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From the introduction: "Three dimensional graphics hardware is fast becoming, not merely a staple of computer systems, but an indispensable component. Many operating systems directly use and even require some degree of 3D rendering hardware. Even in the increasingly relevant mobile computing space, 3D graphics hardware is a standard feature of all but the lowest power devices. Understanding how to make the most of that hardware is a difficult challenge, particularly for someone new to graphics and rendering."

Published 2013 and excerpted in Google Books. "The book helps new programmers learn the concepts and techniques used to produce appealing 2D graphics. It starts with the basics and then covers topics pertaining to motion and depth, such as cel animation, tiling, and layering. The text also describes advanced graphics, including the use of particle systems, shaders, and splines. Code samples in the text and online allow readers to see a particular line of code in action or as it relates to the code around it. In addition, challenges and suggested projects encourage readers to work through problems, experiment with solutions, and tinker with code."

"Smartphone devices are becoming the de facto personal com- puting platform, rivaling the desktop, as the number of smartphone users is projected to reach 1.1 billion by 2013. Unlike the desktop, smartphones have a constrained energy budget, which is further challenged by increasingly sophisti- cated applications. Amongst the most popular applications on smartphone devices are games and virtual environments that rely on 3D graphics. Due to the computational inten- sity of geometry and rasterization, as well as the perpetually illuminated display, these applications are extremely power- hungry. To prolong the battery life of devices running these applications, we propose two new energy-aware adaptation schemes that can be employed in 3D graphics applications: lighting limitation and textural transformation. Our results show that we can conserve between 20% and 33% of energy with acceptable sacrices to a user's visual experience."

abstract: "Creating graphical user interfaces (GUI) for stereoscopic 3D (S3D) games is a difficult choice between visual comfort and effect. We present a S3D Game GUI Design Space and a list of S3D-specific attributes that emphasizes integrating visually comfortable interfaces into the game world, story and S3D view. To showcase our approach, we created two GUI concepts and evaluated them with 32 users. Our results show quality improvements for a combination of bottom position and visual attachment for a menu. In a referencing interface, placing the reference near to the target depth significantly improved perceived quality, game integration, and increased presence. These results confirm the need to create S3D GUIs with perceptual constraints in mind, demonstrating the potential to extend the user experience. Additionally, our design space offers a formal and flexible way to create new effects in S3D GUIs."

Abstract: "This paper explores the possibilities of game-based learning within the context of a graphic design education. A global network now exists that puts all professionals in competition with one-another, and in order to stay competitive as educators, we must be able to produce professionals that can solve problems creatively. However, traditional teaching methods may in some contexts be unable to provide the kind of education students need, and initial research suggests that game-based learning may be a viable solution. This study establishes a framework of good game-based learning principles and a design for a video game to be used in a teaching environment. Primarily target audiences are teenage students, roughly ages 10 - 14, and college level undergraduate students, ages 18 - 25, of all genders. This video game is intended to teach players situated meanings for key visual communication concepts of grid and modularity, in a way that allows them to create high level relationships between these and their creative work."

Value of computer game design and serious games courses for all computer students

"This experiment parses the game files (in their original format) and builds the maps and some of the game objects from the game through WebGL. Some very basic game mechanics and physics are implemented, but there isn't really anything else than pedestrian movement possible in this version."

Abstract: "The video games industry develops ever more advanced technologies to improve rendering, image quality, ergonomics and user experience of their creations providing very simple to use tools to design new games. In the molecular sciences, only a small number of experts with specialized know-how are able to design interactive visualization applications, typically static computer programs that cannot easily be modified. Are there lessons to be learned from video games? Could their technology help us explore new molecular graphics ideas and render graphics developments accessible to non-specialists? This approach points to an extension of open computer programs, not only providing access to the source code, but also delivering an easily modifiable and extensible scientific research tool. In this work, we will explore these questions using the Unity3D game engine to develop and prototype a biological network and molecular visualization application for subsequent use in research or education. We have compared several routines to represent spheres and links between them, using either built-in Unity3D features or our own implementation. These developments resulted in a stand-alone viewer capable of displaying molecular structures, surfaces, animated electrostatic field lines and biological networks with powerful, artistic and illustrative rendering methods. We consider this work as a proof of principle demonstrating that the functionalities of classical viewers and more advanced novel features could be implemented in substantially less time and with less development effort. Our prototype is easily modifiable and extensible and may serve others as starting point and platform for their developments. A webserver example, standalone versions for MacOS X, Linux and Windows, source code, screen shots, videos and documentation are available at the address: http://unitymol.sourceforge.net/."

