Game Programming
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Hi, I'm planning, in the hopefully not too distant future, to write an RPG. The game is going to be tile based. I hope that's a clear description, I'm not sure how else to explain it, but if you have a question about let me know let me know and I'll try to be more specific. OK, on to my questions. First, I'd like to know what kind of app it should be? Dialog, SDI, or MDI? My thought was dialog, but I'd like another opinion. My second question is wether or not I should use DirectX or OpenGL? I don't know anything about using either. Do I need them? Would they be helpful? I've gone to some game development sites and everyone there seems to be using one of these, but for my purposes I don't think they're necessary. Thanks for your advice.
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Hi, I'm planning, in the hopefully not too distant future, to write an RPG. The game is going to be tile based. I hope that's a clear description, I'm not sure how else to explain it, but if you have a question about let me know let me know and I'll try to be more specific. OK, on to my questions. First, I'd like to know what kind of app it should be? Dialog, SDI, or MDI? My thought was dialog, but I'd like another opinion. My second question is wether or not I should use DirectX or OpenGL? I don't know anything about using either. Do I need them? Would they be helpful? I've gone to some game development sites and everyone there seems to be using one of these, but for my purposes I don't think they're necessary. Thanks for your advice.
If you don't use DX or GL then you're going to be in slow city. Will the game be 3D ? Tile based to me means 2D, so I would pre-render the sprites and then use DirectDraw to draw them, saving yourself all that 3D math. Thus you would go into a full screen mode and use SDI for easy access to the message pump ( to calculate in OnIdle ) Christian #include "std_disclaimer.h" People who love sausage and respect the law should never watch either one being made. The things that come to those who wait are usually the things left by those who got there first.
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Hi, I'm planning, in the hopefully not too distant future, to write an RPG. The game is going to be tile based. I hope that's a clear description, I'm not sure how else to explain it, but if you have a question about let me know let me know and I'll try to be more specific. OK, on to my questions. First, I'd like to know what kind of app it should be? Dialog, SDI, or MDI? My thought was dialog, but I'd like another opinion. My second question is wether or not I should use DirectX or OpenGL? I don't know anything about using either. Do I need them? Would they be helpful? I've gone to some game development sites and everyone there seems to be using one of these, but for my purposes I don't think they're necessary. Thanks for your advice.
There are libraries availalbe that take care of the 2d graphics stuff. Some of them are even portable to mac and linux. I don't know of many apps that use OpenGL for 2d stuff. I don't remember if Diablo2 uses Direct3D and OpenGL or just OpenGL for it's 3D enhancements. I'm pretty sure it uses DirectX for normal 2d stuff. You should check out some of the game sites like flipcode.com, gamedev.net or gamasutra.com. You certianly don't want MFC/SDI/MDI junk. It would be to slow.
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Hi, I'm planning, in the hopefully not too distant future, to write an RPG. The game is going to be tile based. I hope that's a clear description, I'm not sure how else to explain it, but if you have a question about let me know let me know and I'll try to be more specific. OK, on to my questions. First, I'd like to know what kind of app it should be? Dialog, SDI, or MDI? My thought was dialog, but I'd like another opinion. My second question is wether or not I should use DirectX or OpenGL? I don't know anything about using either. Do I need them? Would they be helpful? I've gone to some game development sites and everyone there seems to be using one of these, but for my purposes I don't think they're necessary. Thanks for your advice.
Yeah you don't want to use MFC if you can avoid it, just create a skeleton Win Application using standard C "the low level language of Windows" :-) There are some libraries out there, but a really good one I dabbled with is the CDX library can't remember the URL though, but there site has the code, docs, and most importantly samples. Check out the game samples they are minimum window apps not using MFC with few events, that's what you want, as a game programmer you are basically squeezing all the performance out of the computer so you want to conserve system resources, so cut down on processes and threads you don't need by not calling MFC. Sam C ---- Systems Manager Hospitality Marketing Associates
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If you don't use DX or GL then you're going to be in slow city. Will the game be 3D ? Tile based to me means 2D, so I would pre-render the sprites and then use DirectDraw to draw them, saving yourself all that 3D math. Thus you would go into a full screen mode and use SDI for easy access to the message pump ( to calculate in OnIdle ) Christian #include "std_disclaimer.h" People who love sausage and respect the law should never watch either one being made. The things that come to those who wait are usually the things left by those who got there first.
Yes, it is going to be 2D. Its also going to be turn-based. Will speed be much of a factor? Click, move character, click, attack monster, click, pick up item. That doesn't seem like it would take a whole lot of speed. I had planned on importing the graphics from .bmp files and then painting them to the playing field. The actual playing field will take up about 1/4 to 1/3 of the screen. The rest will be the map, character data, inventory, etc. If its necessary I'll learn DX or GL, but there's already so much to learn that I'd hoped to avoid adding more to the list. Oh well, I'd probably need them sometime anyways. Now's as good a time to learn them as any. Thanks for your input.
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Yeah you don't want to use MFC if you can avoid it, just create a skeleton Win Application using standard C "the low level language of Windows" :-) There are some libraries out there, but a really good one I dabbled with is the CDX library can't remember the URL though, but there site has the code, docs, and most importantly samples. Check out the game samples they are minimum window apps not using MFC with few events, that's what you want, as a game programmer you are basically squeezing all the performance out of the computer so you want to conserve system resources, so cut down on processes and threads you don't need by not calling MFC. Sam C ---- Systems Manager Hospitality Marketing Associates
The URL is www.cdxlib.com. Thanks,I'll check it out.
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The URL is www.cdxlib.com. Thanks,I'll check it out.
Yup you can use OpenGL for 2d games, just as you can use Direct3D8 for 2d games...all you have to do is texture map a quad primitive to display them on your device.. AVOID MFC like the plague. The advantage of using your 3d hardware for 2d effects (such as a tile engine) is that you get a LOT of functionality "for free"...stuff like alpha blending, scaling, rotation, etc are ALL handled by the 3d hardware...this also cuts WAY down on the amount of artwork you actually need for your game.. And don't even bother getting caught up in the "opengl vs. direct3d" wars...they're both ONLY as fast as the hardware drivers, otherwise they're (now with Direct3d8) the same speed... Erik I hit faked him with my win32 API .chm and the peabrain goes for it. I follow it up with a salvo of left's and right's sending him down hard. It's lunch time and he's getting a Champ Sandwhich Special. I said, How's that Mr. VB?! Is that 'I wanna use COM in that Server enough for you?!' ...Ever since then, I've been the Champ.