Introduction

The video-game and interactive entertainment industry is the fastest growing segment of the world economy. New game studios are appearing each year, and as technology continues to improve, new opportunities are constantly emerging.

This book provides an introduction to the exciting world of the video-game artist. It offers powerful and easy-to-use tools to get you started, and covers many of the methods, philosophies, and proven techniques that can improve your game demos and help separate you from the crowd.

What You’ll Find in This Book

This book contains everything you need to build your own video-game models. It comes with a full, working version of gameSpace Light, as well as an exclusive 3-D video game that you can use to test the new models you build.

By the time you reach Chapter 4, you will already know how to build a model and import it into a game. By the end of Chapter 11, you will be building sophisticated models like a professional. Chapter 12 is a bonus chapter where you will build your own game vehicle and take it for a test drive.

Who This Book Is For

This book is intended for four types of readers:

Video-Game Enthusiasts

Whatever your age or level of experience, if you love video games, this book is for you.

Whether you are an avid gamer or just want to learn more about the industry, Beginning Game Graphics will introduce you to the most fundamental concepts of game development. It will walk you through your first simple models, help you build your first game, and help you develop the skills to create sophisticated game models of your own.

Experienced Artists Looking to Enter the Video-Game Industry

Game artists use much of the same tools and technology used by today’s digital animators and special effects artists, but the needs and methods of video-game art and film art are far from the same.

If you are an experienced digital artist or a 3-D animator with a background in design, film, or animation, this book will give you the knowledge and insight to tune your skills in the direction of video games.

Students and Teachers

I have been teaching professional game development classes for over four years. This book is designed to serve as an accompaniment to a 10 to 15 week class. The depth and the subject matter presented are strong enough for a university, college, or post-secondary class on game graphics, but I have tried to keep the tone light-hearted and easily digestible.

I have tried to keep this book fun, friendly, and easily readable, in the hopes that it will motivate and inspire college students and professionals, while still holding the attention of much younger audiences. I have successfully taught many high-school and elementary school students to create their own games, and several classes of elementary school students actually helped to test some of the lessons in this book.

Game Programmers, Producers, and Level Designers

This book is ideal for programmers, producers, level designers, and any independent video-game developers who would like to model their own props, sets, and characters. Whether you need to build models for your own demos, or just want to impress the art department, this book offers a crash course in 3-D modeling, with the specific needs of video games in mind.

How This Book Is Organized

Chapters 1 and 2 introduce the fundamental concepts of video games and video-game graphics. They are written from the perspective of the professional game artist, but their content is equally useful for game designers, level designers, game programmers, and producers.

Chapter 3 shows you how to install gameSpace and the Adventure Explorer video game.

Chapters 4 through 11 guide you on a step-by-step path from the most basic primitive modeling techniques to some of the advanced workflows used by professional game artists.

Chapter 12 is a bonus chapter that shows you how use your new modeling skills to model your own vehicles, which you can actually ride in the game.

The enclosed CD contains a full version of gameSpace Light that is free to use and will never expire. It also contains the Adventure Explore video game, a utility called ObjectImporter, several video-tutorials, and a directory of Textures that you will use in projects throughout the book.