Not all games are released equal. The barriers of language and culture can leave our world divided, and this includes the video games that we get the chance to play. Matt Barnes, Dazz Brown and Greg Seago-Curl of DidYouKnowGaming? created the YouTube series Region Locked to offer an insight into the weird and wonderful titles that never left their home countries, and now they bring their expertise to you, the gaming reader. Encounter masterpieces you never knew existed from your favourite series and developers, as well as some utterly bizarre creations that seem so outlandish you might wonder how on earth they were released in the first place, from the trippy, meandering dreamscapes of 1998's LSD: Dream Emulator to The Mysterious Murasame Castle, released in 1986 by Nintendo, and the intergalactic adventures of Crime Crackers (1994). The authors explore what it's like to play these games, and investigate the fascinating characters and maverick designers behind them to discover why such remarkable creations never enjoyed international exposure. For the casual gamer, keen developer, intrigued reader and hardcore fan alike, Region Locked is the key to a surreal and adventurous journey through the lost world of video games.

With its unique focus on video game engines, the data-driven architectures of game development and play, this innovative textbook examines the impact of software on everyday life and explores the rise of engine-driven culture. Through a series of case studies, Eric Freedman lays out a clear methodology for studying the game development pipeline, and uses the video game engine as a pathway for media scholars and practitioners to navigate the complex terrain of software practice. Examining several distinct software ecosystems that include the proprietary efforts of Amazon, Apple, Capcom, Epic Games and Unity Technologies, and the unique ways that game engines are used in non-game industries, Freedman illustrates why engines matter. The studies bind together designers and players, speak to the labors of the game industry, value the work of both global and regional developers, and establish critical connection points between software and society. Freedman has crafted a much-needed entry point for students new to code, and a research resource for scholars and teachers working in media industries, game development and new media.

The indie game developer's complete guide to running a studio. The climate for the games industry has never been hotter, and this is only set to continue as the marketplace for tablets, consoles and phones grow. Seemingly every day there is a story of how a successful app or game has earned thousands of downloads and revenue. As the market size increases, so does the number of people developing and looking to develop their own app or game to publish. The Indie Game Developer Handbook covers every aspect of running a game development studio-from the initial creation of the game through to completion, release and beyond. Accessible and complete guide to many aspects of running a game development studio from funding and development through QA, publishing, marketing, and more. Provides a useful knowledge base and help to support the learning process of running an indie development studio in an honest, approachable and easy to understand way. Case studies, interviews from other studies and industry professionals grant an first-hand look into the world of indie game development

Learn to configure a Raspberry Pi into multiple different devices capable of playing retro games. Beyond theory, this book focuses heavily on projects-such as making a console to attach to a TV or computer display and making a tabletop arcade machine. It also teaches you how to install and use the Kodi media center on your retro game player. tart with the big-picture of the Raspberry Pi retro-gaming landscape and the wide range of exciting project opportunities that exist. You'll then discover the various retro-gaming emulation platforms, such as RetroPie and Recalbox, and how to work with ROM files. This book even goes a step further and teaches you how to create game ROMs from your old cartridges! You'll also study the types of game playing equipment people have made using Raspberry Pis and how to set up a Raspberry Pi with those devices. Retro-gaming enthusiasts are using the Pi to make a dizzying variety of game playing hardware. There are players that fit in an Altoids mint tin, players that look like classic systems, and players that let you choose from over 20,000 game titles. And there are emulators for every platform imaginable, and many models available online to download and make on a 3D printer or laser cutter. Raspberry Pi Retro Gaming includes everything you need to know about playing retro games on a Raspberry Pi and making cool machines that play thousands of retrogames. What You'll Learn Use Tinkercad to design your own cases Get your case 3D printed if you don't have a 3D printer Design parts for laser cutting or jigsaw cutting Solder and use electronics components, batteries, and power supplies Select and set up different kinds of displays Who This Book Is For Anyone interested in playing retrocomputer games and making their own retro-game players.

This is the first textbook dedicated to explaining how artificial intelligence (AI) techniques can be used in and for games. After introductory chapters that explain the background and key techniques in AI and games, the authors explain how to use AI to play games, to generate content for games and to model players. The book will be suitable for undergraduate and graduate courses in games, artificial intelligence, design, human-computer interaction, and computational intelligence, and also for self-study by industrial game developers and practitioners. The authors have developed a website (http://www.gameaibook.org) that complements the material covered in the book with up-to-date exercises, lecture slides and reading.

