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Has anyone here tried OCaml for game development? Anyone actually using it for game development? Anyone using it for Windows game development?
I started a mailing list, ocamlgames. I proposed a few community projects that nobody bit on. After some initial sputterings about UNIX vs. Windows issues, it went dead.
I have an intention to implement an OCaml Script Server for the Nebula Device 3D engine. But, it will depend on the PITA factor. I'm going to just screw around with the engine first, probably in Lua because that would be easiest. It's what that crowd seems to be into. Lua won't cut it for more abstract development though, and I'm not going to do things in C++.
I thought maybe I'd bug people here... or else find out if there's some other better language that people tend to rally around. I've contemplated Bigloo, Chicken Scheme, MzScheme, and D. I'm mainly interested in performance for 3D and AI in games. I don't really care about scripting languages, I'm interested in natively compiled languages. I'm interested in good C FFIs, 32-bit floating point support, good Windows support.
I was forced to work with the functional version of caml at university... I HATE CAML! I see no reason to use it because there are other, much better languages...
VanEvery0:
While I love OCaml and consider it a great language, I'm afraid to say AblazeSpace is right, there are much better languages than OCaml for making games. This comes from the fact that there are [only a] few game-oriented libraries for OCaml.
Of course, this is only the case if you intend to code the entire game in OCaml: you could always code the rendering, control and sound parts in another language, use OCaml for the game logic, and link everything together, no questions asked. Or even use it as a scripting language.
So the bottom word is: do it. OCaml was never designed for game development, and as such lacks any game-related support. But if you managed to prove good games with OCaml are possible (which they are), it would surely shove the language in the right path.
AblazeSpace:
It's too bad that you hate that language, but most people that study Caml after having studied another language (mostly imperative ones) first have the same reaction.
What I find quite sad about OCaml is that it is extremely elegant and concise, prevents many bugs that would appear in weak-typed languages, and still has the same library support as a dead paraplegic snail for anything beyond computer beeping or plotting pixels.
While I love OCaml and consider it a great language, I'm afraid to say AblazeSpace is right, there are much better languages than OCaml for making games. This comes from the fact that there are [only a] few game-oriented libraries for OCaml.
Of course, this is only the case if you intend to code the entire game in OCaml: you could always code the rendering, control and sound parts in another language, use OCaml for the game logic, and link everything together, no questions asked. Or even use it as a scripting language.
So the bottom word is: do it. OCaml was never designed for game development, and as such lacks any game-related support. But if you managed to prove good games with OCaml are possible (which they are), it would surely shove the language in the right path.
AblazeSpace:
It's too bad that you hate that language, but most people that study Caml after having studied another language (mostly imperative ones) first have the same reaction.
What I find quite sad about OCaml is that it is extremely elegant and concise, prevents many bugs that would appear in weak-typed languages, and still has the same library support as a dead paraplegic snail for anything beyond computer beeping or plotting pixels.
Quote:Original post by ToohrVykmost people that study Caml after having studied another language (mostly imperative ones) first have the same reaction.
Most people that learn how to stand on hands after having learnt another way of standing (mostly standing on feet) first have the same reaction...
;)
Quote:Most people that learn how to stand on hands after having learnt another way of standing (mostly standing on feet) first have the same reaction...
Most people that learn how to stand on feet after having learnt another way of standing (mostly on their hands) first have the same reaction...
;)
[Edited by - Diodor on October 2, 2004 12:26:05 AM]
It sounds like you're going through a progression of languages that I went through a little while ago... good stuff.
Bigloo, Chicken, and Chez Scheme are all great. But they get pretty tedious to work in -- the FFIs get really annoying, because you need to work with lots unboxed variables. Maybe it's just me; I'm not as good at Scheme as I would like to be, so I think that contributed to the klunkiness.
D is pretty nice, especially if you're looking for something C++ish that's not Java. Actually, I guess D is a Java that doesn't suck.
But man, OCaml is damn nice. The FFI is fantastic. It's got a totally rockin' native code compiler that will beat gcc any day, but it's still got all the features of a language that supports the functional and/or OO paradigm. It's got a really good community, too.
Go with OCaml -- I'd be with you all the way.
-- John
Bigloo, Chicken, and Chez Scheme are all great. But they get pretty tedious to work in -- the FFIs get really annoying, because you need to work with lots unboxed variables. Maybe it's just me; I'm not as good at Scheme as I would like to be, so I think that contributed to the klunkiness.
D is pretty nice, especially if you're looking for something C++ish that's not Java. Actually, I guess D is a Java that doesn't suck.
But man, OCaml is damn nice. The FFI is fantastic. It's got a totally rockin' native code compiler that will beat gcc any day, but it's still got all the features of a language that supports the functional and/or OO paradigm. It's got a really good community, too.
Go with OCaml -- I'd be with you all the way.
-- John
Quote:Original post by AblazeSpace
I was forced to work with the functional version of caml at university... I HATE CAML! I see no reason to use it because there are other, much better languages...
Which are ?
Given your experience, I doubt you think about Clean or Haskell. But if you think about C++ or C#, then all I can say is, this can only come from a very inexperienced programmer.
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