Welcome to the articles and resources library of GameDev.net. Here, you will find over one thousand game programming/development tutorials, articles, and other resources.
We realize that the reference section is among the most important and popular parts of the site, and, because of this, we will constantly be trying to improve it. Feel free to notify us of any complaints or suggestions.
You can browse the categories listed here, or, if you're having trouble finding something, try the search form below. Also, don't forget to check out our Featured Articles archive.
Programming
In this section, we cover every area of programming, including areas both directly and indirectly related to game development.
The DirectX SDK is an API developed by Microsoft that allows programmers to access the hardware directly in Windows. These articles cover all aspects of DirectX, including DirectDraw, Direct3D, DirectSound, DirectMusic, DirectInput, and DirectPlay.
Here you will find articles and tutorials on subjects that are foundational in games: Math and Physics. Note that most of the articles you will find here will be general in nature, and not discuss implementation details such as how to apply these concepts in games. For articles that do apply these principles directly to graphics and games, see the other appropriate sections.
Includes the technical details of putting sound and music in a game, including working with various APIs (other than DirectSound, which you will find in the DirectX section).
This section covers a genre that many of us here at GDNet have a lot of interest in. Here you will find articles covering the subjects important in these types of games.
Sweet Snippets are relatively short articles that focus on a very specific aspect of programming. They contain source code and an explanation of how to use it. If you'd like to contribute a Sweet Snippets article (which can be as simple as expounding on a post you've made to the forums) send it to writers@gamedev.net.
An architect can't build a building without following a defined process. The same goes for software development. This section provides articles on software analysis and design, design patterns, planning, quality assurance, testing, reuse, and project management.
We've been collecting articles since 1996. As a result, we have a lot of articles that are old! Fortunately, many of these focus on the algorithms, and so can still be useful to a wide range of people. These can still be found in other parts of our reference section. The other older articles, the ones closely tied to technology which simply isn't used any more, have been placed here, since a few people may still find them useful.
If you come across an article in one of our other sections that you think belongs here, let us know.
Games are much more than software. They're music. They're art. They're imagination. And they take a lot of skill. No matter your game focus or expertise, you can get the latest game and graphics-related features, resources, and opportunities right here. Brought to you by GameDev and the Intel® Visual Computing Developer Community
Visual Arts
When it comes right down to it, the art in games either make the game or break it. A terrific game with amazing attention to gameplay details can turn out to be a flop if the right graphical touches are not added. The minor attention to detail in most games is what leaves the sense of a finished product in the gamers minds.
In this reference section we will go into both 2D graphics and 3D graphics used in the gaming environment. Toss aside your HB pencil "because Kansas is going bye bye." Whip out your Wacom tablet and turn on your creative side of your brain and be prepared for a ride.
Without skins your characters are naked, and without textures your objects are just lines. Actually, these two topics go hand-in-hand, and this section is dedicated to keeping clothes on your characters and filling in the lines of your objects.
In this section, you'll find the single largest collection of game design articles available on the internet! You'll find everything ranging from postmortems to design documents to design theory.
You can have the best technical programming skills in the world, but if your game design is bad, your game will be bad. Here you will learn the art of game design from the best in the industry.
Here you will find articles about creating music and sound effects for games.
Also, please note that the programming side of audio (i.e., DSP, working with DirectSound, etc.) will be included in the Sound section in the programming reference area.
This section contains articles and stories related to the business side of game development, interviews, industry trends, how to get a job, how to get started, reports on industry conferences, etc.
More and more schools are beginning to offer courses, and even full degrees, in game development related fields. Here you'll find all that we're aware of.
A collection of links to SDKs, engines, wrappers, online books, free compilers, art, libraries, and other resources valuable to game developers. If you would like to add something, contact dave@gamedev.net. You can also check out our affiliate, the Game Development Search Engine, which has an extremely complete and thorough listing of resources.
GameDev.net is pleased to provide our own reviews of products specifically geared toward game developers. The purpose of these reviews is to give you a glance into game development products available in the marketplace.