I am at uni doing computer science and interested in game programming.
i just have a few questions . . .
are most games programmed in C++?
how long will it take to learn i mean to get good enough to do a game like dig dug (a classic man)?
(p.s I found java easyish and not much of a challenge, and was sick of ready made methods, and want to make interesting software or games!)

next question - how to turn c++ code into code that an xbox/gamecube can run?

last question - about graphics and animation - I know like games like sonic 3d you have to design a charater and use programming move it. will I need to learn anything special to do that or will I come across it when learning C++.

any help/advise will be much Appreciated.
thanx

Hi,
It seems that C++ is indeed a very popular choice for game programming indeed. That's my opinion just by looking at the huge number of resources (books, online tutorials) that are written for C++. If you know Java it won't take you long to figure out C++.

About your question on graphics, you must know that graphics are quite separate from general C++. Basically, when you write graphics, you call functions to draw stuff on the screen (e.g. triangles etc...). These functions simply hook up your code to your graphics card.

Therefore, before you use any graphics libraries, it is a good idea to excel at the language you are going to code in. I work with OpenGL in C++. OpenGL is actually quite easy to learn and use - though bear in mind that a thorough knowledge of vector algebra is recommended for 3D graphics . There are of course many different other graphics libraries such as Microsoft's DirectX, the Graphical Device Interface (GDI) for Win32 API, Allegro, Ogre3D etc...

So when you are going to program your game, you will need to create code that will simulate the behaviour of your characters - that's pure C++. Then you will create the graphical environment of your game - that's using the graphical libraries and some more C++. Anyway, if you are interested look up "games programming" online. gamev.net is a very good site, and nehe.gamedev.net is an excellent site for OpenGL. Note that not only programming and graphics are necessary to make an interesting game, at some point you must also delve deep into the world of Artificial Intelligence (get your mathematics ready - especially your probabilities and graph theory)...

oh, about the XBox, Playstation thing, I don't know...

Hope that helped!