Beginning C++ Game Programming (Game Development Series)

Rating:
Summary: Excellent C++ primer, but little game stuff
Review: A very good book.

I am a Java programmer who did some C and C++ about 4 years ago, wanted to get into gaming and thought I should refresh my knowledge of C++. This book looked like it would do a little bit of both, and it certainly did remind me how much (ie almost everything) I had forgotten about C++. Easy to read and pretty concise I have flown through it and found it a great help.

It really doesn't have a great deal to do with game programming though. It is mainly a C++ beginners guide, with a tiny bit of game programming hints, tips and knowledge thrown in.

All in all I would say a misleading title (hence no 5 stars), but an excellent C++ introductory text and I would buy from this author again in a heartbeat.


Rating:
Summary: excellent intro... only lacking in a bit of info
Review: all in all, i thought this book presented everything a clear manner easy-to-do manner. i highly recommend this book for anyone who knows NOTHING about c++. the book was fun and quick, at no point was there a period of "so... bored....". the only reason i gave it four stars is because it doesn't get into the use of any other stream other than , and trust me, there ARE others you'll want to know, i suggest that you get this book coupled with a c++ primer, read this book first then you can breeze through the parts in the primer that are covered in this book and focus on the newer subjects, besides all authors explain things differently, if there was something you didn't quite grasp the primer might do a better job at explaining it (unlikely though, because like i said this book was VERY easy to follow).

Rating:
Summary: Excellent C++ Intro Book
Review: I've been a programmer (vb, asp, perl) for years and have always wanted to get into the higher leveled language of C++ but could never find a book that I enjoyed that could teach me the basics. This book was my savior and the perfect intro to C++, better than any other book I've been able to find.
The title is misleading because it's gaming aspect is just for reference. Each program is given a background in a game environment just so the problem at hand makes sense.
This book teaches good practice, preplanning and it's code examples and explanations are excellent and thorough without getting too involved in everything. Read a chapter, go back and do the examples and it all starts to make sense, I'd recommend this book as a great starting point to anyone that wants to learn C++.

Rating:
Summary: Great Book
Review: If you're a beginner and want a place to start programming games then this is the book for you. But be sure of one thing, no book can teach you everything, but with help from books like this one written by Michael Dawson it will help you get your foot into the door and then some. I recommend this book to anyone that wants to get into game programming and knows the basics of C++. Here is a little more info about each chapter for those of you that need it.

Table of Contents
Introduction
Chapter 1 - Types, Variables, and Standard I/O: Lost Fortune
Chapter 2 - Truth, Branching, and The Game Loop: Guess My Number
Chapter 3 - For Loops, Strings, and Arrays: Word Jumble
Chapter 4 - The Standard Template Library: Hangman
Chapter 5 - Functions: Mad-Lib
Chapter 6 - References: Tic-Tac-Toe
Chapter 7 - Pointers: Tic-Tac-Toe 2.0
Chapter 8 - Classes: Critter Caretaker
Chapter 9 - Advanced Classes and Dynamic Memory: Game Lobby
Chapter 10 - Inheritance and Polymorphism: Blackjack

I hope this helps you out.


Rating:
Summary: Excellent beginner's book
Review: This book does an excellent job of teaching the basic and not-so-basic fundamentals of C++ in a game programming context (which makes all the difference). The lessons are clear and well organized and the author explains concepts extremely well IMO. There are numerous examples in the book that illustrate the concepts perfectly, and larger programs that tie everything together. This book is intended for those with no programming skills but if you know the basics and are a little rusty, this book's perspective could be very beneficial.