So you want to be a game developer?

Document directory

• That was then...
• Getting started
• Places to break into the games industry
• Alternative game genres

So you want to be a game developer?

Starting to program gamesin the good old days, back when the Internet had about 10 users and the web was a far off vision, PCs were called home computers and anyone cocould learn to write computer games. three of us set up in business to write and export our own games for the ZX Spectrum (aka Timex/Sinclair) and Commodore 64. we didn't have enough games but we were saved by getting into the game conversi On business. A publisher wowould release a hit on the Commodore 64 and we 'd write the Timex, Amstrad, MSX, CBM 16 etc versions. it took about 3 months for one person to produce a game. in the previous era of game development, it was a single fight. That was then... that was 20 years ago and things have changed a lot since then. the games industry is now a massive multi billion dollar business and development teams can number 50 or more. my first game had me as programmer, artist, and beep designer-(well it wasn' t proper sound !). I wrote and drew everything. Back then games were written in assembly language and you had to learn either 6502 or z80. game development is becoming increasingly complex.

Nowadays with a few exceptions games are written in C and C ++ and even C # can be used. in fact with the release of Microsoft's xNa game studio express for C # Only, it's clear they intend to move away from C ++.

Currently, games can be written in many development languages, including C #, especially xNa. Currently, only C # is supported #.

 

The days of back room programmers aren't entirely gone-there is the 'retro remake' and 'indie' scene but unless you have an exceptionally brilliant idea, you are not likely to get into the mainstream game business as a one man outfit writing blockbuster PC games.

Unless you have a good idea, you won't develop an influential game by yourself.

 

It's not all bad news though-if you can program to a good standard and have learned some of the techniques-eg 3D maths, artificial intelligence (AI) and produce demos then you may be able to get your break as a fulltime developer.

Basic game development knowledge: programming + 3D mathematics + AI + demo

Getting startedthere are plenty of books and websites that will guide you through the intricacies of DirectX, xNa (. net and Xbox 360) or the Open Source SDL and before long you'll be a guru on vertex shaders etc. you will have to be prepared to work long, in some case very long hours especially as deadlines approach. it is quite a tough business-when a game is under development, you'll live B Reathe and eat it for 18 months to two years. Prepare for long-term learning. Places to break into the games industryboth Microsoft and Sony have community development websites. microsoft's seems more advanced, or at least more open than Sony. in February 2008, Microsoft made available paid games (roughly $10 each) for download on their Xbox LIVE service. both Microsoft and Sony have game development communities, which are relatively more open.

• Xbox 360 live arcade-view Xbox downloadable games.
• Microsoft casual games-lots of information.
• Sony e-distribution initiative sign-up not very helpful!
• Nokia's game development areas for their mobiles very comprehensive.

There are however other ways to get into the games business and I don't mean console development-unless you are already in the games business that's a hard one to crack though Microsoft now seem keen to open up Xbox 360 to 'amate' developers with xNa.

Microsoft hopes to encourage game enthusiasts to enter the development field through xNa.

Alternative game genres

• Mud-multi-user dungeons: These have been around for 30 years and were the forerunner to the MMORPG (massive multi-player online role-playing games) that now exist. these are still popular and you can find the source code to several in C or C ++. I don't know if any make money as players are used to playing them for free.

RPG games

• Internet/web based games: There are hundreds of these around. A good starting point is the vast directory at mpogd. these range from free to monthly subscriptions. anyone can set up their own website and games using any web technology-e.g. perl, PHP, Java and C #.

Web-based games.

• Play by mail: This has now largely but not entirely moved into the Internet/web games area. there are still a number of games played postally or by email. flagship magazine is a good source of information. you might spot my name here-a PBM game I wrote won Best New play-by-mail game of 1993 at origins. quest is still played today!

Email-based games have never been seen before.

 

• Flash games: Flash development is a skill in itself, though programming in ActionScript (which is JavaScript under a different name) is not that hard. there is a definite career path available through programming Flash games and there are plenty of books to teach you to write games in flash. flashkit website flashkit is a good starting point online. learning to program in C is a good tip as ActionScript is very C like in its syntax.

Flash games.

• Mobile phone and PDA games: This has become a big growth area recently and is likely to continue its growth as phones get more powerful. its also one of the easiest to get into though not all phones are the same. some mobile phones are programmable in C ++ though the majority use j2s, a dialect of Java. PDAs can be programmed in C #. also see the Nokia link posted in the "places to break into the games industry" earlier. note: C # PDA games can be developed.

  Updated Nov 2008An amazing success story in mobile games development is Apple's iPhone 3G. with a touch screen, 480x320 multi color touch screen, Internet access via 3G or WiFi and excellent audio. between July and November 2008 there have been over 1,500 games released for it. developing on it costs the price of the phone plus a few hundred dollars for a Mac Mini or MacBook laptop. definitely the easiest way to get into mobile games development.

Games based on mobile phones and PDAs.

 

If you are learning to program games, don't neglect the power of the web. sourceForge is home to thousands of open source projects including games. do not ignore the power of the Internet. For example, from SourceForge, we can see many open-source game projects.

First though to program games you have to learn to program. try our tutorials or have a look at the game conversion project. this took an old basic game of Star Trek and converted it to C, then C ++. A 3rd part conversion to C # has also been done.

To a specific practice.