Introduction to Game Design, Prototyping, and Development: From Concept to Playable Game with Unity and C#, 3rd Edition

Cover Page
About This eBook
Halftitle Page
Title Page
Copyright Page
Pearson’s Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Dedication Page
Contents at a Glance
Contents
Foreword
Preface
    The Purpose of This Book
    What’s New in the Third Edition?
    Who This Book Is For
    The Structure of This Book
    Book Website
    Why You Should Learn Unity and C#
    Conventions in This Book
    There Are Other Books Out There
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Figure Credits
Part I Game Design and Paper Prototyping
    1 Thinking Like a Designer
        You Are a Game Designer
        Bartok: A Game Design Exercise
        The Definition of Game
        Summary
    2 Game Analysis Frameworks
        Common Frameworks for Ludology
        MDA: Mechanics, Dynamics, and Aesthetics
        Formal, Dramatic, and Dynamic Elements
        The Elemental Tetrad
        Summary
    3 The Layered Tetrad
        The Inscribed Layer
        The Dynamic Layer
        The Cultural Layer
        The Responsibility of the Designer
        Summary
    4 The Inscribed Layer
        Inscribed Mechanics
        Inscribed Aesthetics
        Inscribed Narrative
        Inscribed Technology
        Summary
    5 The Dynamic Layer
        The Role of the Player
        Emergence
        Dynamic Mechanics
        Dynamic Aesthetics
        Dynamic Narrative
        Dynamic Technology
        Summary
    6 The Cultural Layer
        Beyond Play
        Cultural Mechanics
        Cultural Aesthetics
        Cultural Narrative
        Cultural Technology
        Authorized Transmedia Are Not Part of the Cultural Layer
        The Cultural Impact of a Game
        Summary
    7 Acting Like a Designer
        Iterative Design
        Innovation
        Brainstorming and Ideation
        Changing Your Mind
        Scoping!
        Summary
    8 Design Goals
        Design Goals: An Incomplete List
        Designer-Centric Goals
        Player-Centric Goals
        Summary
    9 Paper Prototyping
        The Benefits of Paper Prototyping
        Paper Prototyping Tools
        Paper Prototyping for Interfaces
        A Paper Prototype Example
        Best Uses for Paper Prototyping
        Poor Uses for Paper Prototyping
        Summary
    10 Game Testing
        Why Playtest?
        Being a Great Playtester Yourself
        The Circles of Playtesters
        Methods of Playtesting
        Other Important Types of Testing
        Summary
    11 Math and Game Balance
        The Meaning of Game Balance
        The Importance of Spreadsheets
        Examining Dice Probability with Sheets
        The Math of Probability
        Randomizer Technologies in Paper Games
        Weighted Distributions
        Weighted Probability in Google Sheets
        Permutations
        Using Sheets to Balance Weapons
        Positive and Negative Feedback
        Summary
    12 Guiding the Player
        Direct Guidance
        Indirect Guidance
        Teaching New Skills and Concepts
        Summary
    13 Puzzle Design
        Scott Kim on Puzzle Design
        The Steps of Solving a Puzzle
        Puzzle Examples in Action Games
        Designing and Developing Puzzle Games
        Summary
    14 The Agile Mentality
        The Manifesto for Agile Software Development
        Scrum Methodology
        Burndown Chart Example
        Creating Your Own Burndown Charts
        Summary
    15 The Digital Game Industry
        About the Game Industry
        Game Education
        Getting Into the Industry
        Don’t Wait to Start Making Games!
        Summary
Part II Programming C# in Unity
    16 Thinking in Digital Systems
        Systems Thinking in Board Games
        An Exercise in Simple Instructions
        Game Analysis: Apple Picker
        Summary
    17 Introducing Unity Hub and the Unity Editor
        Downloading Unity
        Introducing Our Development Environment
        Creating a Unity Account
        Checking Out a Sample Project
        Creating Your First Unity Project
        Learning Your Way Around Unity
        Setting Up the Unity Window Layout
        Summary
    18 Introducing Our Language: C#
        Understanding the Features of C#
        Reading and Understanding C# Syntax
        Summary
    19 Hello World: Your First Program
        Creating a New Project
        Making a New C# Script
        Making Things More Interesting
        Summary
    20 Variables and Components
        Introducing Variables
        Statically Typed Variables in C#
        Important C# Variable Types
        The Scope of Variables
        Naming Conventions
        Important Unity Variable Types
        Unity GameObjects and Components
        Summary
    21 Boolean Operations and Conditionals
        Booleans
        Comparison Operators
        Conditional Statements
        Summary
    22 Loops
        Types of Loops
        Set Up a Project
        while Loops
        do…while Loops
        for Loops
        foreach Loops
        Jump Statements within Loops
        Summary
    23 Collections in C#
        C# Collections
        Using Generic Collections
        List<T>
        Dictionary<Tkey, TValue>
        Array
        Multidimensional Arrays
        Jagged Arrays
        Jagged List<T>s
        Choosing Whether to Use an Array or List
        Summary
    24 Functions and Parameters
        Setting Up the Function Examples Project
        Definition of a Function
        What Happens When You Call a Function?
