Ok, after seeing the post on the main page of GameDev.net about the xic scripting language, I decided to start my own scripting language. I thought "how cool would it be if I made a scripting language with structs and pointers/arrays." Then I got to thinking about scripting languages, and I couldn''t see how my scripting langauge would make game programming any better. Then I though how I could make it so you could import a function call from a library, such as a dll, that way I could make a script that could manipulate virtually any part of a game, and could be reloaded without having to recompile or even stop the game. I would just like to get some thoughts from my fellow developers on the feasability/usefulness of a scripting language like this, and whether it is worth following through or not. NickW

Scripting languages make a game more maintainable, for precisely the reasons you outlined - you don''t need to recompile your program to make changes to the game logic, etc. Also, don''t forget that what makes a lot of games popular is extensibility - if users can make their own mods, they have more fun. And you probably don''t want to give your source code to your user base - at least, not immediately

As for the idea of libraries and dlls, that''s been done too - I''m thinking of native functions in Unreal, but there would be others too. Broadly speaking, I wouldn''t bother with scripts compiled as C/C++ libraries though unless speed was a real issue - most CPU intensive stuff should be programmed into the engine, the script just tells it what to do

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I would bother, because it''s worth it. A C++ dll-based language is potentially very powerful, if you are going to work inhouse or if you plan to release separate header files but not source files. It''s the easiest solution around, and you don''t have to write any sort of interpreter.