In the 6th episode: Write the base code needed to control the game state and hero’s speed. Define idle state, add “Start” button and also make the hero fly in from the left side of the screen. Once the hero is inside the screen, change the game state to the flying state.

In the 7th episode: Create the Obstacle class. Also define the watchout sign animation, obstacle art and crash art.

Finally animate the obstacles from the right side at random vertical points and remove them once they go out of the screen on the left.

Gamua released a much awaited version – Starling Framework 1.1 a couple of days ago! Clearly, a lot of improvements have gone into it. Here are some of the areas of improvement -

• I would say, first and foremost is the performance boost for the iPad 1.
• Introduction of Blend Modes for images for wonderful effects.
• A very handy component built-in to show statistics – frame rate, memory, etc.
• The most seriously useful feature – Multi-resolution development with support for multi-resolution textures.

I hope to cover some of these in my upcoming episodes of Starting with Starling. So, don’t wait more… Start with the new Starling 1.1!

In the 4th episode, welcome screen’s assets are picked from the Sprite Sheet, instead of individual .png files. You will learn to extend starling.events.Event and create a custom event class for navigation between welcome and in-game screens.

I will start showing the parallax scrolling of in-game background based on a variable speed of hero, in the next episode, coming very soon…

I drew the character/elements on paper, then converted them to vector drawings in Adobe Illustrator. Finally animating the hero character in Flash Pro, I created the sprite sheet. It was a fun experience building all of these in the crunch time.

I also thought of what else I could present as part of this series. I am glad a lot of you have provided feedback through the comments/mails on how you like the idea of a complete workflow being covered. I have plans around this to make sure I help you guys with better understanding of the “process”, rather than just a piece of it. Stay tuned!

With that in mind, I released the 2nd episode: Welcome Screen of this video series yesterday. Do have a look at it and let me know what you think. Do re-tweet and share!

I built this game as part of the tutorial series “Starting with Starling“. In fact, this is the game I plan to build in the tutorial. The next episode of this series should be online in a couple of days.  To get updates on my tutorials, you can subscribe and get notified.

Through this series, learn to take advantage of Adobe Flash Player’s Stage3D feature and hardware-accelerate your 2D games.

In the first episode (Introduction & Setup), learn what Starling framework is, how it works and how to set it up.

Your valuable suggestions and comments are welcome. If you have ideas or requests for specific topics, please do post to me and I shall try my best to include them in the future videos if possible.

We just launched a new section of the site dedicated to game development and showcase. Do check it out.

You will find awesome games already published on the web and devices that use Adobe Flash Platform. It also showcases the latest and the greatest – Stage3D and related features of Flash Player. Also beginners, learn from various frameworks, tutorials and links on the Resources page in the portal.

The tutorial files attached with this video is the ActionScript project containing full source of the game.

If you have any feedback or questions, please feel free to write to me.

In this episode, we will add a new type of balloon called “Bomb” balloon and randomize the creation of the balloons. We will define the “type” property for our entities and detect collision between bullets and balloons. Finally, we will pop the balloons out by showing proper graphic once collided with the bullet.

In this episode, we will create game objects – Hero, Bullets and Balloons. We will also animate the Hero based on mouse movement, shoot bullets upon mouse click and generate random balloons and animate them upwards.

This tutorial is targeted towards developers who have knowledge in basic programming and OOP concepts. If you have been an app developer and want to get into game development with basic examples to start with, this is the right place for you. I hope you enjoy learning!

The book demands nothing more than knowledge in ActionScript 3 & a little bit of Flex. Having the knowledge of advanced Flex development & Flash Builder would make it much easier to follow the examples. I really like the structure of the book that takes the readers from the basics of setting the environment up to the publishing of your apps with the social features that you desire. I tried some of the examples in the book and I should say it was pretty easy to follow. I think an absolute beginner should be able to figure out the process of logging in/authenticating, reading profile data and posting something to wall in about 2 hours approximately.

In about an hour of going through this book, I could build a simple app that printed out the percentage of male/female friends the user had. Here is a screenshot of this test application I built. Though the percentage doesn’t add up to 100 in the screenshot, I am pretty sure it is the privacy settings of some of my friends that has ignored the last 2% in the results or may be I need to investigate a little more.

That apart, building the Test Console was particularly very useful in understanding the results and writing code. I also happened to try this with Flash Professional CS5.5 and obviously seemed not much different from how it is instructed for Flash Builder. I just needed to do a couple of minor tweaks for this.

You will need to download and use the Facebook ActionScript 3 SDK from GitHub to start with the development.

