   what books or tutorials are available
What Framework , API is best for creating an online 2D desktop game ( multiplayer ) ? I started studying XNA but I am discouraged because the book tells me that XNA studio has to be installedon any computer PC using the built app . I can't really expect that from the users . I have some programming experience ( mostly web and database ) but i am new to games and online games .Trying to find tutorials , books etc. best to learn from to build what I want .
Use a game engine with 2D support and built-in networking. Unity probably comes the closest. There are also versions of cocos2d that might work out. Especially if you want "in a browser" although there are also C++ versions of the library.;Yeah thanks, I was looking at Unity ... So how does a framework like Unity compare performance-wise toa lower level language like C++ with SDL ? Is there is significant speed/lag difference that users would notice ?Also would unity be suitable for building a game lobby where users can pick a game to sit on ?;There would be no noticable difference in performance unless you are making the next GTA or Drakes Uncharted.