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Free resources, paid courses or a degree? A comparison of game programming classes online on cost, time, practice quality and job signal, plus what to build to prove your skills.

A loss is a result, not a reason. Learn to break a lost match into parts, read a bot's log and replay, and spot the pattern in the numbers, then use the same habit at school, work and home.

A 30-day ladder of Python practice problems for beginners, from basic drills to a first game, optimization and dynamic programming, with a readiness check that tells you when to move up a rung.

Ten small JavaScript projects in a fixed order, from a counter to a memory match game, each teaching one core concept, with a concrete extension for every one.

Putting off a task often means the first step is too big. Here's how a two-line robot program, then one change at a time, trains the habit of starting before you feel ready.

Five intermediate Python challenges with worked solutions, the wrong approach each one tempts you into, and the one reasoning move behind most interview questions.

Robocode for Java, Screeps for JavaScript, CodinGame, CodeCombat, Scratch and thebotslam in the browser. Match a coding game to the language you're learning, and know what it won't teach you.

Scratch, CodinGame, Robocode, Screeps or thebotslam? Match a coding game to how you learn, your language, your device and your budget, then know what to do when you outgrow it.

Finished the C tutorials but freeze at a blank file? Thirty days of sequenced drills, from syntax to pointers to a capstone, all in a free browser compiler.

Good beginner coding challenges give fast feedback, a clear win condition and fit in one sitting. Here's a progression from input/output to a bot brain, in Python, JavaScript, Java, C# and C.

Answers to 50 common questions, API stubs for your own editor in every language, and a coding sample for every part.

News from thebotslam, the robot programming game: new parts and features as they ship, tournament news and tips for coding better bots.

The grapple's cable now bends round walls and blocks, and its hook is faster and homes on enemies ahead.

Tournaments for teams of your own bots: $5 a team, a best-of-three knockout at Capture the flag, and the winner takes 80% of the entry fees.

A step-by-step tutorial builds your first robot, codes its brain in Python a few lines at a time, and tests it in the robot simulation. Plus Brain code's new Test arena.