Game Engine Gems. Volume 3

This book is the third volume of the Game Engine Gems series, and it contains anew collection of clever techniques and practical advice on the subject of gameengine development. A group of 26 experienced professionals, several of whomalso contributed to the first or second volume, have written the 22 chapters thatfollow and have filled them with expert knowledge and wisdom. The topics covered in this book vary somewhat widely within the subject ofgame engine development and have been divided into the following four broadcategories: - Graphics and rendering- Physics- General programming- Character control and artificial intelligence. Front Cover Contents Preface Part I: Graphics and Rendering 1: The Open Game Engine Exchange Format 2: Realistic Blending of Skies, Water, and Terrain 3: Fog with a Linear Density Function 4: Vegetation Management in Leadwerks Game Engine 4 5: Smooth Horizon Mapping 6: Buffer-Free Generation of Triangle Strip Cube Vertices 7: Edge-Preserving Smoothing Filter for Particle Based Rendering 8: Variable Precision Pixel Shading for Improved Power Efficiency 9: A Fast and High-Quality Texture Atlasing Algorithm Part II: Physics 10: Rotational Joint Limits in Quaternion Space 11: Volumetric Hierarchical Approximate Convex Decomposition 12: Simulating Soft Bodies Using Strain Based Dynamics Part III: General Programming 13: Generic, Lightweight, and Fast Delegates in C++ 14: Compile-Time String Hashing in C++ 15: Static Reflection in C++ Using Tuples 16: Portable SIMD Programs Using ISPC 17: Shared Network Arrays as an Abstraction of Network Code from Game Code Logic Part IV: Character Control and Artificial Intelligence 18: Vision Based Local Collision Avoidance 19: A Programming Framework for Autonomous NPCs 20: Beyond Smart Objects: Behavior-Oriented Programming for NPCs in Large Open Worlds 21: A Control System for Enhancing Entity Behavior 22: A Control System Based Approach to Entity Behavior Contributor Biographies Back Cover This book, the third volume in the popular Game Engine Gems series, contains 22 new chapters that concisely present particular techniques, describe clever tricks, or offer practical advice within the subject of game engine development. Each chapter is filled with the expert knowledge and wisdom of seasoned professionals from both industry and academia. The book is divided into four broad categories pertaining to game engine development: Graphics and rendering Physics General programming Character control and artificial intelligence There is also a companion website, gameenginegems.com, where updates and supplementary materials are posted. Many chapters offer downloadable source code, demos, and examples. Covering the latest developments and continuing to provide practical methods and tips for game engine development, Game Engine Gems 3 is indeed a new gem in the series. Not only does it aid professionals in their work, but it also shows students and others interested in game development how the pros tackle specific problems that arise during game engine development.