Neal Stephenson's Snow Crash has a very rapid-fire, humorous prose style that I think would be well suited to video games.  If you're not into sci-fi, I'd also advise checking out his more mainstream Zodiac.  Both are excellent books.

I don't know if anybody else has this problem, but it's tough to make an aesthetically pleasing main menu while retaining its functionality.  There's just so much space to fill, I never know what to do with it all.
That said, it would be nice to see some examples of really good main menus for reference.  I suppose this could sort of become a hall of main menu fame or something, just to give some interesting ideas for menu design.
I'll start off:
I generally like menus that you can move your character around in, like in Fancypants Adventure or Spelunky.  It's kind of neat to be able to get a bit of a feel for the game before you've even started, and it's far more interesting than just moving a cursor or hitting buttons.  My one problem with it is that it doesn't always work - some more emotionally involving games need the player to be immersed while actually playing.

A good title screen actually means a lot to me.  It shows the developer took care in polishing their product.

Personally, I like to see either cool animation or interactivity in the title screen.  Derek's Spelunky and Brutal Legend are good examples.

I have tried a lot of programming languages in my search for an easier alternative to C++. I found out that Python (Check Pygame) and Processing fits the bill perfectly, at least in my opinion.

I also recommend using Construct as it also uses Python scripting if you want to code advanced stuff.

GOodluck in your search!

Pygame is a great choice.  If you check out their website (www.pygame.org) you'll find plenty of source code to get you started.

But if you are interested in the technical side of game development, knowing more than one language is actually a very good thing.  Keep going with C++ even as you make games in a lighter scripting language.  It will pay off when you start porting your games to other platforms.  For example, I have made a game before in Python/Pygame but then ported it to the iPhone using Objective-C/cocos2D.  Stay flexible.

Conan the Barbarian is great.  Also Yotsuba.  I'm not sure if any comics in the world are more different than those two series.

Putting out prototypes and getting feedback on what is fun and what is not fun.

Absolutely.  Get your game out in front of someone as early in the design phase as possible.  You'll discover problems with your UI, programming bugs, art/sound pieces that aren't really working, but most importantly whether or not your core idea is fun.  The only way to tell if your game is enjoyable or not is to let other people try it out.

After dinner with the family and opening presents I played on TF2 and gave gifts to the server .  Merry Christmas TIGSource.

[I'd second Draknek's recommendation]

So, yes, it should surely be useful learning Python, but don't detach from C++, you'll need it many times again!

I haven't used it for indie work in over a year.  Most of the knowledge is transferrable, so it's not a big deal.  I wouldn't recommend python, because of the horrors of allowing other people to play games made with it (it's not impossible, but it's a royal pain).  So I'd second Draknek's recommendation [as someone who's made cross-platform games in plenty of languages (except python, though I've tried running other people's python games and have heard their shrieks of horror when they finally finish their games and try to get them working on other people's machines)].

Don't let programming anxiety stop you making games.  Lots of people can make games with very little programming knowledge.

The only python-based games engine I'd recommend is renpy, because it automatically builds binaries for all PC platforms (regardless of which one you're on), which is mucho handy

Used as embedded scripting languages, python and lua can both be super handy, and definitely can speed things up (I've only ever embedded lua myself, which I definitely like).  But if you're having trouble finishing anything with C++, it might be worth a break from it and going to a ready-made engine for a bit (no shame in that at all).

Porting games from Python source to executables really isn't as bad as everyone says.  Download the py2exe package and then write a script to make the binaries.  Once you make the script for one game, changing it to work for other games is trivial.

Plenty of companies use Python - especially for cinematic scripting (Blizzard and Maya are probably the most notable).

As far as moving from C++ to Python, you'll find that the syntax is pretty easy to pick up.  Python isn't as close to C++ as, say, Java, but Guido built the original code using C so obviously there are plenty of similarities.

I'd advise you to try Python and see how you like it.  If you are used to programming it shouldn't take more than a weekend to pick up.  Pygame is a great SDL cover to use when making simple games.

For me the best non-indie game was Super Mario Galaxy 2.  Amazing polish.  Although to be honest, this year I still mostly played TF2 .  I guess the way the devs keep releasing content it continues to feel new.

Great news!  Hopefully releasing source code will be a continuing trend among game developers.

IDLE isn't too bad.  Lately I've been switching over to emacs though.

I'll throw in some nominees:

Transformice - certainly the pure most fun I've had all year with an indie game.
Minecraft - for all the reasons noted above.
Saira - beautiful atmospheric platformer.

I posted this in the happy programmer room already, but this is a link I used when learning ObjectiveC/Cocos2D for my game:

http://www.raywenderlich.com/352/how-to-make-a-simple-iphone-game-with-cocos2d-tutorial

I found it to be pretty helpful.

I made a sprite appear on the screen in Cocos2D for iOS. I know it doesn't sound like much, but I've really been struggling to get to grips with Objective-C/Cocos2D. I'm gradually working out how to do things my way

So, I just finished making an iPhone game using Cocos2D.  I found this tutorial very helpful:

http://www.raywenderlich.com/352/how-to-make-a-simple-iphone-game-with-cocos2d-tutorial

I'll throw in a plug for Python.  Very elegant syntax, and there are plenty of modules for doing whatever you want.  Pygame is great, in particular, for prototyping game concepts.  It is also fairly easy to integrate into C/C++ apps.

I will say that the main problem with Python is distribution of your applications to people who don't have an interpreter.  Py2Exe works but takes some time to figure out all of the intricacies.

Galcon (multiplayer real time strategy game) should be on this list.

Flash version:  http://www.galcon.com/flash/play.php
iPhone version:  http://www.galcon.com/iphone/

Current price on the iTunes store is $2.99.

It looks like the OP's plane left over a year ago, but I'll throw in a few iPhone games I particularly enjoy:

• Katamari Damacy
• Plants vs. Zombies
• Galcon

So, I don't actually use Twitter but I do have an instance where I found it to be incredibly useful/cool:

At Pycon in Atlanta this year, the keynote speaker (GVR) answered questions posted to his Twitter feed live from the audience and all over the world.  It was a much better system than just raising hands or waiting in a line...it gave him the ability to pick which questions had more interesting answers.

Anyone else seen a creative use of Twitter?

Hi guys I made a game: http://www.kongregate.com/games/CosmicMaher/after-years-in-dark-tunnels

I think all the bugs are gone, tell me if you find any.

It's my first game, feedback appreciated.

my website is: www.cosmicmaher.com.

thank you

Very interesting, bleak game.  It definitely gives a feeling of exploration.  Your movement / physics engine was fluid and I like what you did with the flashlight effect.

I think depending on the game they certainly can matter.  It's a way to let a single player game still allow competition between players. 

These days the idea of a high score is sort of being subsumed by collecting achievements, though.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_Munchers

Yes!  I remember that game.  Super fun.

I think educational math games are great.  Not only do they teach math, but they also help to acclimate students to computers in general.  Although, that might not be a problem for kids anymore.