Web-Based Game System using the Java Programming Language: The Reality beyond the Technology

There are hundreds of web-based game systems available on the Internet. Flash versions of classic arcade and popular role-playing games are now plying the game screens of your personal computer display. And mind you, these web-based game systems are created and developed by individuals who have devoted some of their time in studying different programming languages to come up with new and better versions of existing web-based game systems.

One of the popular programming languages used in creating and developing web-based game systems is the Java programming language. In fact, it is preferred by most online game developers than the Shockwave and C++ programming languages.

Java is an object-oriented programming language designed by James Gosling together with his colleagues at the Sun Microsystems (a computer-vending company that is famous in developing innovative technologies) in the early 1990s. One of Java’s distinctions on other programming languages is that it is generally designed to be compiled to the conventional machine code or to be interpreted from a so-called source code (series of statements that are written in the form of human-readable computer-based programming language) at runtime. Java is compiled through a byte code and later run by a Java virtual machine.

As previously mentioned, most online game developers prefer Java programming language than Shockwave (preferably due to some of its obsolete features) and C++. You will notice that Java is somewhat related to C++ (Java’s syntax is derived from the C and C++ programming languages) yet it has a simpler object model. In contrast, C++ was considered to have certain complexities and when used bears more errors that cannot be fixed immediately.

Aside from the aforementioned disadvantages of C++ as the main programming language for a web-based game system, it also lacks the capability of programming distribution. James Gosling and his Sun colleagues want to develop a system that could be used on different platforms, that is from personal computer systems to hand-held digital devices.

Java became operational on web-based applications in 1994. Gosling felt that the Internet would become interactive soon, thus it is the environment that will work perfectly for their programming language.

And they have proven it right. Java is one of the popular and well-used platforms not just on web-based game systems but on other Internet-based applications as well.

Suddenly, many online game developers realized the potential of Java programming language with regards to the creation of web-based game systems. Although Shockwave replaced Java as the well-known platform for web-based game systems, Java is still the popular choice among web-based game developers. Java’s popularity increased with the Netscape’s decision of using the programming language with their net browsers.

Yahoo has been credited in terms of producing Java-enabled web-based games. In fact, they have allotted a portion of their website (which is the Yahoo Games) where the players can play Java-enabled games by themselves or with an online opponent. Most of Yahoo-produced games are Java applets, and some can be downloaded direct to your computer. There are reviews about Yahoo games where gamers can post their experiences and thoughts about Java-enabled games. Thus, Yahoo became one of the eminent promoters of web-based game systems that are produced using Java programming language. You name it; Yahoo got it—from sports to card games.

Despite of the popularity of Java as the main programming language for web-based game systems, there are still criticisms that arose. One is that Shockwave possess a 3D engine which is considered to be more powerful than the Java’s two-dimensional engine. Others have complains with regards to the “semi object-oriented programming language”. There are also game developers who found out that Java-enabled game system run slower on programs written using other programming languages.

Although there are complaints revealed concerning the use of Java, it is still the most popular programming language used for the creation and development of web-based game systems. Various innovations integrated with this programming language allow game developers to produce web-based games that are higher in quality and in graphical detail. Thus, with the sufficient knowledge and expertise in Java programming language, you will be able to arrive with a high quality web-based game system.