Looking for advice for the future!

News & General Discussion
1

Okay, so I don’t think myself a beginner. I’m not an expert either. I am right where I’m supposed to be at this point in my path to becoming a professional(Considering I started at the age of 20), I believe. I’m 23, soon to be 24. I’ve played with Game programming seriously for the last 4-8 months. I’ve been interested for the last 4 years and looked into and started reading up on a few Game programming subjects. I’ve used and programmed in PHP and some Javascript, so I came from web development. I got interested in gDev and I looked at C, did that for a month. Then I Stopped. I’ve toyed with C++. I can do all the basics the text games write stuff to the screen make conditional statements etc. But I stopped. I have ADHD, so focusing can be a problem and sometimes when things get challenging i give up. But lately I’ve been using C# with Unity. I like working with C# and the Unity API. I’ve written a few scripts for others and I feel comfortable making basic to intermediate scripts. But here is my problem.

While the simple tasks come easy, I find it challenging for the more difficult tasks. While I don’t mind the challenge I sometimes lose motivation. But even this is not my big concern. My concern is I’m a programmer not a designer, I’ve made a topic on the forums recently titled I’m a Programmer not a [Designer]. This is my concern. I am not a designer; I have no interest in any other aspect of game development. I want to be a programmer. That is it! I still have much to learn about C# and it’s going to be months or perhaps years before I get good enough where any task should be a breeze. I know this, I don’t mind. My concern is if I’m going to be a programmer, should I take up learning C++ if i am to make a living in this industry. I have yet to master even C# but before I dive too deep I want and need to know if I’m on the right path. My goal is that in 5 years I get good enough to make a comfortable living working as a programmer.

So what do you guys this is the best choice of action for me? I am looking for advice.

2

Have you looked at developing tools? Unity is particularly good for this with its extensible EditorWindow setup. Just a suggestion if you have no interest in the design aspect :slight_smile:

3

If this is an issue, you want to be snapping out short little things, Join your own created 48jam with an artist and get some published with in a week, Keep the concept simple, get it done. That will be the best way to keep you interested and motivated in Unity if your ADHD is causing problems.

It only makes sense that you find the harder tasks more difficult. Maybe you need to take a step away from the computer and the language, and learn to think like a programmer. Think about how you would solve the given problem, in this case, the script needed, and tear it to pieces until you know you can do it with the easier skills you already have, Don’t be afraid to ask for help in the scripting section (You will not get them made for you) Also, Make a product out of the skills you already have, get a directory of scripts so if you wanted you could just compose Pong with a few drags and clicks. Games that may be good to start with are: Pong, Space invaders, asteroids and break out. All these games use the same mechanics of collision just with different movement. Try it if you haven’t already, make all four, get a polished aesthetic (Hire if need be) and get it released. You will have so much more motivation!

Have you considered asset packs which are pure programming assets. You could create tools that people could use in there own games and make some side cash from that, then, once they are made you have them at your disposal to make your own games too!

Ive only met one guy so far who seems to find everything a breeze, and yet he still has a lot to learn! There will always be more.

Keep practicing, keep making little products to keep you motivate, get some titles out there to get yourself some credibility. If you show the forums that you can produce a game (With or without visuals) and get it released you will earn the respect of artists such as my self and have a chance of them wanting to work with you. Its my dream to find a programmer who just gets the job done and whom I can work with easily, Ive worked with a few great ones recently…

If you want a living in five years time from this, Get producing now. Pump out 10, 20 little titles that can get you a revenue of say $200 per month. They don’t have to be next gen. Invest in what you believe and best of luck.

Hope my comments have helped, I know I have dragged on about short snappy projects but for someone with attention issues its the only way it will work. Its how I work and its proving a success, I have not committed myself to any long term projects yet that have been completed, I think it may just my mind at my age.

Kind regards
-Charlie

4

Your suggesting I look into making add ons for unity? I was asking more on gDev in general. I want to make this my profession… I am interested in learning C++, eventually I will. I still read up on it from time to time. My end goal is to get a job at one of the big game development studios. I like UbiSoft.

5

saying you’ve got ADHD means nothing. I don’t care about whatever your disability is. You got this far so you can get further.

If you don’t like what I just said, then you’re not cut out for it. But if that stoked your fire and you’re still hungry for it, its time to get some balls and finish your game :slight_smile:

6

C# is a great foundation. C++ has a few other elements to it, concerning memory management, but if you can master C#, you’ll find that most other languages will be simple due to their similarities.

My advice for the time being is to just focus on what you’re doing and always try to accomplish something that you believe is beyond your ability. Like anything else, repetition will make it second nature.

I think, with your realistic view and some dedication, you will be a valuable asset to any team in no time.

7

Its not really a set back, at times I find it hard to focus then I take a break and come back. I only brought it up because in the past it has halted my progress as a programmer which is my reason I’m at where I’m at. If I were being 100% honest according to my standards I should be a way better programmer. Then again I’ve always been hard on myself. I intend to fully p

8

As an alternative… do you really care about being a games programmer, or do you just want to be a programmer?

