Re: want to study another programming language
Python is easier than _javascript_ is easier than Java is easier than C++. I can't comment on C# or .net or purebasic (but it sounds like Purebasic is basically "C but with most of the work already done", so I'd tentatively put it above Java based only on hearsay).
C++ can be quite hideous at times. Camlorn once described it and C as beasts to be tamed, which seems like an apt description. It's more or less the professional, low-level language that can get you jobs, but it's a hassle and two halves if you don't really need it. And you don't.
I've used pre-HTML5 _javascript_ for games. I can't comment on how things have changed in the ensuing 6 or so years, but I have noticed an increase in the complexity of source code for web pages, and didn't really feel like getting into it. Also, _javascript_ sound anywhere but Android is effectively non-existent.
I was working prim arily in Java when I started posting at audiogames.net. I switched to BGT primarily because distribution was a horrible mess, but I've since discovered that java sound has only gotten worse with time (It's like they abandonned it in favor of letting people just use OpenAL). Also, Java Accessibility is extant, but overly complex to implement.
Python is much cleaner than Java all around. (Really, my only complaint is the lack of the switch statement and the rearranging of the ternary operator. Well, that, and if I screw up the indentation at any one point it's easy to get lost.) Pygame's sound isn't all that great (Camlorn keeps telling me to try pyo, but my attention span keeps giving out every time I try to learn how to use it), but it's good enough if you only need pan and volume. I am not a fan of dependency scavenger hunts (let's not even get into building things from source), but there are only a few libraries you'd really need, and for the most part, they're pretty simple to use once installed.
Mostly, I'm leaning toward Python. You'd probably want to install Pygame, accessible_output2, probably wx (I dunno, I haven't looked into that one much, but it'd probably help with GUI elements), and numpy if you want to do a ton of math with lots of arrays (which you probably don't, but eh).
(Pygame's audio might be meh, but its 2D drawing is very nice. It lacks gradients or the ability to play with complex geometry outside of drawing, but it's wonderful for handling images. A mix of BGT and Pygame would probably be a perfect high-level engine for 2D games.)
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