The game libraries like Pygame, Pykre, Pyglet, and PyOpenGL are open-source libraries that are used to create games with Python. These game engines are used to render graphics, sound quality, features of the game, animation, and core functionality of the games developed using Python. Games like War of Tanks, Battlefield-2, Disney’s Toontown, Frets on Fire, and Bridge Commander are famous games built with Python. Apart from Python for game development, it is also used in Machine Learning, Data Science, Healthcare, and website development.
There are millions of games available to play. Most game entrepreneurs are not aware of game development techniques and languages used to build a particular game. Are you aware of game development technologies or languages? Python is a highly preferred programming language used to develop games. Game development in Python is easy because there are several libraries available to render the game. Here we are going to share why Python is good for games.
Table of Contents
Is Python For Game Development Reliable?
Python is one of the best programming languages to facilitate game development. It has quick prototyping and implementation of video games. Python has a neat and clean syntactic structure, which makes it more important than the other programming languages for game design.
90 out of 100 developers will agree that Python codes are easier to understand than Java, C, or C++ codes. Programming games in Python is easy to learn and implementing it makes it more comfortable for beginners. It is an object-oriented programming language, which has high-level data structures. Python supports dynamic typing in conjunction with dynamic programming binding.
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Python was named after Monty Python’s flying circus.
In 2015, Python was more famous than French.
It is similar to the traditional English language.
In star wars, effects were created with the help of Python.
The users of Python are between 18 and 27 years old.
4 out of 5 developers prefer Python language for development.
In 2019, Python was in 2nd place, in searches for programming languages.
Python is one of the official languages used by Google.
There are more than 9000+ python jobs available right now.
Python has been used as a hobby for game developers.
Python Game Development Frameworks
Frameworks are an intentional/initial requirement for game development in Python. Graphics, game sound, and rendering are only possible with the help of Python mobile game development frameworks. Also, frameworks are open-source platforms or lower-level libraries that help to develop core functionality and features of games. With the help of Python, various open-source frameworks were developed that developers can use. These frameworks are used for game development with Python-
1. PyGame
Pygame is one of the most popular libraries used for game development with Python. It is created with the help of OpenGL, Native, C, and Python. With the help of Pygame libraries, multimedia video games are developed on top of SDL Library. It is highly portable and is compatible with all operating systems. Pygame is the library that allows fully-featured video games with Python programming language.
2. PyKyra
PyKyra is another famous library for game development in Python. It is the fastest game development framework that facilitates programming games in Python. PyKyra supports all features of video games like MPEG Video, MP3 and MP4 sound, Ogg Vorbis, etc. It is based on software and SDL, Kyra engines.
3. Pyglet
Pyglet is an open-source, cross-platform windowing & multimedia library used for Python video game development. It is one of the most powerful libraries present in the Python gaming programming language. Pyglet is compatible with MacOS, C, Linux, and Windows and supports OpenGL Graphics, user interface handling, Joysticks, Loading games, playing sound, etc. It runs at 3.5+ Python & Works on other Python interpreters like PyPy.
4. PyOpenGL
PyOpenGL is one of the well-known and commonly used cross-platform Python libraries related to OpenGL & related APIs. It is used as a standard bridge between Python and OpenGL APIs and is compatible with all operating systems like X11, Windows & macOS. It is used to render the game graphics and images. Moreover, audio and videos can also be handled with this library.
5. Kivy
Kivy is a cross-platform library for creating games with Python. It is compatible with macOS, Linux, Windows, Android, and iOS and can use inputs, protocols, and devices. Kivy is powered by the Graphic Technic Unit library which is used to accelerate the speed of Python for game development. It is highly extensible and comes with 20 widgets.
6. Panda3D
Panda 3D is a 3D game engine that offers Graphics, Audio I/O, and other abilities to create 3D video games. It has been developed in the Python programming language. It offers rapid prototyping and fast rendering for the games.
Features of Python for Game Development
Python is a high-level, free open source, dynamic, and interpreted development language. It supports both object-oriented programming and procedural-oriented programming. Moreover, Python for game development is made easier with the variety of features it offers. Let’s take a look-
Features
Description
Easy to Code
Python is a high-level programming language, it is easy to learn for beginners as compared to C++, C, and Java. Anybody can learn python in a few days or a week. It is a developer-friendly language.
Open-source Programming Language
Python is easily available on the official website and anyone can download it from the given link. Also, it is open source which means users don’t need to pay for anything.
Object-oriented Language
Python is an object-oriented programming language and supports object-oriented languages and concepts and classes.
GUI Support
PyQT5, PyQT4, WXPython, or TK modules are used in Python for Graphical User Interface. PYQT 5 is the most popular module for creating the graphical user interface.
High-level Language
The origin of Python is a high-level programming language. In Python codes, we do not need to remember the system architecture nor do we need to manage the memory.
Extensible Language
It is an extensible language. We can write some Python code into C or C++ language. We can compile that code in the C/C++ language.
Portable Language
Python is a highly portable programming language. It means that if we are developing and coding for Windows and want to run that code on Linux or Mac or Unix. That can be done easily. We do not need to create any other code for the other operating systems.
