Thread: First videogame...

  1. #16
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    If you are new to game programming I would suggest using SDL with C++ instead. C# has managed code wich is ok for simple games, but none of the blockbuster titles use because of performance issues.

    Go to Cone3D Programming - SDL, OpenGL and C++ Tutorials and you will have the tools and knowledge to create a game in a couple of months.

    Blender 3D is good for making graphics but it has a steep learning curve and it can be very hard when you want to create simple characters with nice animations. 3dsmax is the gold standard for game developers mostly because of Biped/Character studio, which you can use to quickly assemble an skeleton with a quality walking/running cycle. For image manipulation I would recommend Gimp and learning to use palettes.

    Start by making a very simple 2D game and start getting more ambitious after that. It is important to be able to achieve something little by little since the common experience in game programming is one of lots of unfinished code. This will also teach you to set realistic expectations and work within a given schedule. If you want to get a job in the game industry, build up your portfolio with these little programs since they are way more useful than a resume.

  2. #17
    That weird Java guy xniinja's Avatar
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    For 3d I am probably going to use blender still simply because my friend has got the hang of it and we have made some great models with it and 3dsmax isn't free, would I love to have it, yes I would love to have 3dsmax but I will choose when I actually start making the game, in the mean time my friend can make the models while I work with programming the (a) game.

    I looked at the tutorial but I cant find this one field he says I need to put something into so I will just use visual C++ when I get home. Thanks for the link.

  3. #18
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    This is slightly off topic but why don't you consider middleware such as Unity. It makes developing game a lot shorter and possibly easier. After you finished the game, you can port it to the PS3, Wii, 360, PC, or other supported platforms easily because its built in.

    Check the link below and check Unity out!
    UNITY: FPS Tutorial

    I recommend it because it has so many features that do the work for you. It has built in collision detection, drag and drop maya 3D meshes, lighting, and many more things. Keep in mind that this isn't really programming but more of scripting.

  4. #19
    That weird Java guy xniinja's Avatar
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    Does it cost anything?

    EDIT: I checked it costs 1500 for the cheapest which by the looks of those screen shots looks like a good price but I don't have that kind of money, I am downloading the trial right now though. If I had 1500 laying around I would totally buy it but for now I will stick to old fashioned programming.
    Last edited by xniinja; 02-10-2011 at 09:40 AM.

  5. #20
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    There are two main licenses: Unity and Unity Pro , with the Pro version being available for a price and the non Pro version being free. The Pro version has additional features, like render-to-texture and post-processing effects. The Free version, on the other hand, displays a splash screen (in standalone games) and a watermark (in web games).
    As far as I'm aware, the standard version doesn't cost any money. The quote above is from wikipedia.

    I've used it during the Global Gam Jam two weeks ago. Produced this game in 48 hours with a team of 4 main programmers, 3 support, and 3 artists. Coming from a programming background, I found that Unity was easy to start with.

  6. #21
    That weird Java guy xniinja's Avatar
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    I tried 'compiling' a little game but it says I don't have support for xbox 360 so...
    But I will use it to make pc games, do you have any good tutorials Sorry I forgot you posted the other tutorial
    Last edited by xniinja; 02-10-2011 at 09:45 PM.

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    From playing GameDev story, a game dev simulation game, you would have to purchase a license from Microsoft or the console's proprietary owners before you can develop for the consoles. Anyways, you'll have to negotiate a license if you want to develop for the 360.

  8. #23
    That weird Java guy xniinja's Avatar
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    just tell me if this plan will work, Ok so my friend and I said that once out game starts looking good and we think that we will put it on xbox we will buy the license then "compile" the game for xbox. would this work? or would we have to go through the code and change the button presses?

  9. #24
    Programming Wraith GReaper's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by xniinja View Post
    just tell me if this plan will work, Ok so my friend and I said that once out game starts looking good and we think that we will put it on xbox we will buy the license then "compile" the game for xbox. would this work? or would we have to go through the code and change the button presses?
    It will depend on your implementation. If you think smart, you'll be able to compile for xbox without changing a single statement, but it will be harder to build.

    The most common technique is preprocessor tricks.
    Devoted my life to programming...

  10. #25
    In the Land of Diddly-Doo g4j31a5's Avatar
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    If you are planning to develop for XBOX, you should stick with your previous idea of using XNA. And I believe you can actually distribute your game for free on XBOX as long as it's a non-commercial. CMIIW (I'm not quite sure about this one).

    Now the question is, are you trying to make a game? Or are you trying to delve deeper and learn the core (as in how the game actually works)?

    For the former, you can actually cut the development time using third party engines or game authoring tools like Unreal Development Kit, Unity, the now defunct Torque, etc. You can just implement the logic of your game using the tools's scripting language and do minimum coding on the source code. I believe UDK and Unity is free for educational purpose. Too bad Torque is dead now, it was quite good actually. Nothing too fancy but can serve the purpose quite well. You can develop your game much faster because you only have to learn the scripting language (the free license doesn't come with the source code anyway) and can just put the logic of your game with it. And the engine / tool will do the rest.

    It's not too flexible though, because eventually you'll need to also make some adjustment to the engine itself. This holds true if you want to make a big game that requires some customization that can't be done from the scripting side. Or in a way, bigger power and flexibility. So if you want to make your own custom game, you should get a hold on the source code.

    For the latter, you can try to build from scratch and learn for yourself about what actually make a game (or game engine in this case). You can try building the game engine from scratch. Or if you want to make the development time shorter, just use libraries to build the parts of the game engine like graphics, input, network, sound, etc, and put them all together. You can try using open source libraries like OGRE for graphics, SDL for handling media files, Bullet for physics, GNE for network, Lua for scripting, etc. This is more tedious but more rewarding IMHO. It's quite difficult (but not entirely impossible) to learn about all the things that make up the game engine. Eg. for network you must learn about socket programming, for graphics you should learn about culling and scene management, etc. That's why the programmers that make a title are usually specialized to graphics programmers, physics programmers, network programmers, etc.

    If you want to learn about how an engine works, you can try Eberly's "3D Game Engine Design: A Practical Approach to Real-Time Computer Graphics". It mostly explained about the graphics part. It got lots of maths in it though and it could be intimidating at times. Don't say I didn't warn you.

    And if you can, try to get a copy of each of the Gems series, "Game Programming Gems" and "GPU Gems".

    I recommend that you try former for now, seeing that you're still young. Just have fun with game dev and don't mind too much about what goes on inside the engine. But if you want to be a professional though, you should try the hardest way, the latter. But judging from the game that you want to do, I think you should do it the hard way because it's rather customized and specific.
    Last edited by g4j31a5; 02-13-2011 at 09:43 PM.
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  11. #26
    That weird Java guy xniinja's Avatar
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    ok thanks, i'm kind of torn now and my friend is getting tiered of me saying now were going to use xna, now were going to use unity ect. but whatever he isn't the one programming I am . I guess I will go with the straight forward hard way. If I want to make money out of something easy I guess thats what VB is for LOL

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