I am looking for a sort of tricky thing. It's a kind of "between" thing that I am not sure exists, but I hope it does. Allow me to explain my situation, and I will see if anyone can help me :) First off I have a realistic view of software development, and I consider myself a huge beginner still. I am aware of what goes into a game, and my development goals for the near future are more akin to "Tetris" and "Breakout" than that really amazing MMORPGFPSRTSRPG that all the other newbies seem so keen on making. I also am not a stranger to C++, although I am kind of sick of messing with it for now, but I am in the process of learning it. Here is where I stand. I had been using BlitzBasic to make executable 2D DirectX games, and as silly as it sounds Blitz was good practice for game design, timing, etc. However, I am a little weary of BlitzBasic's limitations and low speed. The two enviornments I am leaning towards so far are Haaf's and Clean Game Library. However, at the risk of sounding dumb, something about using Haafs still eludes me, but only slightly. However, I need a bit more freedom to actually make game code concepts, while not being bogged down by a gush of exceptions and specific circumstances. Clean Game Library seems very interesting, however all the Clean language tutorials are over my head. From what I have gleaned however, I do like Clean a bit, and would be more than happy to be pointed to a more newbie oriented Clean tutorial. What I am looking for is something that is essentially between BlitzBasic and Haaf's. I don't want to deal with all complexities and special circumstances of Haaf's, or go back to the kiddie pool of BlitzBasic. Something that was a lot like Clean but in a language with better tutorials, or a good Clean tutorial would be nice. I am trying desperately not to make this another "I am a newbie so do all the work for me" thread. That is not how it's intended. I am also not looking for "Game Maker Mind Reading Do What I Mean Genie 1.02". I actually WANT to write all the code for the timing and game logic and so forth. Here is what I need: -2D (Haaf's 2D rendered via 3D or similar is acceptable also) -Control over game loop and rules(No pre-made tile engines, no glorified RPGmaker) -Compiles to reasonably fast EXE(Not Pygame or Blitzbasic) -It's own IDE(This may seem like a newbish request. I realize that's asking a lot, but for me right now I think that would be best.) -C++, C++ esque or other non-Basic code style Here is what I really don't want: -3D -Multiplatform(Windows only is fine, makes it easier) I appreciate your taking the time to read through this post, and hope that someone knows of something that might be suited for me. I also realize that "just use SDL" may seem really trivial to most of you. If it makes me seem less argumentative, you are realistically probably right, but I am just not quite there yet. Something in between would really help me get in practice without retreating back to Blitz, which is something I want to avoid.

Try python. It's not an IDE, but it IS an easy to use scripting language which SDL bindings, allowing you to code 2D graphics with this much easier language. If you want to use a particular engine with only bindings in C++, you're going to have to bite the bullet though.

EDIT: If you're interested in the Python idea, learn python, then download the PyGame libraries.

Python is kind of fun to mess around with(I have Pygame installed right now actually) but it's rather limited. I also don't like not having the game compile to EXE. Maybe you're right and I just need to bite the bullet. Still, I want to see if I have a more half-n-half option first.

Why don't you try learning SDL with C++. SDL is used for 2D graphics, it's very easy to learn, and doesn't require difficult C++ knowledge. You could just learn C, and try SDL and see if it's for you. Later you can use OpenGL through SDL for 3D or more advanced stuff. You also could learn a more managable language like C#. You should check to see what oother languages that the engine is bound in.

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Python is kind of fun to mess around with(I have Pygame installed right now actually) but it's rather limited. I also don't like not having the game compile to EXE. Maybe you're right and I just need to bite the bullet. Still, I want to see if I have a more half-n-half option first.

Limited? Python is one of the most powerful languages I've ever worked with, and I've worked with alot of languages.

There's py2exe and psyco if you want an executable or speediness respectively.

Python is an excellent language for beginners, intermediate programmers and advanced programmers alike. It is simple and powerful. Definitely worth learning. You don't get many bad things said about it compared to just about every other language you can think of.

Bytecoder: Sorry, I didn't mean to overstep myself. It seemed a little limited to me as far as what it was immediately obvious I could make with it. Perhaps I am mistaken about it.

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Bytecoder: Sorry, I didn't mean to overstep myself. It seemed a little limited to me as far as what it was immediately obvious I could make with it. Perhaps I am mistaken about it.

What exactly were you having trouble with? If you have any other problems don't be afraid to ask on these forums!

i'm not really an advanced coder but i found using some basic opengl tutorials i was able to set up a basic 2D engine for opengl. and for an IDE i use crimson editor and link hotkeys to my compiler and a hotkey for running the program. if you want to make games like tetris and breakout, i think this would suite you well, and it wont take any fun out of coding everything yourself.