I've done my fair share of forum and search engine trolling looking at different game libraries. I made a game with c++ and allegro (a mix of sci fi with Zelda 2d graphics and gameplay if your interested). So I went next step and taught myself some Opengl with GLUT but clearly that is just for graphics. I've decided to make 2d RPG using Opengl and a library. SDL does seem to fit this better than something like GLUT and Plib with more tutorials etc surrounding it. All I do know is the game will definitely be using c++ & Opengl so no XNA or directX for example. My problem is that while looking about online it seems SDL could have a bad reputation with games companies. I'd like this game to be something to help me get into the industry and that worries me a little. I cant see why it would be a problem, it is made by some industry professions after all. From my knowledge, not knowing how to make something like SDL isn't a deal breaker to getting into the industry. But am I wrong? Would I be laughed out of interviews with this on my CV (resume)? Is there a better route to go?

I have never come across anyone that says that sdl isn't a good choice when making a game. If you want to make something cross platform its a very good tool to use. If you use it for nothing more then creating a window and handling input its still a life saver.

I personally use sdl in my engine and it use it for exactly what i said, handling input and creating a window. This works very well and allows me to easily switch from directx to opengl or just use sdl by its self.

Games such as DOOM3, Quake 4, and Myth II have use sdl for there linux ports(follow this link for others) and other games have used it for both windows and linux.

In the end i don't know where you heard that is a bad thing to use sdl but from my experience its just not true.

~Feral

Thanks for the replies and you have pretty much confirmed what I was thinking.

As for where I found people saying it has a bad reputation online I cant say I remember off the top of my head. I know I read it multiple times while googling information on SDL though. Maybe it's just fans of other libraries making it up or something.

Anyway cheers, I'm off to learn SDL with OpenGL then :)

Quote:Original post by DontPanic
Thanks for the replies and you have pretty much confirmed what I was thinking.

As for where I found people saying it has a bad reputation online I cant say I remember off the top of my head. I know I read it multiple times while googling information on SDL though. Maybe it's just fans of other libraries making it up or something.

Anyway cheers, I'm off to learn SDL with OpenGL then :)

You can't go far wrong with SDL. Its just a system of wrappers anyway. I would recommend it to anybody starting out, along with Lazy Foo's tutorials.