Re: [pygame] recommended reading for organizing code / project

[NBarnes <nbarnes@xxxxxxxxx>]

Sean Wolfe <ether.joe@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> I'm looking for something to read about organizing one's code. I'm
> working on a final fantasy-type game, and as the project gets more
> complex I'm starting to think about best practices for development,
> code patterns, code organization and project organization, etc. I'm
> pretty much self taught on python and programming so I missed out on a
> bunch of that I'm sure would be covered by say a CS degree.
>
> I know there are some great books out there, for example Code Patterns
> and Antipatterns. I personally own 'Game Coding Complete' by Mike
> McShaffry and I'm going to take another pass through that.
>
> Any recommendations? Anything that's particularly useful for game
> development? Thanks!!

The issue of code organization is one of the core challenges facing
the modern programmer.  Object Oriented Programming is a paradigm more
or less explicitly dedicated to managing the level of complexity that
a programmer has to understand to accomplish a discrete task.  It does
this by providing useful abstractions that allow large sections of the
entire codebase to be understood at a level sufficient to work outside
of them at a minimal cost to the programmer's brain.  Modern
applications (game and otherwise) are far too complex to hold in one's
head all at once, no matter how able a programmer and designer one is.
 So I would answer that the first step in fixing your problem is
working on your grasp of object-oriented design principles.