Develop engaging games for the Android platform with Java
Key Features
- Learn Java, Android, and object-oriented programming from scratch
- Build games including Sub Hunter, Retro Pong, and Bullet Hell
- Create and design your own games, such as an open-world platform game
Book Description
Android is one of the most popular mobile operating systems. It uses the most popular programming language, Java, as the primary language for building apps of all types. Unlike others, this book doesn't assume that youthat you already have Java proficiency.
This new and expanded second edition of Learning Java by Building Android Games teaches you to build Android games from scratch. The difficulty level will grow steadily as you explore key Java topics, such as variables, loops, and design patterns, including code and examples that are written for Java 9 and Android P.At each stage, you will put what you've learned into practice by developing a game. You will build games such as Minesweeper, Retro Pong, and Classic Snake. In the concluding chapters, you will create a time-trial, open-world platform game.
By the end of the book, you will not only have grasped Java and Android but will also have developed 6 cool games for the Android platform.
What you will learn
- Set up a game development environment in Android Studio
- Implement screen locking, screen rotation, and play sound effects
- Respond to a player's touch and program intelligent enemies
- Learn game development concepts, such as collision detection, animating sprite sheets, and simple tracking
- Animate objects at 60 frames per second (FPS) and manage multiple independent objects using object-oriented programming (OOP)
- Understand the essentials of game programming, such as design patterns and entity-component patterns
- Use the Android and Sound Pool APIs, and learn to detect version number
- Build a side-scrolling shooter and an open world 2D platformer using advanced OOP concepts and programming patterns
Who this book is for
Learning Java by Building Android Games is for you if you are completely new to Java, Android, or game programming and want to make Android games. This book also acts as a refresher for those who already have experience of using Java on Android or any other platform without game development experience.
Table of Contents
- Java, Android & Games
- Java Basics & An Introduction to Object Oriented Programming - Starting the Sub Hunter Game
- Java Variables, Operators, Expressions and Android Debugging - Spawning a Sub to Hunt
- Making Decisions with Java If, Else & Switch - Getting the Player's Input
- The Android Canvas Class, Drawing to The Screen - Firing Depth Charges
- While, Do While, For Loops, Break & Continue - Enhancing Sub Hunter Game
- Java Methods - Finishing Sub Hunter Game
- Object Oriented Programming - Starting the Pong Game
- Interfaces, Threads & Exceptions - Coding the Pong Game Loop
- Coding a class for the player's bat & Handling Input
- Collisions, Sound FX and Supporting Different Android Versions - Finishing the Pong Game
- Handling LOTS of Objects with Arrays - Welcome to Bullet HELL
- Drawing with Bitmap Graphics - Coding the Player and Finishing the Game
- Java Collections, The Stack, the Heap & Garbage Collection - Starting the Snake Game
- Using Java Enumerations - Building the Snake Class
- Android Localization, Hola! - Building a Retro Game Loop
- Finishing the Snake Game
(N.B. Please use the Look Inside option to see further chapters)
John Horton is a programming and gaming enthusiast based in the UK. He has a passion for writing apps, games, books, and blog articles. He is the founder of Game Code School.