I would say it is a pretty good resource for people wanting to make their games social. So, I think you should grab a copy of this book right away and start socializing.

With the new awesome features in the current and future Flash Player just right for gaming, it will be challenging, yet a huge learning curve for me. Through me, I plan to make it equally easy & better for you.

I have had experiences building games in Flash before. Though I have not published most of my work, that’s exactly what I also plan to do going forward. I am super excited about this new role and I am hoping for a good deal of support from you.

Happy gaming!

My session title is – “Understanding the magical world of Design!“. I will be speaking about the experience of end users in playing the games you develop. How important are the design concepts right from color, layout, concept, etc. With a strong belief that Art & Design is independent of the software or technology used, learn how colors influence moods and purposes, layout/composition, elements of user interface, inventing new experiences.

See you there!

The session will cover the concepts to understand right from the design phase of a game development to the deployment on to different platform devices. Hopefully, I will also compile a game on the stage on to an iPad, iPhone, BlackBerry PlayBook and Samsung Galaxy Tab… (hopefully).

See you there!

All the assets were digitally painted by Madhumita Manjunath (New Tint). This is the same Madhumita who worked on all the digital assets for AFPS Photo Booth 2010, MAX Photo Booth 2010 and the upcoming Snap Stall.

This version of the app is a variant of the new “Snap Stall“. I am working towards making this available on different market places for tablets and touch smart phones (iOS, Android and BlackBerry PlayBook). Snap Stall will be available very soon on all these market places for free.

You can view the cards customized by MAX 2011 attendees on Flickr and Photoshop.com here: -

Flickr Stream: - http://www.flickr.com/photos/adobemaxphotobooth

Photoshop.com Stream: - http://www.photoshop.com/users/adobemax/albums/36ba83a75f664304b9c14ecde68ebf2f

For more information on the application: – MAX Photo Booth project page

I just want to thank all the community members, developers & enthusiasts who made AFPS a success this year! Energy was commendable guys. I was truly happy with the interaction I had with a lot of community managers, members, senior developers and newbies.

Keynote by Ben Forta on Day 1

As part of the keynote this year, we also had “The Ben Forta Show” arranged, where Ben interviewed people and handed them over a nice coffee mug with his signature. In the process of the interview, the audience did get to see awesome app demoes built in Flex and ActionScript for devices. Among them were applications for RedBus and Perfios. Here are a couple of pictures from the show: -

This year, we had a “Device Wall” in our stall apart from the usual demos. This was the wall where people enjoyed to play with a variety of AIR applications installed on the devices.

Of course, last year’s “Photo Booth” was called “Snap Stall” this year. Hosted on http://www.snapstall.in, I am planning to take this application ahead with as many props as possible and to as many devices as possible. Look forward to this application in the market places soon. We primarily deployed Snap Stall on 2 BlackBerry PlayBooks in the stall this year. Below are some of the photos of the Snap Stall and its result.

One of the main attractions this year (non-technically) was a wonderful “Flash Monument”. This was an awesome Flash Player logo carved in wood of about 5 feet tall standing right in the middle of the venue entrance. The monument drew a lot of attention and a lot of attendees took many many pictures with it. All the guys who attended the event, hope you had fun with the Monument!

We also had a 16′x6′ poster in the venue that we called “The Flash Timeline”. This is where everyone could stick tiny notes with their names/messages on it. The idea was to make a mark on the version of Flash/Flex you started working on.

Hope all those who attended the summit found all the tech sessions/workshops useful. Looking forward to the coming years… Lastly, though I personally didn’t get the whole Evangelism team to be present for a group photo with the Flash Monument, We finally managed to do it in front of the Timeline… Here’s the photo: -

Just get your laptops and the apps you have been working on or just the idea you have in mind!

You should definitely attend this if -

• You already have an app/game you have developed/designed and want tips and info on porting it for the PlayBook.
• You have a cool idea and want to get started with the design, development, packaging and publishing to the PlayBook.
• You worked on AS3 or Flex but want to put your hands on Flash Builder 4.5.1 learning new features specific to PlayBook.
• You have built an app and want experts from Adobe and RIM to help you “while” porting it to the PlayBook.
• You want to attend Adobe Flash Platform Summit 2011 and want to win up to 2 free passes to the full conference (worth Rs. 6000).
• You want to also try and win BlackBerry PlayBooks and Smartphones.

We will start with the presentation on Flex and AS3 for BlackBerry PlayBook. Make use of this opportunity to clear hurdles in your porting, packaging and signing process for this platform. Experts on the subject from Adobe and RIM will be present in the clinic.

