Difficulty of a side-scrolling game in C#

Question

I was just wondering, if I began learning C#, how long it would take until I would be able to make a game utilizing the XNA Game Studio (4.0) and framework to make an XBOX 360 Live Arcade side-scrolling game.

Realistically, I have other priorities too, so I'm just trying to feel out if the "project" is feasible. Obviously, if I wanted to make a full-blown live arcade game, I would need to find a friend(s) who's willing to do some art design, and probably someone(s) who's willing to help code.

Any ideas? The game would be relatively simple, but I would want to make it unique and visually appealing (more on the artsy side here) to make it stand out.

Answer 1

First of all - you might want to consider getting on Xbox LIVE Indie Games (XBLIG) first, and trying to get on Xbox LIVE Arcade later. The latter requires a proper publishing agreement with Microsoft, the former does not.

Giving you a time estimate is very difficult, as has been mentioned. Especially without knowing your level of experience. My last finished game was a technically-fancy platformer, released on XBLIG, with a team of one, and took 4 months to develop. But I started that with years of experience - and I had to make huge cuts in order to fit inside that time limit.

If you have little or no experience, I would suggest starting small. And when I say "you" - this also applies to your team as a whole. Start with making a very small game (tetris, snake, that sort of thing) or two, from start to finish - including distribution of the finished product. This will give you some critical experience and give you a better understanding of what goes into making a game and how long things take.

Finally - rather than estimate - I would recommend you set yourself a time limit and try to schedule inside of that. For an inexperienced team making a platformer, I would say 6 to 9 months is reasonable, depending on how complex you will make it. (This assumes, of course, that you take my advice and try a small game first. For a small game set a limit of, say, 1 month.)

Answer 2

Programming a game with no funding is very very hard.
You should learn how to program a game but don't expect any graphic artist to contribute that easily unless he is getting paid.
If your game gain enough interest and have a demand some artists might contribute.
As with any open source project, you start alone and hope people will contribute as you go.
You should try and learn how to program such a game. Try programming it with little to no graphics at first. Even lines and dots will do.
After the game is functional you might get some interest if the idea is good enough.
Just do it and see what happens.
It will improve your programming skills whether the project succeeds or not.

Answer 3

I would recommend this books which steps you through the process of doing exactly what you want to do:

Building XNA 2.0 Games: A Practical Guide for Independent Game Development (Books for Professionals by Professionals) http://www.amazon.com/Building-XNA-2-0-Games-Professionals/dp/1430209798

The author has made two XBLA games off the same technology: The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile

It is rumored that this XBLA game, Dust, also came from this same book / tutorial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DmSAQwbbig8