Rating: 
Summary: good book, unrealistic expectations
Review: Too many people are upset that this book does not hand hold them from no programming experience to making top quality games - please! Game programming is one of the hardest kinds of programming there is, and no one can jump from "Hello World" to Quake in the time it takes to read a book. That is like taking a high school class in physics and expecting to learn enough to debate Kip Thorne on the latest theories.There is also criticism that the title is misleading. I agree it is, but that is probably not the fault of the writer. Computer book authors usually have little input on cover design or the writing on it. They may get lucky enough to see it before the book is printed. NEVER buy a computer book based on what the cover says. Look at the inside. That nice big book on Direct3D could just be 80% "Appendix A - List of All Functions". But there are lots of small mistakes in the book - simply knowing there are will save a lot of trouble. The math derivations are particularly troublesome - there are a number of times that negative signs or reciprocals were not shown. McMillian should have sprung for a better tech editor (fat chance for that). This is currently the best book on Windows Game Programming in existence, and I would not expect better ones anytime soon. Writing computer books of this quality is hard work and the money the writers get is not worth it for most qualified programmers. We are just lucky that LaMothe lives like he is constantly on speed (if you met him you know what I am talking about). To get anything out of this book you need to know C(C++), some basic ideas about graphics, algebra. And not to be afraid of coding on your own.
Rating: 
Summary: André has done it again!
Review: Once again, André show us lots of great ideas and tricks for our gaming needs. Most of the fundamentals - if not all - to writing a game is included. Everything related to programming a game (2D) is here. However, as stated in earlier reviews, the 3D part is included only as separate papers in the CD. Volume II will be dealing with Direct3D. Still, if you're looking for a great place to start, that might be useful to the beginner or advanced, or even if you already own a copy of André's Dummies book (like I do), it is worth it! This book is much deeper than the Dummies book. Of course, it may have some flaws here and there, but it is nothing that spoils the reading and learning experience. Also, if you are experienced in C/C++, you shouldn't have much trouble with the source codes. And even better, André is always available at his e-mail address, and has been kind enough to answer my questions/doubts since the Dummies book. Highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: Best Book Ever!
Review: I love this book. I knew a little c++ and a little DirectX. I read this book and it gave me a great understanding of it all. I have already made a couple of pretty good games. If you want to know how to make games then I would definitly recomend this book to you. If it made me able to make games I am sure it will be great for you.
Rating:
Summary: Great author - great book, but 3D is nowhere to be seen
Review: As expected, Andre did a fine job writing this book. Hell, its entertainment reading through it, a fact barely seen in a WIndows programming book! And no, it is not "Windows Game Programming for Dummies deluxe"... Andre just had to stick the beginners Windows chapters into this book, so people could get started without buying the for Dummies book. The coverage of in-game physics and AI is very helpful and complete. However, the book only gets 4 out of 5 from me because of the fact that its not really teaching you Direct3d, and I was a bit disapointed by that. if I am buying a book, i do not want to read 1000 pages of docs on my monitor. Still, the best book out there to get on Windows Graphics Programming, and another fine piece by Andre LaMothe, who is in my opinion the only writer out there who can wrap complicated Windows concepts in easy-to-follow, yet challenging and entertaining-to-read chapters. Buy it if youre a beginner/intermediate that wants to know about either DirectDraw/AI/Physics/Trigonometry.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent book, but badly advertised.
Review: As a book on 3D games programming, I'd give this book one star, because it doesn't teach you anything about the fundamentals of 3D programming, with the exception of the two mini-books on the CD--but those are definitely not enough to warrant the title of this book. As a book that has nothing to do with 3D programming, however, Lamothe's latest work is a wonderful foray into the fundamentals (and actually a lot of seemingly cutting-edge concepts) of 2D game programming. Just don't let the "2D" part take your attention away from this book... Anyone can blit a sprite and make it move across the screen using double buffering, but few can weld together disparate components like AI, physics, game logic, and system & graphics programming into the complex whole that is a computer game. That's what this book teaches, and you'll probably want to know how to do it before you try making that 3D engine with volumetric lighting, bump mapping, and realtime reflections. Lamothe decided to split his work into two volumes for this reason; instead of scrambling to squeeze information about game programming and cutting-edge 3D graphics programming into a mere 1000 pages, he decided to make one book on game programming and the other on 3D programming. So my only real gripe about this book is its advertising. Instead of titling it "Fundamentals of 2D and 3D Game Programming," they should have called it "Volume I: Fundamentals of 2D Game Programming," because that's what it is. Amazon.com also needs to put the actual title of the book in here--currently they think it's called "Tricks of the 3D Windows Game Programming Gurus," which is even more misleading than the book's actual title. This is probably because Lamothe's decision to split the book into two volumes was made at the last minute; but still, SAMS could've at least taken the time to change the title of the book before sending it to press.
