Despite experience and learning that has spanned several years, I am still a beginner in programming. I've had experience with C++ and Java but only to the level of what you would learn in one semester of a college class. That didn't stop me from attempting to make my own barcode battler where I had a working database of monsters and battle system similar to Pokemon albeit without much for graphics on my old android phone.

I am constantly reminded of my desire to make a great RPG/monster battler as I peruse the app stores for interesting things to fill the void that Pokemon left. But each time I start working on a project, I start feeling like I have so much more to do than I think to finish it and as I learn about the game design and coding process, it seems like doing it on my own just isn't feasible, especially as a beginner.

So, my question is: what are my limitations as a new programmer who is interested in learning more (and focusing on one language), but that will be working primarily alone for an hour or two each night learning as I go?

What size of game could I conceivably finish in a few months time (or a year)?

Are there stepping stones I am missing by trying to tackle a big project?

Has any of you been successful learning on your own and working on projects by yourself?

There's an article on this very topic at Lazy Foo's website right here. It's definitely worth a read.

A big project can be better managed by one person if the codebase is written well. It also important to bear in project scope. Only add more features if everything else works fine. Pace yourself and learn at your own pace. Take your time with it. Be patient. Good luck and have fun with it.

Hey, I just wanted to drop a line and say that you are not alone in this feeling. But trust me the time it takes to make a game is worth it. And the amount you put into it will come out of it in return. All it takes is to muscle through and produce something, anything. I have been coding a long time and still no indie game, but it is finally in sight and I do consider myself to have been successful along the way. Anytime you produce something that works and is something that you feel would logically fit into a working game environment, or any type of scenario in a game, then you have some piece of success. In my opinion that is success, but for me inventing anything is success in itself.

Consider this guy here:

http://makegames.tumblr.com/ - His Blog

http://www.mossmouth.com/ - His Games

He made it after pushing through as an indie developer and he says that is the way to stay. Built up a small studio team but publishes his own work. You and I have that ambition and discipline. What used to hold me back and most likely you, is believing that you can't do it. I believed that it took a level of programming that I was so far from that it would take way too much investment to produce anything I would enjoy to play. But what I found was that the area where some lack, I also had a strength. Specifically my strength was in understanding how math applies to physics and how that could be used and manipulated within code to produce desired outcomes within the environment. The guy in that blog came at it from one angle and learned the rest as he went. It sounds like your strength is in the art, same for him. That is one area where I lack personally, and is what brought me back to the forums in search of talent for.

If you want to work together, let me know. Looking for people to make sprites (drawn or rastered) for a game in development.

• Teaming up with others can make the work a lot more interesting! You will be picking up breadcrums of knowledge from others.
• Start very, very small (soduku or pong)
• Buy a book about game programming for a specific platform. I bought something like this: http://books.google.se/books?id=eteY_yd3N5cC&source=gbs_similarbooks The good thing with this apporach is that you will never get stuck, since working code can be downloaded! You might not understand everything and not be able to redo all the things yourself, but you will get a thurough walkthrough of every bit of how a game works. For me, writing down all the code in the book - letter by letter - like this took me about 1-2 weeks of somewhat full time work (2 years ago, dont remember exactly).