austin
What skills should I learn/ have to be a video game developer.
#video-games #animation #game-design #video #video-game-design
5 answers
Marjorie Tabango
Marjorie’s Answer
Hi Austin,
From what I was reading, you need to be creative and enjoy video games. You also need to be competent in computer science and with programs such as C++ and C#. As a biologist, I only had to take one C++ class and I personally didn’t enjoy it much. It’s basically learning how to WRITE in computer language which will be mostly 1s and 0s and your symbols and signs such as: $&@/:; in combination with words. I attached a site that was good to read and gives you more specifics about what it takes to be a software developer. Good luck and have fun learning!!
Darin Munnell
Darin’s Answer
You'll definitely want to learn programming languages and computer codes. Java is actually the most commonly used computer language right now according to the TIOBE index however it wont hurt to know more like C++ and Visual Basic. The more you know the better. Look at local community colleges, most will offer certificate classes for game development and degrees in programming. There's tons of websites out there where if your just getting started in coding they will break it down. I recommend looking up code.org and Khan Academy
Best of luck to you!
Shubham Singh
Shubham’s Answer
I would recommend C++ for both 2D or 3D, it’s a little harder to grasp at first but once you get started you’ll be on a roll and your body of works will make you someone that will be ready to hire, there are other languages you can learn but it all depends on the answer to the above question.
C++ is probably one of the wider used and most useful languages both inside and outside of game development.
Javascript is useful for making web based, mobile compatible and generally cross platform developments and is not too hard to learn, you’ll be able to release on virtually anything but depending on whether or not you want to target 2D or 3D developments you might notice a significant step in difficulty or issues with devices not supporting things unless you use a well supported 3D framework or html5 engine.
If you want the above with Javascript, look into the Phaser framework, it’s the most useful framework for developing html5 games with JS that I have come across yet, and it’s completely free. If that is the type of development you want to be doing then you’ll absoloutely love the Phaser framework.
C# is a popular choice almost solely because of Unity, there are very few engines that utilise C# for game programming but Unity also supports another language too.
There is another language that is pretty easy to get into, well supported and capable of 2D and 3D developments with a handful of frameworks and engines to choose from… Python.
Alternatively there is Lua with the LÓVE 2D framework.
LUA and Python have to be the easier languages to grasp, but if you want to develop a career not just dabble with game development, then I’d suggest looking into C++ as you’re more likely to get a job after you learn your stuff with C++ than the others, but it all depends on your longer term career goals as well as your personal goals!
Have a little read over the websites for things I’ve mentioned here and SFML which is a C++ framework with a handful of useful learning materials and books, or Unreal Engine 4, which also has an amazing set of resources and a budding community, capable of real 2d and 3d developments.
I hope that helps… Good luck!
Corey Everett
Corey’s Answer
Austin,
You should learn either Unity engine or Unreal Engine. Unity Engine uses JavaScript and C#. Unreal Engine uses C++ or node based programming. There are many jobs within the game field. 3D modeling, lighting, rendering, UV unwrapping, texturing, programming, writing, animating, fx, story-boarding, and many others. Have fun.
Corey recommends the following next steps:
DIVYA PRAKASH SHEELA
DIVYA PRAKASH’s Answer
From what I know C++ and Java are the most common languages for game design. JavaScript also is a very prominent one. If you have no experience in programming and if if you don't have lot of time to spend I would suggest you to start with JavaScript.
Hope you enjoy your endeavor.