Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 4
Do you ever freeze up just before starting a new project? I do, and I
m not afraid to
admit it. I get hung up thinking about the perfect directory structure, where the art
and sound data should be stored, how the build process should work, and mostly
how I will keep my new game from becoming a horrible mess. By the end of a proj-
ect, it usually turns out to be a mess anyway! So I
'
m always thankful I plan out a
directory structure, employ good version control tools, and incorporate automation
scripts that all keep entropy just low enough for a human like me to be able to
keep track of what I
'
m doing.
In this chapter, I
'
m going to tell you everything you need to know to get your game
projects organized from the start and how to configure project files and use version
control tools effectively. This is an area where many game developers try to cut cor-
ners, so my advice is to invest a little time and ensure that your projects go together
smoothly and stay that way. Hopefully, they
'
'
ll stay organized right to the day you
ship.
As you read through this chapter, you might feel that you are getting an education in
software engineering. Try not to feel overwhelmed. These techniques are very critical
to the process of successfully developing games, and they are used by real game
developers on teams that are big, small, and even single developers.
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