Thread: It seems that all use c++ for game programming

  1. #1
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    It seems that all use c++ for game programming

    Hey guys and gals,

    I am just curious, but i am interested in making a simple game perhaps one day, but i keep reading that c++ is the preferred language. I actually would like to stick to doing a game in c. The only problem, is that how do you even begin or is it mainly used to write game engines and not the graphics.
    how do you even get characters drawn to be in the game to move around, etc.

    I know that this may sound crazy, but where on earth would someone like myself even start to understand the graphics, 3d engines, terrains, backgrounds and then joining them all together?

    Any help would put my head at ease.

    thankx,

    nai

  2. #2
    Software Developer jverkoey's Avatar
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    This question has been answered many a many a times.

    Here's the links to some of the other threads i've found:

    http://cboard.cprogramming.com/showthread.php?t=48785
    http://cboard.cprogramming.com/showthread.php?t=18212
    http://cboard.cprogramming.com/showthread.php?t=25664
    http://cboard.cprogramming.com/showthread.php?t=35774
    http://cboard.cprogramming.com/showthread.php?t=54314
    http://cboard.cprogramming.com/showthread.php?t=15282
    http://cboard.cprogramming.com/showthread.php?t=51530

    *note to one of the mods*
    is this question in the faq? if not, i vote we put it in there....

    Hopefully some of those links will help you out, you can always check the following sites out:
    http://gamedev.net
    http://nehe.gamedev.net
    http://cprogramming.com
    http://google.com
    http://gametutorials.com

    And to answer your question, it's really a matter of preference whether you want to use C++ or C. When it comes down to it, if I were to make a big engine, I'd definitely use C++ because it allows you to gather your code together much more effectively.

    However, just starting off learning, I'd suggest going with C, as the OOP mechanisms of C++ can tend to wrap your brain in one heck of a mess. Not saying you should avoid C++, just don't let it intimidate you too much right away, cuz it's definitely not easy when you're just learning the language.

    -Hope that helps

  3. #3
    carry on JaWiB's Avatar
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    I agree with what jverkoey said except about learning C first. I can't speak from experience, but I've heard that it is hard to break habits that you learn in C when you switch to C++. It's something to consider anyways.
    "Think not but that I know these things; or think
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    Of knowing what I ought."
    -John Milton, Paradise Regained (1671)

    "Work hard and it might happen."
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    vae victus! skorman00's Avatar
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    I second that this question should be in the FAQ.

    C is the weapon of choice for most console games. If not, they use C++, but only so they can have class and member functions (for the most part).

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    Registered User VirtualAce's Avatar
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    I cannot code a game anymore in pure C. My code almost always use classes and other extremely powerful C++ constructs. They are there for you....why not use em?

    Make sure you are staying away from C++ for the right reasons. I can't think of any right reasons right now but I'm sure there are some. Incidentally being unable to program in C++ is not a right reason. Buy a book on C++ and you'll never look back.

    Quite simply, C++ rocks.

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    darn - sorry i asked

    Hey all again,

    now i got to unlearn c to do game programming. Sounds kinda dumb huh?

    Anyway, i always have c under me belt. c++ seems so daunting though.

    thanks for all the replys,

    nai

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    Why unlearn C? You can still do games with C just as well as you can with C++. Use the language you are comfortable with.

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    Software Developer jverkoey's Avatar
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    Arg, don't go thinking C and C++ are two different languages. When it comes down to it, C++ is C with classes and a few other language improvements. Everything you code in C will compile as a C++ program.

    If you want to make games, simply put, learn how to use C++. When learning C++ you are basically learning C right off the bat anyways, until you start learning about the lovely thing called OOP (Object-Oriented Programming) with classes. That's when things start getting a little bit more complicated, but if you work at it, you'll eventually understand it inside and out.

    You do not have to "unlearn" C to learn C++. Actually, you should never have to unlearn a language when it comes down to it. Every language you know can only help you more in the end!

  9. #9
    Registered User VirtualAce's Avatar
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    And since C++ is a superset of C, it is not a different language.

  10. #10
    and the hat of int overfl Salem's Avatar
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    It's only a semantic superset, not a syntactic superset
    If you dance barefoot on the broken glass of undefined behaviour, you've got to expect the occasional cut.
    If at first you don't succeed, try writing your phone number on the exam paper.

  11. #11
    & the hat of GPL slaying Thantos's Avatar
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    Everything you code in C will compile as a C++ program.
    Really?
    Code:
    int b = 5;
    void *a = &b;
    int *c = a;
    So that will compile using c++?

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    Software Developer jverkoey's Avatar
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    ok thantos so there are some exceptions then....lol

  13. #13
    Code Goddess Prelude's Avatar
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    >so there are some exceptions then....lol
    Not to mention subtle problems with constructs that do compile, but give different results. Pretending that C and C++ are even close to the same language is bad for your health.
    My best code is written with the delete key.

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    Although I should point out that the original name for C++ was actually "C with classes"

    And just to add my two cents on the matter, I will say that I think C++ is definately easier for game programming (having done none of it myself). Although you could get the job done just as well eventually with C, OOP lends itself to modelling the real world, so C++ would be a good investment for such applications.

  15. #15
    Registered User VirtualAce's Avatar
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    They are the same 'language', perhaps you could think of C++ as a dialect of C.

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