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

To get the most out of this book

You’ll want to be at least passingly familiar with JavaScript before engaging with the activities in this book, at least to the point where you are not fazed by looking at code that may initially be unfamiliar. Knowing basic 3D concepts and terms is also helpful. If you are new to Babylon.js, JavaScript, or 3D development, then a fantastic place to start is the Babylon.js start page at https://doc.babylonjs.com/journey/theFirstStep.

A web browser with the Mozilla or Chrome rendering engine is recommended, as it has the greatest level of support for various WebGL and WebGPU features. Safari (WebKit) is known to be significantly behind the other engines listed in its support with similar functionality.

If you are using the digital version of this book, we advise you to type the code yourself or access the code from the book’s GitHub repository (a link is available in the next section). Doing so will help you avoid any potential errors related to the copying and pasting of code.

The Babylon.js community is the most valuable resource around for getting help with everything related to BJS.As an Open Source project, Babylon.js is kept alive by its’ dedicated community of contributors. Who can contribute? Anyone. What can be contributed? Almost anything. Join the BJS community on the official forums at https://forum.babylonjs.com and meet the gang!