Book Image

Panda3D 1.6 Game Engine Beginner's Guide

Book Image

Panda3D 1.6 Game Engine Beginner's Guide

Overview of this book

Panda3D is a game engine, a framework for 3D rendering and game development for Python and C++ programs. It includes graphics, audio, I/O, collision detection, and other abilities relevant to the creation of 3D games. Also, Panda3D is Open Source and free for any purpose, including commercial ventures. This book will enable you to create finished, marketable computer games using Panda3D and other entirely open-source tools and then sell those games without paying a cent for licensing. Panda3D 1.6 Game Engine Beginner's Guide follows a logical progression from a zero start through the game development process all the way to a finished, packaged installer. Packed with examples and detailed tutorials in every section, it teaches the reader through first-hand experience. These tutorials are followed by explanations that describe what happened in the tutorial and why. You will start by setting up a workspace, and then move on to the basics of starting up Panda3D. From there, you will begin adding objects like a level and a character to the world inside Panda3D. Then the book will teach you to put the game's player in control by adding change over time and response to user input. Then you will learn how to make it possible for objects in the world to interact with each other by using collision detection and beautify your game with Panda3D's built-in filters, shaders, and texturing. Finally, you will add an interface, audio, and package it all up for the customer.
Table of Contents (22 chapters)
Panda3D 1.6 Game Engine
Credits
About the Author
About the Reviewers
www.PacktPub.com
Preface
Index

Using keyboard events


By default, Panda3D ties events to every key on the standard keyboard. In fact, it ties two events to each key. The first event occurs whenever the key is pressed down, and the second happens when the key is released. Each of these events is named after the key it corresponds to. For all the keys that type characters, the event is named after that character. These are always lowercase, even when Shift is involved. Here are some examples:

"a", "b", "c", "[", "5"

The following event names won't work:

"A", "B", "C", "{", "%"

The event for releasing the key adds up to the end of the event name. For example:

"a-up", "[-up", "5-up"

There is also an event for the auto-repeat that occurs when a key is held down on the keyboard. This uses repeat.

"a-repeat", "[-repeat", "5-repeat"

Keys that don't type a character are labelled as follows:

"escape", "f1", "f2", "f12", "print_screen", "scroll_lock", "num_lock"

"backspace", "insert", "home", "page_up", "delete", "end", "page_down"

"caps_lock...