Programming Progress: The Evolution of Coding Languages in the Gaming World

Video games entertain millions of people with their engaging visuals, captivating storylines, and intuitive mechanics. Some games can also increase your cognitive, social, and emotional skills.

If you’re really good at a game, you can turn it into a source of income. Lots of people have done it, some of whom earn thousands of dollars monthly streaming content on Twitch and YouTube.

For a game to captivate its target audience, everything about it has to run smoothly. The visuals should be beautiful. The mechanics must work efficiently and the storyline has to be sensible.

On top of that, operators must make it affordable. In the iGaming industry, casinos use promotions like the BetUS no deposit bonus codes to attract new customers. In video games, most developers market new games using the freemium model.

In this article, we'll delve deeper into the coding aspects of online games throughout history. Discover how code for gaming evolved from Assembly Language in 1949 to Java, Python, and C++ in 2024. Let's get started:

Assembly Language—1940S to 1990s

Developed in 1949, Assembly Language is a low-level coding language created to simply program. The first iteration of Assembly Language used mnemonic codes to simplify the programming process.

In the 1950s and 1960s, Assembly Language evolved from the use of vacuum tubes to integrated circuits. Programming also became more efficient. When the microprocessor came out in the 1970s, AL evolved further to meet the demand of new developers.

In the game space, Assembly Language was popular among arcade game developers like Atari, casino software companies, and Indie developers. Although the language is no longer popular among developers, it is still in use.

Rollercoaster Tycoon 1, 2, and Age of the Empires are examples of modern video games coded in Assembly Language. Ensemble Studios created AOE in AL for speed and efficiency reasons.

C++, Objective C—1983

C++ is one of the most popular video game programming languages in the world. Almost every major video game has been designed using this language: Assassin's Creed III and IV, the Witcher, Fireball, The Elder Scrolls V, Half-Life 2, Doom, Doom II, III and Doom Eternal, and Call of Duty: Black Ops II.

Danish programmer Bjarne Stroustrup created C++ as an extension of the C language. C++ is a mid-level coding language, meaning it combines low-level languages like Assembly with high-level languages like C.

C++ has countless applications, from finance and digital security to video games and manufacturing. The first variation of C++ came out in 1983 while Bjarne was working at Bell Labs. It added classes, abstraction, and inheritance to the C Language.

Over time, developers have improved C++ with the addition of features like virtual functions, keywords, and multilingual support.

Python—1991

Python is a high-level programming language created in 1991. Developer Guido Van Rossum named the language after the famous British comedy series, Monty Python’s Flying Circus.

Although Guido developed Python alone, he's had a lot of help in popularizing the coding language globally. Python is one of the simplest languages to learn as a beginner. It is particularly popular in the fields of Artificial Intelligence, IT, finance, education, entertainment and manufacturing.

Although Python is more popular in IT and AI, some game developers use this language to create their games. Here are some of the most famous video games created using Python—Slay the Princess, Star Trek: Bridge Commander, Unknown Horizons, and Battlefield 2.

Because of its simplicity and efficiency, Python's popularity keeps growing. In a recent study of popular programming languages, Python emerged first. That means its future in the game development space will only increase.

Java—1995

When it comes to creating Android mobile apps, no language is as popular as Java. James Gosling created Java in 1995 with the Internet of Things in mind. As the Internet became popular, Gosling and his team made the World Wide Web their primary target.

Java revolutionized coding. It didn’t need a special compiler to help different computers understand code. Java’s Runtime Environment (JRE) made everything simple for computers. Developers could create code for different platforms and devices efficiently, including mobile phones.

Over time, mobile game developers adopted Java to help create apps for Android, iOS, Windows, and other Operating Systems. Java is an open-source language, meaning developers can make suggestions and fix issues should they come up.

Java is so popular in the mobile game space that it is essential to learn for every mobile game developer. Here are some of the biggest mobile games created in Java:

• FIFA 06, 09, 10 and 11
• Wakfu
• World Series of Poker: Pro Challenge
• DOOM II RPG
• Minecraft

C#—2000

C# is a blend of C and Visual Basic. Developers at Microsoft created C# in the same year they released Visual Studio and .NET Framework. At the time, these products were closed-source; meaning Microsoft had a monopoly over their development.

Over time, Microsoft made C# open-source, leading to its widespread popularity around the world. In the world of gaming, C# is popular among games created with the help of the Unity Game Engine. Examples include Call of Duty: Mobile, Firewatch, Fall Guys, and Cities Skyline.

Swift—2014

Swift was Apple's answer to GO, a Google-owned programming language that helped launch Dropbox, Uber, and Google Products. Apple created Swift to replace C, C++, and Objective C.

Despite being a new language, it has been used to create some highly popular apps on Apple. Examples include Tinder, Microsoft Outlook, Walmart for iOS, Hulu, and Starbucks.

Although Swift is popular among iOS developers, it is not the first choice for game creators. The explanation is simple. Swift targets Apple products. Yet, many video games are created for cross-platform gaming.

HTML5—2014

Tim Berners-Lee, the man who launched the WWW, also created the first version of HTML in 1993. HTML helps developers create functional websites. The languages evolved over time to improve web interoperability among apps.

The most recent version of HTML came out in 2014. HTML5 changed web development completely. Under this scripting language, Adobe Flash was no longer necessary.

Instead, developers could create websites and applications using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. They could also develop websites capable of running on mobile devices.

As a game development language, HTML5 is limited to browser games. Some of the most popular browser games written in HTML include Tetris, Clumsy Bird, and Pacman.