iPhone Game Development

Farnham, UK—What do you need to know to create a game for the iPhone? Even if you've already built some iPhone applications, developing games using iPhone's gestural interface and limited screen layout requires new skills. With iPhone Game Development (O'Reilly Media), you get everything from game development basics and iPhone programming fundamentals to guidelines for dealing with special graphics and audio needs, creating in-game physics, and much more.

"The iPhone is a proven platform for game development with a growing market Just the other day I saw a billboard advertising the iPod Touch as a gaming platform. Apple is a really strong company to partner with, and the doors are open. And yet, the true potential for iPhone games has yet to be tapped; there is still plenty of room for innovation out there," says author Paul Zirkle, Lead Mobile Programmer at Konami Digital Entertainment.

In iPhone Game Development, Zirkle is joined by Joe Hogue, a mobile programmer with Electronic Arts. Together, they provide an experienced iPhone developer with the knowledge needed to make games for the Apple iPhone. Starting with a basic overview of game and technical design particular to the new device, the book moves on to detail the development process with examples. You will find everything from game development basics and an introduction to iPhone programming to tips on using APIs to develop in-game physics and strategies for AppStore publication.

Loaded with descriptive examples and clear explanations, this book helps you learn the technical design issues particular to the iPhone and iPod Touch, and suggests ways to maximize performance in different types of games. You also get plug-in classes to compensate for the areas where the iPhone's game programming support is weak.

• Learn how to develop iPhone games that provide engaging user experiences

• Become familiar with Objective-C and the Xcode suite of tools

• Learn what it takes to adapt the iPhone interface to games

• Create a robust, scalable framework for a game app

• Understand the requirements for implementing 2D and 3D graphics

• Learn how to add music and audio effects, as well as menus and controls

• Get instructions for publishing your game to the App Store

Advance Praise

"As an owner of an iPhone app development company currently in the process of producing games, I found this book an invaluable companion to architecting our gaming engines and thinking through game and level design. This book is a true asset to iPhone game programmers."

--Brad O'Hearne, founder of Big Hill Software LLC and the Phoenix iPhone Developer Group

Joe Hogue has five years of mobile game programming experience. He worked with Paul at Konami and currently works for Electronic Arts as a Mobile Programmer. Joe has worked on over 40 titles as well, including porting, re-writes and full development. Joe has written an iPhone game that is currently being submitted to the iTunes AppStore.

Paul Zirkle has five years of mobile game programming experience and is currently a Lead Mobile Programmer at Konami Digital Entertainment. He has worked on over 40 titles, including porting, re-writing and full development. Occasionally, Paul is called upon to give lectures on game development at the University of Southern California.

Additional Resources:

For more information about the book, including table of contents, index, author bios, and cover graphic, see: http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/9780596159856

iPhone Game Development

Paul Zirkle, Joe Hogue

ISBN: 9780596159856, 255 pages,

Book Price: $34.99 USD, £26.99, 28 €