Visit - http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=187827427940852 to get more information on registering/venue/timing and RSVP now!

See you there!

If you have already registered, attending or even speaking at the conference, do share the information by using the banners available on the site.

Also, come visit Adobe stall at the summit this time for exciting demos and content showcased on various devices! The summit this time will be truly exciting!!!

Here are my session abstracts -

Top AIR APIs to Bring your Mobile Apps to Life

Get to know the most important APIs of Adobe AIR 2.6 that give you the expertise you need to build great apps for devices. Simple, yet powerful, APIs that give you access to device in ways which take your mobile apps to the next level. All the way from simple file access to accessing the Microphone, Geolocation, Accelerometer and many more features, this session will cover most of the APIs that are critical and experience booster for your AIR applications for multiple platforms and devices. Also learn the basics of creating multi-device, multiplayer apps and games using P2P and other multi-user interaction classes.

Design First Approach – UI/UX for world domination

Did you ever wonder why and how design is important for anything you do? Simply called User Experience sometimes, simply called User Interface sometimes, simply also called “The Wow Factor” most of the times, this session talks about the tips and design concepts that need to be kept in mind when you want to make the best design for your apps, games or any content. Yes! There are elements/concepts that indirectly make big differences in the experience of users using your apps. With a strong belief that Art & Design is independent of the software or technology used, learn how colors influence moods and purposes, layout/composition, elements of user interface, inventing new experiences without re-inventing the already familiar UX patterns or conventions. Designers/Developers, learn to design; and everyone else, learn to appreciate Design!

See you there!

Hope to see good rating for the same.

http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/30187?lang=en

My session abstract: -

Art and Science of Design

“Do you think all of us who are geeks understand what Design is? Think again. Have you ever found out that Design is subjective? Have you ever thought of appreciating Design from any other perspective than that of yours? Understanding tools, languages, algorithms to create graphics is the Science of Design. Understanding how to create and communicate with graphics in a creative and impressive way is the Art of Design. Communicating with graphics is Visual Communication. Only with the right mixture of Science and Art in our designs can we create magic! In this session, I will cover the theory of colors, layout, visual communication, tools, methods and techniques used in digital art in today’s world ranging from – Graphic Design for Web and Print, Digital Painting, Video Editing, Post-production, Audio and a lot more.“

Here’s a detail on my session: -

“Learn the aspects of building multi-screen and multi-form factor games for various devices ranging from mobiles, tablets to desktop. Also covered will be the aspects of design/development for web based games and standalone games for multiple devices. Understand how Adobe Flash Platform makes it extremely easy for you to build striking games, test and publish them for many devices.“

Thought of writing a simpler, straight forward post that will explain and show how to do the same in easy steps (for those who don’t want to spend more time understanding every aspect of it).

Assuming the AIR app is built using Flash Professional CS5 (that’s what I did), I am using command-line tools to get through this process. So, it is also obvious that this process is for pure ActionScript projects.

The screenshots of the Terminal window that you see in this tutorial are the actual screenshots I took. I wrote this tutorial first and then followed the commands I have mentioned myself and took the screenshots. I also didn’t get any errors following this. So, I am pretty sure this process works.

Publish the SWF file

First, have the .SWF file published.

Have the resources ready

Now, you will need 4 files to create a nice package: -

1. Application Descriptor XML (game-app.xml)
2. Icon file that goes on the tablet’s applications screen (icon.png)
3. A splash screen PNG file that appears before the actual swf is executed in the tablet (splash.png)
4. Icon and Splash screen mentioned in an XML (blackberry-tablet.xml)

Step 1: Download and install the SDK

Download and install the BlackBerry Tablet OS SDK for Adobe AIR from – http://us.blackberry.com/developers/tablet/adobe.jsp

I have not covered the installation, setup and execution of the simulator in this post. Therefore, I will just mention the steps required to install the SDK, create package and sign the package. The link to download the SDK should be similar to the image below for your respective platforms: -

Installing the SDK should dump the SDK into a folder name similar to – “blackberry-tablet-sdk-0.9.3″. These are the folder contents: -

Step 2: Just before packaging

This is how my directory looks before I start packaging. It contains the resources mentioned in Step 1 and the downloaded SDK.

