Book Image

Going the Distance with Babylon.js

By : Josh Elster
Book Image

Going the Distance with Babylon.js

By: Josh Elster

Overview of this book

Babylon.js allows anyone to effortlessly create and render 3D content in a web browser using the power of WebGL and JavaScript. 3D games and apps accessible via the web open numerous opportunities for both entertainment and profit. Developers working with Babylon.js will be able to put their knowledge to work with this guide to building a fully featured 3D game. The book provides a hands-on approach to implementation and associated methodologies that will have you up and running, and productive in no time. Complete with step-by-step explanations of essential concepts, practical examples, and links to fully working self-contained code snippets, you’ll start by learning about Babylon.js and the finished Space-Truckers game. You’ll also explore the development workflows involved in making the game. Focusing on a wide range of features in Babylon.js, you’ll iteratively add pieces of functionality and assets to the application being built. Once you’ve built out the basic game mechanics, you’ll learn how to bring the Space-Truckers environment to life with cut scenes, particle systems, animations, shadows, PBR materials, and more. By the end of this book, you’ll have learned how to structure your code, organize your workflow processes, and continuously deploy to a static website/PWA a game limited only by bandwidth and your imagination.
Table of Contents (20 chapters)
1
Part 1: Building the Application
7
Part 2: Constructing the Game
13
Part 3: Going the Distance

Shader Programming with the Node Material Editor

As something that has been referred to numerous times throughout this book, the NME may have taken on an almost mythic status as a productivity tool. Its plug-and-play, drag-and-drop nature allows just about anyone to assemble shaders using visual blocks. It democratizes the GPU in the seamless way it integrates with the Inspector. Its simple deployment in tandem with the Playground provides a short runway from fancy to flight. The NME may just be about the best thing to happen since sliced bread met butter.

All these statements are true, except the part about the NME being better than sliced bread and butter – that one isn’t. It’s better than sliced bread and butter, falling just short of being better than sliced bread alone. It’s a thin leavened line, but it’s one worth baking. Hyperbole aside, the NME is truly one of the most powerful, if not the most powerful, tools in the Babylon.js toolbox...