Packt Publishing recently released a new book called “Creating Games with Cocos2d for iPhone 2”, written by Paul Nygard.
The name is a bit confusing to me, the 2 in the book title refers to the book being the second Cocos2d book from Packt or 2 as in Cocos2d version 2.0?
Anyway, the book in detail from their website:
Cocos2d for iPhone is a simple (but powerful) 2D framework that makes it easy to create games for the iPhone. There are thousands of games in the App Store already using cocos2d. Game development has never been this approachable and easy to get started.
“Creating Games with cocos2d for iPhone 2” takes you through the entire process of designing and building nine complete games for the iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad using cocos2d 2.0. The projects start simply and gradually increase in complexity, building on the lessons learned in previous chapters. Good design practices are emphasized throughout.
From a simple match game to an endless runner, you will learn how to build a wide variety of game styles.
You will learn how to implement animation, actions, create “artificial randomness”, use the Box2D physics engine, create tile maps, and even use Bluetooth to play between two devices.
“Creating games with cocos2d for iPhone 2” will take your game building skills to the next level.
You will learn:
- Control sprites with touch, joysticks, and tilt controls
- Use sprite sheets, particles, and plists effectively
- Learn multiple approaches to solve common challenges
- Integrate cocos2d with the Box2D physics engine
- Use third-party programs for joystick control, tile maps, and more
- Implement Bluetooth to play across multiple devices
- Learn game-specific A.I. design methodologies
Looking at the book’s Table of Contents, I see that there are 9 different games that will be taught in the book. Like all other Packt books, Source Codes are included.
There is a memory game, “Thanks for the Memories” (which reminds me of the Fall Out Boy song). It’s basically a memory card game. A Match 3 game, Whack-a-Mole, Snake, a breakout game, “Light Cycles of TRON” game, pool, a scrolling shooter, and an endless runner. They are pretty run-the-mill games.
This book is aimed at readers with an understanding of Objective-C and some familiarity with the cocos2d for iPhone 2.0 framework.
I’m not through reading the book yet, so this is it for now. Sorry >.< I’ll write the review as soon as I’m done with it.
You can get the book on the Packt website: http://www.packtpub.com/creating-games-with-cocos2d-for-iphone-2/book
Michelle Chen 