Integrated Language
As everyone knows we can not combine all programming languages with each other but in the case of the Python programming language, we can easily integrate it with C, and C++. Javascript etc.
Interpreted Language
Python codes are executed line by line at a time, so we can say that it is an interpreted language. Other languages like C, C++, Java, etc need to compile the code but in the case of Python codes, we do not need to compile. The source code of Python can be converted immediately from bytecodes.
Extensive Library
Python has a large standard library. With this library, a rich set of modules can be written. Also, the functions are to write your own code for every single component. There are thousands of libraries available for regular expression, until-testing, and web browsers.
Advantages of Python for Game Development
Python for Game Development offers a variety of benefits that makes the developer’s jobs easier. The variety of features and advantages it provides makes it the most preferred programming language for developers.
1. Easy to Use
Game development using Python is easiest because it uses English-like Syntax. It makes it easier to learn code. Also, it is quite easy to write and read. That’s why beginners chose Python game development over C+, C, and Javascript.
2. Enhances Game Productivity
Python is one of the most productive programming languages. Since it is already quite simple to learn, write and read, developers need less time to understand the codes and they can easily develop games early. It increases the productivity of the developers.
3. Interpreted Language
As stated above, Python is an Interpreted language so if there is an error in the code it instantly stops the further execution of the code. Developers do not need to worry about declaring variables and data types.
4. Open-source Language
Python is one of the programming languages that come under the OSI-approved open-source license. This is free to use and distribute. Anyone can download the source code from the website. You can modify the code and even distribute your version of Python.
While Python for game development offers plenty of benefits, there are some drawbacks too. Let’s take a look at the disadvantages of game programming with Python.
1. Slow Processing
As you know Python is an interpreted language and dynamically typed language, the line-by-line execution is the main reason for the slow processing. Python has a dynamic nature so the speed is slow. That’s why Python is not used for purposes where speed is an important aspect.
2. Memory Efficiency is a Major Issue
Game development in Python uses a lot of memory, Python is providing simplicity to the developers and has little tradeoff. If memory consumption is a major aspect for you, it is not the best idea to create games with Python.
3. Lacks Database Access
Python is an easy-to-use and stress-free language but when we are interacting with the database, it lacks certain aspects that are essential for game development.
4. Python Mobile Game Development is Weak
Generally, Python is used in server-side or programming. We do not use Python for client-side or mobile applications because Python is not memory efficient and has low processing power as compared to other programming languages.
Most Popular Games Developed Using Python
There are millions of games developed in Python by game developers, and there are a few games that rock the entire gaming industry. These games had a large versatile player base and played till now.
1. SIMS 4
The Sims 4 is a social simulation video game played over the console. In this game, the player controls Sims and carries out day-to-day chores. This is the 4th game of this series and was developed using Python gaming programming language. It was developed in 2014 and is still going strong.
2. Civilization IV
Civilization IV is a computer game developed in the Python programming language. It is the 4th game of the Civilization series. The popularity of Civilization IV is high and millions of players are still playing this game.
3. Battlefield 2
Battlefield-2 is a first-person shooter game developed in 2005. From that time on, people still love this game. The game features immersive graphics. Battlefield 2 is the second iteration in the Battlefield franchise and was built using game programming with Python. This game is a multiplayer game and is played over the internet or on a local server.
4. World of Tanks
This game is available on PlayStation 4, Android, Windows, Xbox One, and more. It is a multiplayer game and won the title “Multiplayer Game Of The Year”. World of Tanks is one of the popular games with Python.
5. Frets on Fire
Frets on Fire is developed by Unreal Voodoo, it is a free, open-source music video game. This is a highly used and loved game developed in the Python programming language.
Python is one of the most loved programming languages for a beginner. It is not only the most preferred programming language for game development but also has promising career opportunities. It is easy to learn, write and read and can be easily used by anyone. After mastering Python you can easily learn any kind of programming language. Python is registered as an efficient programming language for game development.
Python has many job profiles like Project Manager, Data Analyst, Python developer, game developer, product manager, etc in game development companies.
Final Words
Python game development is always in demand. Thousands of developers use Python for game development. New software and tools are introduced by industry experts every day, same goes for game development using Python. Every day new techniques and platforms are built by developers. Make sure you are aware of these technologies and evaluations about game development. If you want to create a game in Python, your best bet is to hire a game development company like BR Softech.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. What is the cost of Python game development?
Python game development cost is dependent on various factors. On average, it costs around $20,000 to $30,000 to develop a simple game with basic features
Q. Can we use Python for game development?
Yes, one of the best perks of game programming with Python is that it can be used by even beginner developers.
Q. How long does it take to develop games using a 3D Python game engine?
It takes around 3 to 6 months to develop a complex game using a 3D Pyhton game engine.
I am Nitin Garg, founder of BR Softech PVT LTD - an award-winning mobile game development company known for its excellence in the gaming domain. We have a team of 180+ exceptional professionals & we have a satisfied clientele of 2.7k+ globally. Driven by an entrepreneurial spirit, I aim to elevate BR Softech to a billion-dollar company.