This book constitutes the proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Serious Games, JCSG 2018, held in Darmstadt, Germany, in November 2018. The 15 full and 12 short papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 40 submissions. They were organized in topical sections named: serious games studies; game-based learning and teaching; game development - serious games design, models, tools and emerging technologies; and serious games for health.

Learning C# Programming with Unity 3D, Second Edition is for the novice game programmer without any prior programming experience. Readers will learn how C# is used to make a game in Unity 3D. Many example projects provide working code to learn from and experiment with. As C# evolves, Unity 3D evolves along with it. Many new features and aspects of C# are included and explained. Common programming tasks are taught by way of making working game mechanics. The reader will understand how to read and apply C# in Unity 3D and apply that knowledge to other development environments that use C#. New to this edition: includes latest C# language features and useful tools included with the .NET library like LINQ, Local Functions Tuples, and more! Key Features Provides a starting point for the first-time programmer C# Code examples are simple short and clear Learn the very basics on up to interesting tricks which C# offers

This book presents the most up-to-date coverage of procedural content generation (PCG) for games, specifically the procedural generation of levels, landscapes, items, rules, quests, or other types of content. Each chapter explains an algorithm type or domain, including fractal methods, grammar-based methods, search-based and evolutionary methods, constraint-based methods, and narrative, terrain, and dungeon generation. The authors are active academic researchers and game developers, and the book is appropriate for undergraduate and graduate students of courses on games and creativity; game developers who want to learn new methods for content generation; and researchers in related areas of artificial intelligence and computational intelligence.

Develop and use bots in video gaming to automate game processes and see possible ways to avoid this kind of automation. This book explains how bots can be very helpful in games such as multiplayer online games, both for training your character and for automating repetitious game processes in order to start a competition with human opponents much faster. Some players might use bots for cheating or avoiding game rules to gain an advantage over opponents - a sophisticated form of hacking that includes some elements of artificial intelligence (AI). However, while Practical Video Game Bots considers these topics, it is not a cheater's guide. Rather, this book is an attempt to overcome the information vacuum regarding bot development in video game applications. Through the use of three case study game examples, it covers most methods and technologies that are used by bot developers, and the details of anti-cheating systems. This book provides answers and useful advice for topics such as process automation, reverse engineering, and network applications. Modern bot applications use technologies from all these domains. You will also consider the work mechanisms of different kinds of bots and will write simple prototypes. What You Will Learn Discover bots and apply them to game applications Use clicker bots with OS-level embedding data, output-device capture, and more Develop in-game bots, with process memory analysis and access Work with out-game bots, with network interception and embedding data Deal with input device emulation and OS-level interception data Who This Book Is For Those with some prior experience in game development and coding experience in Python, C++, and Windows APIs.

In the past three decades Finland's video game industry has become the backbone of Finnish cultural export. Angry Birds and Clash of Clans are dominating sales around the world and the small Nordic nation has grown into a gaming superpower. Drawing on more than 60 interviews, this book covers the Finnish video game phenomenon as told by the people behind its success. The history of the industry is documented in detail for the first time. Two hundred game reviews are included, presenting the best (and worst) of commercial video games made in Finland.

This journal subline serves as a forum for stimulating and disseminating innovative research ideas, theories, emerging technologies, empirical investigations, state-of-the-art methods, and tools in all different genres of edutainment, such as game-based learning and serious games, interactive storytelling, virtual learning environments, VR-based education, and related fields. It covers aspects from educational and game theories, human-computer interaction, computer graphics, artificial intelligence, and systems design. The 19 papers presented in the 14th issue were organized in topical sections named: 3D modeling and visualization; image; e-learning and games; and miscellaneous.

Learn how to take your existing knowledge of Ethereum and Solidity to the next level. Hone your development skills and become more familiar with the syntax of the Solidity language by working through well-tested, well-documented intermediate-level sample projects. You will begin by covering the basics of Ethereum, Solidity, and gaming theory. From there, you will move onto sample projects that use smart contract engineering to create fun casino-style games that you can deploy and test on your friends and colleagues with real ether. All games are provably fair and auditable, so that players know the house won't always win! Ideal for any reader with exposure to Ethereum, the techniques this book teaches are applicable to game developers, software engineers, web developers, and cryptocurrency enthusiasts. What You'll Learn Use various features and best practices for smart contract programming in Ethereum and Solidity Develop and deploy games of chance, similar to the kind you'd find in a casino Create fun, easy projects with Ethereum lntegrate the Ethereum blockchain into games Who This Book Is For Entry-level programmers with some exposure to Ethereum; game developers, Blockchain and cryptocurrency enthusiasts looking to add Ethereum and Solidity development to their skill set; software engineers and Web developers

