This is a book about making 3D games in Macromedia Director Shockwave Studio. Expect it to be a book about code, interface tricks, and wacky game ideas. Along the way, I will share my experiences, life, and attitudes about games and game development. I have always tended to swim upstream, so I doubt that much of this will seem comfortable or familiar. I don’t like things to be too comfortable. It spawns mediocrity.

This is a desperately needed book. The rapid improvement of Macromedia Director coupled with the exponential increase in the speed of computers and the massive popularity of real-time 3D games are creating a tremendous opportunity in the information market. As I write this book, Macromedia Director 8.5/Shockwave Studio is about to go public, and when it does, its influence will be astounding. I know this because I’ve seen what it can do, and it is hardly difficult to see the opportunities such power will provide.

Thousands of software developers (both traditional Director developers and developers accustomed to other languages) will want to learn how to use these new tools as well as learn strategies for creating 3D games. They will want to learn to use the tool because Macromedia has produced a mind-blowing Internet-enabled 3D engine. The potential and range of the tool is unparalleled. No other 3D engine supports the depth of features for developers within the context of a drag-and-drop authoring environment.

The stage has been set. Shockwave Flash has enjoyed unprecedented popularity and is drawing an ever-growing pool of converts over to the Macromedia camp. Shockwave 3D is the feature that will motivate these enormous audiences to investigate Director.

Although other books are available that can help you learn these new features, this book is specifically geared toward game development. It is a sad fact that after nearly a decade of Director books, only one book has ever dealt with games, and none deal with the topic of 3D game development in Director.