Learning 2D Game Programming With BlitzMax

[EDITED July 02, 2006]Main Index to Series is here

** Added example BreakOut Game

This is the start of a fairly ambitious series of tutorials on how to write 2D games using BlitzMax.

The first part is a Getting Started part where I'll be introducing some simple concepts. I'm assuming you have zero experience with BlitzMax and programming but do have some familiarity with using computers.

The second part will walk you through how to create a basic framework of a 2D game and will use a very simple space shooter as an example.

Then the main part of this series starts and that is the showcasing of several 2D Game programming concepts. These will be written more or less in random order. I seriously doubt I will be able to cover all topics and even the topics that I want to cover will take several months (years?) to complete. But hopefully the meat of this series will be enough to get the needed concepts for readers to venture on on your own. Good luck with the learning....

This is what I have done so far:-
GETTING STARTED
Part 1: Writing your First BlitzMax Program (Posted:May 8, 2006)

A BASIC 2D GAME FRAMEWORK
Part 1: Creating the Player Object Posted May 08 2006
Part 2: Introducing a Basic Game Framework Posted May 08 2006
Part 3: Introducing the Enemy Posted May 08 2006
Part 4: A new revised Game Framework Posted May 08 2006
Part 5: Adding Missiles Posted May 08 2006
Part 6: Adding Collision Posted May 08 2006
Part 7: Adding Explosion Posted May 19 2006

USING THE FRAMEWORK TO PROGRAM A BREAKOUT CLONE <---new tutorial added Jul 02 2006

2D GAME PROGRAMMING TOPICS
Max2D Collision Techniques (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3)
Max 2D Font Functions
Max 2D Images Functions
--Part 1:Loading and Drawing
--Part 2: Transformations
--Part 3: Blending Modes

These are really good, you should continue on with them. :)

Sin

again my biggest thanks for that detailed tutorials!
I have never seen such a great Intro !!!

highly appreciated and waiting eagerly for more -
seems that even i will get it sometime......lol

Great job, thanks for taking the time.

now this is what i needed along with the other beginners to blitzmax. GREAT WORK!

I've just added a new part to the basic framework series: Part 7 - Adding Explosion. Don't forget to check out the first tutorial in the 2D Topic Series, Collisions.

This is a very nice tutorial assari. You explained everything very well! Beginners to blitzmax would definatly need this tutorial

These are very good. Nice Job Assari!

I am a beginner to BMax and must congratulate you on such a good piece of work your tutorial is. Manyanna - I'll be digesting how your part 6 does it's business. Fantastic work!!

OK has added another tutorial on using Max2D Images functions in 3 parts
Max 2D Images Functions
--Part 1:Loading and Drawing
--Part 2: Transformations
--Part 3: Blending Modes

And many thanks to all the folks who have provided feedbacks. Adds to my motivation :)

You know, I'd happily pay money for a complete series of tutorials just like these. I hope you keep your motivation since this seems to be exactly what BlitzMax needs. Well done!

simesf

Thanks for these! If you were ever to write a book, I would get it :)

Thanks a lot for these tutorials, without them it would be really hard to understand the commando's like "Type" which proves very usefull in creating shoot 'm ups. :-)

And now I can understand what I'm typing in BlitzMax using these new features (For me that is)... It's good that almost every lad has an internet connection nowadays and can ask other people in this forum, I can remember using Blitz Basic 2 on my Amiga in the past with only a few floppies with the utility and some samples and a big book explaining most of the commands. But I never had the chance then to ask someone on how to do stuff like this because I didn't know any other programmer in that time that used Blitz, But I liked programming it even then...

Fine job on the tutorials!

One thing to note - The link to the "Adding Missiles" page is incorrect on the index page. It instead links to the "Adding Collision" page.

NoBoDo, thanks for pointing out the incorrect link. It's fixed now.

Again, thankyou Assari, I've just been scanning over your latest three posts, they address some problems I've been grappling with in a very digestable way. Regards,

Assari,

Are you planning on writing a book for your tutorials and knowlege? I'll buy it if you do :)

Jason

Shhh!!! Just keep downloading them and put them in a folder called "Assari's Book".

Assari.

how about someone poping all of them in a pdf. i can do it when i have time if your like

Why are you loading the missile pic each time the missile is fired? Surely you should just load the image as a static inside the type and draw it for each missile?
Similarly, why are you using the image as a parameter in your creation functions? WOuld a single fixed reference for each type not be simpler and more appropriate?

Burpy,
Yes you are correct that it would be better to just load the image once. This would probably necessitate doing the other thing that you advocated which was to use a fixed reference for each type.

When writing these tutorials, I'm normally biased towards code clarity, sometimes at the expense of speed and appropriateness.

Excellent stuff... :)