An introduction to Generic Game Model

An introduction to Generic Game Model

• 1.
  An introduction to GenericGame Model Martin Grider Abstract Puzzle LLC
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  What is GGM? •A small collection of re-usable classes for native 2D game development in iOS. • Primarily (exclusively) uses UIKit. • Facilitates rapid 2D prototyping. • Allows you to think almost exclusively in grid coordinates rather than pixel coordinates.
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  M(VC) for 2Dgames • Model • various properties I find useful for games: gameIsPaused, gameIsOver, gameDuration, score • each grid element (x,y) has an integer “state” • View • knows how to display each state • translates user input to the model
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  pod ‘GenericGameModel’ • GenericGameModelis installable via cocoapods. • Also available here: 
 https://github.com/mgrider/GenericGameModel • Example project shows you how to do stuff.
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  GGM_BaseModel • Subclasses BaseModel •[self.game save]; — does all the encoding stuff or you. • Game states are stored in a multidimensional array of NSNumber objects. • int s = [self.game stateAtX:x andY:y]; • [self.game setStateAtX:x andY:y toState:newState]; • Typically use key/value observing for score, sometimes for GameIsOver. (Yes, this should be isGameOver, this, among other things, needs refactoring.)
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  GGM_UIView • setHandlesTaps:YES —detect tap input • override handleTapAtX:andY: in your subclass • setHandlesDrags:YES — detect drag input • override handleDragStart, handleDragContinue, and handleDragEnd in your subclass. • setGridType — supports backgroundColor/UIImage/UILabel/ Hex shape • Individual views themselves are often another custom UIView subclass that draws its own state.
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  GGM History • Conceivedin 2012 because I was writing very similar “model” code for all my games. (At the time I was working on both For the Win and Oppo-Citrus.) • Really got its start at the Overnight Game Jam at 360iDev in 2012. 1st use, Cloud Growth, september 2012 —>
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  GGM History, p.2 •Second use was for a Ludum Dare (another game jam) at the end of 2012. • Subclassed GGM_UIView to support isometric display. 2nd use, Henchmen, December 2012
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  GGM History: DrawCade •Jan 2013 updated DrawCade, my drawing application for the iCade, to use GGM classes. • Took less than a day to refactor/rewrite to use GGM. • Spent another two days making it universal.
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  GGM History: Catchup •Jan 2013 — started working on Catchup (then Ketchup), a hex- based board game conversion for 2-players. • Uses GGM_HexView • Still in work in progress.
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  GGM History: RE@LMatch • In 2013, built a series of kid’s educational games around the mechanic of matching tiles in the “sliding hole” puzzle. • 3 apps published Dec 2013: • Numbers & Words • Numbers & Counting • Counting & Words • States come not from the GGM_BaseModel subclass.
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  GGM History: RootDown • December 2013, published Root Down, an original 2-player board game. • Prototyped initial game in an evening. ~6 hours. • App store version took maybe another 4 hours.
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  GGM History: PokerGame • Feb / March 2014, built this poker variant application. • Client project • ~6 weeks
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  GGM History: ActionGo • Jan 2014, ported my first game, Go-Tetris (originally a flash game) to iOS. • ~4 weeks spent in development so far.
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  Quartz “Juicing” • Juicingjust refers to visual effects, or pizazz. • Some cocoapods to check out: • AGGeometryKit • UIView+EasingFunctions • Squash