Learning XNA 3.0

Game States

Your game is coming along, but there has to be a way to end the game. Typically, when a game ends, the game window doesn't just disappear; usually there's some kind of game-over screen that displays your score or at least lets you know that you've failed (or succeeded) in your mission. That's what you need to add next. While you're at it, it's also common to have the same kind of thing at the beginning of the game (perhaps a menu enabling the player to select options, or at least a splash screen presenting instructions and maybe displaying your name as the author of this great game). In the following sections, you'll add both an introductory splash screen and a closing game-over screen.

Throughout the life of any game, the game will go through different states. Sometimes these states indicate that the player has moved to a different level in the game or a different area. Sometimes the game state depicts a status change for a player (like in Pac-Man, when you turn on the ghosts and begin to chase them rather than being chased). Regardless of the specifics, the game moves through different states, and in those different states the game behaves differently. One way to implement splash screens and game-over screens is by making use of these states.

To define some states for your game, you'll need to enumerate the different possible states that the game can have. Create an enum variable at the class level in your Game1 class. Currently, you'll only have three states in your ...