Produce a glossary of terms specific to the methods and principles of Video Game Design and Video Game Terms. Using a provide d 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:

Natalina Moore

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 sample playable demonstration of a game that is intended to entice the player to

purchase the full version.” http://www.factmonster.com/sc

ience/computers/video-game-glossary.html#c

A game demo is a free sample that the public can play. The

game is very near to the end of

development. People test the game and this will usually

attract them to buy the full version of the game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fF75Bg5R7OA&list=UUd7augJhXMeDDcWSmEck9EQ&index=3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZtB7sUbmmTc The video above is relevant to my work because it is footage of Naruto Storm Revolution Demo which is the new Naruto game which is being released this week.

Beta “a nearly complete prototype of a game. Users often test beta vers ions to a lert developers of

bugs or problems.” http://www.factmonster.com/sc

ience/computers/video-game-

glossary.html#c

A beta is a proto type of an a lmost complete game,

People play betas to test the versions to

a lert developers of

the bugs or problems in the game

http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20140709170300/destinypedia/images/7/71/Destiny_Beta_logo.jpg The image above is relevant to the my work as it is an example of a beta.

Alpha “The first playable version of a game. Alpha software generally barely runs and is missing major features like gameplay and

complete levels”

http://uk.ign.com/wikis/gaming-terms-lexicon/A

An a lpha is the first

playable version of a game; i t usually barely runs and have big parts of the game missing and isn’t very

playable.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0k8_XOHJfM

This video is relevant to my work as it shows the a lpha of elder scrolls online.

Pre-Alpha

“The software is still under active development and not feature complete or ready for consumption by anyone other than software developers. There may be milestones during the pre-alpha which deliver specific sets of functionality, and nightly builds for other developers or users who are comfortable living on the absolute bleeding edge.

http://blog.codinghorror.com/al

pha-beta-and-sometimes-gamma/

This is an even earlier vers ion of the game, so i t i s not ready for

the public to test it or anyone but the

developers. The

developers will set mi lestone in the

a lpha for them to work on but i t is a very rough version of the game.

The picture above is relevant to my work as it is an example of the pre-alpha from Fallout. http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mSJAzSnQGFE/U_PDhpjqtWI/AAAAAAAA7i4/p5-FT0mGybE/s1600/Capture.PNG

Gold A game has "Gone Gold" when the final master copy has been produced at the developer and

sent off for replication, packaging and shipment.

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Gone%20Gold

The term gone gold means when the game has been

finished and sent off from the developer. It

means when the sales are doing well and is just the finished product.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wt3LIl8JJTg This video is relevant to my work as it complains what going gold means and the example is Titanfall.

Debug debugging is the process of locating and fixing or bypassing bugs (errors) in computer

program code or the engineering of a hardware device.

http://searchsoftwarequality.tec

htarget.com/definition/debugging

Debugging Is where the programmers fix the bugs in the

program. They will locate and fix bugs

which are errors in

the computer program code.

http://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/minecraft-

de.gamepedia.com/thumb/d/dc/Debug-Information-1.8.png/500px-

Debug-Information-

1.8.png?version=103d274b2baef55b9f5bf302303e705c This image is relevant to my work as it shows the debug screen from

minecraft

Automation

the technique of making an apparatus, a process, or a system operate automatically

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/automa

tion

Automation is the process of making things into something

that wi ll work automatically. For

example a apparatus,

process or a system work automatically.

This picture is relevant to my work as automation is making things run automatic like a machine and here is an example of a part of a machine http://www.exacttarget.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/automation_2_w10241.jpeg

White-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. It uses specific

knowledge of programming code

to examine outputs. The test is only accurate if the tester knows

what the program is supposed to do. http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/W/White_Box_Testing.html

White box testing i s a software testing technique that can

only be used if the programmer has

expl icit knowledge of

the internal working of the i tem or object

that i s being tested to select the test data. It needs specific knowledge of the programming code to examine the end

result of the thing that i s being tested. This test will only

work and be accurate and effective if the

tester knows what the program is supposed to do

This image is relevant to my work as it is an example of white box testing http://engronline.ee.memphis.edu/eece3220/chap9/img017.GIF

Bug A problem, usually one that can be fixed by changing some code. http://www.sloperama.com/adv

ice/lesson28.html

A bug is a problem or something that i s wrong in the code

that can be fixed by correcting or change

some of the code.

GAME ENGINES

Vertex Shader

a programmable function in display adapters that offers a

graphics application programmer flexibility in rendering an image. The vertex shader is used to transform the attributes of vertices (points of a

triangle) such as color, texture, pos ition and direction from the

original color space to the display space. It a llows the original objects to be distorted

or reshaped in any manner. http://www.pcmag.com/encyclopedia/term/53754/vertex-shader

A vertex shader is a

programmable function which enables programmers to

have flexibility in rendering an image. The vertex shader can

transform the shape and allows the original image

to be distorted or reshaped in any manner.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KElJA_gieYQ This video is an example of a vertex shader.

