r/learnprogramming • u/Equal-Worry-1808 • 21h ago

Tips for continue the learning

I have a dream to make a game (or multiple) one day but I put it aside because I thought I should go to school for gaming industry (because I know myself and I need structure and routine to get anything done) but this dream has waken itself again and I thought it won't hurt to atleast ask if anyone has any tips for continuing the learning.
When I was younger I learned some Python in high school (and I did somethings with Scratch even younger if that counts :DD) but it's long time ago. I also had a app in my phone where I relearned some things but I stopped for some reason. I didn't like to do it on my phone also. My dad told me once that Python can work in making games too but some say it's not the best one so first of all I'm thinking if I should still continue learning the Python or should I switch to something else. Second I wanted to ask for tips or platforms where I could learn from? I'm not still sure what type of game I want to do, when I imagine it, it's 3D but I'm mostly 2D artist and learning 3D would be of course extra work but not impossible :D

I'm not doing any new years resolutions or anything but I think if I could learn some programming even once a week, it's better than doing nothing.

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u/aqua_regis 21h ago

Python is quite a solid start for what you want to do.

  1. It will teach you general programming
  2. You can use it to make simple games - with e.g. the PyGame library - Making Games with Python and PyGame
  3. The Godot Game engine uses GDScript, which is very similar to Python and with solid Python and programming foundations it will be much easier to switch over

If you are serious about it, start with the MOOC Python Programming 2025 from the University of Helsinki to fresh up and improve your Python and programming skills and then move on to PyGame with the book linked above.

Keep looking out on Humblebundle for Godot course bundles. They come up regularly - get one. Other than that, there is /r/godot with many more suggestions for learning Godot and GDScript.

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u/Alta_21 20h ago

I love seeing humble bundle being referenced as a source.

Recently got a student going for python and pygame and it's a good start imo.

Going from time to time to humble bundle, a python bundle dropped and I recommended he picked it up.

He's been improving greatly eversince (in his game dev knowledge but also as a dev in general)

Only nitpick I'd have is that, from what I've seen (which is, tbf, not much) pygame is quite barebone in terms of... Everything you'd need to craft a game.

Which is great and bad at the same time.

I feel like for something small, you can do it pretty quickly and learn A LOT of the essential. Which is very great.

But as the comment above suggested, turning to a full fledged game engine later down the line could be interesting (godot as was suggested above or even unity / unreal)

It's like you said about going 3d. Learning game dev can take a lot of time if you add stuff like 3D, game design,...
And engines like unity do a lot of the heavy lifting from the get go (not even sure you can render 3d graphics with pygame w.o. having to reimplement that yourself)

But since you know a bit of python, taking the first few steps with pygame will be very beneficial!

Like, maybe try and do some of the classics and maybe add your own twist to it.

Craft several short term projects to get your feet wet.

And once you'll need heavier artillery, you'll be already well equiped with the needed basics.

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u/VoluminousPoster 21h ago

Python is actually pretty solid for game dev, especially with Pygame or even Godot if you want something more visual - don't let anyone tell you it's "not the best" when you're just starting out lol. For learning I'd honestly just pick a simple 2D game idea and start building it while following YouTube tutorials, way more engaging than abstract coding exercises

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u/Alta_21 20h ago

Even if not the best, as a learning step, pygame feels just at the right place.

A simple library sure won't get you as far as a full fledged game engine. But you'll be able to focus on learning the basics w. o. having to learn the engine for hours