I decided that it was time to achieve one of my goals in life and that is to create a game. My background is in business object development which I do professionally. I develop using a variety of languages: C++, PHP, Visual Basic, and Java. I use these languages and VB Script, for Office, in my day to day living. However, I have always had a dream of developing a game. I have no pre-conception that this will be an easy endeavor even though I have years of development under my belt. Why? Because game development from the time I spent being a hobby developer and just playing around with rendering code, shows that there are a lot of facets to game design. What I hope to accomplish in this journal is something for others to read and to follow so they can see how someone just starting out in game design and the decisions I make, may prevent someone from making the same mistake.
One of my biggest motivations right now is my 8 year old son. He is actually helping me come up with game ideals and is really excited about giving feedback on the game. This is a great topic for him and I to discuss and find that his enthusiasm for this project is something I want to foster in him. Whether he grows up to be a programmer like his father, or pursue a different path. Now I have no choice but to make a game because I don't want him to see me giving up, as I have done so many times in the past.
The only thing that is concrete right now with our game is the fact that I'm going to use C++ to develop it. Why? First my C++ skills are getting kind of rusty because most development done in a business world is Database front ends and that is comparatively easy compared to C++ programming. Also, am I going to make the next Doom 3 killer or must have game? No. I have seen too many posts about people starting the next MMORPG and having thought about it with my son there is no way we can create or come up with the art assets and I don't know how to develop the server/client model that would be usable in such a game. Any decision I make about the game and changes in the design I will post in my blog. Hopefully, people with more experience can give me advice or motivation :) Enough about this first post, I welcome anyone that follows along and thank anybody for reading this. I will post more when I come up with more ideals and as the game progresses.
Hopefully, this is a great community with a lot of support and feedback. As my son and I will need it as we progress through this endeavor and reach our goal of "making a game".
