Rating: Summary: A decent read Review: This is not a book designed for game programmers. It is instead geared towards those individuals who are curious about the different tactics used to code simple games. It should work well for those of you who maybe do not understand the fundamentals of game programming and the source code provided will give you tangable results. Keep in mind though that really is no school out there for game programming and instead it is a skill learned by doing, not reading. If you are interested in hard core directx programming (especially d3d) then the sdk and a good reference on physics and linear algebra will suit you better.Don't take away anything from this book though, if you are interested and are not sure where to begin it is a good introduction that may inspire you to learn more and that is the real challenge, to remain inspired while you work a day job that sees you programming sadistic business applications that are devoid of creativity and intellect. Btw, I did find his sense of humor intelligent and fun. This is a casual read, something most books of a technical nature could never include. Game programming should be fun, unless you're getting paid to do it (in which case it should be like any other job, though perhaps much more rewarding)
Rating: Summary: AWESOME should be 10 stars Review: BUY THIS BOOK, the only problem is that there are alot of typos, but what book doesn't, if your a good programer you will spot them right away. this book covers more stuff than you can think of im suprised it all fits in 1000 pages, and there is a lot of extra text on the cd that couldn't fit in print (can you say Direct3D)
Rating: Summary: A controversial book Review: Even the title contradicts itself. Tricks of the gurus/fundamentals of game programming. Well, I got fooled by the tricks part and only got a book about fundamentals. If you have done a small game or even a small prototype of a game with DirectX, you probably don't really need this book. In other words: if you know some DirectX stuff, you'll qualify as a guru if this book is used as a measure. For a complete beginner, add a star or two...
Rating: Summary: For beginners, not for experienced people Review: This book is very well written for beginners. But if you are more experienced game developer, forget about this book. I was looking for 3D isometric engines and I found only 2 pages of general recommandations I already knew. Another very disappointing thing is dependance on DirectX. What about OpenGL? I do not want to be the next slave of Microsoft. Another problem is you don't find anything about 3D in this book. OK, let me also say some positive thinks. Nice surprise was the chapter about AI. Of course, it is absolutelly trial, but nicely written. If the author plans to write a new book my suggestion is: concentrate only on some topics - graphics, data structures, AI and write it for more advanced developers. For beginners you have already written enough books.
Rating: Summary: Waste of Money Review: I bought this book expecting to get some serious "tricks," however it turned out to be just a poor rehash of material from Tricks of the Game Programming Gurus. ALL, and I mean every last scrap of the information was basic, introductorly level material. But the most obvious problem with the book is that is cover so little on DirectX. Lamothe basically gives you a shabbily done version of the help files included with the Directx SDK. Information on 3d graphics is glaringly absent. The Directx portion of the book covers maybe 150-200 pages, the rest is banal knowledge on physics, Win32, and AI. All of it done in a cursory, unprofessional manner. This book is *not* worth the asking price. It WILL NOT teach you how to program in Directx, and if you already know how, it will not teach you anything new or usefull.
Rating: Summary: A Bit Rushed, but Still a Great Book! Review: While there are errors, and more errors, it remains extremely valuable. I think he could have skipped the Win32 section, and pushed the reader to Charles Petzold, nonetheless overall very valuable topics (especially the physics modelling, math algorithms, and others). The book is worth its weight in gold, especially since MFC is not used (There is a truckload of overhead from hell). I am patiently waiting for Volume II. One more thing, Andre' thinks he is funny, but he's not.
Rating: Summary: The best book on the subject Review: I have to say that I'm very impressed with Andre's work this time. I read Windows Game Programming For Dummies and I was left craving more. Tips Of The Windows Game Programming Gurus gave me what I was looking for, offering more in depth information on topics such as Artificial Intelligence, physics, and algorithms. This book is a must buy if you are interested in game programming!
Rating: Summary: An EASY read but nothing in-depth Review: I've been programming for 3 years now in C++ and the book is VERY easy to understand in terms of sample code and concepts. In fact much of the book is fluff and only covers the very basics in DirectDraw. He neglects important features such as sprite structures and other class that are covered in the DX help files. Don't get me wrong, the book is definitely help and helped get my feet wet but don't expect to pull off anything amazing by simply reading the book. The best thing to do is to put the book away and start coding and reference the DirectX help files. He constantly teachs old code from C and ancient algorithm that have long been replaced by DirectX. The reader is led to believe his code is the most effective when in fact DirectX provides ones that are MUCH better. Oh yeah, no D3D help here. I hope his next book will be less inflated and more focus and up-to-date.
Rating: Summary: It didn't live up to the hype Review: Ok, after reading his original Tricks of the Game Programming Gurus, I was expecting a lot more. This book covers a lot of the same material, but is for DirectX instead of DOS. Now, this alone is great, and if you are familiar with his original book then reading the new one is easier. However, I have found NUMEROUS errors in the book and it seems as if it was rushed to press. The book doesn't cover anything with any more detail than can be found elsewhere. Also, there are times when I leave this book to hunt up Michael Abrash's Black Book instead because Andre uses an easy to understand routine instead of a known faster one. If this is the angle he's shooting for, then perhaps it should be titled "Tricks of the Windows Game Programming Beginners" instead. The book is a good reference for learning DirectX programming, but after reading numerous articles and books by him I don't think it's some of his better work.
Rating: Summary: Book I've been waiting for. . . Review: I've been waiting to jump from the Xlib/OpenGL world to the world of Windows graphics programming. With this book the transition was easy. The book is a great read and covers everything I needed to get started. Mr. LaMothe. . . I'm now ready for the 3D stuff in Volume II.
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