Software Engineering Perspectives in Computer Game Development

Book excerpt: Featuring contributions from leading experts in software engineering, this edited book provides a comprehensive introduction to computer game software development. It is a complex, interdisciplinary field that relies on contributions from a wide variety of disciplines including arts and humanities, behavioural sciences, business, engineering, physical sciences, mathematics, etc. The book focuses on the emerging research at the intersection of game and software engineering communities. A brief history of game development is presented, which considers the shift from the development of rare games in isolated research environments in the 1950s to their ubiquitous presence in popular culture today. A summary is provided of the latest peer-reviewed research results in computer game development that have been reported at multiple levels of maturity (workshops, conferences, and journals). The core chapters of the book are devoted to sharing emerging research at the intersection of game development and software engineering. In addition, future research opportunities on new software engineering methods for games and serious educational games for software engineering education are highlighted. As an ideal reference for software engineers, developers, educators, and researchers, this book explores game development topics from software engineering and education perspectives. Key Features: Includes contributions from leading academic experts in the community Presents a current collection of emerging research at the intersection of games and software engineering Considers the interdisciplinary field from two broad perspectives: software engineering methods for game development and serious games for software engineering education Provides a snapshot of the recent literature (i.e., 2015-2020) on game development from software engineering perspectives