What is the Texture packer? The Texture packer is a class provided by LibGDX which can be used to pack a group of images into a single larger file, or multiple larger files depending on how many images you have. There is a GUI version which is provided by www.aurelienribon.com and will be used in […]
Game Development Tools
Asset Manager – LibGDX Tutorial
What is an Asset Manager? An Asset Manager in LibGDX is a class that is used to load and unload resources for your project. It will store a number of references an asset has and keep it loaded until it is no longer required. The Asset Manager API is viewable here. By using an Asset […]
9 Patch Tutorial – Using Nine Patch Images in Libgdx
What is a 9 patch A 9 patch is an image which has been divided into a 3×3 grid making 9 patches. These 9 parts can then be used to create a scalable image by repeating/stretching certain patches. This 3×3 grid create 4 corners, 4 walls and a center image. The corner images will not […]
Matter.js – The Basics for Developing Games
What is Matter.js Matter.js is a JavaScript physics engine based on the popular box2d physic engine wrote in c++. It allows the programmer to make objects that act more realistically. With the Matter.js engine, you can create games that have realistic falling objects, explosion effects, composite objects, react to certain events etc. A basic example […]
Simplex Noise – Generating Random Terrain.
I had an idea for a game and wanted to see if I was able to make some random terrain for it. So I decided to look into making some random terrain using the Perlin noise as I knew minecraft uses this in it’s terrain generation. while looking into the Perlin noise I discovered a […]
Using Pixmaps in Libgdx
Pixmaps, as the name implies is a map of pixels, each pixel containing a level for red, green and blue and sometimes alpha. They can be used to store image data and can be generated on the fly in your application. Pixmaps reside in native heap memory and should be disposed when they are no […]
Explosions in Libgdx with Box2d
In a game I’m developing I wanted to have some realistic explosion effects. At first, I thought I would just apply an impulse to all objects within range of the explosion. However, this created unrealistic movement in the affected objects and the objects didn’t rotate. I tried using ray casts to set points to apply the forces […]
Game AI: Finite State Machines
Game AI is one of the main reasons people will continue to play a game again and again. Games without good AI tend to lack any replay value. An example of really bad AI is Aliens: Colonial Marines. Just check out this video of someone playing on ‘Hardened’ difficulty and not even needing to shoot […]