Step 3: Create the blackberry-tablet.xml

This XML file contains the icon and splash screen that need to appear on your tablet’s applications screen and just before opening the application respectively. Below is the screenshot that shows the appeared icon_86.png and crazygems-splash.jpg used in blackberry-tablet.xml: -

<qnx>
  <initialWindow>
    <systemChrome>none</systemChrome>
    <transparent>false</transparent>
  </initialWindow>
  <publisher>hsharma.com</publisher>
  <category>core.games</category>
  <icon>
    <image>Icon_86.png</image>
  </icon>
  <splashscreen>crazygems-splash.jpg</splashscreen>
</qnx>

Step 4: Create the Application Descriptor XML (CrazyGems-app.xml)

This is by default generated by Flash Pro when your publish settings is set to AIR 2.5. I have made minor changes that restrict the orientation to landscape only.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" standalone="yes"?>
<application xmlns="http://ns.adobe.com/air/application/2.5">
    <id>com.hsharma.crazygems2</id>
    <versionNumber>2.1.0</versionNumber>
    <filename>Crazy Gems 2</filename>
    <description>Crazy Gems 2.1</description>
    <name>Crazy Gems 2</name>
    <copyright>http://www.hsharma.com/projects/crazygems2</copyright>
    <initialWindow>
        <content>CrazyGems.swf</content>
        <systemChrome>standard</systemChrome>
        <transparent>false</transparent>
        <visible>true</visible>
        <fullScreen>false</fullScreen>
        <autoOrients>false</autoOrients>
        <aspectRatio>landscape</aspectRatio>
        <renderMode>auto</renderMode>
        <maximizable>false</maximizable>
        <minimizable>true</minimizable>
        <resizable>false</resizable>
    </initialWindow>
    <customUpdateUI>false</customUpdateUI>
    <allowBrowserInvocation>false</allowBrowserInvocation>
</application>

Step 5: Create the .bar package

This is the simple command that is used to package the .swf and other resources into .bar. Note: The packaging and signing tools are in the subfolder “bin” under the SDK folder.

blackberry-airpackager -package DesiredPackageName.bar game-app.xml blackberry-tablet.xml GameOrApp.swf IconFile86x86.png AllOtherFilesRequiredByYourSwf SplashScreen.png

Note that all the text in red needs to be replaced with the files that you prepared in Step 1. SplashScreen.png and IconFile86x86.png refers to the files included in the blackberry-tablet.xml file in Step 3.

AllOtherFilesRequiredByYourSwf parameter in the above command is where we need to specify all files that are required by the app .swf in runtime. These filenames should be separated by spaces. Also, don’t forget to copy the files in the same folder as .swf.

Now, using this command to actually package my game, looks like this: -

blackberry-airpackager -package CrazyGems2.bar CrazyGems-app.xml blackberry-tablet.xml CrazyGems.swf Icon_86.png crazygems-splash.jpg

This generates the desired CrazyGems2.bar file.

I have ignored -launchApp, -installApp and -device and -password parameters of command-line as they are for running and testing the app on the PlayBook or simulator.

Step 6: Preparing for signing

To sign your package, you will need a signing key from BlackBerry. You can request for the same from https://www.blackberry.com/SignedKeys/.

In this process, please keep in mind that the PIN you enter in the field shown below is extremely important. Do not forget this. Also, note that this PIN allows alpha-numeric characters. The catch is, the alphabets used will be forced to small-case.

You will receive a .CSJ file in a couple of days from BlackBerry.

Step 7: Creating the CSK file

Once you receive the .CSJ file and you are ready to sign, you will need to open Command Prompt (Windows) or Terminal (Mac).

Make sure you change directory to the one where your SDK is copied. Enter the following command to create a .csk file: -

blackberry-signer -csksetup -cskpass DesiredCSKPassword

Again, text in red is what you need to fill in with your information. Enter the desired password for csk file. This password will be used in just a bit. Also, the file created won’t be in the same folder. This is created in -

Mac:

~/user/Library/Research In Motion/barsigner.csk

Win:

\Document and Settings\<name>\Local Settings\Application Data\Research In Motion\barsigner.csk

or

\Users\Youraccount\AppData\Local\Research In Motion\barsigner.csk

Deleting the CSK (just in case)

If you have already created a .csk and want to delete it, use the command below: -

blackberry-signer -cskdelete

Step 8: Register with RIM Server

Now, you need to register with RIM Server using the .csj file. Run the following command: -

blackberry-signer -register -csjpin PinYouEnteredWhileRequestingCSJ -cskpass PasswordYouEnteredWhileGeneratingCSK client-RDK-XXXXXXXXXX.csj

PinYouEnteredWhileRegisteringCSJ – is the one you entered by choice in Step 6.

PasswordYouEnteredWhileGeneratingCSK – is the one you entered by choice in Step 7.

Once you submit, you should see the response – “Successfully registered with server.”

Once you get this message, you should also have received a confirmation email from “websigner@ws-smtp.rim.net” with the subject “Successful Registration Request for Client ’1279793156′”.

