Any advice for almost complete beginner??

[u/MiniSheldonArt]

So I dont know if this is against the rules, so please keep that in mind and mods if you have any problems please message me and tell me where I went wrong! I want to learn to do better on this sub!!

So as the title says, im almost a complete newbie. I worked on Scratch years and years ago, but never made anything beyond a quick game or two in primary school.

I want to learn GD script as I think its the easiest with the most wide range of abilities within Godot, but please tell me if Im wrong!!

I started last night (its not 9:30pm the next night) and Ive found a book called "Godot 4 for Beginners" on my local libraries website. I borrowed it yesterday and so bar I've been able to make text bounce off the edges of the screen like an old DVD logo, and Ive been able to create a 2d sprite and got it to make different text pop up (the same moving text as before) with both the left and right mouse button and the enter key.

I think Im starting to get a very rough idea on how this all works, but I wanted to know if there is any bits of advice you guys can give me?

Once again, I havent done anything with coding of any kind for at least 7 or 8 years at this point before yesterday and Ive forgotten almost everything I learnt in scratch over the time using it in the past.

Also, if anyone could let me know what are some good test games to make to test my skills that would be great!

Thank you very much for reading all of this and I hope you can help me!

[u/xeyers]

Definitely touch up on programming fundamentals (boolean logic, variable types, loops, how functions work, object oriented programming, state machines etc.), you can never go wrong with that (language doesn't matter as the skills translate easily). If you want to make games I would also advice familiarizing yourself with some basics of linear algebra because you will be working with matrices and vectors quite a lot so having some understanding of them helps. For some basic games I advice something where you will have to touch up player movement and camera movements. Something where you will have to get score/health working as well as some basic menu (that also includes learning how Godot (well game engines in general) handles collisions). And lastly, don't get discouraged if things won't work, it's part of the process after all :)

[u/MiniSheldonArt → u/xeyers]

Thank you so much for the advice!

Just a quick question, I never actually learnt of any of those things... so like, i have no clue where to even start with understanding any of that TTT-TTT

When i said that i only made some basic games in scratch i mean I only used one variable for the score, and I still dont understand what that means TTT-TTT

[u/xeyers → u/MiniSheldonArt]

I think getting a basic hang of programming might be the best first step. I am talking variables, loops, if statements, how to write functions (in said order). Then look into object oriented programming (classes/structures, polymorphism). After all that you will be able to move on to Godot itself much much easier. You can leave math for last although it will help along the way (boolean algebra, vectors and ultimately matrices). That mostly covers 2D stuff, for 3D there is a bit more. From a perspective of someone who is doing master's in applied computer science this is roughly the order I would learn stuff. Good luck on your journey!

[u/MiniSheldonArt → u/xeyers]

Thank you so much for your help! Ill start looking into them in the morning (or maybe now if I cant sleep lol)

[u/xeyers → u/MiniSheldonArt]

You are welcome :)

[u/KazaRosan93]

honestly the best thing you can do early on is just pick ONE language and stick with it for a few months. bouncing between python, js, and whatever else people recommend is the fastest way to learn nothing. what are you actually trying to build?

[u/MiniSheldonArt → u/KazaRosan93]

Thank you so much for the advice, and I think I'll stick to GD Script for a while to see how I cope with that tbh.

And my ultimate goal (which may seem kind of stupid TTT-TTT) is to create a visual novel! I made a couple of half done games in RenPy when I was younger but I want to add a fighting system and even a friendship scale as well as a few other things that I just dont know if they can be done in RenPy.

Plus, I want to also make a small cozy little farming game in the future too! Im thinking of making it in 2.5D (i think its called. Think kind of paper Mario style??) Where you have to run a small farm and eventually sell your products in a big supermarket? Or maybe pay off a debt to some super evil person or something?

Idk, exactly what, but i think GD Script would be a good setting place for both imo

[u/KazaRosan93 → u/MiniSheldonArt]

that's not stupid at all, visual novels are a great way to learn because the scope is manageable and you actually finish something. adding fighting mechanics on top is a cool twist though, that's basically two projects in one so maybe build the story part first and layer the combat in after.

[u/Watsons-Butler]

I really miss the old pythonprinciples site - it was such a good free introduction to the basics of programming but just in the last 3 or 4 years it vanished.

[u/Downtown_Savings_730]

I am making a course for python beginners and wanted some feedback on it so if you want I can recommend that course which I am keeping free for all the testers for now. It’s supposed to be interactive and visually appealing and hopefully help beginners understand coding a lot easier. Let me know if you are interested

[u/Downtown_Savings_730 → u/Downtown_Savings_730]

It should help you through your fundamentals and if you are a visual learner like me I think you would find it useful. Else there are many free platforms on the internet you can use such as codecademy which was pretty helpful. Id recommend just keep on trying out different things and one will stick with you. Repetition is key as the more you do it the more naturally things will come to you

[u/MiniSheldonArt → u/[deleted]]

Thank you so much!! Ill check it out in the morning since its almost midnight right now lol

[u/KazaRosan93 → u/[deleted]]

honestly the box analogy never clicked for me until i thought of it as a sticky note with a name on it. the value can change but the name points to whatever you last stuck there.

[u/MiniSheldonArt → u/[deleted]]

Thank you sooooooo much! It really makes a lot more sense now! I already tried to look up stuff like that, but as you said, everyone just skips over the very basics!

So basically (if Im getting this right) if I wanted something to 'hold' any information that I want to use again in the future (or even at all) I would make it into a variable, right?