Space, war, BASIC and consoles (1960-1969)

The previous article was about early years of video games. It was difficult to point the first video game. In fact, it was impossible. Because several games can be considered as the first video game. Now we are about to dig into the next decade. The 60’s were also important for the game development.

In the 60’s television already became widespread. Every child had been learning about space from television. But their parents were more concerned about the cold war. Computer technology also didn’t stand aside. In the 60’s they invented the mouse, compact disks and floppy disks.

But lets not run ahead. We don’t want to miss a hero of the decade. And the hero of the decade were the consoles. The 60’s became essential for their development. No more computers had the privilege of running games. It all started as a brave but risky idea here in 60s.

Research of entertainment (1947-1959)

We live in a time when video games become an inherent part of a global pop culture. But all these new games sometimes seem not right to me and I start dreaming about what I played in my childhood. I remember them with a very warm feeling. It is true that modern games are better in graphics and have more gameplay features. But their predecessors had this inimitable charm when virtual reality and imagination create together an unforgettable experience of adventure. I love video games and it is very interesting to watch how they are evolving from generation to generation. But history of games is older than I could possibly imagine. I always thought that Pong was the first video game and now I know how far I was from the truth (in fact 25 years far). And now I invite you to join a search of video games origins.

Lets go 60 years back in time where it all started. There are no video games, expos and servers of your favourite MMO are not working yet. It will take quite some time before games become available to common people. There are lots of board games, kids play football on the streets (primitive version of EA’s FIFA) and hangout with real friends.

Image a tile: tiles strike back

In previous article we talked about efficiency of using tiles in games and there was a little example of how to implement a field of tiles. So now is the time to speak about managing tiles. For sure there is a lot of games using tile based concept. And it would be too good to be true if I gave a universal example of a code here. Tile based game can be a RPG, a platform game, a puzzle (my case) etc. And obviously the game mechanics would be different for each genre. Today I’m going to show you a small example of a managing tiles in this huge and cruel world of game development.

Imagine a tile

Using tiles might be quite useful for your game. It makes writing code easier, improves the efficiency of the game mechanics and the graphical stuff becomes less resource consuming.

It doesn’t mean you need to use it in every project (especially not with Call of Duty). But it worked perfectly for my game. Today I’m going to tell you some pros and cons of using tiles. And at the end we are going to talk a bit about how to code them.

Whiskey, Mystics And Men.

In the previous article we established the tools for making games. Now it is time to pick up our first project. It is important to get real hands on experience of a whole process –  from the concept creation to the final build. Prepare yourself to feel sick of your own ideas dozen times. But for now sit back and relax –  I’m going to tell you a story of my first project and how the whole thing began.

From disagreements to unity.

My journey in game development started with C++ and SDL. Back then I was young and naive. Although I learned a lot of useful things about game loops, events and some real horrorshow graphics, but then I realized for each new game I need to develop an engine first. It’s a good practice to learn how games work but coding a game engine for every game is a path of tremendous pain and suffering… It took considerable amount of time to finish something as simple as the Breakeout game. 

SDL is good for sure, but you need something to ease your work on a game. You might think that the most important thing is to start some hardcore coding. I thought so too. However now I don’t think it’s the best way for a game developer. Making games should be fun. It’s awesome when you learn something from each project but don’t forget that games are more about creativity.

Oh, my childhood.

All right guys, our first project is an MMORPG FPS RTS adventure game with Oculus Rift. Yeah… I don’t know where to start either. Oh, I know. Let’s choose a simpler project! How about a cool platform game? Slightly better, but not there yet. Let’s assume we know nothing about game development. How hard it will be? I know how to code the mechanics of a platform game so it should be easy, right? Well, there is a little problem. A game is so much bigger than just the mechanics. If you want to make a game you should consider a bunch of other stuff. For example, have you ever seen a game without GUI, animation and sound? Yes? Oh… right… but this is not the kind of game we want to make, right? We want to make a cool one that we’ve been dreaming about for so long. But the harder the game the more experience you need to finish it. And how to gain the experience without killing boars in a wood (cause we really aren’t interested in MMORPG approach)? We need to make games. Start with simple ones, and then gradually increase the difficulty. I find it extremely important to finish your projects. With GUI, animation, sound etc. It might seem boring but the last bits of a project are the hardest.