Video Game Development: A Brief Overview A.

Babadi 1 of 33
In The Name Of God
Video Game Development
Amin Babadi
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Isfahan University of Technology
Spring 2014
A Brief Overview
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Outline
Some guidelines
A road map to the course
Evolution of the game industry
Market information
What is ESRB?
Who is playing?
Video game development
Whats next?
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Some Guidelines
Textbooks:
o Novak, J. (2011). Game Development Essentials: an Introduction (3rd
Edition). Cengage Learning.
o Lengyel, E. (2011). Mathematics for 3D Game Programming and
Computer Graphics (3rd Edition). Cengage Learning PTR.
o Sanchez-Crespo, D. (2003). Core Techniques and Algorithms in Game
Programming. New Riders Publishing.
o Gregory, J. (2009). Game Engine Architecture. A K Peters/CRC Press.

All announcements will be made via VGD-IUT-2014 group.

Feel free to contact me via [email protected].
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A Road Map to the Course
Historical elements, platforms & player modes, goals & genres
o Chapters 1-3 of Novaks textbook
The rendering pipeline, vectors, matrices, transforms
o Chapters 1-4 of Lengyels textbook
Architecture, data structures, design patterns, user input, AI
o Chapters 2-8 of Sanchez-Crespos textbook
A few practical sessions
o Wintermute game engine
Game engine architecture, tools, fundamentals
o Chapters 1-3 of Gregorys textbook
Extra topics (TBA)
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Grading Policy
Grading structure (21 + 2 pts.):
o Presentation: 2 + 0.5 pts.
o Final project: 5 + 1.5 pts.
o Midterm exam: 5 pts.
o Final exam: 9 pts.

Attending class is not mandatory; although it may become a
plus point.
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Grading Policy
Final project:
o Students should develop a small game project based on a subject that
will be announced soon. Game development requires a great amount
of teamwork skill; so it is recommended that students get into groups.
Each group may have up to 2 members.

Presentation:
o Students should also make some short presentations about several
extra topics that will be announced soon. Again, each group may have
up to 2 members.

Midterm and final exams:
o Lecture notes are satisfactory for passing all the exams.
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So It Begins
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Introduction
Game industry revenues have surpassed film box office and
music concert revenues in the U.S., making the games the
fastest growing segment of the entertainment market.

In 2012 there were more than 100,000 employees all over the
world in the game industry.

Hundreds of colleges and universities have started to work on
game development programs in the last few years.
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When Did It Start?
It started in 1940s (Cathode ray tube amusement device)
Limited access of hardware
Games ran on mainframe computers at U.S.A universities.
It went on until 1970s.
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Early Arcade Games
Foundation of Atari Inc.
Pong: first official product of Atari
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1
st
Generation Game Consoles
1972-1977
The first game console, called Magnavox Odyssey
Game(s) hardwired into the console.
2 million consoles sold in the U.S. market
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2
nd
Generation Game Consoles
1977-1983
Game burned into ROM chips.
ROM chips were mounted inside plastic cartridge casings.
Those casings could be plugged into slots on the console.
Several games consoles developed.
Creation of Activision

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3
rd
Generation Game Consoles
1983-1995
Appearing of home computers
Development of the first 8 bit systems
Genre innovation

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4
th
Generation Game Consoles
1988-1999
Development of the first 16 bit systems
CD-ROM drives were first seen in this generation.
Basic 3D graphics entered the mainstream.

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5
th
Generation Game Consoles
1993-2006
32 bit and 64 bits consoles released.
Several successful consoles (Sega, PlayStation, etc.)
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6
th
Generation Game Consoles
1998-2013
The Xbox, Microsofts entry into the game console industry.
Many publishers turned to online gaming.
Mobile games got available too.
GTA III popularized open world games.
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7
th
Generation Game Consoles
2005-Present
This generation opened early for handheld consoles (PSP, etc.)
Microsoft stepped forward first in November 2005 with the
Xbox 360, and Sony followed in 2006 with the PlayStation 3.
Rise of casual PC games.

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8
th
Generation Game Consoles
2011-Present
Nintendo 3DS, with 3 cameras, a motion sensor, etc.
PlayStation Vita, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
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And they are all video games now!
A Quick Overview
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Sales Information
6.9
7
7.3
6.9
7.3
9.5
11.7
16.2
16.9
16.4
14.8
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
U.S. Video Game Dollar Sales Growth ($ Billions)
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Sales Information
$1.93
$4.04
$14.80
Total Consumer Spend on Game Industry 2012 ($ Billions)
Accessories
Hardware
Content
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Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB)
In 1993, U.S. created ESRB to provide parents and consumers
with detailed information on game content so they can make
appropriate purchasing decisions.
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Who Is Playing?
Percentage of Americans who are gamers
Average age of gamers
Percentage of female gamers
Percentage of gamers who play multiplayer games
Average number of years gamers have been playing
58
30
45
13
62
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Who Is Playing?
Percentage of Americans who are gamers = 58
Average age of gamers
Percentage of female gamers
Percentage of gamers who play multiplayer games
Average number of years gamers have been playing
58
30
45
13
62
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Who Is Playing?
Percentage of Americans who are gamers = 58
Average age of gamers = 30
Percentage of female gamers
Percentage of gamers who play multiplayer games
Average number of years gamers have been playing
58
30
45
13
62
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Who Is Playing?
Percentage of Americans who are gamers = 58
Average age of gamers = 30
Percentage of female gamers = 45
Percentage of gamers who play multiplayer games
Average number of years gamers have been playing
58
30
45
13
62
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Who Is Playing?
Percentage of Americans who are gamers = 58
Average age of gamers = 30
Percentage of female gamers = 45
Percentage of gamers who play multiplayer games = 62
Average number of years gamers have been playing
58
30
45
13
62
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Who Is Playing?
Percentage of Americans who are gamers = 58
Average age of gamers = 30
Percentage of female gamers = 45
Percentage of gamers who play multiplayer games = 62
Average number of years gamers have been playing = 13
58
30
45
13
62
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Agile Methodology
One method employed for game development is agile
development.


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Video Game Development
Development of a commercial game usually includes the
following stages:
1. Pre-production
2. Production
3. Milestones
4. Post-production
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Your Coworkers
Members of a game development team include:
o Programmers,
o Artists,
o Animators,
o Designers,
o Audio engineers,
o Composers,
o Testers,
o Project managers,
o Etc.
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Whats Next?
Where do you think the industry will be 10 years from now?

Do you sense another industry segment beginning to bubble
under the surface?

Stay tuned!
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References
Novaks textbook,
Wikipedia,
Entertainment software association website, and
Some other sources on the Internet.