Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

The Coding Train VS Screeps

Compare The Coding Train VS Screeps and see what are their differences

The Coding Train logo The Coding Train

Online learning resource for beginner-friendly creative coding tutorials and challenges.

Screeps logo Screeps

Learn to code JavaScript by playing game.
  • The Coding Train Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-14
  • Screeps Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-04-17

The Coding Train features and specs

  • Comprehensive Content
    The Coding Train offers a wide range of tutorials and courses that cover various programming languages and technologies, providing a comprehensive learning resource for beginners and advanced users alike.
  • Engaging Teaching Style
    Daniel Shiffman, the creator of The Coding Train, is known for his enthusiastic and engaging teaching style that makes complex topics more approachable and fun to learn.
  • Community Support
    The Coding Train has a strong community of learners and contributors, providing additional support, collaboration opportunities, and feedback through forums and social media platforms.
  • Free Access
    A significant amount of content on The Coding Train is available for free, making it accessible to learners from different backgrounds and financial situations.
  • Creative Approach
    The platform encourages a creative approach to learning programming by integrating art and visual experiments, which can be particularly appealing to visual learners and those interested in creative coding.

Possible disadvantages of The Coding Train

  • Variable Depth
    While The Coding Train covers a wide variety of topics, the depth of coverage can vary, and some complex topics may not be explored in detail, potentially requiring supplemental resources for thorough understanding.
  • Unstructured Paths
    The coding tutorials and projects are available in a non-linear format, which might be overwhelming for new learners who benefit from a more structured, step-by-step learning path.
  • Focus on JavaScript and p5.js
    Much of the content focuses on JavaScript and the p5.js library, which might not be ideal for learners looking to study other languages or frameworks comprehensively.
  • Limited Interactive Features
    The platform primarily consists of video tutorials, which might not offer the same level of interactivity and immediate feedback as some modern coding platforms with in-browser coding and hands-on exercises.

Screeps features and specs

  • Educational Value
    Screeps teaches real-world JavaScript programming concepts such as algorithms, optimization, and system design in a fun, gamified environment.
  • Real-time Strategy
    It combines elements of real-time strategy games with coding, offering a unique and challenging experience that keeps players engaged.
  • Persistent World
    The game world is persistent and runs 24/7, allowing your code to continue operating and evolving even when you're not logged in.
  • Community and Collaboration
    There is a strong community providing support, sharing code, and contributing to open-source projects related to the game.
  • Scalability
    The game can scale from small, personal projects to large, complex systems, providing ongoing challenges and opportunities for learning.

Possible disadvantages of Screeps

  • Steep Learning Curve
    Beginners might find the game difficult to grasp initially due to the complex mechanics and required programming knowledge.
  • Time-Consuming
    To effectively compete, players often need to invest significant time in optimizing and maintaining their code.
  • Subscription Costs
    While there is a free tier, many features and advanced gameplay elements are locked behind a subscription paywall.
  • Technical Requirements
    The game requires a good understanding of programming and problem-solving skills, which might be off-putting for casual gamers.
  • Server Issues
    There can be server stability and performance issues due to the constant demand and real-time nature of the game.

Analysis of Screeps

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Screeps is a well-regarded game for those interested in programming and strategy.

Why this product is good

  • Screeps offers a unique blend of coding and gaming, allowing players to program real JavaScript or other languages to control in-game units. This not only makes for a dynamic and challenging experience but also provides a learning opportunity for both beginner and experienced programmers. The persistent world means that playersโ€™ projects can continue to evolve, and the community is generally supportive and engaged.

Recommended for

  • Aspiring programmers looking to practice coding in a fun environment
  • Experienced developers who enjoy applying their skills to strategic gameplay
  • Gamers who appreciate a challenge and are interested in games that require long-term planning and execution
  • Individuals interested in AI and automation who want a hands-on approach to learning

The Coding Train videos

No The Coding Train videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

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Screeps videos

Screeps Game REVIEW - Learn JavaScript by Playing - Educational MMO (Math/Programming)

More videos:

  • Review - What is Screeps? - by th_pion
  • Review - Game Developer's Toolbox: Learn programming with Screeps

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to The Coding Train and Screeps)
Education
59 59%
41% 41
Online Learning
14 14%
86% 86
Open Source
100 100%
0% 0
Online Education
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare The Coding Train and Screeps

The Coding Train Reviews

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Screeps Reviews

15 Best LeetCode Alternatives 2023
You also get access to game API and docs of a full-fledged platform on Screeps. Because it uses games as its basis of operation, Screeps is more fun than LeetCode.

