First off, if you are considering buying any game develpment book in the next 12 months, choose this one.

Core Techniques and Algorithms in Game Programming by Daniel Sanchez-Crespo Dalmau, Daniel Sanchez-Crespo

This book is almost like a home-made course on game development. I am convinced this title will be on my shelf for a long time. Topics covered include:

Gameplay Programming

• Game Architecture: Logic, Loops, Presentation, etc
• Data Structures and Algorithms: Arrays thru Graphs, and the STL
• Design Patterns: Singletons thru flyweights, and Usability Patterns
• User Input: (unfortunately this is in DirectInput - but easy enough to port to SDL or the Cocoa Event Manager
• Fundamental A.I.: Sensing, memory, rule systems, finite state machines, etc...
• Action-Oriented A.I.: Choreographed, Evasion, Chasing, Patrolling, etc...
• Tactical-A.I.: path finding, group dynamics
• Scripting: building/parsing scripting languages (ex: Lua, Java, Socket)
• Network Coding: TCP, UDP, Server, Client, Multiclient, MM Games etc...
  

Engine Programming

• 2D datastructures, sprites, tiles, scrollers, etc
• 3D Pipeline overview: vertices, primitives, geometry, clipping, culling, etc
• Indoors Rendering: Binary Space Partitions, portal rendering, occulusion maps, etc...
• Outdoor Algorithms: heightfields, quadtrees, ROAM, LOD, etc...
• Character Animation: explicit, implicit, keyframe, forward kinematics, IK, etc...
• Cinematography: Inertia, 3rd person, more camera stuff...
• Shading: per-vertex, per-pixel, light mapping, BRDF, and NPR rendering
• Texture Mapping: types, tiling, filtering, mipmapping, bump, etc
• Particle Systems: spawning, behavior, extinction, LOD, etc
• Organic Rendering: Trees, grass, clouds, oceans, etc..
• Procedural Techniques: renderman, Real-time shading, shaders, texture mapping, particle systems, animation, etc
• Geometrical Algorithms: Point tests, ray tests, moving tests, mesh tests, triangle reduction
  

Appendices Include

• Performance tuning
• OpenGL
• Direct3D
• Math: vector and matrix
• TONS OF RESOURCES
  

If this seems like overkill - it isn't. Honestly, if I was to take a course or teach a course on game development, this would be the book I would use. Very accessable, and insanely informative and useful. 6 out of 5 stars.

Would you care to write up that as a full review? We are getting a lot of attention for our book reviews, (Charles River Media actually approached us and asked us to review their books!) so I guess New Riders would be merry as Harry the Happy Panda for a review. (If you don't have the time, no worries, I'll write one up, but as I personally have five books to review in my pipeline, I'd be happy if you felt like it.)

Take a look at our review section for ideas!

Sure can. Give me about a week.

Thanks! Send it over when it is done. I'm looking forward to it! =)

Ug, forgot about midterms the next 2 weeks. I will get this together soon though. =D