Written by a game developer and professor trained in architecture, An Architectural Approach to Level Design is one of the first books to integrate architectural and spatial design theory with the field of level design. It explores the principles of level design through the context and history of architecture. Now in its second edition, An Architectural Approach to Level Design presents architectural techniques and theories for you to use in your own work. The author connects architecture and level design in different ways that address the practical elements of how designers construct space and the experiential elements of how and why humans interact with that space. It also addresses industry issues like how to build interesting tutorial levels and how to use computer-generated level design systems without losing the player-focused design of handmade levels. Throughout the text, you will learn skills for spatial layout, evoking emotion through gamespaces, and creating better levels through architectural theory. FEATURES Presents case studies that offer insight on modern level design practices, methods, and tools Presents perspectives from industry designers, independent game developers, scientists, psychologists, and academics Explores how historical structures can teach us about good level design Shows how to use space to guide or elicit emotion from players Includes chapter exercises that encourage you to use principles from the chapter in digital prototypes, playtesting sessions, paper mock-ups, and design journals Bringing together topics in game design and architecture, this book helps you create better spaces for your games. Software independent, the book discusses tools and techniques that you can use in crafting your interactive worlds.

This book approaches Location Based Mobile Games from a design perspective, investigating the peculiar traits that make them compelling contemporary practices and challenging fields of investigation. Relying on an interdisciplinary theoretical background and empirical studies, it delves into LBMGs' intertwining theoretical assumptions and describes their translation into practice. The authors examine these games from different perspectives, exploring how they can impact the way we look at our surroundings, their influence on our social dimension, their ability to translate a wide range of information into a game experience, and the negotiations they activate by intertwining two realities. Each issue is addressed from a twofold perspective: that of the designers who craft the games, and that of the users who interpret the designers' choices and take part in the game experience. In so doing, the book covers the relationship between processes of designing and playing, investigating games that communicate through meaningful interactions, share perspectives as forms of narratives, and integrate physicality and surroundings in the play activity. The reasoning advanced throughout the chapters will benefit researchers, designers and entrepreneurs in the field, as it provides a novel perspective on LBMGs, seeks to increase designers' awareness of often-neglected issues, and suggests interpretations and practices that can impact how commercial games are designed.

Learn the fundamentals of Godot by diving headfirst into creating a 2D platformer from scratch. This book is a hands-on, practical guide to developing 2D games using the Godot Engine 3.2.3/3.3, with the help of GDScript. Author Maithili Dhule begins by explaining some basic tools and techniques used to make games, the factors that need to be considered while choosing a game engine, and pointing out the benefits of using Godot. She then walks you through downloading the engine and guides you as you explore key features of its interface. Next, you'll receive a concise introduction to the basics of GDScript, the main scripting language used in Godot, before moving on to essential topics such as Godot's node-scene architecture, the interaction of various physics bodies, the creation of game scenes, and writing scripts. As the book progresses, you'll learn how to create and animate your game character, design the game world, add enemies, and implement a coin-collection system. You'll also see how the user's gaming experience can be enhanced through the addition of parallax backgrounds, a title screen, music, and sound effects. Toward the end of the book, you'll learn how to export your game to different platforms, both mobile and PC, as well as possible avenues for monetizing the game. Throughout the book, theoretical concepts are supplemented with concrete, ready-to-implement examples that you can try out. Upon finishing this book, you'll be able to make and publish your first 2D platform game. Beginning Game Development with Godot is for game development enthusiasts of all levels interested in creating their own games. What You Will Learn Understand the Godot engine and the benefits of using it for game development Master the fundamentals of programming in GDScript Use the Godot graphical interface to design and animate players, the game world, menus, and various games scenes Create your first 2D game in Godot and publish it to various platforms Who This Book Is For Aspiring game developers who may be new to game development, as well as experts exploring the potential of the Godot Engine.

