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: Rehana Whiteley

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 ‘Preview or trial version of a software which is freely distributed, either without some of the critical functions (such as the ability to save or print data) or is programmed to work only for few (usually 30) days after the first run. Also called demoware.’

Link: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/demo.html#ixzz49UM1pK8V

A Demo is something which is short and shows the potential off an oncoming game. For example, With the 2D game which I created I personally think that of that as a demonstration simply because it is short and only the first level. For instance, If i wanted to make several levels of my 2D platform game or make a franchise then the short, 2 minute, simple Video game which I have created will do perfect for a demo to the full game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9MeQHhSswY

Beta ‘A beta test refers to the distribution of pre-release game software to a select group of people so that they can test the game in their own homes. The beta version of a game is as close to perfect as the company can make it, but any bugs, glitches or other issues discovered in beta testing will usually be addressed before the game's official release.’

Link: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/27136/beta-test-gaming

I personally see Beta as a ‘testing group’ – they try and play the game and report any issues to the game owner before the game is realised. I Can relate to this practise because with the 2D platform game, I let several of my college colleges play on the game and tell me which improvements I could do within the game. https://

www.youtube.com/watch?v=In_AH6cAUeo

Alpha ‘A working alpha state game is the game itself with all the basic core concepts in place (and most likely some still being developed or drawn up) allowing players the base

Alpha is basically testing out the game way before the beta stage. For instance when I was creating the 3D level design I would ‘blue print’

https://www.youtube.com/watch?

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

freedoms that allow the game to resolve gameplay issues, early exploits, small bugs, major bugs, early balancing and many other issues that you won’t see in a fully released game that does not state that it’s an alpha or beta state game.’

Link:http://steamcommunity.com/app/255500/discussions/0/630800445001699632/

the house and then Once I have put the walls up, I would test it and check if it is stable to have a house there. So for instance If i was in a games company, I would at this stage invite other ‘people’ to play in the game at this section. Close up it won’t be finished but they will jump and try and destroy the house to make sure it is stable enough.

v=z8nkBEK6YKM

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. The exact content of each pre-alpha is often an ongoing discussion between producers on the team and those at the publisher. 

Pre-alphas are usually followed by alpha, beta, release candidate and gold master milestones.’

Link:http://www.whatgamesare.com/pre-alpha.html

Pre- Alpha happens before the alpha stage. For instance, Using a personal example which I have used to explain the alpha stage. When creating a house in the 3D level design I created a blue print and had a idea of what the house will be, then build I built on it which will then be tested and then final stage will be putting in assets and finishing the house. Pre alpha is the very first stage. Before anything happens I am creating the look and feel of the house. I have an idea on what it is going to be and where it is going to be then I will test and see if it is successful in the alpha stage (which will then lead to the beta stage.) You can see in my 3D level production (Task 5) that as I get a long in the production, I create several changes. This is because as I am testing each stage of the game I know what needs changing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9AA5YxXWlc

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

Gold The current use of the term is to do with the supposedly final, complete version of the game, which was written to a CD-R and shipped to distributors to be duplicated. In the early days of CD-ROM development, pretty much all writable CDs were gold in colour (and CD writers were ridiculously expensive). 

https://www.quora.com/What-does-it-mean-when-a-game-goes-gold

Gold is when the game is finished and then transferred on to a disk. Although CD-ROM games aren’t as popular as they used to be, Now more modern games are installed or shared online as desktop icons. There is no need to keep a CD-R. For example, With My 2D platform game I exported the game to be a desktop icon. A desktop icon is a lot more time and cost efficient when sharing a completed game than using a CD-R.

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.

Link:http://www.key103.co.uk/mpow/featured/job-listing/

I used the debug Whilst doing 2D game engine. I did this by using the debug layout which then opens up the game as if you are playing it although it also has a debugging menu which shows a lot of information and important controls. I do this when I tell the sprites to get destroyed outside the layout, Going on the debug menu tells you if the sprite is still there or if it does actually get destroyed outside of layouts. Doing this helps avoid lagging or bugs while playing the game.

