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Learning C# and Unity - Where should I begin?

Discussion in 'Community Learning & Teaching' started by FoxxyBox321, Sep 15, 2021.

  1. FoxxyBox321

    FoxxyBox321

    Joined:
    Sep 14, 2021
    Posts:
    6
    Hello all,

    I am currently a Cloud Networking systems engineer, and I'd like to pivot my career into game development with the C# language, along with the unity engine.

    The question is: Where should I start? Are there any mentors available and what resources should I look into?

    I'd like to acquire the Unity related certifications as I go along to validate my skills and credential myself.

    Thank you in advance for the insight and guidance!
     
  2. Check this post.

    And I usually recommend this:

     
  3. Owen-Reynolds

    Owen-Reynolds

    Joined:
    Feb 15, 2012
    Posts:
    1,992
    I'd skip credentials. You're probably credentialed for something now, and know what the tests look like; and how easy it is to pass some of them with a study guide while not actually being any good at the job.

    There are lots of parts to game design, but since you mentioned C# I'm assuming you're interested in programming. Do you brush against javascript, or PHP, or shell scripting in your job? For the most part, programming is programming (and, IMHO, the best Unity programmers are just game programmers who happen to be using C#, for now). I think the worst mistake non-programmers make is trying to learn coding, and the API, and game-engine concepts all at once. If you can use your existing resources to learn general coding, C# and C# in Unity isn't too tough to pick up (but ignore all of the C# "for proper practices..." junk).
     
  4. Zaerick

    Zaerick

    Joined:
    Sep 11, 2021
    Posts:
    37
    I have been recently going through https://www.udemy.com/course/unitycourse/. It has been a long time since I have done any coding and it has been extremely helpful so far. The first two projects you would probably easily skip around the code part if you understand basic code. Currently on the brick breaker one and it is very helpful. They also have a 3d one by the same people I may pick up, though I am partial to 2D designs myself.
     
  5. Owen-Reynolds

    Owen-Reynolds

    Joined:
    Feb 15, 2012
    Posts:
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    Zaerick -- I'd be careful recommending it yet. Say you watch a decent video about changing an oil filter. Now you can repeat those steps on your own car -- that's useful. The thing is, most "project" programming videos tend to follow that same model. At the end, you'll be able to make that brick-breaker game on your own computer. Hmmm....not as useful. Not useful at all.

    The real test of a programming how-to is whether you can go on to make something of your own.
     
  6. Zaerick

    Zaerick

    Joined:
    Sep 11, 2021
    Posts:
    37
    The thing is they are very very clear about that. Throughout the course they have multiple miniquizzes for you to complete a step of the project. They provide you links to the unity docs center. They have multiple projects that you do in a row and keep building on the core fundamentals of the first one. I am still not done with all the courses but I would bet by the last one the amount of mini quizzes where they have you do the part is quite large.

    While it is not the end all of be all of C# it teaches you very clearly the interactions you can do between the two and how they work together. A normal C# course isn't going to tell me I can make a [SerializeField].

    I have taken a lot of programming courses over the last 10 years and this one without a doubt is the best one. The creators are clear with their intention that if you are new to C# and you just watch and type along without trying to do the problem solving or miniquizzes by yourself, the only thing you will learn is how they interact and not some basics of C#.

    They give a boatload of outside resources to help with multiple aspects of your design, including linking to adobe color, which I had no idea was a thing, multiple text sites for TMP, and another super helpful one I cannot remember the name of.

    The real test of a programmer is to go make something of your own, which they have laid the stepping stones for by providing all the information like documents, knowledge on certain unity aspects, and basic understanding of how the C# language works. It is an intro course and a damn good one at that.

    I sound like an ad I know, but this course has reinvigorated my love for game development that I had as a child.
     
  7. Owen-Reynolds

    Owen-Reynolds

    Joined:
    Feb 15, 2012
    Posts:
    1,992
    That's another version of what I was saying -- Project courses mostly make you feel good. Plenty of them _say_ the right things -- you need to practice, and so on, but, again, you can practice changing the same oil filter over and over and that's useful; but for coding they need to provide lots of different-but-similar examples. Also, as I wrote before, teaching coding+moreStuff isn't as good: all that Unity stuff, and color pallets(?) gets all mixed-up and dilutes the coding part. It's also very, very difficult to come up with a real project which has good programming examples; even more difficult to keep using the same project for everything (the author is stuck with "nested loops --- hmmm, how can I add a nested loop to this adventure game?")

    I'm not saying there's anything wrong with the course. It may have been a necessary part of getting many people into using Unity. But when you actually go to make something, check what you use. There may be a copy of "C# for Dummies" you got from the library which actually taught you programming; and all of those links to the Unity Docs may have been just the push you needed to look up whatever you need in the Unity Docs (which are doing the real work of explaining things).