Writing for Video Game Genres

A distinguishing feature of video games is their interactivity, and sound plays an important role in this: a player's actions can trigger dialogue, sound effects, ambient sound, and music. And yet game sound has been neglected in the growing literature on game studies. This book fills that gap, introducing readers to the many complex aspects of game audio, from its development in early games to theoretical discussions of immersion and realism. In Game Sound, Karen Collins draws on a range of sources--including composers, sound designers, voice-over actors and other industry professionals, Internet articles, fan sites, industry conferences, magazines, patent documents, and, of course, the games themselves--to offer a broad overview of the history, the...

The Video Game Explosion: A History from PONG to PlayStation and Beyond traces the growth of a global phenomenon that has become an integral part of popular culture today. All aspects of video games and gaming culture are covered inside this engaging reference, including the leading video game innovators, the technological advances that made the games of the late 1970s and those of today possible, the corporations that won and lost billions of dollars pursing this lucrative market, arcade culture, as well as the demise of free-standing video consoles and the rise of home-based and hand-held gaming devices.In the United States alone, the video game industry raked in an astonishing $12.5 billion last year, and shows no signs of slowing. Once dismissed ...

"Video Game Optimization" describes a process for increasing the performance of a video game for better gameplay and visual experience. Very few game developers understand the process of optimizing an entire video game, yet learning the process is surprisingly simple and applicable to a broad audience. The book tackles the process of optimization by first describing how to determine where a game is limited and then providing detailed solutions and examples to solving this limitation. All the examples covered in the book can be applied to a variety of game types and coverage of how to optimize system memory, CPU processing, graphics, and shaders is included....