Poised Solutions Tech Library

Game Coding Complete

Game Coding Complete Author: Mike McShaffry Publisher: Paraglyph Press Published: 2003 Pages: 580

Game Coding Complete

Game Coding Complete Chapters

Game Coding Complete Chapters

1. Game Programming is Whacky Because
   • The Good
   • The Bad
   • The Ugly
   • It's All Worth it, Right?
2. What's in a Game?
   • Display Technologies: A Quick Overview of the Issues
   • Mixing 2D and 3D Technologies
   • Do I Have to Use DirectX?
   • User Interface Code
   • Resource Caching
   • The Main Loop
   • Other Bits and Pieces
3. Dumb Stuff All Game Programmers Should Know
   • Design Practices You Shouldn't Live Without
   • Smart Pointers and Naked Pointers
   • Using Memory Correctly
   • Game Scripting Languages
   • Mike's Grab Bag of Useful Scripts
   • Well, That Wasn't So Dumb
4. Building Your Game
   • A Little Motivation
   • Creating a Project
   • Source Code Repositories and Version Control
   • Building the Game: A Black Art?
   • Creating Build Scripts
   • Multiple Projects and Shared Code
   • Some Parting Advice
5. User Interface Programming and Input Devices
   • Getting the Device State
   • Working with the Mouse (and Joystick)
   • Working with the Keyboard
   • User Interface Components
   • More Control Properties
   • Some Final User Interface Tips
6. 2D Stuff Every Game Programmer Should Know
   • 2D Drawing and DirectX
   • Basic 2D Drawing Concepts
   • Drawing Text
   • Working with Sprites
   • Graphics Files Formats
   • Conclusion
7. Initialization and the Main Loop
   • Initialization
   • Some C++ Initialization Pitfalls
   • Initializing Your Game
   • The Main Loop
   • Stick the Landing: A Nice Clean Exit
   • Can I Make a Game Yet?
8. Loading and Caching Game Resources
   • Art and Sound Formats
   • Resource Files
   • Data Compression
   • IPac: A Resource File Builder
   • The Resource Cache
   • World Design and Cache Prediction
   • I'm Out of Cache
9. 3D Graphics All Game Programmers Must Master
   • 3D Graphics Pipeline
   • Your DirectX 9 Playground
   • 3D Math 101
   • Enough Math - Please Stop
   • 3D Graphics, It's That Simple
10. 3D Engines
    • Setting Up a Project
    • Using a Scene Graph
    • What's Missing?
    • 3D Middleware Review
    • Rolling Your Own 3D Engine
    • Physics Engines
    • Still Hungry?
11. Special Considerations for Developing Windows Games
    • Do I Have to Use DirectX?
    • What About Microsoft Foundation Classes (MFC)?
    • Windowed Mode and Full-Screen Mode
    • Operating System Specific Stuff
    • 'Designed for Windows' Logo Program
    • Conclusion
12. Debugging Your Game
    • The Art of Handling Failure
    • Debugging Basics
    • Debugging Techniques
    • Different Kinds of Bugs
    • Parting Thoughts
13. The Art of Scheduling
    • Good Schedules, Bad Schedules
    • The Key to All Schedules: Milestones
    • Things to Know Before Scheduling Begins
    • Creating the Schedule
    • Getting It Right
14. Everything (You Hate) to Know About Testing
    • Why Are Games Buggy?
    • Test Plans
    • Scheduling Testing
    • Automated Testing
    • The Bug Database
    • Which Bugs Get Fixed?
    • Statistical Analysis of Your Bug Database
    • The Testing Team
    • The Public Beta
    • A Final Word
15. Driving to the Finish
    • Finishing Issues
    • Dealing with Big Trouble
    • The Light - It's Not a Train After All

Game Coding Complete Appendices

1. Index