Hi there I have an idea for a game that I can start really simple and and just add more complexity as I go.

I already started in Text based but am uncertain as to whether people will even consider my game a year down the line.

I want the game really just to be a side hobbie and if people like it even better.

Text based would be the ideal since theres no fiddling with graphics and physic's its all just 'explained' to you.

However on the other hand 2D would be great as you can see the world.

At the end of the day im a newbie programmer i've been on and off for C# and decided to sit down and do something with it, and im getting there.

Main point is should I do this in Text or 2D?

Nytician.

It really comes down to another question.

Do you want to complete this project or possibly not complete it and learn some new stuff?
If you want to complete the project go with what you know and do it text based, generally most people tend to frown on text based games but there is a small nitch market out there for them.

If you want to learn something new about 2d programming etc go for it, but if your anything like me doing a project while your learning tends to lead to many rewrites then a scrapping of the project to start over =p

Now if you can learn 2d programming AND work on your final project thats awesome, I personally cannot do that.

A suggestion would be do some 2d type demo's until you figuring everything out you will need then start working on your final project.

Thanks, I think I have an idea.

I'll do text based but with some 2D intergration like a menu, and music.

Nytician.

Is it the art elements that put you off 2D, or is it graphics programming itself?

For me, part of the appeal of programming "roguelike games" or similar is the distinct lack of art resources needed. Whenever the production of graphical elements is involved, it tends to become a huge time-sink for me, and in the end results in loss of interest on a project. Using text-only (or very simple graphical tiles), I can shift my focus to what I enjoy - implementing the world, actors, gameplay, etc.

This doesn't immediately exclude handling 2D graphics, however. My latest project is (partly) an XNA based rendering system for true-color ASCII "console" elements, and I wanted it to be somewhat efficient. I found that I had to learn a bit about XNA (and by extension, rendering pipeline etc.) just to get that far.

If the art is really whats putting you off (having talked to you on the chat, SpaceGhost, i dont think it is) you can use place holder graphics just while you learn that you made in paint. If/When you get your game up and going in this state, then you can invest your time into making it pretty, but as yewbie said, in a first project, youll probably scrap it halfway through anyway so you may not have to worry about good art for a while. A 2d game using XNA as you said in chat I think makes a good launching point for more complicated affairs. But you should still probably start with pong with a title screen and menu just to learn some general stuff.