Automation ‘The use or introduction of automatic equipment in a manufacturing or other process or facility.’

Link:http://www.dictionary.com/browse/automation

I never used Automation within my practise using 2D and 3D games engines. Although I know if Android was doing a Automation test it will be much different than a IOS automation test because there is different application developments for each automation.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFBfRk-GLRo

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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. Unlike black box testing, white box testing uses specific knowledge of programming code   to examine outputs. The test is accurate only if the tester knows what the program is supposed to do. He or she can then see if the program diverges from its intended goal. White box testing does not account for errors caused by omission, and all visible code must also be readable.’

Link:http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/W/White_Box_Testing.html

I have never used white-Box testing within my practise using 2D and 3D Game engines, This is because White-Box testing is a lot more complex by using a pseudo code. Although A advantage of using a White-box is having more through testing which means it has more of a possibility covering most of the paths. However White-Box testing isn’t necessary in this practice.

Bug ‘A software bug (or just “bug”) is an error, flaw, mistake, failure, fault or “undocumented feature” in a computer program that prevents it from behaving as intended (e.g., producing an incorrect result). Most bugs arise from mistakes and errors made by people in either a program's source code or its design, and a few are caused by compilers producing incorrect code. A program that contains a large number of bugs, and/or bugs that seriously interfere with its functionality, is said to be buggy. Reports detailing bugs in a program are commonly known as bug reports, fault reports, problem reports, trouble reports, change requests, and so forth.’

Link:https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080622111127AAsXob5

Bugs usually happen when the programmer or the design makes a mistake which causes a flaw. A example of a bug In my 2D game is when I accidently gave a sprite a wrong behaviour which I then coded wrong within the event system. This created a small bug due to making a mistake in the coding although I realised and changed before proceeding with the game. Bugs In the 3d level might be when meshes/textures are overlapping each other. While playing the game it will cause texture over lapping and it is easy to see that there is a fault.

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

GAME ENGINES

GAME ENGINES

Vertex Shader

‘The job of the shader is to use math to take the vertex positions of triangle, the position of the light, the material color values, and figure out what colours the triangle should appear. A vertex shader does this "shading computation" once at each vertex and interpolates the color across the triangle.’

Link:http://gamedev.stackexchange.com/questions/45842/difference-between-material-and-shader

In the 3D Game engine I used a texture and a normal map to shade in my assets although You are able to use a vertex shader in unity. Instead of just texturing the object like A material does. A Vertex shader changes the X and Y direction of the shape.

Pixel Shader

‘Pixel shaders, also known as fragment shaders, compute color and other attributes of each "fragment" - a technical term usually meaning a single pixel. The simplest kinds of pixel shaders output one screen pixel as a color value; more complex shaders with multiple inputs/outputs are also possible. Pixel shaders range from always outputting the same color, to applying a lighting value, to doing bump mapping, shadows, specular highlights, translucency and other phenomena.’

Links:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shader#Pixel_shaders

I never personally used a pixel shader in practising on 2D and 3D game engines because It was never necessary for me to do. I personally think of a pixel shader of a bunch of codes which gives the shading texture for instance the texture could include more slime or noise.

Post Processing

‘Unreal Engine provides Post Process Effects to allow artists and designers to tweak the overall look and feel of the scene. Examples of elements and effects include bloom (HDR blooming effect on bright objects), ambient occlusion, and tone mapping.’

Link:https://docs.unrealengine.com/latest/INT/Engine/Rendering/PostProcessEffects/

Post Processing basically allows the artist to change the overall look easier and more effective for instance In my 2D platform game I could of used Post processing In my practice to give the art a different look for instance I could use the post process ‘fill’ which adjusts the colour off the object.

