Professional Windows® Phone 7 Game Development: Creating Games using XNA Game Studio 4

Chapter 9. Whoa! The World Isn't Flat After All

WHAT'S IN THIS CHAPTER?

• Using Blender to create 3D models

• Getting your models from Blender to XNA

• Using 3D models in your game

• Texturing your 3D models in Blender

• Understanding 3D transformations and animations

• Learning about prebuilt effects in XNA 4.0

In this chapter, you will discover how to create, skin, animate, and use three-dimensional (3D) models in your XNA games. You also will read about the prebuilt effects classes provided by XNA 4.0.

3D GRAPHICS

Not every game needs 3D graphics, but sometimes it makes sense to include them. Imagine a first-person shooter or a high-speed racing game without 3D graphics. It just wouldn't be the same.

Fortunately, your Windows Phone 7 device has excellent support for 3D graphics, including support for DirectX 9 acceleration and Shader Model 3 (with a minimum of Shader Model 2.0).

Creating 3D Models for Your Game

To start creating 3D models, first you must download and install some 3D modeling software. Numerous 3D modeling packages are available, ranging from free to expensive.

Note

Sadly, not everyone is capable of creating good-looking models. Sites like http://www.turbosquid.com/xna offer some excellent free or inexpensive models.

Even at a basic level, becoming familiar with 3D modeling makes it much easier to get placeholder content working in your game. And knowing some 3D terminology means fewer communication barriers with any 3D modelers you might work with in the future.

For the examples in this ...