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Geek Culture / Am I hurting myself? By learning DB?

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Major Payn
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Joined: 16th Dec 2003
Location: United States of America
Posted: 31st Dec 2004 07:13
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My goal at life is to get into the Games industry, I just love games, but more importantly, I love coming up with ideas, and making games of my own! I think I was about 12 when I learned of DB, I though it was perfect, but I was expecting something a little easier than what I got, so I gave up early and didn't really come back to DB untill I was about 14, I guess you could say I woke up one morning, and had a much, much better understanding of BD programming, how I don't know. Well anyways, It seems as though all the big guys in the business use C++ or a similar programming language, But because I had not the time, nor means to learn C++, I work with DB, but is this hurting me in the long run? If I want to be in the games business, should I just drop DB right now, and move onto C++, or should I make as many games in DB as I can, to try and whoa future employers? I am only 16 right now, is DB hurting me?

Guns arn't the problem, people are the problem, shoot all the people and guns arn't a problem anymore.
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Dave J
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Location: Secret Military Pub, Down Under
Posted: 31st Dec 2004 07:22
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DB (like any BASIC) is a good starting point to get into programming, if you had trouble with DB then C++ isn't going to do you wonders. When you feel quite competent in DB and understand all the programming concepts (variables, types, loops, functions, etc), you may want to consider moving to C++, having an understanding of what all those terms mean is quite valuable when learning a new language. Don't force yourself to learn C++ though, only move on when you feel comfortable with it.


"Computers are useless, they can only give you christmasy answers."
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TKF15H
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Joined: 20th Jul 2003
Location: Rio de Janeiro
Posted: 31st Dec 2004 07:23
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I recomend you stick with DB. It doesn't matter right now what language you learn, as you'll be getting more skilled in the general programming point of view. This will then make it easier for you to pick up other languages without much dificulty. I've been programming in QBasic/Euphoria for long, so when I started studying C in my university I found it very easy. You're not going to get a job in the games industry without passing through some programming courses, and with DBP experience I don't think you'll have any problem. I do recomend you check out some other languages, but focus on DBP for now.


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Major Payn
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Joined: 16th Dec 2003
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Posted: 31st Dec 2004 07:39
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I plan on going to college to learn all about game design, and stuff like that, as I really want to be a game designer.

Guns arn't the problem, people are the problem, shoot all the people and guns arn't a problem anymore.
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Emperor Baal
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Joined: 1st Dec 2003
Location: The Netherlands - Oudenbosch
Posted: 31st Dec 2004 07:59
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Ah, nothing is as good as learning at college ey?

Well, yes there is. And that's making programs / games for real. Theory isn't always the best thing.

Make a few games in db, and you'll soon understand the basics of making a specific game in a specific category. If you know the basics then coding your game in a different language is easier.

And besides, if you finish a game or two, you will have some sort of showcase to show when you're looking for a job. They will think "He's got experience, that game looks nice" instead of "Ok, you know how c++ works, now show me something".

I say, make a few games in db and port them to another language like C++. This will keep you from having problems or "no idea what do to" problems when making a game in C++. Start simple like pacman, and you'll be OK.

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Newbie Brogo
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Posted: 31st Dec 2004 08:01
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Didn't you read the label?

"Dull axe included"



--From your favorite Cat Overlord
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Fallout
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Joined: 1st Sep 2002
Location: Basingstoke, England
Posted: 31st Dec 2004 09:38 Edited at: 31st Dec 2004 09:38
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Also, because DB isn't the most stream-lined way to make a game, you'll learn plenty of tricks to do with optimising. Whenever I code anything now, whether it's in DB, VB, ASP.NET etc. I code in a very optimal way, without damaging readability. That's all down to games development in DB - trying to squeeze every cycle out of DB. That comes after making a lot of games, but you need the same concepts and way of max-optimisational thinking in pro games, so yes, working with DB will teach you a lot.

... also, if you want results, you need DB. C++ and DirectX/OpenGL is good for either:
(A) A team of developers.
(B) 1 man wanting to make simple games.
(C) 1 man wanting to make complex games with no job, no girlfriend, no friends, and no plans on having it finished any time soon.

Go with DB.

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Jeku
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Location: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Posted: 31st Dec 2004 09:53
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I would recommend DB as long as you plan on moving to a more complex language like C++ in the future. Just be warned that when you finally make the move, you'll be doing lots of command prompt programming before anything even closely related to graphics.


--[GameBasic - Coming Soon]-- ^^^ banner generously designed by TheBigBabou
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Major Payn
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Posted: 31st Dec 2004 10:36
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Ok, I will stick with DB, because I really don't have the time to learn a new language, and code some games, and once I'm out of high school, and at work/college I will have even less time, there is just no beating the shot dev times you get with DB.

Guns arn't the problem, people are the problem, shoot all the people and guns arn't a problem anymore.
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BearCDPOLD
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Location: AZ,USA
Posted: 31st Dec 2004 11:39
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I just bought the Torque SDK, and it's really quite different than programming with DB. I really don't see how anybody can call DB a scripting language, TorqueSript is a scripting language because the basic game archictecture is already pre built. You just create a berzillion dynamic field objects, datablocks, and other things to define what objects to load and how the engine handles them.

I found myself playing with the FPS Starter kit and messing around with the mass, drag, run/jump force, and various other physics variables to get the movement down to how I thought it should feel. I know that eventually I'm going to have to dig into the engine source to do any major changes, and as long as I can learn what everything in the engine is doing I feel much more comfortable doing so than if I had never learned DB.

Crazy Donut Productions, Current Project: Project Starbuks
Sony stole our name!
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Game Freak10K
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Posted: 31st Dec 2004 18:56
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What college are you going to go to?
Westwood college has online courses, I was gonna join but got sucked into network security at Chubb.
Games rake in billions every year, keep heading in that direction Major, your bound to strike gold if you put your all into it!

Cheerio!

Comics and Games-Bread and Butter.
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Richard Davey
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Location: On the Jupiter Probe
Posted: 31st Dec 2004 20:12
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Quote: "If I want to be in the games business, should I just drop DB right now, and move onto C++, or should I make as many games in DB as I can, to try and whoa future employers? I am only 16 right now, is DB hurting me?"


They most likely won't give a rats ass about what little hobby games you may have made, although it shows a passion for games, there isn't a single major game development team that would work in the same way as you did on 3D Pong or whatever you create. You would be just a small cog in a large coding machine. If you want to get into games coding, don't focus so much on making them I'm afraid, and start getting into math and physics at school, while it's still free and accessible, and learn it with a passion. The better your math skill, the easier you'll find coding in the long run.

Super Joe crack combat soldier fights a long battle against overwhelming odds.
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