New to console programming

[cglcoder]

Hi, all, let me tell you this is a great community. I can't wait to get involved.

I always thought making console games was out of my reach until I discovered the M3 Real. I've seen a lot of great homebrew, but I'm still lost. Here's the scoop:

I make Win/Mac games... most of them aren't great, but I have an idea for an online or semi-online RPG that would be great on DS. I know I can program it for PC, but I'm lost as to what to do about the DS. I understand most DS code is C++, but I can't say I know much more.

Is there a manual somewhere for DS programming that I've missed?

What about porting my older games to get my bearings?

Is there anything I need to know about the .nds extension?

Sorry about all the questions, but I'm at a loss.

Thanks, all.

[DanTheManMS]

The GBADev forums would be a good place to start, and the GBAtek page has all the documentation you should need on the DS hardware itself. Make sure you have a decent grasp of C++ to begin with before working on the DS.

If you're willing to spend a bit of extra time, check out the TONC tutorials for GBA programming, as they're considered some of the best. Most of the knowledge gained there can be used on the DS as well with little to no modification.

Of course, take my advice with a grain of salt as I've never actually programmed anything for the GBA or DS with C++. I've used Dragon BASIC for the GBA a few times, but that's about it.

[cglcoder]

Thanks, I'll certainly check that out.