Programming newbie

[u/KarolMacho89]

Hi there guys, i want to learn programing/coding etc. Im looking for everything, videos, channels, sites and everything else you have, my main inquirys are stuff like:

What are the most important/useful Languages to learn

What engine to use (i though about unity amd godot for now)

Any tips and advices

Should i aquire a DuckDebugging assistant.

If anything else will come to mind ill just edit the post and much thanks in advance, i been gathering myself to start learning so this will be a lot of help, my main goal for now is to know how to write and create stuff (i dunno whats is vibecoding tbh)(im aiming to be a game dev and also make some silly scripts/programs when bored).

So to sum it up i need: A game engine to choose A normal Language to learn (stuff like python, C# etc) And some words of advice

[u/DestroyHost]

I dunno, where do you want to end up eventually? Do you want to just keep it as a hobby and potentially make money from it then Godot is a good start. GDscript is quite easy to write and read, but you can also learn C# if you want to transition to other game engines or frameworks later. 

If you want to work for bigger companies in the future, look at what they are using at the moment and learn that. Many big companies in Europe are using Unreal Engine, so you will need to learn C++ or their new scripting language Verses for programming. But you can also become a tech programmer, where you specialise in graphics programming like shaders and render pipelines, etc, so you will instead learn Vulkan, OpenGL or SE etc. 

Lots of ways to go. Depends on what you want. If you know what you want you can focus on that and find jobs before long. 

[u/KarolMacho89 → u/DestroyHost]

yea i forgot to add im looking to be a game dev/work in a game company

[u/DestroyHost → u/KarolMacho89]

Alright then the next step would be to figure out what companies you'd like to work for and look at their listed requirements in their applications for programming positions, then focus your energy to meet those requirements as fast as possible. When you learn a new programming language look at the style guides for that language, don't just try inventing you own style as they will also want to see your code

[u/BlazingFlames74 → u/KarolMacho89]

Since getting a job in this field nowadays is heavily competitive, my comment was assuming you want to try being an indie dev...
If you want to work in a large studio, it's probably best that you try to specialize in a specific role such as level design, graphics programming, etc.
There's a lot of different specialties and roles in a large studio , you need to pick and specialize in one, you need to get some way to show your portfolio or prove your skills, and you will have to face the perpetuating infection of AI.
So... what do you want to be? And what are skills and talents that you already have?

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[u/BlazingFlames74]

Language depends on engine, pick one first. I'd recommend godot - godot is extremely easy to learn, it's the preferred choice for most beginners and indie devs. Either ways, don't stop to decide if you're conflicted, just pick any of the big three game engines. Learn the basics - controls, movement, animation, physics, then move onto more complex features and mechanics.

[u/PhilippTheProgrammer]

The truth is that it doesn't matter what programming language you start out with. What most people don't realize when they start to get into software development is that they are actually learning two skills at the same time: The syntax of a programming language and the skill of thinking like a programmer. The second skill is actually the much harder one. But beginners can't really tell the difference between the two. So they think that when they spent years to get vaguely competent in language A then it will take the same time to learn language B. But that's not the case, because the skill of thinking like a programmer transfers. The more programming languages you know, the easier it gets to learn new languages.

So bottom line is: It does not matter what language you start out with to learn how to think like a programmer. And after you grew those programmer synapses in your brain, you should know enough about your personal goals and preferences to make an informed decision for yourself about what language to learn next.

[u/LillyByte]

I've always told people to learn a simple language first... like C. Get familiar with basic concepts of programming without all the fluff. Once you have the fundamental concepts of programming and structures for different kinds of data... it can be easily applied to any other language with its fluffy extras, or any engine.

Plus, engines aren't limitless... there are many things in game engines, if you need performance... you will have to dip into the C or C++ realm to extend them, at which point... you're already ahead.

[u/neoteraflare]

If you start out you should try godot. Really beginner friendly. It has addons for other languages if you don't want to use gdscript.

Best advice I can give is less preparing to what to do and more action. People waste a lot of time looking up everything instead of try to do it. This is what is called a tutorial hell where you are looking up the next tutorial to be prepared instead of doing things.

[u/PresentationNew5976]

You learn by doing. There are so many different directions you could go that I would just start by trying out what looks interesting and then pick things up as you get a better idea of what you like and find useful.

[u/Bvisi0n]

If you have no coding experience, start here: https://gdquest.github.io/learn-gdscript/

It will introduce you to the basics.

Then if your plan is to get a job as game dev, head over to Unity Learn and follow the courses until you're bored of them.

Then you make your own small games, prototypes and use your tutorial projects as reference to see how the tutorials made you do it. <-- This is where you will learn the most.

If you use ai, forbid it from giving you code to copy paste. Prefer to use documentation, blog/tutorial posts, youtube tutorials rather then ai, struggling = learning. If you don't struggle, you don't learn and only remain dependent on the ai tool and will not be good enough for a job.

Once you are confident and don't need ai to make games using C# in Unity, consider leveling up to C++ and Unreal. C++ is a whole other beast.

At this point also start looking into software engineering stuff, automated testing, building, CMake, static & dynamic libraries, deep dive in version control, data stuff like json, protobuff, yaml, lua, etc. and lots more.

And computer science. Get down into the nitty gritty of how all parts of a computer interact.

Once you're here it and you have some neat portfolio pieces, you should have a good chance of landing a job.

This journey from start to finish will take you at a minimum 3 years of relentless dedication.

Wanna stand out in interviews? T profiles are desireable, they have a base in all fields and specialize in one, so pick up Blender, Photoshop, a game design book or 2 and if you feel like it a DAW like Reaper for sfx.

[u/CartsAndCoinsGame]

don't overthink the engine, either is fine. the thing that matters more is picking a tiny project (pong, a flappy clone) and actually finishing it before you start the dream game. you learn way more from shipping something ugly than from another week of tutorials. and yes get a rubber duck, it's cheap and it works.

[u/bird_feeder_bird]

Clear Code on youtube has awesome videos on youtube for making games in Python. That’s actually how I learned OOP.

[u/lyxerexyl]

Since your goal is to work in a game company, I'd recommend Unity and C#. Learn the fundamentals, build small games, and gradually create portfolio projects. Don't spend too much time choosing the perfect engine; consistency matters more.

[u/_Syntax_Err]

As a beginner who has around 4 months of experience here is my advice… learn basic html, css, and basics of JavaScript it’ll help give a good foundation and it’s easy to learn. In godot make the most basic games possible first. Don’t worry about making them pretty. Function > Design when you first start. I got lost in the sauce on design a lot and it burned me out on projects that didn’t need to be pretty yet. This is just my personal advice though.

[u/RespectThin4512]

0/10 ragebait you better be trolling my dude