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4) Game Development Concepts

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The Core Game Loop Model

Most real-time games repeat the same structure every frame:

  1. Read input.
  2. Update game state.
  3. Render visuals.
  4. Present frame and repeat.
Do
    HandleInput()
    UpdateGame()
    RenderGame()
    Flip()
Loop Until gameOver

Input Layer

Input should be read every frame and translated into game actions.

  • KeyDown for held movement.
  • KeyHit for one-frame actions (confirm, pause, menu select).
  • MouseX, MouseY, MouseButton for pointer interactions.
  • StartTextInput and GetTextInput$ for typed text entry.

Update Layer

Update is where game rules happen:

  • Position changes
  • Timers and cooldowns
  • Collisions
  • Health, score, and win/lose checks

Keep update logic independent from drawing whenever possible.

Render Layer

Render draws the current state without changing game rules.

  • Clear with Cls.
  • Draw background and world objects.
  • Draw UI last (score, health, prompts).

Resource Lifecycle (Load Once, Reuse, Free)

Load resources before the main loop. Reuse handles during the loop. Free resources after the loop.

Dim fontRef As Integer
Dim playerImage As Integer

fontRef = LoadFont("", 18)
playerImage = LoadImage("assets/player.png")

Do
    Cls()
    DrawImage(playerImage, playerX, playerY)
    DrawText(fontRef, 20, 20, "Score: " + Str(score))
    Flip()
Loop Until finished

FreeImage(playerImage)
FreeFont(fontRef)

Simple State Machines

Most games switch between states such as menu, gameplay, and pause. Use a state variable.

Const STATE_MENU As Integer = 1
Const STATE_PLAY As Integer = 2
Const STATE_PAUSE As Integer = 3

Dim state As Integer
state = STATE_MENU

Time and Motion

For smoother motion, many games use FrameDelta() to scale movement by elapsed time.

playerX = playerX + Round(playerSpeed * FrameDelta())

Architecture Advice for New Projects

  • Start with one file until concept works.
  • Then split by responsibility: input, update, render, assets, audio.
  • Keep names clear and direct.
  • Avoid very long functions when learning; shorter blocks are easier to debug.

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