For developing games, you need a lot more than just a compiler. Unless you want to start from scratch, wich I don’t recommend, you’ll need an engine. And since graphics don’t grow on trees, you’ll also need image editing software, perhaps a 3D modeling program, a vector drawing program, etcetera. And let’s not forget audio tools, code and project management, well, you get the idea. You need tools, and lots of them.
Game Developer Tools is a huge directory full of everything you can think of. It contains engines, middleware and books. Everything in divided into categories, so it’s easy to find what you are looking for. For example, there are categories for 2D graphics, 3D graphics, audio, AI, code management, networking, physics, worldbuilding, … The price of each tool is clearly marked for commercial, non-commercial and indie use. Of course, the most interesting type here is “free”!
The engine directory is a lot bigger than I expected it would be. With so many different engines readily available, you have to be crazy to want to write your own! Even text and mud engines are still included, but I don’t think there’s much demand for those anymore. I also assume many of the engines are a bit experimental or permanently in beta, but of course many stable and reliable engines can be found in their directory.
The book directory contains a very impressive selection of books. What pleased me most is that books on The Gimp are included. This is my favourite bitmap editing tool, but the downside is that there’s not that much documentation available. To use it properly, you’ll need to do a lot of searching and asking questions on forums. I’m definitely gonna check out some of the Gimp books!
A downside perhaps is that apparently, there’s no RSS feed to notify you of new additions. If you know good tools or books that aren’t in the directory yet, you can submit them. A very useful website, and definitely worth bookmarking!