Break into the most lucrative platform in the world by adding HTML5 game development to your current skillset. Zarrar Chishti has trained developers from a wide range of programming disciplines to cross over into HTML5 game development. Whatever your vocation, whether it be an Application Databases Systems developer or a Professional Web developer, with this book you will learn to evolve your current coding skills to become eligible for the biggest gaming platform in the world. From the first chapter you will see encouraging results immediately as you power through a challenging and fun project that has been uniquely designed and developed for this book. With the relentless backing of the giants of the industry including Apple and Google, HTML5 is rapidly becoming the leading technology for game development. Furthermore nearly every mobile device, tablet and PC system offer full support to the latest games developed in HTML5. Never before has there been such a widely accepted platform by literally every manufacturer and operating system. This in turn has convinced marketing departments to move away from traditional platforms, such as dedicated mobile apps, for the more widely accepted HTML5 format. There has never been a better time for a seasoned IT programmer to crossover and capitalize in this lucrative market with their much sought after talents and experience. Take the skills you already have and expand your career into HTML5 development with this book. What You'll Learn Quickly identify the core similarities and differences between HTML5 and other coding standards Follow a large scale game development project to experience the full lifecycle of an HTML5 game development project Download graphics and media to use in sample projects throughout the book Who This Book Is For Professional developers working in application and database development. These seasoned coders, having secured a wealth of knowledge, can transfer that expertise to the growing HTML5 game development market. This book will instantly appeal to this audience as it will not attempt to teach the basics of programming; instead it will simply point out the differences in how to develop with HTML5.

Discover all the new features and changes in Java 9, including module systems-JPMS or Project Jigsaw. This book covers the whole Java application development life cycle. You'll review all the important concepts, including module descriptor, unnamed module, automatic module, and command line tools. Exploring Java 9 also serves as a practical guide for migration to module systems. Code samples from real-world scenarios solidify a foundation for learning and development and allow you to apply best practices in actual development. Additionally, you'll learn about concurrency, ECMAScript 6 features in Nashorn and Parser API, stack-walking API, Stream and Optional, utilities classes, and I/O. And it's now possible to build modularized applications in Java. You'll see how JPMS affects not only the JDK itself, but also applications that are developed upon it. What You'll Learn * Build modularized applications in Java * Migrate to module systems * Master enhanced method handles Who This Book Is ForJava developers with basic development skills

To the casual observer, similarities between fan communities and religious believers are difficult to find. Religion is traditional, institutional, and serious; whereas fandom is contemporary, individualistic, and fun. Can the robes of nuns and priests be compared to cosplay outfits of Jedi Knights and anime characters? Can travelling to fan conventions be understood as pilgrimages to the shrines of saints? In this book, essayists investigate fan activities connected to books, film, and online games, such as Harry Potter-themed weddings, using The Hobbit as a sacred text, and taking on heroic roles in World of Warcraft. Young Muslim women cosplayers are brought into conversation with Chaos magicians who use pop culture tropes and characters. A range of canonical `texts'- including Supernatural, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Sherlock-are examined in terms of the pleasure and enchantment of repeated viewing. Popular culture is revealed to be a fertile source of religious and spiritual creativity in the contemporary world.

Drawing on extensive research, this book explores the techniques that old computer games used to run on tightly-constrained platforms. Retrogame developers faced incredible challenges of limited space, computing power, rudimentary tools, and the lack of homogeneous environments. Using examples from over 100 retrogames, this book examines the clever implementation tricks that game designers employed to make their creations possible, documenting these techniques that are being lost. However, these retrogame techniques have modern analogues and applications in general computer systems, not just games, and this book makes these contemporary connections. It also uses retrogames' implementation to introduce a wide variety of topics in computer systems including memory management, interpretation, data compression, procedural content generation, and software protection. Retrogame Archeology targets professionals and advanced-level students in computer science, engineering, and mathematics but would also be of interest to retrogame enthusiasts, computer historians, and game studies researchers in the humanities.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 6th International Conference on Games and Learning Alliance, GALA 2017, held in Lisbon, Portugal, in December 2017. The 16 revised regular papers presented together with 6 poster papers were carefully reviewed and selected from 45 submissions. The papers cover topics such as games in education and training; games for health and special children; augmented and virtual reality; methods and tools (for desing and development); and poster abstracts.

Use Java 9 and JavaFX 9 to write 3D games for the latest consumer electronics devices. Written by open source gaming expert Wallace Jackson, this book uses Java 9 and NetBeans 9 to add leading-edge features, such as 3D, textures, animation, digital audio, and digital image compositing to your games. Along the way you'll learn about game design, including game design concepts, genres, engines, and UI design techniques. To completely master Java 3D game creation, you will combine this knowledge with a number of JavaFX 9 topics, such as scene graph hierarchy; 3D scene configuration; 3D model design and primitives; model shader creation; and 3D game animation creation. With these skills you will be able to take your 3D Java games to the next level. The final section of Pro Java 9 Games Development puts the final polish on your abilities. You'll see how to add AI logic for random content selection methods; harness a professional scoring engine; and player-proof your event handling. After reading Pro Java 9 Games Development, you will come away with enough 3D expertise to design, develop, and build your own professional Java 9 games, using JavaFX 9 and the latest new media assets.What You'll Learn Design and build professional 3D Java 9 games, using NetBeans 9, Java 9, and JavaFX 9 Integrate new media assets, such as digital imagery and digital audio Integrate the new JavaFX 9 multimedia engine API Create an interactive 3D board game, modeled, textured, and animated using JavaFX Optimize game assets for distribution, and learn how to use the Java 9 module system Who This Book Is For Experienced Java developers who may have some prior game development experience. This book can be for experienced game developers new to Java programming.