        Function Parameters and Arguments
        Returning Values
        Returning void
        Function Naming Conventions
        Why Use Functions?
        Function Overloading
        Optional Parameters
        The params Keyword
        Recursive Functions
        Summary
    25 Debugging
        Getting Started with Debugging
        Stepping Through Code with the Debugger
        Summary
    26 Classes
        Understanding Classes
        Class Inheritance
        Summary
    27 Object-Oriented Thinking
        The Object-Oriented Metaphor
        An Object-Oriented Boids Implementation
        Summary
    28 Data-Oriented Design
        The Theory of Data-Oriented Design
        DOTS Tutorial and Example
        The Future of Unity DOTS
        Summary
Part III Game Prototype Tutorials
    29 Apple Picker
        What You Will Learn
        The Apple Picker Prototype
        The Purpose of a Digital Prototype
        Preparing
        Coding the Apple Picker Prototype
        GUI and Game Management
        Summary
    30 Mission Demolition
        What You Will Learn
        The Mission Demolition Prototype
        Getting Started: Mission Demolition
        Game Prototype Concept
        Art Assets
        Coding the Prototype
        From Prototype to First Playable
        Summary
    31 Space shmup – Part 1
        What You Will Learn
        Getting Started: Space SHMUP
        Setting the Scene
        Making the Hero Ship
        Adding Some Enemies
        Spawning Enemies at Random
        Setting Tags, Layers, and Physics
        Making the Enemies Damage the Player
        Restarting the Game
        Shooting (Finally)
        Summary
    32 Space SHMUP – Part 2
        What You Will Learn
        Getting Started: Space SHMUP – Part 2
        Enemy to Enemy_0
        Programming Other Enemies
        Shooting Revisited
        Showing Enemy Damage
        Adding PowerUps and Boosting Weapons
        Race Conditions & Script Execution Order
        Making Enemies Drop PowerUps
        Enemy_4 — A More Complex Enemy
        Tuning Settings for the Game Entities
        Adding a Scrolling Starfield Background
        Summary
    33 Prospector Solitaire – Part 1
        What You Will Learn
        The Prospector Game
        Getting Started: Prospector Solitaire
        Build Settings
        Setting Up the Unity Window Layout
        Setting Up the Camera and Game Pane
        Importing Images as Sprites
        Constructing Cards from Sprites
        Implementing Prospector in Code
        Implementing Game Logic
        Summary
    34 Prospector Solitaire – Part 2
        What You Will Learn
        Getting Started: Prospector – Part 2
        Additional Prospector Game Elements
        Adding GUI Elements to Display the Score
        Building and Running Your WebGL Build
        Summary
    35 Dungeon Delver – Part 1
        What You Will Learn
        The Dungeon Delver Game
        Getting Started: Dungeon Delver
        Setting Up the Cameras
        Understanding the Dungeon Data
        Showing the Map with a Unity Tilemap
        Adding the Hero
        Giving Dray an Attack Animation
        Dray’s Sword
        Programmatic Collision in Unity Tilemap
        The InRoom Script
        Enemy: Skeletos
        Keeping GameObjects in the Room
        Aligning to the Grid
        Moving from Room to Room
        Making the Camera Follow Dray
        Summary
    36 Dungeon Delver – Part 2
        What You Will Learn
        Getting Started: Dungeon Delver — Part 2
        Dungeon Delver — Part 2 Overview
        Implementing TileSwaps
        Swapping in LockedDoor GameObjects
        Implementing Keys and Unlocking Doors
        Adding GUI to Track Key Count and Health
        Enabling Enemies to Damage Dray
        Making Dray’s Attack Damage Enemies
        Modifying Enemy to Take Damage
        Picking Up Items
        Enemies Dropping Items on Death
        Implementing a New Dungeon — The Hat
        Implementing a Grappler
        Summary
Part IV Next Steps
    37 Coding Challenges
        What Is a Coding Challenge?
        Getting Started on a Coding Challenge
        Filling in the Blanks
        How to Approach Each Challenge
    38 Beyond This Book
        Continue to Learn Unity Development
        Build a Classic Game
        Start a Small Game Project or Prototype
        Make Games for Lifelong Enrichment
        Consider Going to School for GameDev
        Explore Advanced Game Design
        Finally, Drop Me a Line
Index
Part V Online Appendices — http://book.prototools.net or informit.com/title/9780136619949
    A Standard Project Setup Procedure
        The Set Up Sidebar for Tutorial Projects
        Setting Up a New Project
        Importing a Starter UnityPackage
        Setting the Scene Name
        Setting the Game Pane to Full HD (1080p)
        Setting Up a WebGL Build
        Understanding Unity Version Control
        Summary
    B Useful Concepts
        Topics Covered
        C# and Unity Coding Concepts
        Math Concepts
        Pen-and-Paper Roleplaying Games
        User Interface Concepts
    C Online Reference
        Tutorials
        Unite Conference
        Unity’s YouTube Channel
        Programming
        Searching Tips
        Finding and Creating Assets
        Other Tools and Educational Discounts
    D Tips for Teaching from This Book
        The Goal of This Appendix
        Teaching Introduction to Game Design
        Teaching Introduction to Game Programming
        More Information Is Available
Code Snippets