GameMaker: Studio For Dummies

Table of contents

1. 1. Introduction
      1. About This Book
      2. Foolish Assumptions
      3. Icons Used in This Book
      4. Beyond This Book
      5. Where to Go from Here
   2. Part I: Getting Started with GameMaker: Studio
      1. Chapter 1: Introducing GameMaker: Studio
         1. Dragging and Dropping Your Way to Making a Game
         2. Understanding the GameMaker Language
         3. Publishing Games to Different Platforms
         4. Highlighting the Key Features of GameMaker: Studio
         5. Creating a Game, Step by Step
      2. Chapter 2: Discovering GameMaker: Studio Features and Tools
         1. Navigating the GameMaker Interface
         2. Pump Up the Volume: Adding Sounds to Your Game
         3. Making Things Sparkle with Sprites
            1. Loading and creating Sprites
            2. Editing Sprites
            3. Configuring Sprites
         4. Populating Your Game with Objects
         5. Placing Objects in the Game Room
            1. Creating a Room
            2. Putting your Objects in the Room
   3. Part II: Basic Tools and Techniques
      1. Chapter 3: Creating Events
         1. How to Add an Event to an Object
         2. The Create Event
         3. The Destroy Event
         4. The Alarm Event
         5. The Step Event
         6. The Collision Event
         7. The Mouse Event
         8. The Other Event
         9. The Draw Event
         10. The Key Events
         11. The Asynchronous Event
      2. Chapter 4: Adding Actions to Events
         1. How to Assign an Action to an Object
         2. Move Actions
            1. Move Directional Actions
            2. Jump Actions
            3. Path Actions
            4. Step Actions
         3. Main1 Actions
            1. Objects Actions
            2. Sprite Actions
            3. Sound Actions
            4. Room Actions
         4. Main2 Actions
            1. Timing Actions
            2. Info Actions
            3. Game Actions
            4. Resources Actions
         5. Control Actions
            1. Questions Actions
            2. Other Actions
            3. Code Actions
            4. Variables Actions
         6. Score Actions
            1. Score Actions
            2. Lives Actions
            3. Health Actions
         7. Extra Actions
         8. Draw Actions
            1. Drawing Actions
            2. Settings Actions
            3. Other Actions
      3. Chapter 5: Working with Views
         1. Using Speed and Movement with Views
         2. Creating a Room with a View
         3. Using a Controller Object to Move the View
         4. Reaching the End of the Room
         5. Positioning the Score Display in a Room with a View
         6. Setting Object Boundaries for Rooms with Views
         7. Destroying Instances When They Leave a Room
         8. Shooting Guided Bullets in a Room with Views
         9. Creating Enemy Planes in a Room with Views
         10. Creating Patterns of Enemy Planes in a Room with Views
         11. Transitioning to the Next Room
      4. Chapter 6: Working with Time Lines
         1. Creating a Time Line
         2. Creating a Time Line Object
         3. Creating the Time Line Room
         4. Transitioning to the Next Room with Time Lines
         5. Adding a Boss Battle to a Time Line
            1. Creating the boss Sprite
            2. Creating the boss Object
            3. Adding the Boss to the Time Line
   4. Part III: Creating Special Effects
      1. Chapter 7: Using Actions to Create Special Effects with Particles
         1. Coding a Button to Trigger the Particles
         2. Using the Create Effect Action
         3. Using the Particle Actions and Emitters
            1. Creating puffs of smoke
            2. Creating the Catherine wheel firework
            3. Creating an emitter for the firework
      2. Chapter 8: Coding Special Effects with Particles
         1. Coding the Particle System and the Smoke Trail
         2. Coding the Simple Firework Effect
         3. Coding Emitters
            1. Coding burst emitters
            2. Coding stream emitters
         4. Coding Complex Particle Effects
      3. Chapter 9: Using Surfaces to Create Effects
         1. Understanding the Surface Function
            1. The application Surface
         2. Creating Shadows with Surfaces
         3. Using Decals with Surfaces
         4. Lighting Effects with Surfaces
            1. Creating a flashlight effect
            2. Adding darkness to the Surface
         5. Using Surfaces as a View
            1. Setting up the Room and an Object for Surface Views
            2. Creating the Surface View effect
      4. Chapter 10: Applying Scaling
         1. Configuring the Global Game Settings
         2. Scaling to the Window
            1. Scaling to best fit
            2. Scaling the View
            3. Scaling on mobile devices
         3. Scaling with Draw GUI Events
            1. Maximizing the GUI
            2. Hiding the letterbox
            3. Placing GUI elements to create a heads-up display
         4. HTML5 Scaling
   5. Part IV: Coding Physics, Mobile Controls, and More
      1. Chapter 11: Coding with GameMaker Language
         1. Displaying Sub-Images with Code
            1. Randomly displaying sub-images
            2. Sorting sub-images by index
         2. Adding Code to Objects
            1. Coding keyboard controls
            2. Coding an Object with collisions and Step Events
         3. Coding a Score Display and Lives
         4. Coding to Start and End Games
            1. Introducing the game
            2. Ending the game
      2. Chapter 12: Using Physics
         1. Understanding Fixtures
            1. Defining the physics properties
            2. Creating a fixture
         2. Adding Movement to an Object with Physics
            1. Example code for an Up Keyboard Event to apply local force
            2. Example code for Left and Right Keyboard Events
         3. Adding Physics to Rooms
         4. Physics and Shooting Bullets
            1. Defining bullets to work with Physics
            2. Coding the ship to shoot bullets
      3. Chapter 13: Creating Controls for Mobile Devices
         1. Putting Your Game on a Mobile Device
            1. Using an emulator
            2. Putting your game online
         2. Adding Simple Touch Controls
            1. Understanding virtual keys
            2. Creating virtual keys
            3. Adding Sprites to virtual keys
         3. Adding Swipe Controls
            1. Single-direction swipes
            2. Directional swipes
         4. Pinching and Zooming
         5. Creating Analog Sticks for Mobile Devices
            1. Drawing the sticks onto the GUI script
            2. Making the player move
            3. Shooting with the analog stick
      4. Chapter 14: Saving and Loading
         1. Understanding the File System
         2. Understanding INI Files
         3. Using Real Values to Save Game Options
            1. Making a button for the background music
            2. Making a button for the sound effects
         4. Using String Values to Save Game Options
         5. Mapping the Gameplay Keys
         6. Resetting the Default Keys
   6. Part V: The Part of Tens
      1. Chapter 15: Ten Tips for Game Developers
         1. Developing Cross-Platform Games
         2. Knowing Your Audience
         3. Monetizing Your Games
         4. Choosing Your Game Genre
         5. Making Your Game User-Friendly
         6. Testing Your Game
         7. Considering Limitations for Mobile Devices
         8. Thinking Big
         9. Expanding Your Opportunities
         10. Going Indie
      2. Chapter 16: Ten (Or So) Frequently Asked Questions about GameMaker: Studio
         1. What Types of Games Can I Make with GameMaker: Studio?
         2. Can I Run GameMaker: Studio on a Mac?
         3. How Do I Recover My License Key?
         4. How Do I Include Advertising in My Game?
         5. How Do I Activate In-App Purchases?
         6. What’s Involved with Publishing My Game?
         7. When Is a New Feature Coming Out?
         8. Where Can I Get More Game-Making Tips and Tricks?
   7. About the Author
   8. Cheat Sheet
   9. More Dummies Products