As I said, this will be a three-part article with increasing difficulty and elaborateness. Some of those tools you mentioned will actually be featured in part three. :-)

I thank you for your input, but there’s no need to act degrading to the people who don’t want to go all the way. There’s something for everyone.

If you want to make a decent, original game that will stand out in the market, learn C++ and master the Direct3D API. OpenGL will work too, I suggest D3D out of preference. If you prefer a managed environment, the XNA framework is awesome, granted your a seasoned C# developer (it may work with VB, not sure though).

You can also use an engine such as Unreal or Unity (easiest). Don’t attempt game development if you’re afraid of writing code. It’s simply not for you. Too many people try to create a game, half assing it all. Even if you use an engine, you’ll most likely be writing code. Unreal uses a hybrid of C++, called Unreal Script. Unity allows you to use C#, Javascript and Boo, whatever the fuck that is (A python derivative?).

If you’re only making a simple 2D game, you can use DirectDraw which is the Directx 2D rendering API. There are many engines which simplify the process of 2D game development as well.