frob's advice sounds solid.