Professional XNA Programming: Building Games for Xbox 360 and Windows with Xna Game Studio 2. 0 by Benjamin Nitschke
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(Paperback)
- Pub. Date: February 2008
- 600pp
- Sales Rank: 419,310
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Product Details
- Pub. Date: February 2008
- Publisher: Wiley, John & Sons, Incorporated
- Format: Paperback, 600pp
- Sales Rank: 419,310
- ISBN-13: 9780470261286
- ISBN: 0470261285
- Edition Number: 1
Synopsis
Professional XNA(r) Programming
Building Games for Xbox 360(r) and Windows(r)with XNA Game Studio 2.0, 2nd Edition
This improved and updated edition of the bestseller will get you up and running quickly with building games for Xbox 360 and the Windows platform. Professional game developer and Microsoft MVP Benjamin Nitschke begins by explaining how to install the free XNA Game Studio 2.0 and then goes on to share essential advice for using it in a productive way.
Before you know it, each successive chapter will have you developing small games that increase in difficulty. By using the chapters as building blocks, you'll evolve from 2D programming to 3D, and you'll ultimately create a full-blown graphics engine that can be used for more advanced game projects. Plus, you'll get an inside look at six fully functional games, including the popular Racing Game and the new Dungeon Quest.
What you will learn from this book
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Tips for adding music and sound with XACT
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Techniques for creating unique visual effects through Shaders
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Ways to access keyboard, mouse, and Xbox controllers with XInput
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How to write your own XNA graphics engine and create a game engine
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How to manage content in XNA
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Myriad ways of fine-tuning, debugging, and troubleshooting
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How to make sure games run on the Xbox 360
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Ways to generate landscapes and tracks
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How to take advantage of XNA's new networking APIs
Who this book is for
This book is for anyone who wants to create games on the Xbox 360 and Windows platforms. Experience with C# or asimilar .NET language is necessary, but previous game programming is not required.
Wrox Professional guides are planned and written by working programmers to meet the real-world needs of programmers, developers, and IT professionals. Focused and relevant, they address the issues technology professionals face every day. They provide examples, practical solutions, and expert education in new technologies, all designed to help programmers do a better job.
Customer Reviews
Great course in game programming with XNAby Sevak_K
Reader Rating:
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December 23, 2008:
The book is well organized, using many examples with additional sources available from wrox.com. I am new to C#, but well-experienced in C and Java. This book avoids focusing on language differences and sticks to the original purpose of familiarization with XNA API's and sound game logic.
It has plenty of examples that are thoroughly explained and does not burden the reader by interlacing reference material in the content. This is not a reference book. It is a cover-to-cover lesson book that is easy to follow and gradually increases in intensity by chapter. The reader is immersed in full-blown 2D game examples as early as the second and third chapters. Follow the examples, attempt the suggested manipulations as well as some of your own, compare and contrast your version with the author's sources from his website, invest a little creativity, and this book gives you a jump-start in writing game engines using an iterative process.
I would recommend "Professional XNA Programming" to intermediate-level programmers as opposed to beginners. The author does not waste your time holding your hand through rudimentary language syntax, and if you are familiar with C or Java the examples fill in most blanks you'll need for C# in this context.
I am also recommending "Professional C# 2008" as a reference for those who feel less comfortable with the language. It is helpful to be familiar with the .NET Framework at an entry level before beginning XNA.
I Also Recommend: Professional C# 2008.
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