A Practical Introduction to 3D Game Development

Description

Bookboon, 2014. — 252 p. — ISBN: 978-87-403-0786-3.DescriptionThis book introduces the reader to the necessary programming skills necessary to develop 2D and 3D computer games. The book lists a number of common game mechanics, and illustrates through examples how these mechanics can be bound to each other to both give the required behavior and allow the player to interact with game elements. Additionally, there is a set of exercises at the end of each chapter that solidify reader's understanding of the content. Chapter and sections are arranged in a non-linear way, which allows the reader to go smoothly from one chapter to another picking only topics of interest. Since programming is the main focus of the book, other content such as 3D graphics might look too simple to be useful for real game development. On the other hand, the code is neatly commented and organized to follow the best practices, which make it reusable, easily modifiable, and scalable for real projects.ContentBasics of Scene Construction- Basic shapes and their properties- Relations between game objects- Rendering properties- Light types and properties- Camera- Controlling objects propertiesHandling User Input- Reading keyboard input- Implementing platformer input system- Reading mouse input- Implementing first person shooter input system- Implementing third person input system- Implementing car racing games input system- Implementing flight simulation input systemBasic Game Logic- Shooting- Collectables- Holding and releasing objects- Triggers and usable objectsPhysics Simulation- Gravity and Collision Detection- Physical player character- Ray cast shooting- Physics projectiles- Explosions and destruction- Breakable objectsAdvanced Game Logic- Doors, locks, and keys- Puzzles and unlock combinations- Health, lives, and score- Weapons, ammunition, and reloadAbout the AuthorYasser Jaffal is A former instructor at the department of computer science of Al-Quds University in Jerusalem. After obtaining his Master's in Computer Science from Science and Technology University in Jordan, he started his PhD. in the same field at Kassel University in Germany. He has qualified for DAAD scholarship for both Master's and PhD. levels and is a member of DAAD Alumni. He is interested in the design and development of serious video games, specifically in the educational field. His current research focuses on employing game analytics to build reliable evaluation models and methods for serious games, as well as effective incorporation of field experts in the process of serious game content development. He also strives to be an active member in supporting the Arabic content in the technical field, and volunteers therefore as a coordinator of Arabic translation community at coursera.org.