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barbaari Lowly Slime
Joined: 23 Feb 2010 Posts: 4
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Posted: Tue Feb 23, 2010 5:32 pm Post subject: A coupl'a questions from a new/old member |
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Hello!
I've been away from the programming / rpg scene for many, many years. I guess back in 2003 I was even registered on this very website, but I have long since forgotten my account info.
I used to program RPGs and other games using the good old QuickBasic 4.5. Now I've been getting back to the business after a break of over five years, and I've re-taught myself the secrets of QB by browsing my old source codes and creating new stuff. However, it seems that no one is (for obvious reasons?) using QB45 anymore. :D
So, I have a few questions:
1) Am I right about QB45? If not, does anyone know what could be the most lively quickbasic online community right now? Or is there even one?
2) If I am right, as I expect, what programming language/system would you people suggest me to move on to? QB is the only language I know quite well, and frankly, I don't have the endless amounts of free time it would take for me to start learning a completely new language. What would be the best and easiest, and at least a bit up-to-date programming language to move on to from QB?
I've always found VisualBasic annoying, but would this be a logic step? The answerers should keep in mind, that I mostly wish to program games, mainly RPGs, so any language you might suggest should be good for this purpose. I'm mainly interested in programming SNES style RPGs (Final Fantasies, the occasional Chrono Trigger, Earthbound...), so graphic-wise not much is required.
Until that, I'll keep on using QB. :D I would be quite happy with it, weren't it for a lack of an online community, and of course all the problems that these old DOS based languages are starting to cause. Of course I'd like my games to run on modern machines without Dosbox.
Thanks in advance for any answers, all will be appreciated!
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js71 Wandering DJ
Joined: 22 Nov 2002 Posts: 815
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Posted: Tue Feb 23, 2010 6:12 pm Post subject: Re: A coupl'a questions from a new/old member |
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Freebasic really took off as the next step for the QB community some years ago. I'm not actually a programmer so I can't tell you how similar it may or may not be anymore, but that'd be my strongest recommendation. Lynn's Legacy was programmed in FB.
barbaari wrote: | I'm mainly interested in programming SNES style RPGs (Final Fantasies, the occasional Chrono Trigger, Earthbound...), so graphic-wise not much is required |
...You're joking, right? ;) The later 2D FF games and Chrono Trigger especially have some of the most detailed and intense pixel-fu in the genre! Definitely some very tricky and skillfully-drawn stuff.
~Josiah
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RampantCoyote Demon Hunter
Joined: 16 May 2006 Posts: 546 Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
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Posted: Tue Feb 23, 2010 6:53 pm Post subject: |
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You may also want to look at something like the "Blitz Basic" family of engines:
Official Blitz Website
I haven't used it, but I have heard from several people that it's pretty easy to use. I guess the loss of flexibility is made up for by the ease-of-use in a cross-platform language based on BASIC.
Might be worth checking out. _________________ Tales of the Rampant Coyote - Old-School Game Developer talks Indie Games, RPGs, and the Games Biz
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tcaudilllg Dragonmaster
Joined: 20 Jun 2002 Posts: 1731 Location: Cedar Bluff, VA
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Posted: Tue Feb 23, 2010 7:42 pm Post subject: |
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You want QB64. It is fully QB compatible (or aims to be such) and includes common-sense extensions which do not in any way infringe on your code. It also uses an IDE that is a near-perfect copy of QB's.
One thing about it: it translates to C++ and compiles/links the code with gcc, instead of using a true basic compiler; but that shouldn't be a concern of yours because the end result is exactly the same.
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barbaari Lowly Slime
Joined: 23 Feb 2010 Posts: 4
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Posted: Tue Feb 23, 2010 8:57 pm Post subject: Re: A coupl'a questions from a new/old member |
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Josiah Tobin wrote: | barbaari wrote: | I'm mainly interested in programming SNES style RPGs (Final Fantasies, the occasional Chrono Trigger, Earthbound...), so graphic-wise not much is required |
...You're joking, right? ;) The later 2D FF games and Chrono Trigger especially have some of the most detailed and intense pixel-fu in the genre! Definitely some very tricky and skillfully-drawn stuff. |
Indeed! The sprites used in these games are amazing. But pulling off a graphic engine to utilize those sprites wouldn't require very much from the programming language (but especially when it comes to CT, quite a lot from the programmer!). :) So, I wasn't really talking about the utter coolness and detail of the graphics, but only the programming language's capability in handling such graphics/sprites. The artistry is another story. :)
Thank you all for your quick answers, I'll be sure to give these all a try. I'll also stick around on these forums, as things seem to be at least a bit active here.
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BadMrBox Bringer of Apocalypse
Joined: 26 Jun 2002 Posts: 1022 Location: Dark Forest's of Sweden
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Posted: Wed Feb 24, 2010 2:39 am Post subject: |
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If you know QB then Freebasic is a really good choice.
http://freebasic.net _________________
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Jinroh Scholar
Joined: 30 May 2008 Posts: 173 Location: U.S.A.
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Posted: Wed Feb 24, 2010 2:39 am Post subject: |
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RampantCoyote wrote: | You may also want to look at something like the "Blitz Basic" family of engines: |
I was going to say the same thing, so I guess I'll mention DarkBasic too, hehe. My friend used to use DB and I checked it out one time after seeing some games made with it in a game magazine. It seems good and has Native Hardware Accelerated Rendering Functions if 3D games are your goal.
^o^ I even found the screenshot from the magazine.
Other than that most of the games recently I've played in Basic have been in FreeBasic. Two Lords IIRC was coded in FreeBasic. Great game. ^_^ Additionally there are a lot of libraries to give extra functionality to FB as well. Even something for DirectX support but I can't remember 100%.
Anyway, good luck. ^_^ _________________ Mao Mao Games
The wolf and his mate howl, taking solace in the silver moon. Pressing ever foreward to see what the future holds.
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barbaari Lowly Slime
Joined: 23 Feb 2010 Posts: 4
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Posted: Wed Feb 24, 2010 8:11 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks y'all. I've been checking out your suggestions, and a couple of them seem quite promising. FB might of course prove the easiest to move on to.
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