Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

Produce a glossary of terms specific to the methods and principles of Video Game Design and Video Game Terms. Using a provided template, you must research and gather definitions specific to provided glossary terms. Any definitions must be referenced with the URL link of the website you have obtained the definition.

You must also, where possible, provide specific details of how researched definitions relate to your own production practice.

Name: Elliot Black

RESEARCHED DEFINITION (provide short internet researched definition and URL link)

DESCRIBE THE RELEVANCE OF THE RESEARCHED TERM TO YOUR OWN PRODUCTION PRACTICE?

IMAGE SUPPORT (Provide an image and/or video link of said term being used in a game)

VIDEO GAMES / VIDEO GAME TESTING

Demo A game demo is a freely distributed piece of an upcoming or recently released video game. Demos are typically released by the game's publisher to help consumers get a feel of the game before deciding whether to buy the full version. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_demo

Creating a playable demo for our game allows us to present our work through a playable means.

This picture shows a screenshot of the E3 gameplay demo shown live.

Beta A beta version of a program, game etc... is an unfinished version released to either the public a select few or whoever signs up to beta test it for bugs or glitches. - http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Beta

If we needed to show various stages of our work for our unit, we may have to show a beta build of our game. Also we would have a beta build for testing bugs in our game.

This picture is a screenshot of Destiny When it was in its beta stage.

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

Alpha Alpha is the stage when key gameplay functionality is implemented, and assets are partially finished. A game in alpha is feature complete, that is, game is playable and contains all the major features. These features may be further revised based on testing and feedback. -http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_game_development#Alpha

Again, if it was needed that we provide various builds of our game for examples, then creating an alpha build will be necessary. Also, having an alpha build would be a key element in testing gameplay functionality in or game.

The picture shows destiny when it was in its alpha stage.

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

Pre-Alpha Pre-Alpha is a standard term to denote a number of interim milestones between prototyping and alpha, each of which includes new functionality and/or game content. Pre-alphas often mandate incremented improvements on a number of parallel areas in a project, but rarely expect any one of those areas to be complete. - http://www.whatgamesare.com/pre-alpha.html

Creating a pre-alpha would be necessary to begin with if we were producing all the stages of development for this unit. Pre-alphas are also vital for prototyping our game in with the bare minimum implemented.

This picture shows Dark Souls Being played by a developer in its pre-alpha stage.

Gold The final stage is sometimes called the gold stage, where the game has gone through complete testing and has passed a final review. - http://www.3dcognition.com/theory/game-development/2/

The gold stage would be the final stage we would have to produce in order to present the stages of development for our game. The gold stage will be the completed version of our game.

This picture shows the final release title screen of MGSV Ground Zeroes.

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

Debug A debug menu or debug mode is a user interface implemented in a computer program that allows the user to view and/or manipulate the program's internal state for the purpose of debugging. Debug menus are used during software development for easy testing and are usually made inaccessible or otherwise hidden from the end-user. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debug_menu

A debug menu will be handy in order to see what is going wrong in the game during development and help fix the problem.

This picture shows a level in unity being debugged in the developer console.

Automation Automation or automatic control is the use of various control systems for operating equipment such as machinery, processes in factories, boilers and heat treating ovens, switching in telephone networks, steering and stabilization of ships, aircraft and other applications with minimal or reduced human intervention. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automation

We could add a level automation to our game by adding scripts that automate certain functions and gameplay elements.

This picture shows the various stages of testing including test automation.

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

White-Box Testing

Also known as glass box, structural, clear box and open box testing. A software testing technique whereby explicit knowledge of the internal workings of the item being tested are used to select the test data. - http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/W/White_Box_Testing.html

White box testing will be required in order to fix more complicated bugs that are to do with fragile lines of code.

This picture shows the flowchart of white box testing.

Bug A software bug is an error, flaw, failure, or fault in a computer program or system that causes it to produce an incorrect or unexpected result, or to behave in unintended ways. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Software_bug

We may have bugs in our game when it comes to implementing lines of code in our game, as certain parts of the code may be wrong.

This picture shows game characters bugging out with their limbs being stretched.

