In the first video of the second module, they were describing part of what games so fun. Games allow people to escape from their world (Not literally) and/or enter a new world.
How do games make you "enter a new world"?
This illusion is made by making the "you in the game" (Player) do actions based on your actions in the real-world. They convert the input you made through things like a controller, keyboard, or mouse into information. That information is understood by the computer, turns it into events in-game, and displays it to the user. The display can vary; it could be TV, your desktop's monitor, your laptop's screen, the VR headset on your head, even your phone!
What else will be in the second module?
The second module will teach basics of programming that is required for game development, the game loop (Bring everything together), something related to graphs, and game architecture. This module will teach how to use what you learned from the first module, and turn it into a working game. From what I've seen so far, this module will teach how to begin the pre-production stage.
What is a game loop?
A game loop is when the computer repeats the following actions to make the game function and still follow the rules. The loop is always active. The three parts of the game loop are input, updating, and output. Below is an example of how the game loop works.
- Player does something (Input)
- Receives input and checks which action to execute (Updating)
- Does what it should and puts in on display (Output)
The game is always checking if there is input. After the output is done, it will check again if there is input and do the same thing again *starts singing* We follow, we greet, we wait, and repeat!
How does programming work?
Basically, you type in the input in the form of code. Your computer will understand that code and turn it into an image. It could also tell your computer to test for certain input and what to do based on that input. Below is a link to one of my programs. Try to find out what is the input, how is it updating, and what is the output.
Spectrometers, for example, will examine sound files (Input), check its code on how to act to different sounds (Updating), and display that information as something we can understand (Output).
I don't understand the Holo shooter. What are those numbers moving rapidly on the high left side of the screen? Why doesn't the background change when I move around? But not a bad start. I still want that bouncing ball :D
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