Question from a noob!

So, I have a question. I'm a beginner game designer, and I really want to make my whole game from scratch by myself. And, since the game is going to have semi high-end graphics, the game is going to take a while...probably years in the making. What I wanted to ask, especially to the experts, what in your mind makes up the bulk of a game. Is it scripting? Is it dialogue? Is it graphics?

Thanks
-PaperMariolover

it depends on the game. for AAA games most of the time is spent on content. (artwork, cutscenes, voice acting, sound effects, music, levels etc, etc). indie games tend to be far less content heavy and thus programming eats up a larger chunk of the time for those, in some cases there is pretty much no graphics, music or sound to speak of and content is procedurally generated (games like nethack are pretty close to 100% programming)

what in your mind makes up the bulk of a game. Is it scripting? Is it dialogue? Is it graphics?

The bulk of a game project's schedule and work effort is the programming.

The bulk of a game's play experience is playing.

Not sure what you're asking.

It really depends on the game. For my own indie project, a surprising amount of time has been invested in making the map editor and building the low level infrastructure that holds everything in place - but my game is 2D. If I was doing 3D, I'd use an engine where both of those problems would've already been solved, and most of the time would probably be spent creating content.

And yes, Paper Mario is an awesome game.

Thank you everyone, I just wanted to know. Coding...ugh, it's my worst nightmare. I'm trying to learn it via youtube, and, it's a killer. That's alright, I just have to keep telling myself that, in the end, it's going to look fantastic, because it's gonna be years till I've got this down to an "art."

Oh, and Tom, I just wanted to know what in your opinion is what makes up the bulk of a game. I just threw out suggestions, since I still don't quite know what it is I'm doing yet.

Coding...ugh, it's my worst nightmare. I'm trying to learn it via youtube, and, it's a killer.

You should start with a simple language to begin programming. I suggest trying Python or Java at first to get a grasp of imperative programming and then object-oriented programming. Then, make very simple applications, text-based. From there you may want to move on to making small games with a simple graphics API, for example by remaking Tetris or the snake game. With that experience, you can try tackling bigger 2d games, with more powerful libraries.

And, regarding your question, to add to what Simon Forsman said, in AAA games there are often many more artists than programmers, therefore the amount of man-hours dedicated to content is greater than the amount dedicated to code (engine or game code). If you're only starting, you are going to spend most of your time programming at first.

Coding...ugh, it's my worst nightmare. I'm trying to learn it via youtube, and, it's a killer.

Videos actually aren't that great of a way of learning things. Some things, like art, may benefit from the visual presentation - but programming is a primarily text-based skill. Learning by articles and books that are illustrated with the occasional image is much faster.

Why have someone take 15 minutes to explain something that could've been explained in a half-dozen sentences and a graph or snippet of example code? Why have videos of people typing out text, instead of instantly having the text already typed when the page loads?

I second the suggestion of starting with Python, and I suggest picking up two books (one heavy duty beginner textbook to read in-front of the computer, and one lightweight "fun" beginner book to read on a couch), and going through online tutorials. One book would suffice though - just read the reviews on Amazon to find a good one.

@Servant - What would you suggest regarding the "hiearchial structure of coding?" In other words, from what you said Python, and then what after that? And then, what after the language after Python? Just curious.

Programming languages aren't very hierarchical - once you learn Python, even if you learn other languages later, you'll still find uses for Python.
Just because Python is easy to learn (which is why it's recommended as a good language to start off with) doesn't mean it's weak or otherwise hindered.
Python is used in games, small and large. It's used for the backends of websites. It's used as a programming language, and as a scripting language.

But that didn't really answer your question.

What do you learn after Python? Well, after sticking with Python for two or three years (which is what I recommend), the landscape of what is in style, and what people recommend, what is new, and what is stable and mature, may have changed.

After you learn Python, you'll either already have picked up what to learn next, or else you'll be better equipped to ask here or elsewhere for suggestions.

Maybe C#. Maybe C++. Maybe something entirely different. But even 10 years from now you'll still use Python in addition to whatever else you learn - whatever tool is best suited for whatever project you are undertaking at that distant point in time.

I bought a book called something like Android 4 Games Programming (can't remember the exact title). It was really good. You start with super basic xml games and finish with more complicated directX games. Books like these go through every single step from vector calculations into game logic. Youtube and other online tutorials can be quite "cheesy" in the sense that they talk a lot about something, but leave very essential items out. Books are good since there are versions of them and they are thoroughly reviewed before let out on the market. So save yourself some time (=money) and go buy one of these books. There is probably one for each language/platform at Amazon. I chose Android since it's based on Java (popular language) and all the development tools are free. If you choose something like C# or any Apple languages you might have to pay some for the development tools.

• You don't have to pick Android programming - but buy a good book!

I just wanted to know what in your opinion is what makes up the bulk of a game.

Still not sure what the question is. Bulk of time it takes to make a game? Bulk of cost involved in making a game? Bulk of code on a disc? Bulk of work it takes to make a game?