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

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. A scene file contains objects in a strictly defined language or data structure; it would contain geometry, viewpoint, texture,lighting, and shading information as a description of the virtual scene.’

Links-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rendering_(computer_graphics)

‘I have used Rendering to create my 3D assets for the 3D game level. I did this by planning and sketching the assets for instance belt, sword, pistol and playing cards. Once I have generated 2D sketches of the assets from the front, side and back way off the asset. Once I was happy with the sketches I used blender to model it into 3D, Creating a 3D image off my asset. When finished I 3D asset I rendered and export it.

Normal Map ‘A normal map is an image that stores a direction at each pixel. These directions are called normal’s.The red, green, and blue channels of the image are used to control the direction of each pixel's normal.A normal map is commonly used to fake high-resolution details on a low-resolution model. Each pixel of the map stores the surface slope of the original high-res mesh at that point. This creates the illusion of more surface detail or better curvature. However, the silhouette of the model doesn't change.’

Links:http://wiki.polycount.com/wiki/Normal_map

A normal Map Is what I used to give textures more of a look and a feel. For instance I used a normal map when I wanted to give the building more of a rough, brick texture. Using this gives the level simply more dimension and more of a interesting, realistic effect. The main reason I used a normal map is because I wanted the level to be more realistic for example in real life if you walk close to a house wall you can see how rough the texture of the rock is and how deep the gap in-between each brick is. Using a normal map helps me achieve this look in a virtual 3D house.

Entity ‘Entity-component-system (ECS) is an architectural pattern that is mostly used in game development. An ECS follows the Composition over inheritance principle that allows greater flexibility in defining entities where every object in a game's scene is an entity (e.g. enemies, bullets, vehicles, etc.). Every Entity consists of one or more components which add additional behavior or functionality. Therefore the behavior of an entity can be changed at runtime by

In the 2D platform game I created objects/sprites such as enemies and bullets which involve using entity. For instance each object in the game have a behaviour to help them function the player for instance bullet behaviour which Makes it have a function like a bullet.

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

adding or removing components. This eliminates the ambiguity problems of deep and wide inheritance hierarchies that are difficult to understand, maintain and extend. Common ECS approaches are highly compatible and often combined with Data-oriented design techniques.’

Link:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entity_component_system

UV Map ‘This process projects a texture map onto a 3D object. The letters "U" and "V" denote the axes of the 2D texture[note 1] because "X", "Y" and "Z" are already used to denote the axes of the 3D object in model space.’

Link:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UV_mapping

I personally think UV mapping is when scripting and codes is involved to texture a object such as a cube instead of using a material. I never used this in my practice because it was to complicated and wasn’t really necessary. UV mapping is usually needed when there is several cubes with several textures such as the game mine craft. UV Mapping makes it easier.

Procedural Texture

In computing, procedural generation is a method of creating data algorithmically as opposed to manually. In computer graphics it is commonly used for creating textures. In video games it is used for creating large amounts of content in a game. Advantages of procedural generation include smaller file sizes, larger amounts of content, and randomness for less predictable gameplay.

Llink:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Procedural_generation

Procedural Texture is exactly the same as a regular material, the ones I used In the 3D engine. Although the only massive difference is that procedural textures can be generated while being in play mode instead off material which you have to create and store first. Using Procedural Texture would only be necessary in my practise if I have a large amount of content in my game.

Physics ‘The physics engine is responsible for emulating the laws of physics realistically within the application.’

Links:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_engine#Physics_engine

Physics is a behaviour which I could of used for my 2D sprites. This behaviour basically gives sprites real-world physics such as adjusting the gravity of your sprites.

Collision ‘Objects in games interact with the player, the environment, and each other. Typically, most 3D objects in games are represented by two separate meshes or shapes. One of these meshes is the highly complex and

I personally think collision as a mask of the object, While using the 2D game engine to create the platform game I came across collisions. When I inserted sprites or objects, I

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

detailed shape visible to the player in the game, such as a vase with elegant curved and looping handles.’

