In the article Bézier Curves for your Games: A Tutorial, I introduced Bézier curves and Bézier paths. In this tutorial I provide some algorithms useful for working with Bézier curves: determining the length of a piece of curve; interpolating a set of points with a Bézier path; and reducing a large point set to a smooth Bézier curve. (Image by snuffyTHEbear).
In a previous article I introduced basic vector concepts. In this article, I show how apply the theory to common geometric problems.
Geometry plays a central role in game programming, underlying not only graphics, but also physics and spatial AI. A lot has happened since geometry was first formalised by the Greeks more than two thousand years ago, most notably the invention of coordinates and vectors. These inventions are indispensible for doing geometry on machines (at least, the kind of geometry that is useful for games).
This article introduces the basic concepts of vectors. In a following article, we will look at how vectors can be used to solve geometric problems that arise in computer graphics, physics and AI.
This article originally appeared in Dev.Mag Issue 29, released in February 2009.
Last month we covered some of the very basic ways of testing whether object A hits object B. But, while the techniques we covered could quite likely take you very far, you’ll inevitably encounter a time when they simply aren’t enough. So this month we’ll go a little further.
This article originally appeared in Dev.Mag Issue 28, released in January 2009.
Almost every video game needs to respond to objects touching each other in some sense, a practice commonly known as collision detection. Whether it’s simply to prevent the player character from walking through the walls of your maze with a simple collision grid array, or if it’s to test if any of the hundreds of projectiles fired by a boss character in a top-down shoot-’em-up have struck the player’s ship, your game will likely require a collision detection system of one sort or another.
This article originally appeared in Dev.Mag Issue 16, released in August 2007
Welcome back, fellow coders! Prepare yourselves for the final, bumper episode of the Trig Trilogy, where I cover a whole lot of awesome trig techniques for your game-making pleasure. We’ve got a lot to cover, so let’s jump right in. It’s time for my first trick! Now, as you can see, there is nothing up my sleeve…
This article originally appeared in Dev.Mag Issue 12, released in July 2007
Last issue we covered the core principles of trigonometry and learned how to use these to calculate unknown sides in a triangle. Well, I hope you’re rested and ready Commander, because we’ll be jumping straight back in with another essential technique – calculating unknown angles.
This article originally appeared in Dev.Mag Issue 14, released in June 2007.
Trigonometry. The mere mention of it strikes terror into the minds of bewildered high school students. Confusing ratios, bizarre diagrams, trying to find the sine of the cosine of the tangent of theta – many people struggle to wrap their minds around it and eventually give up in desperation to do something easier, such as ending war or achieving cold fusion.
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