A little starting help..

Hi,

My name is Dennis. I have taken C++, Java,web design and VB classes in a private school.(i also took all the basic classes but they don't matter much)

I have played many games and found many good games(almost all platforms) and many bad games. The more i played them the more i wanted to make the game on my own.

I joined this website, but there is just too much information bunched(dont know if its a word hehe ) together and never really find what i want.

At first i want to learn how to make a text based (with some graphics) game that will allow users to log in in browser, do attacks blah blah blah and be able to attack other people that joined. I looked hard and found [High Decent] ~ highdecent.com ~ is almost of what i want, of course not close or same. I already have all the plans thought out and have started drawing basic ideas. All i need is to know what language? where i can find other help based on that? and is there any open source? and if i be able to do the same on a free posting website (like tripod.com) as alpha only 10 people being able to use.

I have great motivation, plans, and mostly time to work on this project. This is mainly just to learn and not for profit(of course if turns out great i will find some way to make profit... but its not the main goal) SQL?(noticed that when error use to be) i would love to learn it more just give me the basic idea of it and maybe a website.

Also if there are other project like this, i would love to join and see progress, code, and learn from it.

i am sorry about the spelling

Thanks for reading this

If you're wanting to create a browser based game than you'll want a language that can easily interact with the client side of things. PHP and the .NET languages are the most popular for this sort of thing.

If you're wanting something a little more graphic then it'll have to be flash to be browser based.

I'm pretty sure tripod doesn't support this kind of thing, but I bet you can find a free host that does. Let me know some more details of how you're wanting to implement the game and I'll see if there's any other way I can help.

Just so you know, game programming is seriously difficult. However, There are several books and tutorials out there that can help you get started. You can use just about any language. The favorites being C++, Java, and Python. I would go with whatever you already know best. You should also check out the game development forum here on Devshed.

But for now, I'd suggest taking a trip to your local bookstore or bookselling website and browse through what they have in the game development section.

For web based game, have a look and read through this tutorial: http://linuxformat.co.uk/wiki/index.php/PHP_-_Interfict_planning (note, there are sevel parts to this tutorial, http://linuxformat.co.uk/wiki/index.php/LXF_Tutorials)

It's written for Php, but you should be able to convert it to other language if you wish, and even if you don't, it has lots of useful info on designing and implementing a game from ground up.

Moved from Beginner Programming to Game Development.

hmm that is very helpfull. Php and .Net

I have already read several books on multiple subjects, but none of them included the part about Php. So there are several free hosters that may host my project (and not tripod), you guys would know any good onces please let me know.

And defenately i will hold the flash and java code back...first have to learn my way thru, which wont be a huge problem.

Also is there any way i can put the project on my computer, and use it just for my own testing, like being able to register, and pretty much simulate the same thing, but just not being connected.

Any tools recommended?

thanks

Let me try and summarise your questions. Q1: What languages and technologies do I need to learn to make a web based game? Q2: If I do make a game,how did I get to test it for free?

You'll need to learn at the very least three things: how to make webpages (HTML, CSS, Javascript/AJAX), a server-side language (PHP, Python, Ruby, ASP.NET), and how to use databases.

You said you took web design so you should know how to go about making a website (design part). You'll need to know a programming language that a HTTP server can use. PHP, Python, Ruby, Perl, and ASP.NET are well known choices. So is Java, by the way. If you have dealt with JSP, then there you go.

Finally, you will have to use a database. The most popular choice is MySQL. You'll need to learn how to design your table structure properly and efficiently. SQL is a standardised language that all databases can use. It allows you to manipulate and work with databases.

While you're at it, you may at least want to deal with setting up the webserver and database server, at least for development purposes. If your alpha testing stage involves very few people, you may want to just have them use your personal development servers, running on your computer, or whoever has good bandwidth and a decent computer.

Look into Apache for HTTP server and MySQL for database.

I found one of the best ways to learn PHP (if you decide to use it) was to set up my own computer so I wouldn't have to deal with annoying hosting restrictions. So, I would recommend you learn your language and make your alpha version of your game locally. If you want you can also open up a port so some friends can play this, but beware of getting shut down by your ISP (I never was shut down, but they usually will shut you down if you get a lot of traffic).

So: Look into Apache (or possibly Tomcat if you want to use JSP/Servlets) for the web server, PHP or JSP or .NET for the programming language (I recommend PHP - simple to learn), and MySQL (or any other database) for your database.

If you need them, there are some free php hosts that will put an ad on top of your page or something. If you don't like that, you can pay someone a few bucks a month for hosting.

Oh, and as CJ said, game programming isn't simple. Don't jump straight into the game, work on simple user interaction first (maybe a simple forum that can be coded in a few hours?)

Have a look at this tutorial for php, goes into the basics of php and also has all the links you need for MySQL / Apache and PHP.

The PHP Homepage has the full PHP documentation and some other goodies you may be interested in.

The PHP Forum is a good place to get answers to problems you run into when learning PHP.

Hope this helps.
Displeaser

I already have the knowledge how to use htlm and java to the point where i could build it just using these, but when i tried it, made a mini version of it, its not capable of exactly i want, so I defenetly need Php and Sql.

Am i correct or did i miss something.

And yes i have already programmed some programs in Java, and VB, so i am not a total noob that will jump in and try to make the game right away. (just need to clarify that).

Thank you all those that have responded and have given me an idea.

IMHO, the one thing you need to do, is think about what you want, strip out everything thats not initially needed and get that working first. If you try implement too much you will start to get frustrated. Think of it as a a 5 point plan. Initally you'll get the idea together, then you'll flesh out the characters/npcs, then you'll start fleshing out the world(game environment), then you'll work out how things interact with th e world and then you'll add the things you always wanted in a game

Writing a game is not a trivial thing but with some patience and perserverence you will get it down, if you put in the effort (ands theres a lot of effort needed).

Dont forget there is mysql/Php/Apachine and game development forums here at the shed, so if you run into problems, show us what they are & we will gladely help.

Displeaser

Well, i have looked up MySQL, Apache, and Php, and i haven't really found anything that i can use to construct. Anyone has any websites that i can go for this?

Now I understand some things, but I haven't been able to get is how do i change from code - php - htlm/phtml usable.*i know that doesn't make much sense but here is exactly what i mean:

(URL address blocked: See forum rules)

php with html tags to Php/Server - the problem is that since i am new i have no idea how to start out, and having the tools i need. Learning the language is obsolutly no problem, but having the right tools and advice how to start is.

thanks for reading, and hopefully you can help me out a bit

oh nvm, i have figured this out.