Abstract: "D video games are getting popular in the world with the availability of advanced graphic cards, high processing p ower computers, high speed internet and smart sensing devices ranging from general mouse to Microsoft Kinect. OpenGL is a popular graphics processing framework and it is being used by many famous 3D video game design software as the back end framework. In this paper we present our experience with OpenGL based C++ implementation of a 3D first person shooting game. 3D environment building, navigating, character animation, lighting, sound and shooting is described. Specially OpenGL based concepts are discussed for clear understanding of the concepts."

Abstract: "Through the use of an online discussion, this study collected the detailed perspectives of 29 'hardcore' and 'casual' gamers, regarding the topic of FPS video games. It investigates what the gamers want in a FPS by means of an online discussion which builds on the benefits of both ethnography and focus group methodologies. Since the study's main goal was exploratory, a qualitative approach was considered the most appropriate; in addition to this, the method used to collect the data was done within a grounded theory framework. This study finds that, though graphics have historically been a major factor in driving the success of a FPS video game, this is no longer the case. Gamers expect there to be a balance between the different components, with a more holistic gaming experience desired, and that too much focus on one component at the expense of another will result in an unsatisfactory video game experience. This can be seen in comments given by the participants indicating too much emphasis of the graphics quality in a FPS and not enough on story or the multiplayer aspects results in a video game which is neither fun nor praiseworthy. The latter is perceived significant as with such an oversaturation in the video game market, developers rely heavily on positive word of mouth to advertise their games. This study's main goal was to develop a better understanding of the expectations of gamers regarding FPS; in doing so, it has laid out the basis for producing a 'magic formula' for a great FPS video game. It has also highlighted several other areas which need further investigation in order to better understand the behavioural motives and actions of gamers from both 'hardcore' and 'casual' communities."

"Automated lm editing involves the generation of the position, orientation, motion and selection of virtual cameras in interactive 3D graphics applications. There is a pressing demand for techniques to assist and automate the control of virtual cameras in the computer games industry where the rapid development of personal computers and high performance consoles has led to substantial improvements in the visual delity of games. The goal of this survey is to characterize the spectrum of applications that require automated lm editing, present a summary of state-of-the-art models and techniques, and identify both promising avenues and hot topics for future research"

"Abstract. While building a game engine in Microsoft XNA 4 that pow- ered a RTS (real-time strategy) tower defense type game, we were faced with the issue of increasing the amount of visual feedback received by the player and adding value to the gameplay by creating a more immersive atmosphere. This is a common goal shared by all games, and with the recent advancements in graphics hardware (namely OpenGL, DirectX and the advent of programmable shaders) it has become a necessity. In this pa- per we will build upon the shadowing techniques known as VSM (variance shadow map) and LVSM (layered variance shadow map) and discuss some of the issues and optimizations we employed in order to add real-time soft shadowing capabilities to our game engine."

"MakeGamesWithUs is a new iOS game publishing company with a twist: its focus is on helping high school and college students to build games. MakeGamesWithUs us will take the kids' creations, provide professional graphics and art and publish them in the App Store."

"Wake Forest - Science researchers, inspired by the graphics used to create video games, have used the technology to create advanced imaging systems to examine cancerous cells. The research may pave the way for new "designer drugs" to combat certain forms of cancer."

Abstract: "Cloud gaming now makes any computer game playable on a thin client without the previous worries and frustrations about the hardware requirements. It frees players from the need to frequently upgrade their computers as they can now play games that are hosted on remote servers with a broadband Internet connection and a thin client. However, cloud games are intrinsically more susceptible to latency than online games because game graphics are rendered on cloud servers and thin clients do not possess game state information that is required by delay compensation techniques. In this paper, we investigate how the response latency in cloud gaming would affect users' experience and how the impact of latency on players' experience varies among different games. We show that not all games are equally friendly to cloud gaming. That is, the same degree of latency may have very different impacts on a game's quality of experience depending on the game's real-time strictness. We thus develop a model that can predict a game's real-time strictness based on the rate of players' inputs and the game screen dynamics. The model can be used to simultaneously enhance players' gaming and optimize the operation cost of data centers."

