Original Post
I have been reading lots on scene graph (thanks to the big list of amazing threads article at the FAQ section here), but given my level of experience, I still can't decide how to approach this subject. As I started about, I was recommended to investigate scene graphs. Reading from various articles, I understand the benefits of using one.. I am trying to figure out a good scene management fit for this game.. I am just too confused if I should use a list / vector / DAG for storing different systems ?? Let me give some details about what I am trying to achieve.. Game Goals: These are the major subsystems and the detail that I am shooting for 1. World: Loading Level : Load information about with the level; i.e. lets say there is a building with multiple rooms in it. The player should not be allowed to walk through the walls. Much like quake.. 2. Player: 1. Camera: Player can move around in: (can be toggled) 1. First Person Mode 2. Third Person Mode 2. Action: Player can fire at other NPC ( I am not planning to make it a multiplayer game). One thing I want to get done with is; only a part of the other player gets damaged when shot upon; instead of damaging the whole player mesh. 3. NPC: Very simple AI (a shoot on sight action) 4. Team play: Again, this is an AI thing. 3. HUD: Gameplay / Game States and Menu system 4. Game win/loose condition in place. 5. Audio: Simple sound effects Thats it. Team play is more like an advanced feature. So, I don't want worry too much about it. But, I just thought I'll mention it here for completeness. Also, I am not really too much worried about animations (advanced feat). Technology used o C++ o OpenGL o OS handling library: (glut / Qt / suggestions) o Other libraries like openGL Mathematics etc ( as needed) I am not a noob at c++ programming and have been dealing with some of the advanced concepts. I have also been doing game programming for some time now. Why do I mention this? Well, often people recommend to go make small projects first and learn the basics first. I totally agree with that and have been down that road. I now want to make this game and learn concepts/ improve my programming skills as they come my way. I intend to dedicate a full year to this. With that out of the way, hopefully I have convinced you enough that I am dead serious about this project. What kind of schematics would you recommend ? Also, if you can refer me to some good readings where they talk about design and implementations hand in hand, that’d be great! (I haven’t checked out Eberly’s book yet, but that is something I will look into very shortly). Thanks a lot for reading and I apologise for such a long long post!