GAME ENGINES

Vertex Shader A vertex shader is a graphics processing function used to add special effects to objects in a 3D environment by performing mathematical operations on the objects' vertex data. - http://www.nvidia.com/object/feature_vertexshader.html

Vertex shaders will be relevant to our work as we will use them to add effects to objects in our games such as shadows being cast on them.

This picture shows the vertex shading of a character from a game called Folk Tale.

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

GAME ENGINES

Pixel Shader A Pixel Shader is a graphics function that calculates effects on a per-pixel basis. Depending on resolution, in excess of 2 million pixels may need to be rendered, lit, shaded, and colored for each frame, at 60frames per second. - http://www.nvidia.co.uk/object/feature_pixelshader.html

Pixel Shaders will be used to add effects to much larger environments such as backgrounds.

This picture shows the difference between different pixel shaders being used on a house model

Post Processing Post processing allows different effects to be performed on the scene after it has been rendered, but before outputting it to the viewport. - http://udn.epicgames.com/Three/PostProcessEffectsHome.html

Post processing would be good to add a it adds blur to further away textures and makes the closer ones more visually appealing

This picture shows a comparison between post processing

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

effects being turned on and off on the in game scene.Rendering Rendering is the process of generating an

image from a 2D or 3D model (or models in what collectively could be called a scene file), by means of computer programs. Also, the results of such a model can be called a rendering. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rendering_(computer_graphics)

We will have to render many textures and environments during the gameplay of our game in order for us to have different levels and objects at varying distances or in different levels.

This picture shows the stages of rendering a 3D model of a motorcyclist.

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

Normal Map A normal map is a way of adding high-resolution detail to a game ready (low resolution) model, without drastically affecting the game's performance. - http://3d.about.com/od/3d-101-The-Basics/tp/Current-Gen-Gameart-Workflow-What-Is-Normal-Mapping.html

We may add normal maps to certain objects and environments in order to give them specific textures, especially closer up ones as they will be more noticeable.

This picture shows normal maps being placed on an image and resulting in a more realistic looking image.

Entity Entity-component-system (ECS) is a software architecture pattern that implements concepts from Composition over inheritance using a database-like structure. Suppose there is a drawing function. This would be a "System" that iterates through all entities that have both a physical and a visible component, and draws them. The visible component could typically have some information about how an entity should look (e.g. human, monster, sparks flying around, flying arrow), and use the physical component to know where to draw it. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entity_component_system

Entities give objects AI and actions to do such as, moving running etc. therefore it will be vital to making a game with computer controlled players

This picture Shows an AI being killed by an entity chain.

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

UV Map UV mapping is the 3D modeling process of making a 2D image representation of a 3D model's surface. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UV_mapping

In order to texture 3D objects that aren’t exactly flat, UV mapping will help.

This picture shows a UV map being applied to a floor in Unity.Procedural Texture

A procedural texture is a computer-generated image created using an algorithm intended to create a realistic representation of natural elements such as wood, marble, granite, metal, stone, and others. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proceduraltexture

Procedural textures would be useful for texturing environments that include a lot of textures like wood and stone, That when the player gets closer to the detail of the image increases and the same goes for when they get further away.

This picture shows the map of the various phases the procedural texture will use.

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

Physics A physics engine is computer software that provides an approximate simulation of certain physical systems, such as rigid body dynamics (including collision detection), soft body dynamics, and fluid dynamics, of use in the domains of computer graphics, video games and film. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Physics_engine#Game_engines

Physics in our games would be expected if wanted realistic aspects such as rag dolling or gravity.

This picture shows a cannon firing into a bunch of physics objects and sending them flying.

Collision Collision detection typically refers to the computational problem of detecting the intersection of two or more objects. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collision_detection#Video_games

Collision detection will be helpful if we are making a shooter as collision detection of the bullets hit box hitting the enemy’s hit box will class as a kill.

This picture shows to character models with their collisions boxes visible around them.

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

Lighting High-dynamic-range rendering (HDRR or HDR rendering), also known as high-dynamic-range lighting, is the rendering of computer graphics scenes by using lighting calculations done in a larger dynamic range. This allows preservation of details that may be lost due to limiting contrast ratios. Video games and computer-generated movies and special effects benefit from this as it creates more realistic scenes than with the more simplistic lighting models used.- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-dynamic-range_rendering

Lighting is very important in making a game aesthetically pleasing and viewable as an area that isn’t lit will make seeing very hard or impossible within the game.

