Status of the Project @ 2021-03-19

Hello everyone, time for an (overdue) update!

Things have been quite hard in general, due to the current pandemic and the insane amount of anxiety it generates. So I actively chose to not give any update last week and try to get myself back together, or at least try to.

Enough blabbering, let's see what are the news!

Some new content is coming

After so much time spent focusing on the Epub release, I decided it was time to add some content, both for a change of pace and just to avoid feeling like I'm procrastinating.

The first bunch of content is related to the "Bullet Hell" genre of games (I've been hooked to ZenoDyne R), so I decided to have a go at analyzing some games of the genre and extract some empirical knowledge, tips and tricks.

Since I felt the book was lacking "practical stuff" I decided to add some code: it's Timers time (pun intended, and no, I'm not sorry)! I added some code as well as analyzing some issues that we may find when coding our own timers and how to fix them. The section will surely be expanded in the future but it is already usable. I just need to translate the code to C++ and the biggest hurdle for a new release will be cleared.

I decided to include the Separating Axis Theorem in the "Collision Detection" section of the book, which entails a whole bunch of new concepts that I will have to explain in the earlier chapters (mostly math). Also before a new release comes, I think this section will undergo a small reorganization effort to make it less chaotic.

New Placeholders

Just cause I filled some placeholders, it doesn't mean that the work to do is decreasing: I decided to add some new placeholders, ready to fill in the future with content. To be precise:

• Normal Mapping: Usually done in 3D, finds some use in 2D to make materials look more realistic by making them react differently to light
• FM Synthesis: I realized I started talking about waveforms without mentioning FM synthesis. This placeholder will remind me to put some effort into fixing such deficiency
• ADSR Envelope: Part of FM Synthesis and music, it's a concept that should be at least known in broad strokes.

New Covers!

I always felt like that cover of the book was a bit lackluster and low-quality, so I decided to redraw it, using only Public Domain/CC0 material, my own "intellectual property" and my whole skill-set (comprised of half a skill) to compose a front and back cover I could be proud of. Here is a sneak peek of the new covers, they won't be put on the main page until the new release drops (consistency above all!).

Conclusion

In the last two weeks, working on this book has been a nice escape from my daily obligations: day job, stress, the current world situation... I found myself many many times having to stop working on it because I was simply too tired and it was 10.30pm.

I really hope I manage to get a new release up as soon as possible, the current release has been out of a couple of months and I want to keep bringing new material to aspiring game developers that are looking for a starting point.

Next release will also mark the end-of-life of the old "pseudocode edition" without syntax highlighting, in favour of the colored version: hopefully there's a way to warn everyone.

That is all for now, stay safe everyone!

Penaz