GAME ENGINES

Pixel Shader

Pixel shaders are tiny programs that can do operations on a s ingle pixel on the screen The

most common use for pixel shaders is 'shading' and

approximation to real world

l ighting They are used as a lternatives to

the s tandard texturing phase. http://gaming.stackexchange.com/questions/22286/what-is-a-pixel-shader

Pixel shaders and tiny programs that do operations on a single

pixel on the screen. This allows the

programmer to be

more precise and is commonly used for

shading and to make the background look more realistic

This picture is an example of a pixel shader. On the right is the pixel shader compared to no pixel shader. The picture shows that the pixel shader improves the quality of the image.

Post

Processing

quality-improvement image

processing post processing is used in 3D

rendering, instead of rendering

3D objects directly to the display the scene is first rendered to a

buffer in the memory of the video card then pixel shaders are

used to apply the post-processing filters to the image buffer before displaying the screen.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vid

Post processing is a

procedure in which images are processed

for quality

improvement. They do this by fi rst

rendering the scene to a buffer in the

memory of the video card then pixel shaders are used to apply the post

processing filters to

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDpU58IIRPU This video is a good example as it explains what a post postprocessor is.

eo_post-processing the image before displaying the screen.

Rendering

Rendering is the process of generating an image from a model by means of a computer

programs. It i s processed and output to an digital image or raster graphics.

http://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/docs/Rend

ering_(computer_graphics).html

Rendering is the the process when you use a computer program

to generate a image, what you create is processed to an

digital image .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ysc9PViwgM This video is relevant to my work as it explains what rendering is.

Normal

Map A 2D texture map is an image

added to a 3D model that provides a higher level of detail,

wrapping around whatever 3D

art you have to apply or modify certa in attributes like color,

transparency, shininess, reflection, and higher detail. http://gamedevelopment.tutsplus .com/articles/gamedev-

glossary-what-is-a-normal-map--gamedev-3893

A normal map is a 2D

texture map which is

added to a 3D model,

this provides a higher

level of detail as the

image wraps around

the 3D art that you

have applied.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-6Yu-nTbUU This video is relevant to my work as it explains what a normal map and gives examples.

Entity An "enti ty" in 0 A.D.'s terminology i s the internal representation of a game object.

It could be a unit, s tructure, tree, or even a decorative actor like a

clump of grass

http://trac.wildfiregames.com/wiki/Entity

Enti ty: A unique ID that tags each game-object as a separate i tem. http://entity-systems.wikidot.com/

An enti ty i s anything in the game which is an representation of

a game object like a object or s tructure,

chair or tree. It tags

each game object as a separate item.

UV Map A 3D object has many s ides and

a computer doesn’t know how to

correctly put a 2D texture onto a

3D object. A UV map is basically the 3D model s tretched out into

a flat 2D image. Each face on your polygon object i s tied to a

face on the UV map. Now placing a 2D texture onto this new 2D representation of your 3D object i s much easier.

http://blog.digitaltutors.com/cover-bases-common-3d-texturing-terminology/

A UV map is basically the 3D model

s tretched out into a

2D image. Because a 3D object has many

s ides, the computer doesn’t correctly

know how to put a 2D texture onto a 3D object so the polygon object i s tied to a face

on the UV map so placing a 2D texture onto this new 2D

representation of the 3D object i s easier.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIvTUDgaXik This video is relevant because it explains what a UV map is and the basics of an UV map.

Procedural

A procedural texture is generated from repeating one

A procedural texture i s when images are

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkTIZ1GldgQ

Texture small image, plus some pseudo-random, gradient variations (ca l led Perlin noise). Procedural

textures look more natural than s tatic rectangular textures, and

they look less distorted on

spheres. On big meshes, their repetitiveness is much less

noticable than with tiled seamless textures http://hub.jmonkeyengine.org/wiki/doku.php/jme3:terminology

repeated from one small image plus some variations.

This video shows some examples of procedural texture and is therefore relevant to my work

Physics Computer animation physics or game physics involves the

introduction of the laws of phys ics into a simulation or game engine, particularly in 3D computer graphics, for the

purpose of making the effects appear more real to the

observer. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_physics

Phys ics in games must be the realist to

phys ics in real l ife. Otherwise the game wi l l not be realist. If phys ics in game are

made to work well then they will be the

same as physics in rea l life.

http://www.dsogaming.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/skate-3-physics.jpg

This image is relevant because it shows an example of physics in games gone wrong. As in real life benches cannot fly as high as the tops of trees.

Collision Detecting an intersection between one or more objects in your game. Player & enemy, enemy & weapon, player & wall http://www.creepyed.com/2012/09/game-development-101-glossary-part-0/

A col lision game engine is where it detects the

intersection between objects in the game.

