Ask HN: Which programming games helped you become a better programmer?

#1

Post by gpa » Sun, Jun 05, 2022, 3:27 PM UTC

There are numerous programming games available that claim to teach you how to code. However, I couldn't find any posts on HN that confirmed or denied their usefulness. Except this one, but it's from 5 years ago: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13566247

1. Are there any good beginner programming games in widely used programming languages (like C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, Python, PHP)?

2. Are there any programming games that have helped you become a more advanced programmer (or a better programmer)?

I am interested in games that are not just fun, but also teach you programming useful in the real world (maybe not directly, since it's a game, but still).

Re: Ask HN: Which programming games helped you become a better programmer?

#2

Post by latency-guy » Sun, Jun 05, 2022, 4:19 PM UTC

If you're willing to be charitible of where exactly programming comes in while playing a game - I would say creating cheats or bots for video games.

These days, you will most likely have your account restricted and banned from an entire ecosystem of games if you try this, but back in the days where flash was dominant you could do lots of fun things with little risk. Many fun times in Runescape making dollars off my bots that ran air runecrafting bots, or Fist of Guthix bots in F2P and selling the GP I got for the rewards. Does not need to be very complicated either IMO.

For a direct answer, I think Minecraft has a lot of options for learning programming without really learning programming. I have never played it but I have seen what others have done in what I believe is creative/builder mode.

Re: Ask HN: Which programming games helped you become a better programmer?

#3

Post by MarioPython » Sun, Jun 05, 2022, 4:20 PM UTC

2 games come to mind...

- Turing complete: helped me understand how a computer works, how binary works and what the instructions and operations look like at the hardware level

- Factorio: helped me understand broader aspects like availability, fault tolerance, decoupling, team management, prioritization.

Re: Ask HN: Which programming games helped you become a better programmer?

#4

Post by itake » Sun, Jun 05, 2022, 4:22 PM UTC

leetcode.com is an interesting puzzle game and is language agnostic.

Re: Ask HN: Which programming games helped you become a better programmer?

#5

Post by jzellis » Sun, Jun 05, 2022, 4:22 PM UTC

Goretek and the Microchips, but y'all probably a little young for that. :-D

Re: Ask HN: Which programming games helped you become a better programmer?

#6

Post by 32kfjh23 » Sun, Jun 05, 2022, 4:22 PM UTC

Check out flexbox froggy. There are good games about git too. I tried the Twilio games but I think those are better for young kids. It takes too long.

Re: Ask HN: Which programming games helped you become a better programmer?

#7

Post by madmax108 » Sun, Jun 05, 2022, 4:22 PM UTC

Maybe not an exact answer to the question being asked, but when flexbox was first introduced a few years back, I remember being quite overwhelmed by it, but the game that helped me "grok" it was Flexbox Froggy: https://flexboxfroggy.com/

Even now, when I am working with frontend designs, I sometimes am mentally picturing my elements as frogs that need to be placed in the right place :D

Re: Ask HN: Which programming games helped you become a better programmer?

#8

Post by gediz » Sun, Jun 05, 2022, 4:24 PM UTC

I think some of the Zachtronics games may be helpful to learn about Assembly.

Re: Ask HN: Which programming games helped you become a better programmer?

#9

Post by heliophobicdude » Sun, Jun 05, 2022, 4:28 PM UTC

Factorio.

Factorio doesn’t exactly have code. However, it’s very much a game about systems, and how to efficiently build and manage them.

In fact, Shopify expensed the game for their employees [1]

1: https://twitter.com/tobi/status/1294330081452666882

Re: Ask HN: Which programming games helped you become a better programmer?

#10

Post by js8 » Sun, Jun 05, 2022, 4:29 PM UTC

I learned Forth thanks to Minecraft RedPower2 mod. Whether it actually made me a better programmer can be disputed.

I don't think any game will make you a better programmer. It can get you interested, sure, but becoming a better programmer is only so much related to having in-game fun, and is often a matter of more self-discipline.