Quote:Original post by BGrizzMayne
How do you compare XNA to learning java or python for a total beginner?
The tools you'll be using to develop with C#/XNA are better than most of those available for Python, and comparable-if-not-better than those available for Java; whilst there are some very good Python environments available, most of the better ones are not free, whereas Microsoft provide an excellent IDE free of charge for C#.
The results you're able to achieve with any of those languages are pretty comparable, although you'll probably find more resources available for working with C#/XNA than with Java or Python.
If you're starting from scratch and choosing between these languages, I'd personally rank C# as first choice, followed by Python then Java.
The important thing however is to choose
any language and start learning. If you've already made a start with Python you may be better off sticking with it. Try another language if you like, but make sure you stick to one of them; don't fall into the trap of changing technologies every few weeks or months without progressing past a beginner to intermediate stage.
Quote:But will it be extremely difficult to switch to C++ after I've developed games on say XNA? I'm kind of guessing a lot of core elements are similar, but this is the beginners forum, haha.
General
programming skills are transferable from one language to another. Knowledge of
how a game works will also transfer to creating games using different languages or libraries.
I wouldn't worry about the difficulty of switching languages at a later stage; just get started with what you've chosen and deal with learning additional languages when the time comes.
