So you wanna be a hotshot game designer? Well, if you have a basic grasp of Macromedia Flash MX, you can. Unafraid to tackle some of the more complicated aspects of game creation (including physics and trigonometry!), this comprehensive reference covers it all. Macromedia Flash Game Design Demystified starts out with the basics: planning, adapting ActionScript techniques, using introductory Flash game techniques, and more. Then it gets down to the real business of building simple games. You'll tackle simple-logic and quiz games before moving on to multiplayer and complex-logic games (chess, for example)--learning about importing 3-D graphics, adding sound effects, and licensing your games in the process. The book's companion CD includes the source files for a number of games as well as the tutorials and lessons that go along with the book and XML server software to facilitate multiplayer games. If you're tired of the games that you have and want to make your own action, this book offers comprehensive coverage of sophisticated techniques--but put in easy-to-grasp, practical terms.

• I. Getting started with Flash game design

• Chapter 1: First Steps
• Chapter 2: The Plan: From Idea to Design

  II. Examining the nuts and bolts

• Chapter 3: Trigonometry 101
• Chapter 4: Basic Physics
• Chapter 5: Collision Detection
• Chapter 6: Collision Reactions
• Chapter 7: Tile-Based Worlds
• Chapter 8: The Isometric Worldview
• Chapter 9: Artificial Intelligence
• Chapter 10: Using a High Score List
• Chapter 11: Graphics in Games
• Chapter 12: The Sound of Games
• Chapter 13: Dissecting a Chat

  III. The Games

• Chapter 14: Word Search
• Chapter 15: Ice World: A Platform Game
• Chapter 16: Pinball
• Chapter 17: Tic-Tac-Toe: Your First Multiplayer Game
• Chapter 18: 9-Ball
• Chapter 19: Don't Fall!

  Appendixes

• Appendix A: Protecting Your Games
• Appendix B: Multiuser Servers
• Appendix C: The Electro ServerAS Object
• Appendix D: XML Basics in Flash
• Appendix E: Developer Resources
• Appendix F: Other Games
• Index