Step 9: Create the .p12 Certificate

Once you have registered with RIM server, you can generate the .p12 certificate required to sign your .bar file package. Finally… eh? Not yet actually… Signing in next step.

blackberry-keytool -genkeypair -keystore DesiredCertificateName.p12 -storepass NewPassword -dname "cn=YourCompanyName" -alias author

Make sure you modify only the red text in the above command.

YourCompanyName can contain spaces and full-stop. But not comma.

Step 10: Sign the package with the .p12 Certificate

Finally, we are now ready to sign the package we created in Step 7. Note that you will need to sign the .bar file twice. Once from RIM and once from you as an author.

Use the below command to sign the .bar file first time: -

blackberry-signer -verbose -cskpass CSKPassword -keystore CertificateName.p12 -storepass StorePassword BarFileNameForRIMToSign.bar RDK

CSKPassword – from Step 7.

CertificateName – from Step 9.

StorePassword – This is the NewPassword from Step 9.

BarFileNameForRIMToSign.bar – The .bar file created in Step 5.

Now, sign the already signed file. The first time you signed, was from RIM. Now you sign from the author’s (your) side.

blackberry-signer -keystore CertificateName.p12 -storepass StorePassword RimSignedBarFile.bar author

CertificateName – from Step 9.

StorePassword – This is the NewPassword from Step 9.

RimSignedBarFile.bar – The .bar file created in Step 5 and signed in Step 10 in previous command.

This signs the .bar file again.

Conclusion

So, here you go. You should have a final .bar file that is ready to be published on the BlackBerry App World. Please do write back if you find issues. I will try my best to point you to a possible solution or place where you can find one…

Happy packaging!

UPDATE:

If you get an error “Code signing request failed because this file has been previously signed.” when you try to sign a new package (probably not a major change) with same name and version for your app, change the <versionNumber>x.y.z</versionNumber> tag (line 4) in Step 4. Good idea to increment “z” in the version (revision version). Then try to repackage and it should work.

A lot of Tablet Computers and Touch Screen devices have emerged, and it’s time to create games that have virtual joystick support on the screen for easier gameplay. Read on and discover how you can create a virtual joystick for your games on touch enabled devices.

This tutorial will take you through the basics of setting up your environment and writing code for a character that moves according to the way Joystick is operated. Don’t forget to leave your comments or shoot a mail to me.

Here is an extract from the article -

When designing for multiple platforms like mobiles, PC, Net books, etc. there are a few common challenges that all developers face. These include scaling the game to the respective screen size, performance issues, device capability (touch screen, accelerometer, keyboard, GPS etc.).

Advising on the using the prospect to the fullest, Hemanth says, “Developers should keep in mind that developing for multi-screen will always give you more users and it is a better way to monetize. Handhelds, tablets and PC’s are three main multi-screen devices. And as a lot of companies are shortly going to introduce android tablet PC’s, developers should make maximum use of this opportunity to push their content on these platforms”.

I will be speaking about how Adobe Flash Platform’s new features can be made use of to build amazing games and content.

Understand the optimizations that need to go into your content to make it run on Netbooks, Desktops, Mobiles and the Web!

See you there!

This year Adobe MAX is featuring Photo Booth on the Community Pavilion exhibit floor. With four locations to choose from, MAX attendees can step right up and use augmented reality markers to kick off an application that allows them to place themselves inside MAXtopia with their favorite logo and some quirky props to create a unique souvenir.

Customize your Adobe MAX Photo Booth Card with different product logos, funky hair styles, product branded caps, finally sharing it with the world on Flickr, Twitter, Photoshop.com and also through email.

MAX Photo Booth is a multi-touch AIR application built in AS3 using Flash Professional CS5 and Flash Builder 4.

Do visit the Adobe MAX Photo Booth project page for more details, screenshots, video and more…

Adobe Flash Platform for Mobile Development

“Write one code, ActionScript, and publish your application to multiple mobile devices, web, and desktops. Learn the aspects of multiscreen coding using Adobe Flex, Flash Builder, Flash Professional and emulate your content in Adobe Device Central. This session will cover ActionScript coding & designing for multi-screen and deployment across multiple devices making use of device specific features such as accelerometer, multitouch gestures, geolocation, etc..”

A specific requirement would be to have Froyo (Android 2.2) on your phone before you install the runtime. If you need the runtime on your phone, do sign up for the AIR for Android Prerelease Program. Hope you enjoy playing the game on your phone.

New Feature: – This version uses Accelerometer of your device for the game play.