3d Video Games

The objective of the course is to provide an in-depth understanding of the techniques commonly adopted by 3D video-games (ie games set in virtual 3D worlds) in order to tackle the numerous challanges that must be solved during their execution; this includes the mathematical background, the data-structures, the algorithms, and the related technical terminology. The ultimate goal is to provide the concepts at the basis of the development of a modern 3D game-engine, which are also necessary for the correnct use of existing tools of this type.

At the end of the course, the students will have learned the techniques underlying the solutions ubiquitously adopted by modern 3D video games. In particular, they will have acuqired familiarity with the mathematical background, the algorithms and the data structures employed to tackle the challenges that are faced by a 3D video-game, including: the representation of 3D objects and virtual environments, the representation of their appearance, the simulation of their physical evolution, the reproduction of 3D computer animations (scripted or procedural) and 3D visual effects. Students are also provided with notions suitable to bridge the contents imparted by this course to the relevant ones offered by other courses, such as those related to: real-time audio, advanced real-time rendering, artificial intelligence for virtual agents, and networking. Some of the contents covered in the teaching are reinforced through practical exemplification with existing game-dev tools or game-engines.