I'm not sure how much help I can be, but I'd love to lend a hand - I just sort of learned Java, and now I'm working my way through C. Eventually I'll get up to C++ and Visual C++. (I think I might have learned things the wrong way around.)
I'd say you'd probably be looking at using Visual C++ and OpenGL for the 3D graphics stuff. Coding 3D graphics in Java would be a real headache.
I checked around for web-based stuff for code teams, but most of it costs money - maybe someone else will have more luck. I'll be watching...
The Rock Hound