Hi guys, i'm a high school graduate who loved gaming as a hobby, i'm currently enrolled in a game design program in college to earn a degree, that way i can pursue a career in the industry... but i also want to learn on my own. Right now i'm enrolled in a Raster Based Imaging class (i have no idea what that is), an entrepreneurship class (i guess that's relative), and some other basic classes lol.
I've been told to start with C++, which i'm now learning at home while i take classes, but what do i go for after i learn c++? What's the next step? I want to become a game designer, but i've been told it'd be more likely to find a job programming. That's why learning C++ was my first step forward, but what next?
I'd really like some advice, because right now i'm very lost haha.
New to the whole process...
First of all, I don't know who told you to start with C++, but it's probably not the best idea. There are many reasons why C++ shouldn't be a language for beginners and the main arguments are: pointers (the satan of programming), multiple inheritance, polymorphism, some people don't like the syntax (but I do... better than python), and overall, the language is just so huge, it'll take you years to learn the language thoroughly and get some adequate experience in programming.
Alternatives to this beast are as follows: C#, Java, or Python.
Procedures: Learn language, program with language. voilah, you're set for the next 2-3 years.
Alternatives to this beast are as follows: C#, Java, or Python.
Procedures: Learn language, program with language. voilah, you're set for the next 2-3 years.
id suggest c++, imo its really not that hard at all. especially with these videos that i posted the link for and the massive number of support for the language you can get by googling. there r so many resources available for free, so even if you don't like these videos theres tons and tons of tuts all over the place.
here is an extremely good collection of c++ videos designed for beginners:
http://www.youtube.com/user/antiRTFM
just to let u know these videos just teach you how to program councle applications in c++. these are the easiest programs to make in the language and should be what you get started on.
here is an extremely good collection of c++ videos designed for beginners:
http://www.youtube.com/user/antiRTFM
just to let u know these videos just teach you how to program councle applications in c++. these are the easiest programs to make in the language and should be what you get started on.
Based on my (limited) experience and people I know (who have years of programming experience), the common consensus would be that C++ is not the best language to pick up when you start out. When you're first starting out, you really want to learn how to program. It seems that C++, being the way it is, is sometimes counter-productive for that. As my good friend said to me once: "C++ is a great language, but something like Java is good if you want to learn how to program". There's a reason why Java is the preferred language in universities (it is here, at least). I personally picked C++ because I felt immediately comfortable with it.
When you say game design, do you mean graphic design or something else?
Unless your college really is the shit, I wouldn't really recommend it, unless you guys actually develop games during your time there. My friend is in this game development school called The Game Academy where you can pick two programs: Programming or graphic design. One of their programming teachers was a programmer in Massive Entertainment for over a decade and he worked on World In Conflict as the lead programmer (though supposedly his title was software development manager).
Anyway, learning how to program is never a bad idea if you want to make games because you'll have a much better understanding of what is feasible for a project and how games work on a code level.
When you say game design, do you mean graphic design or something else?
Unless your college really is the shit, I wouldn't really recommend it, unless you guys actually develop games during your time there. My friend is in this game development school called The Game Academy where you can pick two programs: Programming or graphic design. One of their programming teachers was a programmer in Massive Entertainment for over a decade and he worked on World In Conflict as the lead programmer (though supposedly his title was software development manager).
Anyway, learning how to program is never a bad idea if you want to make games because you'll have a much better understanding of what is feasible for a project and how games work on a code level.
Quote:Original post by alecs36
Hi guys, i'm a high school graduate who loved gaming as a hobby, i'm currently enrolled in a game design program in college to earn a degree, that way i can pursue a career in the industry... but i also want to learn on my own. Right now i'm enrolled in a Raster Based Imaging class (i have no idea what that is), an entrepreneurship class (i guess that's relative), and some other basic classes lol.
I've been told to start with C++, which i'm now learning at home while i take classes, but what do i go for after i learn c++? What's the next step? I want to become a game designer, but i've been told it'd be more likely to find a job programming. That's why learning C++ was my first step forward, but what next?
I'd really like some advice, because right now i'm very lost haha.
I would suggest getting a beginning programming book (probably not C++) and then read and walk yourself through all the examples. Start off learning the basics, really.
Quote:Original post by PlagueX
id suggest c++, imo its really not that hard at all. especially with these videos that i posted the link for and the massive number of support for the language you can get by googling. there r so many resources available for free, so even if you don't like these videos theres tons and tons of tuts all over the place.
here is an extremely good collection of c++ videos designed for beginners:
http://www.youtube.com/user/antiRTFM
just to let u know these videos just teach you how to program councle applications in c++. these are the easiest programs to make in the language and should be what you get started on.
That's a little bit of a trade off. Maybe the language in itself isn't hard to use, and the resources are vast, but the beginner will spend more time catching bugs with C++ than with other languages that are safer in their environment. C++ isn't hard, but programming is, and since there are languages far easier than C++, logically a beginner shouldn't put on more weight than he or she must carry.
Well we have a C++ Workshop and a C# Workshop. I would take a quick look at those and take the previous posters' suggestions as well.
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Well no the college isn't "the shit" haha, it's just a community college up here in ohio, heres the curriculum: http://www.lorainccc.edu/Academic+Programs/Associates+Degree+and+Certificate+Programs/Computer+Games+and+Simulation+Design.htm
I was also told to start off with something like Java before as well, would it be counterproductive to learn c++ and java at once? Also i've been using Microsoft Visual C++ as a compiler, i wasn't sure if there were any better ones out there.
I was also told to start off with something like Java before as well, would it be counterproductive to learn c++ and java at once? Also i've been using Microsoft Visual C++ as a compiler, i wasn't sure if there were any better ones out there.
I wouldn't recommend alternating between languages while just learning how to program. This is because differences between them will most likely, for the beginner, cause him to confuse things and ask more questions than necessary, mix together the syntax of the languages, ultimately wasting valuable time.
Java's syntax is quite similar to C++. And while it's hard to see at first, gve it a month and soon enough you will see that the important thing is not really learning a language: the weight lies in learning how to program. Java will make it easier for you to grasp ideas and concepts in programming than C++ will. Java is also almost strictly object-oriented and will introduce you to objects and classes almost right away (my Java book does, at least - it does that even before it starts with simple functions and statements!). And since classes and OOP (object-oriented programming) is considered the shit for games, you might as well go for Java.
So in short: I recommend you start with Java. Once you've learned that, you can switch to C++ if you feel like it, but you may discover that you won't have to.
Java's syntax is quite similar to C++. And while it's hard to see at first, gve it a month and soon enough you will see that the important thing is not really learning a language: the weight lies in learning how to program. Java will make it easier for you to grasp ideas and concepts in programming than C++ will. Java is also almost strictly object-oriented and will introduce you to objects and classes almost right away (my Java book does, at least - it does that even before it starts with simple functions and statements!). And since classes and OOP (object-oriented programming) is considered the shit for games, you might as well go for Java.
So in short: I recommend you start with Java. Once you've learned that, you can switch to C++ if you feel like it, but you may discover that you won't have to.
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