Hello! I’m a newbie as far as video game development goes, and I suppose to Java as well. Maybe intermediate. I’ve been programming in a couple of classes and in spare time since 200…5? -ish? So, I understand a lot of basic programming concepts and thought processes, but not a lot of the lower-level science and engineering, and most of my experience is in Java. I leave it to you to label my skill level.
I wanted to join this forum because it’s one of the two places I’ve frequently found answers while Googling for my own questions, because it only seemed right that as a person trying to make a game in Java I should join a Java game dev forum, and because I have questions. So, thanks for having me (so far!).
My question right now is, what risks (in terms of licensing, cross-platform compatibility, and system requirements) and learning curves am I in for if I switch to OpenGL rather than throwing BufferedImages onto an AWT Canvas and a BufferStrategy with Graphics2D?
Background: I’m trying to make a pseudo-isometric, 2d, tactical RPG. It is intended to be a commercial release, however long it takes us to get there. I’m developing in Java 6 SE, with nothing extra at the moment because licenses scare me, and I honestly don’t know how distributing it would work once I go beyond the built-in stuff. I’d really love it to run at no work for the user on Windows XP and onward, recent versions of Mac OS X, and the more popular Linux distributions. I’d love for it to run at at least 30fps on my 1.6GHz netbook. So, I’m casting a pretty broad net. The OpenGL question is being pressed because our Illustrious Art Director is very interested in using Sprite Lamp for dynamic lighting. I got the game to process a normal map (this one) to light a blank, grey square that covers maybe 2/3 of the game window, but this dropped the fps from 174 to 7 on my mid-range machine.
If anyone is interested in giving advice or suggestions on OpenGL or alternate routes (I could post my normal mapping code), or just a link to a topic I’ve missed where this has been covered before, I’d appreciate the help.
Thanks, and hope that question wasn’t too demanding for a newcomer!