Game Engines

Game engines

A game engine is a software designed for the use of developing games during game play. The engines are designed to render the graphics and pixels so the games can be played. Game engines provide a suite of development tools in addition to reusable software components.Many game engines are often created by the company producing the game, as they can be a lot cheaper to build than to purchase a license to use a pre-built one. For example, the rage engine, developed by rockstar, has been used in many different games of different genres, most of these games have been successful because there has been more money to spend on the actual gameplay, rather than the resources.

Examples of engines:

2D engines:

Hedgehog engine – used in sonic the hedgehog. Provides stable graphics for the fast paced 2D game.

Jogre – used in small games where only a small amount of rendering or processing power is needed. The game engine is used by many low-budget companies which need fast paced games Global illumination and Dynamic studios.

3D Engines:

Frostbite – used in large multiplayer games where lots of rendering is needed. Games such as battlefield 3 and medal of honor: warfighter use this engine as they can provide fast stable graphics. This engine in particular can accommodate a destructive influence. This means that the game can destruct buildings in a unique way when a certain amount of damage is inflicted.

Graphic rendering:

Graphic rendering is when a game engine uses wireframes or vector graphics to add a shape, object, player, AI etc to the environment. Vector graphics refers to the use of geometrical primitives such as points, lines, curves and other shapes based on mathematical equations. An example of a game which uses vector graphics is ‘Another world’, Released in 1991. Rendering is the physical "colouring" of a model in a video game which will colourize as the player approaches it. Depending on how fast the game engine or computer is, the graphics will either load faster or slower. Most high budget game engines will take less than a second to renderize and load in the game.

Animation:

 In animation, many frames are patched together to create the animated sequence. This could be used in cut scenes or animated films. Animation uses parts of structures such as characters and cars to tell the game engine how this object should function. The structures would have skeletal structures which show where the figure should move from, like the joints and muscles, or if it was something such as a car, where the wheels would attach and move or the mirrors and steering wheel etc. Animations are often sequences pre-coded but in more recent games they have animation generators that simulate animations as they happen. In more recent times, animators have developed new technology called "motion capture" which involves a person or animal wearing a body shaped suit with motion sensors attached to it to record the movement made by the person or object. The data is then added into an animation sequence and attached to a game object which makes for a much quicker way to create animation.

Physics:

Most modern games have physics used in some shape or form. Gravity is the main use of physics as most games use it. The game engine is loaded with the physics that will be used in the game to make decisions based on the physics. Gravity, water flow, explosions and cars colliding into objects and bouncing off would all be examples. Although most game engines have basic physics included, many games developers will often create more to add to the environment and objects to make them more realistic. For example, a game engine might not have the "float" physics of a plane, so the developers would create a script which allows the game to use the physics properly.

Collision detection:

Collision detection typically refers to the computational problem of detecting the intersection of two or more objects. Solving collision detection problems requires the use linear algebra and geometry. An example of collision detection would be when a car hits a booster pad on Mario kart, which instantly ups the speed for a few seconds or when a player suffers fall damage and the deducted health shows how far the player has fallen. Many game engines will include a calculator which detects collisions before they happen so the engine has a few seconds to start rendering the outcome. This process is often used in games to help with slower engines.

Artificial Intelligence:

AI  is a code written and designed for a computer controlled character or command, such as a race car in a game such as need for speed, or how a neutral character would act during a game such as Skyrim where a guard would have a set route which would change during certain days or after a an act of the player. AI would not always apply to an animated object, it could be anything in a game, even a tree if necessary, it is the process that calculates information on the game and figures out what the next move is, if any. Many video games often use AI to shape the game to the players game style. For example, on State of Decay, some types of zombies will get harder if the player has ease in killing them. Or less guns will be lootable if the player already has a large stockpile.

Sound:

The sound in game engines can be programmed to be activated from a certain point in the game, to give a 3D effect and a pinpoint location for a more realistic effect. The individual sounds can be assigned to objects in games to play when activated. Many sounds are added into the game through the use of file linking, the sounds will be imported into the game engine and then linked into the script or object, some older video games used to have a soundtrack linked to the background of the actual game, instead of a 3D orientating around the game(mono, stereo etc).