This picture shows two kinds of lights being used in a scene.

AA – Anti-Aliasing

In computer graphics, antialiasing is a software technique for diminishing jaggies - stairstep-like lines that should be smooth. Jaggies occur because the output device, the monitor or printer, doesn't have a high enough resolution to represent a smooth line. Antialiasing reduces the prominence of jaggies by surrounding the stairsteps with intermediate shades of gray - http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/A/antialiasing.html

Anti-aliasing will be helpful if some textures appear jagged due to the aspect ratio as they will add grey around the pixels to make them more blurred.

This picture shows the difference between anti-aliasing and

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

non-anti-aliasing on a character model during a cut scene LoD – Level of Detail

Level of detail is a general design term for video game landscapes in which closer objects are rendered with more polygons than objects that are farther away. Generally speaking, the level of detail is dictated by the game's system requirements. - http://www.techopedia.com/definition/11791/level-of-detail-lod

A level of detail will be quite useful whilst making our game as having far away objects less detailed and keeping only closer textures detailed will be less taxing on the game engine and allow it to run smoother.

This picture is a good example of LoD, showing the reduction of polys as the camera draws further away.

Animation The creation of moving pictures in a three-dimensional digital environment. This is done by sequencing consecutive images, or "frames", that simulate motion by each image showing the next in a gradual progression of steps, filmed by a virtual "camera" and then output to video by a rendering engine. - http://animation.about.com/od/glossaryofterms/g/3danim_def.html

Animation of 3D models such as people or sprites, will be need in order to add actual movement to the actual models such as legs moving when the character runs etc..

This picture shows a model being animated with the key frame points visible, showing where the character has, or will move.

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

Sprite A sprite is a bitmap graphic that is designed to be part of a larger scene. It can either be a static image or an animated graphic. - http://www.techterms.com/definition/sprite

Sprites will be used as character models and objects if we make a 2D game.

These picture shows a range of 2D sprites from a medieval game.

Scene Scenes contain the objects of your game. They can be used to create a main menu, individual levels, and anything else. - http://docs.unity3d.com/Manual/CreatingScenes.html

Scenes will be helpful in keeping the objects and files we use for a level in one place.

This picture shows a typical scene shown from an isometric viewpoint.

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

Library In computer science, a library is a collection of non-volatile resources used by programs on a computer, often to develop software. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Library_(computing)

Keeping a library of all our files will help keep them organised.

This picture shows a file library in-engine on the far right.UI In computing, a graphical user interface is a

type of interface that allows users to interact with electronic devices through graphical icons and visual indicators such as secondary notation, as opposed to text-based interfaces, typed command labels or text navigation. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graphical_user_interface

A UI would be good to be implemented into our game in order for the player to see the statuses of the game character i.e. health, bullets etc…

This picture shows the UI for the witcher 1 on the level up screen.

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

Frames Frame rates in video games refer to the speed at which the image is refreshed (typically in frames per second, or FPS). - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frame_rate#Video_games

The preferred frame rate at which I would like my game to run at would be 60FPS as that is the optimal frame rate that most games aim to run at.

This picture shows the frame rate the game is playing at in the top right hand corner.

Concept In game theory, a solution concept is a formal rule for predicting how a game will be played. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solution_concept

A concept of the game will help us predict how our game will be played; allowing us to make sure the end result won’t be terrible.

This picture shows an early concept piece of artwork for a game level.

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

Event What are events? Basically, these are discreet moments in the game loop where things are made to happen based on what you have programmed for them. - http://docs.yoyogames.com/source/dadiospice/000_using%20gamemaker/events/index.html

We need events in order for certain stuff to trigger and keep the flow of the game running.

This picture shows the various events than can be implemented in the game maker engine.

Path finding Path finding in the context of video games concerns the way in which a moving entity finds a path around an obstacle - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pathfinding#In_video_games

If we have complex levels in our game, the AI will need a decent level of path finding in order to move around without running into walls or staying stationary.

This picture shows the way the AI will walk the character around the boxes using path finding.

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

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