Abstract: "We present a method for simulating the melting and owing of material in burning objects fast enough to be of use in video games where most of the graphical and computational resources are needed elsewhere. The standard practice of us- ing particle engines or uid dynamics for melting are far too costly for use in this environment. We demonstrate that our method, which is based on systematic polygonal expanding and folding, uses only a fraction of the computational power avail- able by implementing the computation on a very modest GPU using CUDA"

Published 2013 and excerpted in Google Books. From the description: "In Honoring the Code: Conversations with Great Game Designers, 16 groundbreaking game developers share their stories and offer advice for anyone aspiring to a career in the games industry. You'll learn from their triumphs and failures and see how they dealt with sweeping changes in technology, including critical paradigm shifts from CD-ROMs and 3D graphic cards to the Internet and mobile revolution. The book presents in-depth interviews with a diverse mix of game professionals, emphasizing the makers of adventure games, role-playing games, and real-time strategies. It focuses on developers who have contributed to multiple eras or genres as well as those who have hired, taught, or mentored newcomers. Since the mobile revolution has opened up new demographics and new gameplay mechanics, the book features current developers of games for mobile devices. It also explores how indie game developers are making commercial-quality games with a small team mostly using free tools and funded with crowdsourcing applications."

"A Slower Speed of Light is a first-person game prototype in which players navigate a 3D space while picking up orbs that reduce the speed of light in increments. Custom-built, open-source relativistic graphics code allows the speed of light in the game to approach the player's own maximum walking speed. Visual effects of special relativity gradually become apparent to the player, increasing the challenge of gameplay. These effects, rendered in realtime to vertex accuracy, include the Doppler effect (red- and blue-shifting of visible light, and the shifting of infrared and ultraviolet light into the visible spectrum); the searchlight effect (increased brightness in the direction of travel); time dilation (differences in the perceived passage of time from the player and the outside world); Lorentz transformation (warping of space at near-light speeds); and the runtime effect (the ability to see objects as they were in the past, due to the travel time of light). Players can choose to share their mastery and experience of the game through Twitter. A Slower Speed of Light combines accessible gameplay and a fantasy setting with theoretical and computational physics research to deliver an engaging and pedagogically rich experience."

abstract: "This work focuses on the design and implementation of an educational game for deployment on the Xbox 360 commercial game console. Video games can be extremely powerful and effective learning tools when deployed with methodical precision. Currently, no learning tools are available for commercial consoles that focus on teaching core concepts in Engineering. This work presents an overall design for an educational game to address Number Systems in the scope of the Electrical and Computer Engineering curricula. BINX is an educational adventure game designed to address Number Systems and their arithmetic operations in Digital Logic Design, a core course is Electrical and Computer Engineering programs. Object Oriented Design Principles were used in the development of this game. This work presents one sublevel implemented using the XNA framework - a Microsoft Software Development Kit (SDK).The BINX gameplay takes place inside a computer where a malicious virus is threatening the computer's operability. The player has to find the virus and eradicate it by disconnecting the terminals of the graphics processor. The player has the opportunity to practice before taking on the Boss Challenge. In the practice phase, the player practices number conversions without fear of penalties. In the Challenge phase, the player is timed and has to perform the number conversions before the allotted time expires. The combination of practice and challenge provides players with the ability to practice number conversions and, when ready, to take on the challenge task where assessment is conducted to provide the player with the knowledge of how well he/she has performed on the challenge. The number conversion level of BINX was implemented and formally evaluated showing improvement in student scores after using BINX."

From the abstract: "In this paper, we propose the integration of two PCG-based approaches (experiencedriven and context-driven PCG) to support the generation of adaptive mobile game levels. We present and discuss the implementation of our approach in an existing game, 7's Wild Ride. Gameplay semantics and player modeling are used to steer a level generator, featuring a time-dependent dynamic diculty adjustment mechanism. From our two user studies, we conclude that (i) context-driven levels are preferable over traditional ones, and (ii) the game can adapt to dierent player types, keeping its gameplay balanced and player satisfaction."