C# is what happened when Microsoft hired Delphi's chief architect Anders Hejlsberg (before Delphi (Object Pascal) he created Turbo Pascal) to create a new language C#.

((He left Borland and worked at MS for 4 years prior to that, though))

To me, it means that C# has many of the things that I personally really liked (read: loved) about Delphi.

You can view C# as an increment to C++ (C++++ - hence the star).

There's no sensible reason to "start with C# and gradually move to C++". Just pick a language and learn it. All the choices will be valuable learning experiences.

I'm not quite sure how to read this myself.

If you're saying "just pick C++ now since that's where you want to get to." then I disagree.

If you're saying "Whatever you choose now will be the first of 10 or 20 languages you'll learn eventually" then I agree, but still think C++ is a poor first choice unless you have someone to mentor and guide your progress.

I actually used Turbo C in one of my Computer Classes back in first year I think.

C and C++ will teach you a great deal about processing data/logic/structure basics (actually make you do it - needed to properly learn...), which then can apply to other languages where more is done for you. For games, you will (most likely) be dependant on what libraries are available and the languages they are written in/for. They often WONT do everything you need, so you then can apply your programming skill to make what YOU need to code to get the game to do what you want. Making use of library routines/systems of data and logic will also be easier (to do right) when you understand what they are doing as compared to what your game needs to do.

The above has utility for just about any kind of modern programming - not just games.

Libraries are building blocks which then its up to YOU to stitch together effectively and fill in any missing bits when required.

I've been interested in learning how to create games but I'm not sure which program is best. Some say Unity is best but some say C# is too difficult to learn and C++ is the way to go. I've touched on Python earlier this year and it was easy to grasp but I heard you can't do much there. I heard too that for Android App making it would be Java, and I wish to do that too but probably after I learn C++/C#/Python or whichever is best.

Pick one of those. I'd recommend against C++, personally, as it is a language steeped in a culture of "expecting you to know what you're doing already," which makes it a poor first choice. I'd further suggest that you continue with whatever language you've already started learning and already know the most of. It sounds like that's Python. What you "heard" about not being able "to do much" with Python is almost certainly wrong, and whatever small bits of truth might lie buried in that generalization aren't applicable to you because, as a beginner, the limiting factor on your ability to "do much" is you, not the language.

At this point your primary aim is to learn programming fundamentals, and as long as you're selecting a language that will let you do that and not get in your way too much, you'll be fine, and you'll have a much easier time learning other languages later on (should you decide to) once you've gotten a basic handle on those concepts.

The other important thing is to actually practice making things with the language -- beyond just the assignments from your course, if you're still taking it. Make little games on the side in your spare time, starting with simple text-based things like "guess the number" or Hangman or Blackjack and moving on to more complex things like a text-based adventure game and finally to things like windowing and graphics.

^^Listen to Josh, he's been doing this for a while

Honestly, language doesn't matter much (So long as it's not Scratch or something for little kids) as you can do whatever you want with it. Each language is like a different kind of kitchen knife. Sure, they might look and be shaped differently, but in the end you use them for the same thing. With my extremely limited knowledge of coding history, I'd think C++ won't be standard in a decade or so. That's just me thinking about stuff, as I look at C++ as a little primitive, even though it has a ton of features. It's not a very good idea to pursue it unless you specifically study game development, in which case C++ is the industry standard. If you're gonna mess with coding and just make games for fun, C# is the way to go. Even then, C# can still be used for big projects. Not many engines use it (But C# is coming to them! Like with Unreal!).

Irlan: no. C++ is not really a language for scientists. They would be using R, Prolog and Python with scientific extensions like SciPy, SciLab, etc.

Do you really think scientists have the patience to watch C++ compile? They would very much prefer explorative, iterative programming in an interpreted language.

Python has every goddamn data structure that C++ can have, and probably more (due to there being so many batteries included with Python).

Runtime critical code can be (and often is) done in C++ and exposed to Python via a module.