Xbox programming

Question

HiHi I am 12 years old learning the language c. After c I will probably move onto objective c and develop some iPhone applications. Then I was thinking about learning c# and xna.

How long do you guys think it will take before I can develop a pretty decent hitting or roleplay game for the xbox?

My friend is also learning game design s I will have a game designer and my other friend is going to learn code like me.

How long do you guys think it will take before we can develop a game like I said .

Any tips on books or? What kind of game engine we hould use? Anything at all so we can stratup and learn that you know of. Thank you:) sorry about spelling mistakes I am typing on iPod If you don't understand something tell me

Answer 1

This entirely depends on your talent and passion for the work.

Answer 2

It depends on so many things that it's impossible to say. One tip is though that start small and finish your projects. It's easy to start too big projects that never gets finished.

Answer 3

Hi,

Glad to see that you are enjoying programming. I think there will be a lot of different answers to this question ("Should I do C or not?") But I think its a good thing that you start by writing code in C. You will learn a lot of basic stuff that you might have passed if only going for the XNA framework right away.

BUT! Don't wait to long. The XNA framework is quite powerful and it makes it very easy to get started. I think you should ask yourself (including your friends) "what you think is the most fun part of developing a game?"

Is it the game design? graphical programming? just programming? making graphics?
Perhaps that answer will give you a hint about what to focus on.

Cause private projects should be about having fun.

Answer 4

RPG Maker is something cool you can try out. It'll let you make RPGs without programming, which will give you an idea of how games are designed. It'll also be easier to start on a PC than an xbox if you're learning.

Answer 5

12 is the right age to start - most of the good programmers I know started out young. I look out for it on CVs when hiring.

I started on a Spectrum 128k writing in BASIC.

A fully fledged game is a lofty goal, a worthy one, but one a fully fledged professional would struggle to attain.

I'd start with a simple game - a Tetris or Breakout clone, or maybe even something text based. Something simple will be better for learning the basics. You're learning the language as you go, so expect:

• It will often be slow - you will regularly have problems that it takes a while to figure out. It's good that you have a friend leaning the same thing.
• The code you wrote at the start will look rubbish later - be prepared to re-write as you get better. You'll start out making naive mistakes, but you learn from them.

That second point applies even to the best professionals when working with something new. No one gets everything right first time and you learn more from mistakes than successes.

And have fun!

Answer 6

Good to see some people getting enthusiastic about programming - and better still playing about with C. Starting out with C, even if it's to do basic "Hello World" style programmes, will give you a good basic understanding of concepts like memory management etc.

But as others have said - don't wait too long to jump over to C# and XNA: yes the frameworks are quite big and scary, but you'll be amazed at how quickly you can get things done once you get a basic grasp of the language.

A few points I'd like to point across:

• Firstly, do not be discouraged or disheartened when something doesn't work, or when something breaks, or if you receive negative feedback (the proverbial "it sucks" review). If you are confident in your idea and more importantly, if you are enjoying it, keep going.

• Don't expect to be producing awesome graphics and FPS style games from day one: but don't let that worry you. For big budget games, the "media" side (3D models, artwork, audio) are at least a big a job as the actual game programming, if not more.

• Start with a good idea and be confident in it. Don't worry about graphics: if the game is good people will enjoy it. Look at the vast majority of "market place" games (iPhone, Android Marketplace, XBox, Facebook): they all have fairly basic graphics but are based on good solid concepts. And some of them make money, lots of it.

• If you stop enjoying a particular task / project, don't worry about parking it for a while and moving on. More often than not you'll have an "eureka moment" (probably at 3am if you are like me) and come back to it with renewed enthusiasm.

Answer 7

I have a mate who is a game developer, working on state of the art games like "Call of Duty". Im not sure if the language is as important as learning the concepts and being active in the community.

My friend made it big by developing content for existing games and getting known that way. Its really hard to made a game that can compete these days but its not impossible. As Keith mentioned its important to start simple and learn the basics but its also equally as important to contribute online and to surround yourself with like minded people. That is how you will make your first break in, and thats all you need.

I have been a programmer for years now and I would say that I learnt 90% of what I know from others or online not from reading books. Books are great for reference. Take what you learn and apply it.

Im sure if you work hard and contributte online you will make it.

Good Luck!

Answer 8

This might be able to help you while you learn XNA and C#. I am trying to spread the word about my free open-source project called 'XNA Debug Terminal'. It creates a display on top of your game and allows you to look up values, invoke methods, or even watch values change in real-time while your game is running. I'm sure this could be of some help to you in learning what is going on in your game at various points. The website can be found here: http://www.protohacks.net/xna%5Fdebug%5Fterminal

If you like it, please tell other people. I, myself, have found it quite helpful in my own projects. The website tells you all you need to know about it.