A fun and lively look at the mathematical ideas concealed in video games Did you know that every time you pick up the controller to your PlayStation or Xbox, you are entering a game world steeped in mathematics? Power-Up reveals the hidden mathematics in many of today's most popular video games and explains why mathematical learning doesn't just happen in the classroom or from books--you're doing it without even realizing it when you play games on your cell phone. In this lively and entertaining book, Matthew Lane discusses how gamers are engaging with the traveling salesman problem when they play Assassin's Creed, why it is mathematically impossible for Mario to jump through the Mushroom Kingdom in Super Mario Bros., and how The Sims teaches us the mathematical costs of maintaining relationships. He looks at mathematical pursuit problems in classic games like Missile Command and Ms. Pac-Man, and how each time you play Tetris, you're grappling with one of the most famous unsolved problems in all of mathematics and computer science. Along the way, Lane discusses why Family Feud and Pictionary make for ho-hum video games, how realism in video games (or the lack of it) influences learning, what video games can teach us about the mathematics of voting, the mathematics of designing video games, and much more. Power-Up shows how the world of video games is an unexpectedly rich medium for learning about the beautiful mathematical ideas that touch all aspects of our lives--including our virtual ones.

The first in the field to focus on the key aspects of videogames themselves as a distinctive medium, this is a rich and original read for gamers as well as students and researchers of popular culture internationally, which reviews the passionate gamer/game relationship viz all types of games from "Doom" to "EverQuest". Videogames now rival Hollywood cinema in popularity and profits and there are huge followings for titles such as "Tomb Raider" or "The Sims". Exactly what games offer, however, as a distinct form of entertainment, has received scant attention. This book is a valuable contribution to this new field. Its main focus is on key formal aspects of games and the experiences and pleasures offered by the activities they require of the player. A wide range of games are considered, from first-person shooters to third-person action-adventures, strategy, sports-related and role-playing games. Issues examined in detail include the characteristics of gameplay and its relationship with narrative, genre, virtual landscapes, realism, spectacle and sensation. Lively and accessible in style, this book is written for both an academic readership and the wider audience of gamers and those interested in popular culture.

The Game Design Deep Dive series examines specific game systems or mechanics over the course of the history of the industry. This book examines the history of jumping - one of the oldest mechanics in the industry - and how it has evolved and changed over the years. The author looks at the transition from 2D to 3D and multiple elements that make jumping more complicated than it looks from a design perspective. Key Selling Points: The first in a series of books that focus entirely on a singular game design system or mechanic, in this case: jumping. A perfect read for anyone interested in understanding game design, or just curious from a historical standpoint. A must read for anyone interested in building their own platformer or just interested in the history of the game industry's most famous game mechanic. This book is a perfect companion for someone building their first game or as part of a game design classroom. Includes real game examples to highlight the discussed topics and mechanics. Joshua Bycer is a Game Design Critic with more than seven years of experience critically analyzing game design and the industry itself. In that time, through Game-Wisdom, he has interviewed hundreds of game developers and members of the industry about what it means to design video games. He also strives to raise awareness about the importance of studying game design by giving lectures and presentations; his first book was titled 20 Essential Games to Study.

Game of X v.2 is the story that leads up to Xbox. It is a story of DOS games, Microsoft culture, the crazy stories around the development and promotion of DirectX and the graphics standards that were required for Xbox to happen. Stories based on dozens of interviews include a colorful cast of characters and some solid technical background. The history of games for DOS and the initial challenges of Windows, the surprising source of the earliest Windows games, and much, much more. This is the fascinating prequel to Game of X v.1: Xbox. Key Features Game of X v.2 is the story that leads up to Xbox. It is a story of DOS games, Microsoft culture, the crazy stories around the development and promotion of DirectX and the graphics standards that were required for Xbox to The history of games for DOS and the initial challenges of Windows, the surprising source of the earliest Windows games, and much, much more. This is the fascinating follow-up to Game of X v.1: Xbox Stories based on dozens of interviews include a colorful cast of characters and some solid technical background.