Game Development using Ada 95

Game Development using Ada 95

[Larry Matthias]

Dear Ada Group,

	I am interested in finding any information on groups that
	are using Ada 95 for games. This includes Windows 95,
	Nintendo, Sony Play Station, and Sega Saturn. Since Ada
	was designed for real-time embedded systems I was curious
	if anyone was using it. 

	Any help will be greatly appreciated.

	Please respond with email to l.e.matthias@larc.nasa.gov.

	Thanks in advance.

Larry Matthias

Re: Game Development using Ada 95

[Ted Dennison]

Larry Matthias wrote:
> 
> Dear Ada Group,
> 
>         I am interested in finding any information on groups that
>         are using Ada 95 for games. This includes Windows 95,
>         Nintendo, Sony Play Station, and Sega Saturn. Since Ada
>         was designed for real-time embedded systems I was curious
>         if anyone was using it.

Remember that Ada 95 is only a year and a half old.

Also, many game companies are still trying to get by with assembly. 
The Ada (and C++) mindset is something that does not come naturally to
these folk. As games start getting bigger and more complicated this
will eventually HAVE to change. But today is not that day.

Now I DO know of a commercial engine controller that uses Ada 83...   


-- 
T.E.D.          
                |  Work - mailto:dennison@escmail.orl.mmc.com  |
                |  Home - mailto:dennison@iag.net              |
                |  URL  - http://www.iag.net/~dennison         |

Re: Game Development using Ada 95

[John Howard]

On Fri, 23 Aug 1996, Larry Matthias wrote:
> Dear Ada Group,
> 	I am interested in finding any information on groups that
> 	are using Ada 95 for games. This includes Windows 95,
> 	Nintendo, Sony Play Station, and Sega Saturn. Since Ada
> 	was designed for real-time embedded systems I was curious
> 	if anyone was using it.
>
> 	Any help will be greatly appreciated.
> 	Please respond with email to l.e.matthias@larc.nasa.gov.
> 	Thanks in advance.
>
> Larry Matthias

I think gaming is one of the best ways to get someone involved with
programming.  That is pretty much how I started out in 1978 with a TRS-80.

I have a 15-year old nephew who can now program in Ada 95.  He has a BASIC 
background and an interest in writing BBS games.  He wanted to try one of
my abandoned Turbo Pascal dialects but I got him to give GNAT for DOS a 
try.  At first he was discouraged due to installation problems.  Then we
tried working together on a conquer-the-universe type game.  He came up
with a snazzy title and central theme.  We wrote several packages.  The
game is 50% done.  He had to move across the country two weeks ago.  Now I
am waiting for him to get email access so we can continue the development. 
We will distribute the game.

An interesting feature for gaming is the use of tasking.  I want our game
to allow non-human players to pursue individual goals.  Each player object
will use multiple tasks.  I like it that Ada lets us start with simple
records during design that we can later tag for reuse as classes.  This
lets us universally use a data structures approach from the beginning.

I wrote a 2d/3d sprite game using Turbo Pascal.  It has a voxel-like 
landscape to explore and perform 3d air-to-air/air-to-ground combat.  The
majority of the game play is a 2d platform style chase through mazes.  The 
game uses VGA modes X & Y.  I did not finish the sound support or all the 
sprite images.  It started out as a testbed for enhancements I was making 
to a sprite engine.  Unfortunately it became a mess of hard-to-reuse and 
non-portable code.  This helped convince me to try something better.  
Meanwhile I had to get a real job doing software consulting.  Those jobs 
were using Borland Pascal with Paradox Engine and telecommunications.  I 
had reached a few of the frustrating limits of 16-bit Borland Pascal 
software.  Last year I began learning OS/2 and Ada 95.  I established a 
family business and now have time to do programming as a hobby.

The point is that when I have the choice and the chance, I start writing
up new games.  I now prefer to use Ada together with a little assembler
as needed.  BTW, OS/2 is an awesome platform for gaming.  I heard last 
January there were over ten million OS/2 users and half of them were using
Warp.  Of course, the Windows mentality of "there can be only one" has 
made finding OS/2 software on the store shelves very difficult.  Most OS/2 
software is available via mail-order or the Internet.

Here is another thing: the OS/2 Developer Connection provides code
libraries, documentation and support for the BRender engine.  BRender is
used on more game consoles than any other.  You can write a freeware game 
for OS/2 using BRender and pay no royalties.  Also, you can inexpensively
prototype a BRender-based game on OS/2.   And you can interface to the
BRender libraries from Ada 95.  To me, Ada and OS/2 fit the bill for high
reliability under a multitasking PC environment that's ready for gaming.

-- John Howard <jhoward@sky.net>               -- Team Ada  Team OS/2 --
P.S.
I have created a mail-order distribution channel that will soon be on the 
Web.  Contact me should you desire a retail outlet for your software 
product.  Christmas season is about to begin and we service gift giving 
consumers.  We are interested in exclusivity and drop-shipping 
arrangements with our software suppliers.  If you don't want the risk of 
lost revenue from shareware distribution then consider using our unique 
infrastructure.  We are reasonable and committed to offering good value.

Re: Game Development using Ada 95

[Michael F Brenner]

Larry Matthias

I think gaming is one of the best ways to get someone involved with
programming.  That is pretty much how I started out in 1978 with a TRS-80.

I have a 15-year old nephew who can now program in Ada 95.  He has a BASIC
background and an interest in writing BBS games.  He wanted to try one of
my abandoned Turbo Pascal dialects but I got him to give GNAT for DOS a
try.  At first he was discouraged due to installation problems.  Then we
tried working together on a conquer-the-universe type game.  He came up
with a snazzy title and central theme.  We wrote several packages.  The
game is 50% done.  He had to move across the country two weeks ago.  Now I
am waiting for him to get email access so we can continue the development.
We will distribute the game.