Well Played 1.0: Video Games, Value and Meaning
Video games can be “well played” in two senses. On the one hand, well played is to games as well read is to books. On the other hand, well played as in well done. This book is full of in-depth close readings of video games that parse out the various meanings to be found in the experience of playing a game. 22 contributors (developers, scholars, reviewers and bloggers) look at video games through both senses of “well played.” The goal is to help develop and define a literacy of games as well as a sense of their value as an experience. Video games are a complex medium that merits careful interpretation and insightful analysis.
Free eBook: Blender Basics 2nd Edition
This free ebook on Blender, an open-source 3D graphics and animation software includes the following topics: Introduction/Fundamentals, The Blender Interface, Working With Viewports, Creating and Editing Objects, Lighting and Cameras, Materials and Textures, Setting Up a World, Rendering Window Settings, Raytracing, Animation Basics, Adding Text, NURBS and Meta Shape Basics, Modifiers, Particle Systems and Interactions, Child-Parent Relationships, Working With Constraints, Armatures, Relative Vertex Keys, Chapter 18- Soft Bodies, Creating Springs, Screws and Gears, Game Engine Basics, Video Sequence Editor.
Free online book: GPU Gems 3
Free online book GPU Gems is a compilation of articles covering practical real-time graphics techniques arising from the research and practice of cutting-edge developers. It focuses on the programmable graphics pipeline available in today’s graphics processing units (GPUs) and highlights quick and dirty tricks used by leading developers, as well as fundamental, performance-conscious techniques for creating advanced visual effects. The contributors and editors, collectively, bring countless years of experience to enlighten and propel the reader into the fascinating world of programmable real-time graphics.
Free eBook: Ultimate Game Programming Guide for Mac OS X
If you’ve ever thought about becoming a video game developer then this book is for you! This intermediate-level programming book contains all the tricks of the trade that you need to know to build a game engine for Mac OS X. You’ll learn about all of the nuances dealing with the various Mac OS technologies such as the HID Manager, OpenGL, OpenAL, Core Graphics, Rendezvous, Quicktime, and more!