Links-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Physics_engine#Collision_detection

had to adjust their collisions. A collision is a ‘mask’ on the object which acts as a ‘solid’ For instance while doing a bullet the collision will automatically be a square although the bullets aren’t in a shape of a square. So by adjusting the collisions I shaped it so it is the same shape as the bullet and not a shape. Doing this means the player would only be hurt when hit by the bullet shape and not a ‘box’.

Lighting ‘Lighting refers to any technique for lighting an image or scene that calculates illumination for each pixel on a rendered image. This is in contrast to other popular methods of lighting such as vertex lighting, which calculates illumination at each vertex of a 3D model and then interpolates the resulting values over the model's faces to calculate the final per-pixel color values.’

Link-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Per-pixel_lighting

While doing my 3D level I used a natural source light Aka the sun to adjust the lightening in the game. The sun casts shadows just like a realistic sun would do in real life. Although In the game I also used a texture to give the sky more of a realistic look and feel which just by using the sun as lighting wouldn’t do. I also used a spot light with a torch object to put on the walls within the houses and castles. Just to make the houses a bit more bright and detailed.

AA – Anti-Aliasing

‘So, what is Aliasing ? It's the "jaggies" or the "stairstepping" on (unsmooth) edges/contrasts in computer graphics. In more scientific terms from the Information Theory, Aliasings are artifacts caused by samplingrates that are less than twice as high as the frequency’

Link:https://www.reddit.com/r/Games/comments/1rb964/antialiasing_modes_explained/

I could have used Anti-Aliasing in this practise while making my 2D sprites although I don’t think it was necessary enough to make the player more ‘smooth’ and ‘straight’. However on other course work I have used anti-aliasing so when someone zooms into my image it is smooth and there is no rough Lines.

LoD – Level of Detail

‘Level of detail means you reduse the amount of details when increasing the distance to the camera.’

Link:http://blenderartists.org/forum/showthread.php?193081-LOD-system-on-game-engine

Level of detail is basically when the camera is further away from the object and the detail is massively reduced although when rendered it still calculates all the faces/triangles which the object has- Even when most of the faces and triangles isn’t even noticeable. Level of detail basically adjusts the triangles so it is equal to

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

the detail of the object making it much more effective when rendering. I never used level of detail within my project because most of my assets for instance don’t need adjusting.

Animation ‘A simulation of movement created by displaying a series of pictures, or frames. Cartoons on television is one example of animation.’Links-http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/A/animation.html

I used animation on several of my sprites while doing the 2D platform game. I did this by using Photoshop and using several frames, each frame having a slight change. For instance on my player sprite the animation is flashing lights and moving right and left. I did this by using several frames with a slight movement in each frame, when put together it acts as a smooth animation of a flashing moving player.

Sprite ‘A sprite is a two-dimensional bitmap that is integrated into a larger scene.’

Links-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sprite_(computer_graphics)

I used several sprites in my practise while creating the 2D platform game. For instance the player, enemies and so on are created by using a sprite.

Scene ‘A cutscene or event scene (sometimes in-game cinematic or in-game movie) is a sequence in a video game that is not interactive, breaking up the gameplay. Such scenes could be used to show conversations between characters, bring exposition to the player, set the mood, reward the player, introduce new gameplay elements, show the effects of a player's actions, create emotional connections, improve pacing or foreshadow future events.’

Links-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cutscene

A scene is something which happens in a game, this could a be a cut scene which shows a bit of the game and the player is un able to move or a triggered scene is when a player goes somewhere and a character in the game moves or talks. For example, A small example of a triggered event scene could be when the player moves closer to the boss, the boss is then triggered to move in by itself. Although in Another practice. We created a cut scene by creating a small story with a back story and creating a small setting which then I created a cut scene by recording and using voice recordings to give a cut scene effect.

