3D Game Programming in 2010 - Where to begin again?

Question

Hi, I dabbled in some game programming a few years back. I got up to using Windows Xp, C++, Ogre3d, Visual Studio, and Blender. I started to make an RTS but then real life happened.

Anyway, I'm looking to get back into it and I am wondering if there are any worthy alternatives to C++, now that Ruby,Python, and C# have become popular.

Is C++ still the preferred language?

I'm running Ubuntu now so I'd have to use some Ubuntu C++ IDE, C++, and Ogre3d.

Anyone used Ogre3d and moved onto something else?

Edit

Goals: Just hobby based 3d programming on the PC

• I'm running Ubuntu at the moment but will move to Win7 someday
• I imagine a simple game like Startopia
• I know a bit about physics engines and sound and I've plugged Ogre3d components together before

So far I've seen that Ogre3d is still widely used. Might look into python and http://www.panda3d.org/

Cheers.

Answer 1

C++ and Ogre are still a viable combination. On the other hand, MICROSOFT wants you to use C# and their XNA framework, and you always want to obey MICROSOFT... oh, wait, anybody know if XNA works with VS 2010 yet? It didn't, when I looked.

Answer 2

If you like to make games and not just spend all your time working on a feature of your game engine, I recommend you take a look at Unity 3D.

Features:

• Game engine (not just a rendering engine)
• Script in C#, or JavaScript (modified), or Python, or Boo
• Awsome editor
• Game can be deployed on: Linux/Windows/Mac/Android/iPhone/iPad/Xbox (and always extending)
• Web player to play games in browser (after installing a tiny plugin)
• Proven with great commercial games

Answer 3

Having experience with ogre3d is not enough to make a game like startopia as a hobby project. Have you done a finished game before? Here's a post I found interesting: http://greyaliengames.com/blog/the-6-steps-to-massive-game-development-success/ IMHO, you should go making 3D games like this at stage 4. And also depends on whether your hobby is in engineering or making games? If engineering, using ogre3d would make you learn better engineering skills. Otherwise, trying to learn how to use an engine like Unity 3D, Torque or UDK would be better.

Answer 4

Everyone mentioned Ogre3D, which is good, but you could also look into Irrlicht: http://irrlicht.sourceforge.net/features.html

it's main advantage (at least to my knowledge) against Ogre3D is that it's more simple, in design and use.