Beginning C++ Through Game Programming

5.0 out of 5 stars
Practical Book–Uses What You Learn Right Away
I have been very pleasantly surprised by the effect this book has had on my son. He is very interested in programming, and has already worked himself through half of the book…

Up to now, there were few decent books that taught C++ and the Standard Template Library (STL) and how to use these within a game. This book fills the void. It is a very good book that covers the required material, but it does require that you have more knowledge than an absolute beginner.
The book covers the major aspects of C++ such as inheritance and encapsulation in a very easy to understand and accessible way. The examples for the games are clear, concise, well documented, and very carefully explained. It uses nothing other than the STL to demonstrate how to implement the code, which means that anyone with a recent rev of a C++ compiler can use the book.
I subtracted a single star out of five because the chapter on pointers is insufficient, in my opinion. While the explanations and diagrams make the chapter easier to understand than many books, pointers are still made more complex than is really necessary. There is also no form of exception handling when “new” is used, which is a fundamental flaw with no real excuse given in the book for why is it not handled. It is too easy for new students of the language to get in the habit of letting memory handling go unchecked. Other than these flaws, I do recommend the book, especially to students who want to learn C++ for the purpose of getting into game programming.

I am not going to bash the book. I haven’t read enough to make that kind of judgement (I don’t think I intend to read much more). I have glanced over the material, and let me warn anyone planning on buying this book: This book is for the absolute beginner to programming, not game programming, programming in general. The most complicated program outputs to the console. So don’t expect to develop any windowed applciations or anything practical. In summary, this is a book that teaches C++ that orients the examples towards elementary text-based games. If you are like me, trying to get a niche in 3D game programming and already have programming experience, buy something else. If you are absolutely beginning, this book could introduce you to programming, but I would recommend a book specifically geared toward teaching C++. I find Premier books to be riddled with careless mistakes, so it is best to buy a book from a publisher like Addison Wesley, Wiley, Pearson, Wrox or O’rielly. This way you will be formally introduced to a language like C++ and you can learn about genuine game programming from the perspective of a experienced programmer. I recommend baby steps – learn the language first, then games. I hope this is helpful. Just looking out for other weathered programmers like myself.

5.0 out of 5 stars
True Beginners Book
Book is great for beginning programers. Takes reader from the basic foundation of programming in C++.

5.0 out of 5 stars
As promised
This book does a very good job of covering the basics of C++. Whenever I come across a book that delivers what it promises I am happy… and “Beginning C++” delivers.

4.0 out of 5 stars
Good Introduction to C++ Using Games
(In reference to 1st Edition) As my title suggests this book is a pretty good introduction to C++ using basic games as the subject of the examples and exercises.