Rating:
Summary: good book
Review: excellent book, a must for anyone who's interested in game programming! great for beginners!
Rating:
Summary: The God of all Game Programming Books!
Review: This book is by far, the very best game programming book I have ever read (and I have read a lot). Andre Lamothe covers every major topic a beginning game programmer could ever want (or need) to know. Please note the use of the word "beginner", however. This book is for the beginning game programmer. Your not going to learn to implement your own 3-D engine that has state-of-the-art particle effects, it's own depth buffer and z-buffer, and has support for volumetric fogging. Neither are you going to learn to implement the latest photon traces for lighting effects. Nope. Not in this book. If your looking for full-blown 3-D game programming, you should check out "The Zen of Direct3D Game Programming" by Peter Walsh, and "Special Effects Game Programming With DirectX" by Mason McCusky, both of which are excellent books on more advance, 3-D related programming techniques. This book focuses more on 2-D graphics, but for the beginner, it will be one heck of an experience. I can't tell you how well Andre LaMothe explains the topics covered in this book. He covers Window programming, teaching you so much that you might (keyword: might) be able to make a decent 2-D game using the Windows GDI. It would be extremely slow, because the Windows GDI is extremely slow, but that's life. After Windows programming, Andre LaMothe covers the basics of Microsoft DirectDraw. First, he teaches you the relationship between Microsoft DirectDraw and COM (component object model). Next, he actually covers the properties of Microsoft DirectDraw, and disects it piece by piece for you. After that, he covers advanced Microsoft DirectDraw usage and some bitmapped graphics in 8-, 16-, 24-, and 32- bit high color. Finally, he gets to advanced 2-D graphics programming, and even builds a complete 2-D graphics rendering engine just for you! You're still not even half-way through the book. He still completely covers Microsoft DirectInput, and Microsoft DirectSound/DirectMusic! But finally, the really really good stuff comes. He covers advance state-of-the-art artificial intelligence and real 2-D physics modeling. Andre LaMothe wraps this incredible book up with a final chapter covering the implementation of a complete 2-D Asteriods clone, but of course, Mr. LaMothe jazzed up the game therefore making it incredibly awsome. This book truly is a revolutionary work. If you're anxious to learn advanced 2-D game programming, then don't hesitate, get it NOW!!!
Rating:
Summary: The best of the best!
Review: This book is THE one to get if you're looking to start Windows game programming fast. Yeah sure it's several hundred pages long but it covers so much with so much detail. From the basics of 2D, AI and other cool things to hard core physics and 3D math (on the CD). Andre even helps build a 2D gaming engine for you to help cut your coding work in half! Now where else can you find that kind of help?
Rating:
Summary: If you are truly serious about game programming then...
Review: If you are truly serious about game programming then this is the only book to pickup. Mr. Lamothe writes in a very simple tone explaining away everything. He assumes nothing and explains everything. This book is not for someone that does not have a semi-concrete understanding of C/C++ and object oriented programming. The Windows game programming book for dummies is not for dummies. It skimps on areas that this book dives into and I am sincerely thankful to Andre for teaching me DirectX programming.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent book to understand game programming
Review: I just bought the book by Lamothe, Tricks of the Windows Game Programming Gurus, and it is excellent. Over 1000 pages with CD. There is now a second edition of this book that updates to DirectX 8 (DirectX 9 is currently in beta), and a volume II that explores 3D graphics and Direct3D. Volume I covers basic Windows apps, basic DirectX, and includes all the source code, some games, and other stuff on CD. It starts out with a simple 2D BreakOut-type game, and ends with an Asteroids-type game with 3D models. A lot of math is covered. It might be a little too advanced if you've never programmed in C or C++ before. All you need is the DirectX SDK (version 6 is on the CD, version 8 is latest available for D/L), the Visual C++ compiler and you can begin to design games. If you know some basic C this is a good book to move to the next level of Windows games programming. Lamothe uses Paint Shop Pro to draw his objects, and Caligari TrueSpace to do his 3D models. Demo versions are on the CD. Excellent introduction to DirectX and Lamothe writes in an entertaining style. I've written a few C++ console assignments for school, been out of programming for so long (missed most of the 1990s), so this is just what I needed to move forward and help me catch up and understand how modern games work. For those wanting strict 3D material, skip this and get Volume II. Phil Porvaznik
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