Although there are exceptions programmers in the games industry typically work a lot longer for less pay than those that do project/consulting work for big business.

I’ve been in that kind of industry for a long time now, and I find the work is generally pretty interesting. As with anything else as you progress it tends to be less programming and more management, but I still get my hands dirty a bit. Depending on your specialisation you can also do a lot of short contracts which might be good with the ADHD :slight_smile:

For me I’m the opposite. I want to design games. I program them because its a way to implement the designs!

9

Well yes I would freelance aswell but my main concern as I’ve said in the first post is the industry standard is C++(At this moment). So I know at some time I would need to learn it if i’m serious about my goals. But should I finish getting better with C# before I learn C++ or use/learn them both right now. I really love to program, there is nothing better than getting a game mechanic to work as intended. I just don’t know if my five year goal is possible. I have also started to pursue a career as a chef until I can get a job programming.

10

What are your goals?

Become an engine programmer/trained monkey at a big company? Because in the world of game programming C++ is not actually the be and end all - furthermore focusing on it now just delays any chances of getting product out the door.

11

haha yes I’ll be a trained monkey as you so graciously put it. lol. I don’t mind being told what to do and what needs to be done. I’m more of a behind the scenes laborer than the head boss, so you’d call me the puppet not the puppet master… That is my goal. I’m making a prototype in unity to learn but I don’t plan to make or produce any titles where im the CEO, COO etc at least not at this point in my life maybe when I’m in my late 30’s. Right now I’m comfortable in being the puppet.

12

Playing with game programming for 4-8 months means you’re still a beginner, sorry to burst your bubble. If you can find a job that’s not entry level advertised with requirements of less than a year of experience, I’d love to see it. If you find a reputable studio that is advertising for a mid-level programmer and has experience requirements in the range you listed, I’ll PayPal you $5.

13

Said i’ve been serious about Game Programming 4-8 months I’ve been programming for four years off and on. Mainly in PHP and web JavaScript. I’ve learned the basics of C++ and the syntax never produced more than an interesting text game. Perhaps I’m still a beginner but I’ve been capable of writing scripts for others as well as helping others with debugging and learning.

Did you even read my post? The whole thing? Because I doubt you did if you had you’d see my goal is in five years i’d be good enough to pursue a job at a game company.

14

My walls of text always go unnoticed. Bummer

15

No they didn’t I just forgot to reply, I’ve thought about this

Not sure what I could make,
I thought making a point and click framework but didn’t work on it that much.

I’m working on a little learning prototype game now its a top down shooter, nothing fancy but should be fun for people to play.

I have done this, have you ever seen the TV show house. Do you know the part where he’s doing something completely irrelevant to his case and has a break through that happenes to me when I talk to my mom or my girl. I’ve even played with my son and had break through

I asked for help recently I posted a script and couldn’t figure out why it didnt work as intended it was a simple speed problem that made the behavior of the script not look right.

16

Sounds like a beginner-level problem.

17

well, no offense to programmers, but that must be a very dry job. The only part of programming i find enjoyable is watching my ideas come to life other then that it is just a chore, working for a big company is as i understand just writing out code for someone else design and why would anyone want to do that?

I dont see how you cant have goals, I want to start a a small company that can pump out games with AAA priced budgets but indie originality :smile: and if that doesn’t work out i have a killer (not literally) idea for robbing a mint.

18

Its the joy of problem solving. Many people enjoy facing a challenge, thinking creatively and overcoming it. As I’ve learned in my days of programming, there are several ways of solving every problem. Some are more efficient than others, some are faster, some are easier to manage in the long run, etc. It can actually be quite fun for the analytical mind.

19

Dude go troll else where. The only game I’ve seen that you produced I could make in one day. Are you serious?

To explain myself not that I need to:
It was a simple speed issue, the script was perfect. Worked as intended.

I’m looking for real advice not the opinion of an over arrogant douche.

Yes I’ve always been a fan of problem solving and puzzles…

I have goals I just dont wish to make my own games, I’d rather work with others.

20

Because you ultimately have the power of life and death over any design - and it’s up to you to solve ‘unsolvable’ problems :stuck_out_tongue:

My first programming accomplishment was a simple one. Back in junior high I joined a competition called ‘First Lego League’. We had a game mat with a dozen different challenges to solve - each one netting us points. The robot would go from our base [where we could position it, and do any last minute repairs], do the challenge and return. Problem was that our Lego robotic controller could only store 6 programs. We had two choices:

  1. Only pick 6 challenges, and hope no one does better.
  2. Try to do multiple challenges per run… but the inaccuracies over time meant this was near impossible.

That’s fairly hard decision to make - only get a few points or risk everything hoping that you can build an accurate robot outta lego…

Thing is, I had a brainwave. One of the few sensors we had was a push sensor - a button if you will. I had the idea that if this button was pressed at the start of a run, the robot would follow different instructions. Suddenly instead of only having 6 programs we had 12!

Simple solution, completely changed the paradigm.

And that’s the story of how we beat 20 other schools to become regional champions, and the reason that I was the first in the year to get an ‘honors tie’ even though I was failing most classes at the time - much to the chagrin of my peers.