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

Library ‘Now let me explain the answers. A game engine is made up of class libraries. They do not stop being class libraries simply because they are within a game engine. A library is a useful framework to tackle a specific need within a game engine. A framework that entails the needs for a complete game is a game engine.’

Links-http://gamedev.stackexchange.com/questions/10770/whats-the-difference-between-a-library-and-an-engine

I personally think a library is something which involves having a collection of codes to help you play audio or put different graphics on the screen. Although I haven’t exactly used a professional library. I some-what have done whilst using the 2D platform engine for instance whilst putting in audio and doing coding I have paid attention to the library to complete the game.

UI ‘The user interface is one of the most important parts of any program because it determines how easily you can make the program do what you want. A powerful program with a poorly designed user interface has little value. Graphical user interfaces (GUIs) that use windows, icons, and pop-up menus have become standard on personal computers.’

Link:http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/U/user_interface.html

The user interface is basically what information is on the screen. For instance You could say that on the 2D platform game which I created the UI will be the player screen which shows th player, health and so on. This helps show the player information as well as help with the narrative of the game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9MeQHhSswY

Frames ‘Frame rate is linked to monitor refresh rates, Bithell explains, which traditionally are 30Hz and 60Hz.’

‘The biggest concern is when a game starts dropping frames. When the eye has been trained to see something in a specific way, be it 30 FPS or 60 FPS, the occasional dip in frame rate stands out much more. One of the reasons developers lock a game at 30 FPS is due to such dips - it's better to have a solid game running at 30 FPS than one that can run at 60 FPS but doesn't always.’

Link:http://uk.ign.com/articles/2014/11/05/understanding-frame-rate-and-its-importance

Frame rate is basically frames per second. This basically shows the speed of the game and its performance for instance it could be 30 Fps or 40, 50, 60 and so on. But just because the performance on a pc is good doesn’t mean that it will be on a mobile or tablet device so it is important to check the frames per second. I personally cannot remember what fps my 2D game was but I know I put all my assets and so on to match the frames per second for instance doing this stops the sprites being too fast or to slow for the game.

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

Concept ‘A concept is a generalization or abstraction from experience or the result of a transformation of existing ideas.’

Links-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concept

I used concept art in both the 2D game engine and the 3D game engine. Simply because using concept art – No matter how simple it may be. It makes creating the level, sprite, objects a lot simpler. For instance before creating the sprites I created a quick sketch off the sprites even though it is a quick sketch and I didn’t intentionally use it, It helped me generate ideas and have a feel/look on what the sprite would look like.

Event ‘In computing, an event is an action or occurrence recognised by software that may be handled by the software. Computer events can be generated or triggered by the system, by the user or in other ways. Typically, events are handled synchronously with the program flow, that is, the software may have one or more dedicated places where events are handled, frequently an event loop. A source of events includes the user, who may interact with the software by way of, for example, keystrokes on the keyboard. Another source is a hardware device such as a timer. Software can also trigger its own set of events into the event loop, e.g. to communicate the completion of a task. Software that changes its behavior in response to events is said to be event-driven, often with the goal of being interactive.’

Links-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Event_(computing)

In the 2D game engine (Task 4) You can tell that I have used the event sheet several times. In the event sheet You are able to set events and conditions. These events basically tell the game engine what to do. For instance a even might be to tell the system to create an object on a certain layout. Then the condition will be what object and what it should do.

Pathfinding Path finding or pathing is the plotting, by a computer application, of the shortest route between two points. It is a more practical variant on solving mazes. This field of research is based heavily on Dijkstra's algorithm for finding a shortest path on a weighted graph.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pathfinding

Just like physics, Path finding is a behaviour In the 2D game engine. Path finding basically gives the sprite a line of sight instead of the sprite wondering around it basically tells them to go from A to B. I could of used this in my practice but i didn’t think it was necessary to do so because The sprites such as the enemies don’t have a exact location to go to and knew to aim for the player.

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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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