Making some Game Dev Tutorials :)

The question that I was answering was put out by the author of the tutorials as to what I would like to see him include in his repertoire.

You are quite wrong in your assumption that no two games require the same interface in that actual interface components are supposed to be a generic construct for any form for development. The fact that one game type may have a slightly different interface than another is rather meaningless since an interface component system should be able to be used for all types of games whereby the individual developer selects what components are required.

I recommended tutorials on developing interfaces for MonoGame, which I see as a necessity and if I could do such work myself I wouldnā€™t be recommending this topic for these tutorials. And doing such work on oneā€™s own is quite difficult when the documentation on how to go about it is pretty much non-existent, which is a major problem in teh open Source environments where so many people seem to put out legitimate solutions without any support for how to use them. The EmptyKeys Library is a classic example of a seemingly fine product without a way to understand how it should be implemented. And believe me I have researched this topic quite extensively.

I use the Myra UI because it is the best UI available for MonoGame development that I have come across and experimented with. However, without concise documentation on its many capabilities, its use becomes a trail & error situation, which is an inherent waste of time. Fortunately, the author of this library has promised to develop better documentation as soon as time allows. And he is always will ing to answer my questions when they come up.

Nonetheless, tutorials on how to develop such interfaces using MonoGame itself, which has all of the capabilities necessary to do this type of work would go a long way to making such work a more easily attained endeavor. And it would also allow easier access to the MonoGame engine for those interested in game development.

The simulation I am attempting to create is very complex and usually requires a team of developers so anything that would make such work easier would go a long way in helping me to at least understand as to how such interfaces are created using a graphics engine.

Well I have a tutorial on Buttons and one on an arrow selector, which you should be able to gleen some of the process from. Eventually more form elements will be added. In general most UI elements should be buttons (for evidence of this just look at most AA and AAA games). Drop downs, tho I have used them in UIā€™s, are not recommended for end user product UIā€™s (other than map editors), but they can be helpful for other screens like character creation, etcā€¦

My tutorials as of now are more based on building gameā€™s, and are mostly focused on the basics as most of the specifics should be filled out by the individual game as every game has its own needs. I think focusing on UI elements will would not go over well with my subscribers, though adding them over time is fine and will happen.

Monogame is more than capable of doing whatever you can dream up, but it is not really meant to be an engine like Unity (which contains more of the tools you are mentioning). Monogame has the ability to create complex UIā€™s you just have to code the perfect solutions for them which is the beautiful part of Monogame.

Keep in mind that every indie that makes games is doing something that is usually developed by a team of devs :slight_smile: Tooling is one of the most important things a developer can do, so I agree that these elements are helpful, but in order to move forward with Monogame you may have to spend time developing the ones you need most when they are not available. For instance the Arrow Selector took about 1-1.5 hours to make, that time is easily recouped as soon as you use it a few times. A first version of Drop Downs should probably take about 2-3 hours of work provided you know what you want them to do.

TLDR;

More will come over time, but if it is to slow you may need to build the ones you need mostā€¦

Part 41 i s up:

This one deals with applying the options, as well as background music.

2 Likes

Part 42 is up:

This one does sound effects and a sound control class.

2 Likes

Part 43 is now up:

This one covers adding a 2nd shader (throb or pulse) and also running multiple shaders.

3 Likes

Part 44 is now up:

This one adds the start of a menu system, and the start of what will eventually be a Character menu :wink:

3 Likes

Part 45 is now up:

This one deals with text wrapping, and adding a TextZone class.

2 Likes

Part 46 is up:

This one adds a level exit menu, and deals with the transition between the level back to the world map, as well as fixes some minor things :slight_smile:

3 Likes

Part 47 is up:

This one adds Full screen functionality.

2 Likes

Part 48 is up:

This one covers check boxes and a parent class called FormPart for all Form parts :slight_smile:

3 Likes

Part 49 is up:

This one adds a highlight HLSL shader.

3 Likes

Part 50 is up:

This one adds a message or Alert System.

2 Likes

50 already. great milestone! awesome series!

Thanks Kay!

Ya Im quite happy with the response the series has gotten. For the most part people are being helped by it, and that is awesome!

Part 51 is up:

This one creates a library for the Engine classes.

3 Likes

Part 52 is up:

The one adds dismiss able messages and a win condition.

3 Likes

Part 53 is up:

This is part 1 of doing some simple key binds.

3 Likes

Part 54 is up:

The one finishes up simple key binds.

3 Likes

Part 55 is up:

This one starts working on an inventory system

2 Likes

Congratulations on hitting 50+ Tutorial videos :champagne:

Keep at it!