You've got Visual Basic up and running and have created a new project. The question is, where to now? It all depends on the decisions that you make. What kind of game do you want to make? Is it a strategy game? A 3D shoot 'em up game? A side scrolling adventure game? An RPG? A 3D adventure game? It all depends on these decisions we make as a programmer.
The first decision you will make is just that. What kind of game are you making?
A 3D game.
A Top-Down/Isometric 2D game.
A Side-Scrolling/Platform 2D game.
If you chose a 3D game, you have chosen the hardest choice. 3D programming requires a variety of math skills, such as trigenometry, and good coding skills, as bad coding will usually result in computer crashing and lost code. Examples of 3D games are Quake I, II, and III, Half-Life, Unreal Tournament and Deus EX. If you chose a top-down or an isometric 2D game, you chose a pretty complicated field. Although not as complicated as 3D, the isometric 2D game requires a Pseudo-3D environment. It requires you to be able to have many graphics, including those which are in the air, behind each other, and sloping up or down. Examples of this kind of game are RollerCoaster Tycoon and Theme Hospital. The side-scrolling/platform/completely top-down games are the easiest, because these games only require 2 dimensions, rather than 3 and 2.5 dimensions, respectively. Since they only require 2d graphics, little math is required other than adding, and subtracting. There may be rare division or multiplication sentences, but the most are the first two of the four mentioned. Examples of this game are Hocus Pocus, Duke Nukem 2, and my soon to come out game, The Knight Brothers.
Now you will need to be specific about the type of game that you are making. If you chose option 2 for the first choice, you must complete this part. Otherwise, you can just read on as the basic setup for #1 and #3 are the same for all types of games in their category.
What type of Top-Down/Isometric game are you making?
A Simulation. (SimCity 2000)
A Turn-Based Strategy Game. (Heroes of Might and Magic III)
A Real-Time Strategy Game. (Age of Kings, Cossacks)
A Role Playing Game. (Can't think of any 2D RPGs..)
For the 3D games, you will need to set up and use a 3D API. Glide, Direct3D, or OpenGL. These are just some of the resources, just off the top of my head. I know almost nothing about anything but OpenGL, and I know little of that. Suffice it to say, you're in for a big commitment when you start a 3D game. I suggest you have prior experience with one of the APIs before you go in head first, 3D game programming.
For Isometric 2D games, you need to either use DirectDraw or BitBlt for your graphics. BitBlt is far easier to use, but DDraw has many more options. Although I use primarily BitBlt, because there are other functions that can go with BitBlt to show all of the features DDraw has. Isometric 2D games are quite simple once you get the hang of the graphics thing. After that, it's almost a walk in the park.
The next question to ask yourself is, what is the topic of your game? Since there are so many you could have, I won't show a list. However, they all fall into simple categories. Do you want a game where cruelty and evil have dominated the world (eg. FF7)? If you do, you will have to suit your graphics, music, sound, and plot accordingly. Do you want a game with no backbone, just a game? Whatever suits your taste, but the prior is usually better and people tend to like these games. But, as I said earlier, it's up to you.
Now to get down the plot. Think up a plot in your head right now. Can you think up a plot, with a history? Where things make sense? How things got the way they are in your game? Probably not, with the fact I gave you about five seconds. This brings us to my next section, Creating a Believable Plot. The next section will show how to make a plot storyboard, and a false timeline, and will show you how to develop believable relationships and tastes. Get ready for the plot section.