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: 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 game demo is a freely distributed demonstration of an upcoming or recently released game. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_demo

A demo would be useful to see what players like and dislike about my game.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJBIc5iSDY0

Beta The word Beta in the video game industry refers to a products stage of development. Beta refers to a point where a game is closed to being released but still needs testing.http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/what-does-beta-software-really-mean/

A beta version of a game would by useful as it allows me to spot and correct any bugs/glitches.

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

Alpha The word Alpha in the video game industry also refers to a products stage of development.Alpha refers to the halfway point of a games development.http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/what-does-beta-software-really-mean/

An Alpha version of a game would by useful as it allows me to spot and correct any bugs/glitches.

Pre-Alpha The word pre-alpha in the video game industry also refers to a products stage of development.Pre-alpha refers to the very beginning of a games development.http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/what-does-beta-software-really-mean/

A Pre-Alpha version of a game would by useful as it allows me to spot and correct any bugs/glitches.

Gold When a video game is ‘gold’ it means that the development cycle is completed.http://www.gamespot.com/forums/playstation-discussion-1000002/what-does-it-mean-when-a-game-goes-gold-26614050/

This would mean that my game has been developed and is ready to be distributed.

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

Debug A debug menu is a section of a game where developers can test a game and access areas unavailable during gameplay.http://nintendo.wikia.com/wiki/Debug_menu

This would be useful to allow players to edit aspects of my game which they do not like or think needs improvement.

Automation

In software testing, test automation is the use of special software (separate from the software being tested) to control the execution of tests and the comparison of actual outcomes with predicted outcomes.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Test_automation

This would be useful to test my finished game.

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

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

Bug A bug or glitch is a short lived fault in a game. It describes a fault that usually corrects itself.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glitch

Any bugs in my game need to be removed.

GAME ENGINES

GAME ENGINES

Vertex Shader

A Vertex Shader is a GPU component and is programmed using a specific assembly-like language. They are oriented to the scene geometry and can do things like adding cartoony silhouette edges to objects.http://stackoverflow.com/questions/832545/what-are-vertex-and-pixel-shaders

This would be useful when designing characters for my game.

Pixel Shader

A Pixel Shader is a GPU (Graphic Processing Unit) component that can be programmed to operate on a per pixel basis and take care of stuff like lighting and bump mapping.http://stackoverflow.com/questions/832545/what-are-vertex-and-pixel-shaders

This would be useful when designing scenery for my game.

Post Processing

This setting controls the colour, lighting and blurs effects which largely determine the "cinematic" look of a game.http://www.tweakguides.com/Crysis3_8.html

This would also be useful during the production of scenery.

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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 model (or models in what collectively could be called a scene file), by means of computer programs.http://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/docs/Rendering_(computer_graphics).html

This processed would be used when creating an environment for my game.

Normal Map

These are images that store a direction, the direction of normals directly in the RGB values of an image. They are much more accurate, as rather than only simulating the pixel being away from the face along a line, they can simulate that pixel being moved at any direction, in an arbitrary way.http://wiki.blender.org/index.php/Doc:2.4/Manual/Textures/Influence/Material/Bump_and_Normal

Entity A unique ID that tags each game-object as a separate item.http://entity-systems.wikidot.com/

This would be useful when adding items into my game.

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

UV Map UV mapping is the 3D modeling process of making a 2D image representation of a 3D model's surface.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UV_mapping

I would use this process when creating characters for my game.

Procedural Texture

A procedural texture is a computer-generated image created using an algorithm intended to create a realistic representation of natural elements such as wood, marble, granite, metal, stone, and others.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Procedural_texture

This would be used when texturing my game.

Physics Computer animation physics or game physics involves the introduction of the laws of physics 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

I should make sure that the physics in my game are realistic and work correctly.

Collision Collision detection typically refers to the computational problem of detecting the intersection of two or more objects. While the topic is most often associated with its use in video games and other physical simulations, it also has applications in robotics.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collision_detection

If something is colliding in my game it means that the objects need to be edited.

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

Lighting Lighting has the capacity to bring life to a group of objects and take them to the next level of quality. Its purpose goes further than just giving the players the ability to see where they are going. It creates atmosphere. It makes places look scary/cozy or warm/cold.http://www.moddb.com/tutorials/lighting-in-game-environments-the-hows-and-whys

Lighting would be used when creating an environment for my game.

AA – Anti-Aliasing

Anti-aliasing can detect rough edges and smooth them out using a quick scan of them. If the higher the number the more edges it can scan at once.https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100420031929AAON6YB

I would use this at the end of the creation of my game to ensure that the textures are correct.

LoD – Level of Detail

The level of detail within a game is how much detail has been put into the scenery and characters of the game.

The level of detail of my game will depend on the engine I use and the amount of time I spend creating my game.

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

Animation Animation in video games refers to how things physically look, which includes everything from the texture of the skin on each character, to the graphical user interface, to the way a character rolls her ankle when she walks.http://www.gamecareerguide.com/features/413/game_art_and_animation_an_introduction.php

Animation would be used when creating characters for my game.

Sprite In computer graphics, a sprite (also known by other names; see Synonyms below) is a two-dimensional image or animation that is integrated into a larger scene. Initially including just graphical objects handled separately from the memory bitmap of a video display, this now includes various manners of graphical overlays.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sprite_(computer_graphics)

This will only be used when creating my 2d game.

Scene In game engines the scene is a certain point within a game where the player does not have control of what is happening.

Scenery in my game will depend on what game engine I use.

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

Library A library refers to different game engines. A library will be the different game engines I have to choose from.

UI Abbreviated UI, the junction between a user and a computer program. An interface is a set of commands or menus through which a user communicates with a program. A command-driven interface is one in which you enter commands.http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/U/user_interface.html

The user interface of my game will depend on what game engine is used.

Frames Frames in a game refer to every point within gameplay. Frames are used to separate different parts of the game into sequences.

The amount of frames in my game will depend on how long it ends up being.

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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 an idea for a game or something in a game. Concept for my game will be done at the very beginning of the creating process.

EventPath finding

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

Path finding will be used when creating objects that need to be linked together.

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