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1500 questions
65
votes
8 answers

Is Java viable for serious game development?

I have scoured the internet, but there are not very many resources for Java game development, not nearly as many as C++. In fact, most engines are written in C++. I tried to play a game made with jMonkeyEngine, but the game was terribly slow, to the…
tehtros
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65
votes
6 answers

What is ambient occlusion?

I've heard about ambient occlusion and it looks nice, but what exactly is it?
Dr. Snoopy
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65
votes
10 answers

What kind of databases are usually used in an MMORPG?

Do people write their own DB for some reason?
user608
64
votes
4 answers

What are the typical day-to-day tasks of an entry level games programmer?

What I would like to know is: What are the daily duties of a graduate programmer in the games industry workplace? Is it mostly coding, analysing, designing, or what? Thank you. P.S. I am in my second year of University at the moment and am working…
kymully
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64
votes
6 answers

What are the pros and cons of HLSL vs GLSL vs cg?

What are the pros / cons of the three?
Z_guy
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64
votes
10 answers

Are there any benefits for using the CPU instead of the GPU?

I've been researching processors and graphics cards, and I discovered that GPUs are way faster than CPUs. I read in this one article, a 2-year-old Nvidia GPU outperformed a 3.2GHz Core I7 Intel processor by 14 times in certain circumstances. If GPUs…
Daniel
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64
votes
12 answers

Having the player face themselves after the mid-game

I am writing a game, in the vein of a jRPG, in which you begin playing as the main villain. You don't know it. You think you are playing the hero and the more successful you are and the stronger you make them the harder they will be to defeat at the…
Summer
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64
votes
6 answers

Are all games made by drawing each frame?

I am a beginner learning about computer animation(for games). So far, the only method that I have come across is drawing each frame, every frame update. So at the start of every frame, the entire frame is erased, and then the things for that are…
eeze
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64
votes
2 answers

I'm rotating an object on two axes, so why does it keep twisting around the third axis?

I see questions come up quite often that have this underlying issue, but they're all caught up in the particulars of a given feature or tool. Here's an attempt to create a canonical answer we can refer users to when this comes up - with lots of…
DMGregory
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62
votes
5 answers

What are normal, tangent and binormal vectors and how are they used?

I would like to find out the following information: What are they? Example usage in game development (the area they are used in) About the following vector types: Normal Tangent Binormal A simple game development centric explanation would…
Jaanus Varus
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62
votes
8 answers

How can I get involved with open source game projects?

I have a limited experience in game development and would like to get involved with open source game project. Where should I look and how should I begin?
esde84
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62
votes
7 answers

Why are textures always square powers of two? What if they aren't?

Why are the resolution of textures in games always a power of two (128x128, 256x256, 512x512, 1024x1024, etc.)? Wouldn't it be smart to save on the game's file size and make the texture exactly fit the UV unwrapped model? What would happen if there…
Keavon
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62
votes
7 answers

Do programmers in the industry get to participate in the game design process?

My main goal is to create games which is why I'm planning on studying IT so I can later on be a game developer/programmer. My question is: does a game programmer get involved in the game designing process or is that only the game designer's job? Is…
Tim
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61
votes
17 answers

Why are character-classes used in game design?

We had a long discussion in my company about character-classes. We are building a skill based game where you will eventually need to select 8 to enter a battle. I am a fan of classless systems, I have always felt that they are created to extend your…
Evgeni Petrov
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61
votes
9 answers

Why are gaming graphics not as beautiful as animated movies?

I remember watching the Tomb Raider pre-rendered trailer, and wished those graphics could be in the game itself. Why there is such a big difference between the trailer and the actual game? I understand the game is a completely different concept, it…
cowboysaif
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