For example the

player and object, player and enemy or

enemy and weapon.

http://www.silverlightshow.net/Storage/Users/MisterGoodcat/__image_10.png

This picture is relevant to my work because it shows the collision path of two spirtes so it is a good example of collision.

Lighting Placing computer-simulated lights into a 3-D environment. http://theanimationarchive.com/terms

Lighting in games is where they place computer simulated

l ights in a 3D environment to make

i t look more realistic.

This is picture is relevant to my work as it is an example of lighting.

http://media.moddb.com/legacy/images/tutorials/23/239/gallery/t_246.jpg

AA –

Anti-Aliasing

Anti -Aliasing is a method of

fool ing the eye that a jagged edge is really smooth.

http://www.pantherproducts.co.uk/index.php?pageid=antialiasin

g

Anti Al iasing i s when

a jagged or blocky edge appears like an

smooth edge. It is fool ing the eye to

think the jagged edge

is smooth.

This picture is relevant because it is an example of Anti-Aliasing. You can see that the anti aliasing looks blurry close up but far away it will look smooth.

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

Level of detail is when the landscapes and background that are

closer are rendered with more polygons

than the objects that

are farther away, so the things which are

closer have more deta il than things that are farther away. The level of detail is dictated by the games systems requirements

and the processor.

This picture is relevant to my work as it is a good example of level of detail in a game. Because as you can see the trees and castle have a lot more detail than the distant mountains in the back. http://www.quiptiq.com/images/minecraft/render/GH_spawn6.png

Animati

on Animation is the process of displaying still images in a rapid sequence to create the illusion of movement. These images can be hand drawn, computer generated, or pictures of 3D objects. http://www.wisegeek.org/what-is-animation.htm

Animation is when

you display s till images in a consecutive sequence

to fool the eye and create the illusion of

movement. Examples of the images can be hand drawn or

computer generated.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZZIX781NmA This video is relevant to my work as it in a example of an animated scene from final fantasy 8.

Sprite Sprites are 2D bitmaps that are drawn directly to a render target without using the pipeline for transformations, lighting or effects. Sprites are commonly used to display information such as health bars, number of lives, or text such as scores. Some games, especially older games, are composed entirely of sprites. http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb203919.aspx

Spri tes a re 2D bi tmaps which means they are 2D images

and could be anything; they are

drawn directly

without using transformations.

Spri tes can be anything but they are normally used to display information l ike heath bars, number of l ives and

some older games are composed entirely of spri tes which mean

character can also be spri tes.

http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2010/247/6/5/megaman_running_sprites_by_cobalt_blue_knight-d2y1i8s.jpg

Scene An individual cut in an animated film. http://theanimationarchive.com/terms

A scene is a single cut

or cut scene in an animated film or

game. Where the player doesn’t have any control over what i s happening. They

are usually in third or fi rs t person and is normally dialog or

and action event.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1KxjGn30PDA This video is relevant because it is an example of a scene in a game where you have no control all you can do is watch.

Library A library is a useful framework to tackle a specific need within a game engine http://gamedev.stackexchange.com/questions/10770/whats-the-difference-between-a-library-and-an-engine

A l ibrary i s a framework which i s used to correct or

used for a specific need in a game

engine.

This image is an example of the framework library

UI UL stands for Underwriters Laboratories, a non-profit organisation. Basically what they do is test different parts of products (AC Cord, microchips etc) and see if they are susceptible to catching on fire http://www.answers.com/Q/What_does_UL_mean

UL is a term used for Underwriters

Laboratories. They are the non-profit

organisation and they test the different

parts of the products

to see how safe they are and if they can

catch on fi re.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66SQU46xy8Q This video is relevant to my work as it shows Underwrites Laboratories demonstrating one of their fire tests

Frames Motion picture film is made up of a string of individual frames that, when viewed in rapid succession, create the illusion of movement. There are twenty-four frames per second to film. http://theanimationarchive.com/terms

Frames are the individual scene which makes up a

motion picture film or cutscene. They are

played in rapid

succession after each other and create the

i l lusion which tricks the eye into thinking that i ts moving.

This picture is relevant to my work as it an example of frames.

Concept The development of images from imagination to show what does not exist on this world. http://moberly.k12.mo.us/Forms/MATC/wd/siteww/defart.html

an idea, or thought which describes the whole game or what it’s about.

This image is the orginal concept art of final fantasy 7 character Cloud. This is

releveant to my work as it is an example of a concept created from someones imagination. http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130202104438/finalfantasy/images/7/70/Cloud_Strife_Sketch2.png

Event The core concept in an event driven game engine is the message loop. http://cboard.cprogramming.com/game-programming/122082-event-driven-game-engine.html

An event i s something that happens in the game. Usually the

decisions the player has made earlier in

the game will lead to

di fferent events later on in the game.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9s0mP6q-3w

Pathfinding

Pathfinding or pathing is the plotting, by a computer application, of the shortest route between two points http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pathfinding

Pathfinding i s when

the computer plots the shortest route

between two points,

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