Unity 3D and PlayMaker Essentials Game Development from Concept to Publishing

In introducing new students to video game development, there are two crucial components to consider: design and implementation. Unity 3D and PlayMaker Essentials: Game Development from Concept to Publishing provides theoretical background on topics such as characters, stories, level design, interface design, audio, game mechanics, and tools and skills needed. Each chapter focuses on a specific topic, with topics building upon each other so that by the end of the book you will have looked into all the subjects relevant to creating your own game. The book transitions from discussion to demonstrations of how to implement techniques and concepts into practice by using Unity3D and PlayMaker. Download boxes are included throughout the book where you can get the version of the game project under discussion or other content to add to the project, as well as any supplementary video tutorials that have been developed. Addressing both theoretical and practical aspects, Unity 3D and PlayMaker Essentials enables you to understand how to create a game by having you make a game. By gradually completing your own design document through the course of the book, you will become familiar with core design principles while learning the practical skills needed to bring your unique game to life.

BACKGROUNDIntroductionWho Plays Games?How Are Games Made?Who Can Make Games?What Types of Games Are There?SummaryVocabularyReview QuizExercisesDesign DocumentDesign DocumentsIntroduction to the Design DocumentSections of the Design DocumentSummaryVocabularyReview QuizExercisesDesign DocumentUsing Unity and PlayMakerInstalling UnityUnity’s InterfaceUsing UnityInstalling PlayMakerPlayMaker’s InterfaceState MachinesUsing PlayMakerSummaryVocabularyReview QuizExercisesDesign DocumentBUILDING BLOCKSCharactersThe Purpose of CharactersDo Games Need Characters?Traditional Character TypesGame Character TypesCharacter DesignCharacter Asset DesignImporting Assets in UnityCharacter Control SystemsSummaryVocabularyReview QuizExercisesDesign DocumentNon-Player CharactersWhat Is Artificial Intelligence?Some Different Types of Artificial IntelligenceSelecting an Artificial Intelligence SystemDesigning a Threshold GuardianImplementing the Threshold GuardianPrefabsSummaryVocabularyReview QuizExercisesDesign DocumentStoryWhat Is a Story?Does My Game Need a Story?How to Tell a StoryThe Building Blocks of a StoryAristotle and the GreeksThe Return of Joseph CampbellStory DesignPutting the Story into the GameSummaryVocabularyReview QuizExercisesDesign DocumentEnvironmentEnvironments for StoriesEnvironments for GamesCreating the Terrain in UnityDressing a Terrain with Standard ContentAdding Imported AssetsLighting the EnvironmentBoundariesSummaryVocabularyReview QuizExercisesDesign DocumentMechanicsWhat Are Game Mechanics?Where Do Mechanics Come From?Designing Our MechanicsImplementing Our MechanicsSummaryVocabularyReview QuizExercisesDesign DocumentBRINGING IT TOGETHERAudioHow Audio Is Used in GamesFinding AudioIntroduction to AudacityAudio in UnityUsing PlayMaker to Play AudioSummaryVocabularyReview QuizExercisesDesign DocumentThe User InterfaceThe Uses of User InterfacesUser Interface DesignThe User Interface System of UnityUpdating the User Interface with PlayMakerSummaryVocabularyReview QuizExercisesDesign DocumentTesting, Tweaking, and PublishingWhat Is Testing?Fixing and TweakingBuilding the GameSummaryVocabularyReview QuizExercisesDesign Document

Jere Miles is the lead instructor of game development at Wilkes Community College, Wilkesboro, North Carolina. He earned his BS in computer science from Florida State University and his MS in computer science from Appalachian State University. While at ASU, his graduate thesis and research focused on improving the believability of non-player characters within simulated environments such as video games. He has been creating games since first learning BASIC on an Atari 800 back in the early 1980s. His specific interest within video game development revolves around stories and characters drawing heavy inspiration from the gameplay mechanics of old text adventures and point-and-click adventure games. He has been married for 20 years and has two boys preparing the enter college.