look at C/C++ start from hello world and work up

Hi,

I'm no gamer, yet, but from my online research, I found there are two ways, OpenGL and the general graphics way. openGL, you include the gl header files and in graphics there is apparently a graphics header. Search the web for Lode's Computer Graphics tutorial, a great source of information.

The exact "tools" you learn in school are utterly irrelevant for getting a job as a programmer.

A green as grass junior grasshopper programmer like you'll be is expected to know exactly NOTHING of value when starting his first job, except knowing how to keep his mouth shut and do as its (you're not a human being yet) told while keeping its ears open to soak up whatever it's being taught by its masters.

And do not expect to land that "game programmer" job right out of school. That's an advanced field.
At most you'll land a job doing other things at a game development shop and work your way up.
Also remember that the vast majority of "game programmers" suffer from extreme burnout and mental problems within a few years, at 35 most are either raving mad and incapable of any work or have left the business for other jobs.
Some even end up dead from being severely overworked, 20+ hour workdays are the norm in many game shops especially near release deadlines.

Get this book. C++ for dummies version 5 with free compiler.
http://www.bookpool.com/sm/0764568523

Its cheap, and its best starter book there is. You start from scratch, no knowlege exept a few little HTML things like <color="red">Hello world!</color> . By the end, you should be able to make at least SOMETHING useful outta it. From there, take school classes or something, or get a more advanced C++ book.

After you can make a Chess game, you are ready to make an online game (with a few artists, other coders, etc depending on what game.)

Start really simple. Learn the basics/intermediate stuff in C++ ... should know classes, file i/o, a working knowledge of STL and a bit of Win32 programming and you are good to go.

When I started I knew C++ and no game programming, but I was able to do a full game in about 2 weeks, with code cobbled from various sources to get a screen to draw on.

If you can find a way to draw on the screen you are half way there as a beginner.

I would suggest GLUT to get you started. GLUT simplifies the init for OpenGL ... so you can get opengl started without any win32 api coding.


http://www.lighthouse3d.com/opengl/glut/index.php?1

Oh and hang out a bit at sites like gamedev.net and devmaster.net

and don't buy any book calling itself "for dummies".
If you really are a dummy they're far too complex for you, if not they don't give you nearly enough information.

And as to free compilers, there are many of them. Microsoft, Codegear, Intel (for some operating systems), and of course various open source offerings.

Yes... all these things are very true. C/C++ is the basis of EVERYTHING you're going to want to do. There might be some scripting languages along the way (LUA comes to mind), but the basics are always in C/C++. Learn everything you can about everything, because it's all important when it comes to games. Learn graphics and audio API's (duh), but also learn all you can about data management, including databases (especially if you want to be involved in an MMO some day). Learn everything you can about geometry and trig, basic newtonian physics, and stuff of that nature.

not very helpful post is it?

My point was that there is no magical "gamecoder" profession, per se. The reality of writing games is the same reality that "normal" software engineers live in. Game code is no different than any other software code... it just happens to end up being a game.

Writing games is probably the most multi-disciplined you get as far as software development. You need to know it all... graphics, sound, data management... not to mention story telling and content creation. And that goes for any game, from World of Warcraft all the way down to Pong.

So learn your fundimentals. That's the kind of answer you're always going to get when it comes to the question of "How do I write games?" It's like asking somebody how to write Shakespeare when you don't even know the alphabet.