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Screeps should be more popular than The Coding Train. It has been mentiond 45 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

The Coding Train mentions (24)

  • p5.js
    He has a knack for picking visual interesting problems/algorithms and his enthusiasm is unmatched. https://thecodingtrain.com/. - Source: Hacker News / about 2 years ago
  • Was BASIC that horrible or better?
    I'd say Scratch is the #1 way kids to day are introduced to programming For parent that have some 8bit experience, Pico-8 (LUA) is also relatively popular. It's basically like running an Apple 2, Atari 800, Commodore 64 as if it booted into LUA instead of Basic. You can trivially draw things, and peak and poke bytes into "Screen memory" if you want to feel like you're "touching the hardware" JavaScript is also... - Source: Hacker News / over 2 years ago
  • Sketch execution issues
    You can always look at the help videos by Shiffman at (the coding train) Specifically: help guide to p5js. Source: about 3 years ago
  • Ask HN: How to teach a kid of 15 Linux and programming
    > how do I get him learning programming in a fun way? Processing / P5.js can be pretty fun to learn. You use a real programming language to create art and animations. With little code you can get a circle on the screen, then making it move, then following your mouse, then adding other shapes, then changing colour depending on some eventโ€ฆ Itโ€™s conductive to experimentation and a way to gradually introduce concepts.... - Source: Hacker News / about 3 years ago
  • Help needed: Rinkeby and other test networks won't appear
    Another great free site https://thecodingtrain.com/ to have in your pocket :D have fun out there! Source: over 3 years ago
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Screeps mentions (45)

  • Open Chaos: A self-evolving open-source project
    When I used to play Screeps[1], a MMO strategy game where you programmed to control your units and buildings, a group of us setup a player that was managed in this exact way called Quorum[2]. If anyone wants to run their own project in this way I open sourced the code to do so under the GitConsensus[3] project. There's a Github App (which may not still work, but if there's interest I'll restart it) and a "run it... - Source: Hacker News / 7 months ago
  • 'World Models,' an Old Idea in AI, Mount a Comeback
    > Fwiw nothing beats โ€˜implement the game logic in full (huge amounts of work) and with pruning on some heuristics look 50 moves aheadโ€™. This is how chess engines work and how all good turn based game ai works. For board games this is mostly true. For turn based games in general, it is not. It's certainly not true to say "all good turn based game ai" works like this. Turn based games where multiple "moves" are... - Source: Hacker News / 11 months ago
  • Show HN: A Competition Game to write bots for the most efficient algo
    Reminds me (in spirit) of screeps https://screeps.com/ - any inspiration? - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • AI Wars โ€“ control your 2d space shooter with AI
    I love the idea of having an AI prompt to write code for the bots. There are already games like https://screeps.com/ or https://store.steampowered.com/app/2060160/The_Farmer_Was_Replaced/ where you program your bot to do things, but they do require some minimal coding experience. Being able to describe behavior in plain english would be pretty cool. However, I think having real-time feedback is a huge part of... - Source: Hacker News / almost 2 years ago
  • Show HN: Engineering Games (List)
    I've heard about Screeps which is close to what you describe: https://screeps.com/. - Source: Hacker News / over 2 years ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing The Coding Train and Screeps, you can also consider the following products

p5.js - JS library for creating graphic and interactive experiences

CodeCombat - Learn programming with a multiplayer live coding strategy game.

Nature of Code - How can we capture the unpredictable evolutionary and emergent properties of nature in software?

CheckIO - CheckIO is a web site with a mission: To teach JavaScript and Python coding skills through a game-playing interface. It is designed to teach new skills or improve existing skills through completing challenges.

Processing - C++ and Java programming at the speed of thought.

CodinGame - CodinGame provides users with a fun and effective way to learn coding that eschews the rigid structure of traditional teaching methods.