Where do i start. So i want to be able to make my own games. I have made a basic 2d platformed. And i can make basic home objects on 3ds max. What else do i need to learn so i can make a great game one day? I know this may be a bit broad. But i have not found any one who is willing to tell me every thing it takes to make a game.

Generally most important thing is to have idea and limit it to some sensible scope to not to waste some crazy time to make a game - of course if you just want to make it for fun then there is no problem for doing a game in 10 years but if you eventually want to release something you need to know when to say stop when designing stuff. If you make game you should always start with some design and vision instead you will just waste time on designing stuff on fly (of course there is no prefect case where no changes to the design are needed while working on project - when you prototype you see if something works or not).

Anyways about the "what I need to learn" stuff - simply master what you feel is the best for you - if you feel good making graphics do It - train, create new kind of assets etc, if you feel it's programming just code games - do not stop at some basic mechanics instead write some AI, graphics stuff, physical stuff or more advanced mechanics such like advanced quest system etc.

Remember that the most important thing is to have fun :) .

tell me every thing it takes to make a game

yeah - that is a bit broad....

without going into too much detail,

1. you need a cool concept for a game - a vision - the "aesthetic" or "gameplay experience" you're shooting for.

2. good game mechanics. having done platformers, i think you get this part.

3. mechanics that interact, resulting in cool game dynamics, which deliver the game experience (the aesthetic / vision / gameplay experience) you're shooting for. another way to think of it is you come up with an idea for a game, then come up with the rules of the game, then use code to implement the rules, hopefully resulting in the game experience you're shooting for.

4. good graphics - including good UI design, 2d artwork, 3d models, textures, animations, etc.

5. good audio - voice acting, music, foley, etc.

6. good writing - quests, dialogs, backstory, etc.

7. good maps - level maps, game world design, etc.

so that's what you need.

to get that, you can either buy it, hire someone to make it, or make it yourself.

to make it yourself, you'll need skills in the following areas:

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game design (coming up with the rules for a cool game)

math

physics

2d art - including seamless textures

3d modeling , texturing, rigging, and animation.

UI design

music composition

foley effects

voice acting

level / map design

did i forget anything?

Norm pretty much covered it as best as it can be covered, but I might add "Engines". You have to make a decision about what platform, framework, or engine you're going to use. And you can be an expert in one and not know squat about the others. Granted, at a fundamental level it's all the same no matter what you use. But engines like Unity obfuscate much of these things to the point where you don't have to learn near as much, a lot of it may be done for you, and the approach you take to implement it is night and day different from how you might implement it using something else. The more you get to the core of what's going on and do things yourself, the more it becomes the same like with OpenGL and DirectX. But how you do things in two different engines like Unity and Unreal could be radically different.

There is a lot of commonality regardless of which route you choose. For example, a 3D model still has to be rigged and animated no matter what platform you bring it into. But after that you get into all kinds of specifics like what file formats it reads, do you know Unity's Mechanim system, how do you connect the shaders to view it and so forth. You're doing the same thing, but the specifics of making it happen are radically different.

So, I would say you can add platform such as SDKs, frameworks, and engines to the list of things you have to learn. Before it's all over, you'll probably want to learn a few of them at least.

So, I would say you can add platform such as SDKs, frameworks, and engines to the list of things you have to learn. Before it's all over, you'll probably want to learn a few of them at least.

i was trying to not go into too much detail, but yes, for code, you can use an engine, use one or more libraries, or roll your own, or a combo of these. with no libraries you're limited to the basic capabilities of the language itself. so for code you'd have to learn some language, and probably one or more libraries or an engine and perhaps libraries as well. but no matter what route, you'll need code to hook all the components together and get them doing what you want them to do.

Thank you. I real do like all the reply i got for this topic. Im wanting to make an fps that no one has done yet that i have found.

Unless your goal is specifically to be a programmer there really isn't much reason not to use a premade engine to develop with. That used to not be the case but now with engines like unity available and free to pick up and start using, not much reason to complicate things more using technology that simply gives you more work to do.

Don't reinvent the wheel unless you want your job to be developing wheels.

Firstly, have an idea of what YOU want to play, lots of people make games for others to play, and when they flop they have nothing to show for it. If you make a game you will enjoy you will keep motivated to update it and play it yourself, so it's a win-win! Then choose a nice simple language, I use Pygame. It's really easy to use and download, lot's of source code and documentation is available, aaand it is decent for making games under around 10,000 lines of code.

Keep it simple, lots of people try to make massive, detailed, multiplayer games... And many fail. This is because it is harder than people think and it is easy to become dissapointed when it becomes hard or you think development moves too slowly. Take Minecraft, now it is a multiplayer, hugely popular, incredibly detailed game with crazy mechanics and lots of lines of code. When it was first made it was a few hundred lines of code, bad mechanics and graphics, and had a small fan-base.

Another golden rule is to keep updating and it'll become great! Lots of small, frequent updates are probably best. It doesn't matter if you have a great game (like No Man's Sky) if you don't update, players will lose interest, become dissatisfied, and move on. Keep it simple and fun, for a first game aim for a few months development before release, then keep updating whilst people are playing and can offer advice and feedback. A great site for game hosting and updating which I use is itchio. Some people hate it, but for a new game developer it is perfect!