ID:265078
 
I started with an RPG. I really think that's the way for everyone to go. An RPG has many possiblilites: you learn tons of procs, all of the basics, and much more. The only problem here is, many people Upload these onto the BYOND server... :(
Lord of Water wrote:
I started with an RPG. I really think that's the way for everyone to go. An RPG has many possiblilites: you learn tons of procs, all of the basics, and much more. The only problem here is, many people Upload these onto the BYOND server... :(

The problem with this isn't that starting large won't teach you or won't get anything done... it's that anything you create while you're still learning is liable to be very poorly coded. It might work, but that doesn't mean it works well--and the larger and more complex your project, the more vital that it is that it does work well. The end result is that if you do a couple small projects to learn the basics, you'll end up with a few small silly games that aren't going anywhere, you can dust them under the carpet and get onto the real work... but if you start with a big project right off the bat, you'll end up with a large silly game with too much work invested in it to ignore, too many problems to run as smoothly as it should, and too many fundamental problems in the coding structure to easily salvage.
In response to Leftley
I swept Colored Ages under the rug a long time ago, and started over. I didn't know about atom parentry, and a ton of other things. It's better and more complex now then ever, but I am guessing that I'll start over on it time and time again, making it better each time.
Lord of Water wrote:
I started with an RPG. I really think that's the way for everyone to go. An RPG has many possiblilites: you learn tons of procs, all of the basics, and much more. The only problem here is, many people Upload these onto the BYOND server... :(

Your subject is misleading -- most people would expect you to be discussing why starting small is a good thing. So, I'll discuss that. =)


The younger theory is best explained with a kiss. Keep It Simple Silly.

(I won't get into the variations on that final word, since this is a family-oriented website.)


Basically, that means that the easier your project is, the faster you'll get it done, and the better the work you create will be.

However, you need to take into account a crucial aspect of the term "simple". A simple project is good - a simplistic one is (usually) not. You have to decide the difference between what is simple to do, and what is so simplistic that it doesn't really add anything.
In response to Leftley
That's not all true, I learned a ton of nifty coding junk from my first trial game, Experimentor. I learned the basics of coding from it, then ditched it when it got shackey.
In response to Foomer
That was his point entirely.
In response to Spuzzum
Spuzzum wrote:
That was his point entirely.

Actually my point was more that a lot of people wouldn't be quite so willing to scrap a relatively complex project that they'd put a lot of time and effort into.
In response to Leftley
Leftley wrote:
Spuzzum wrote:
That was his point entirely.

Actually my point was more that a lot of people wouldn't be quite so willing to scrap a relatively complex project that they'd put a lot of time and effort into.

Oh. I think that was my original interpretation, actually. Stupid me.

But, the interpretation I mistakenly created also holds merit -- your first project will tend to be somewhat worthless after you try to work on it further. A notable exception would be House of Morte, though.
In response to Spuzzum

But, the interpretation I mistakenly created also holds merit -- your first project will tend to be somewhat worthless after you try to work on it further. A notable exception would be House of Morte, though.

I bet if I fixed up Experimentor, put in saving and got a decent server, I could still get people to play it ;o)
In response to Spuzzum
Spuzzum wrote:
Leftley wrote:
Spuzzum wrote:
That was his point entirely.

Actually my point was more that a lot of people wouldn't be quite so willing to scrap a relatively complex project that they'd put a lot of time and effort into.

Oh. I think that was my original interpretation, actually. Stupid me.

But, the interpretation I mistakenly created also holds merit -- your first project will tend to be somewhat worthless after you try to work on it further. A notable exception would be House of Morte, though.

Well, Dawn of Hope is my first project, and I have no plans to scrap it. If something can be done faster, I can change it without much hassle. Im about to shorten down the code tomorrow, so I guess I'll see if theres anything I need to seriously remake, I doubt it though. Itl prob just clear up a few vars, mayby some Ifs, and a for loop or 2. I hope, anyways

Alathon
In response to Spuzzum
A simple RPG still do the work. And theat is what I'm trying to build these days. Some simple RPG with only 3-4 "rooms", each with it own functions...
In response to Foomer
Foomer wrote:
But, the interpretation I mistakenly created also holds merit -- your first project will tend to be somewhat worthless after you try to work on it further. A notable exception would be House of Morte, though.

I bet if I fixed up Experimentor, put in saving and got a decent server, I could still get people to play it ;o)

Heheheheh I have somethign to say (when -dont- I today *LOL*)

Im not gonna lie on this, Ive jumped right into a rather complex game from the start. I did the tutorials first of course, but I didnt really start small. But theres a simmilarity to making an ambitious game, and making a small one. I have preconcieved notions about what I want my game to be. And I work on one small part of it at a time. If I get it to work, then Im happy. If not, then I try to find some other way to do it. The game will wind up complex some day, and Ill prolly keep working on it even then. Ive gone through about 5 different engine tests already on my game, and I doubt that Ill ever even try beta-ing a combat system till my version number is something insane >:P Im hoping for lower then v0.584 but if thats what it takes, then Ill do it ^^

Something that hasnt been said, or if it has, and I havent noticed, is one of the benifits of -trying- something ambitious. Yes, it might be frustrating. Yes youll prolly screw up on some of the harder aspects, but as you learn, and as you get more complex stuff into it, you -can- go back and revise older code into newer, more streamlined stuff. Ive already revised my basic move() proc 3 times to streamline the way I do a walk delay.

Im not saying starting small is a bad thing either, but if you work at it, and KEEP IT ORGANIZED, then a large project can work in the same way that a whole host of smaller projects can ^^'

k.. I think Ive posted a lot today @.@ and I have class in half an hour.. hmm..

Elorien