Flash And AS3 For Game Development

At present day, a lot of people make use of Flash in the making of games which can get played on various platforms. Some games can only get accessed through the use of web browsers such as Kongregate while others can get played on devices such as tablets and phones. The ease of access lies in the hands of the developer.

Flash and AS3 can be quite hard to master, and I will try to shed some light on these topics to better enable you to create games with ease.

Flash

This software has not had it easy over the recent years, given all the opposition that it faced from its competitors. However, all the negative energy surrounding this software should not make you shy away from using it. There are lots of things that you can accomplish using the software which ranges from gaining access to audio files on web pages to the viewing of videos. Another great thing about Flash is that it creates impressive games which you can either offer to the market for free or have a paid version of the game.

Why use Flash in the development of games?

Technology

You may wonder why you should surpass the other software in the market and settle for Flash. With Flash, you can get assured that you will have access to a lot of technology which can help you come up with a fantastic game within a short period.

Flash initially used ActionScript as its primary programming language, and this made the games lack in features such as interaction. With the introduction of AS3 as a programming language, many users can attest that the difference is quite visible. Unlike the original language, AS3 is very strong. The style used enables you to have access to online networking, and you can make a game in 3D graphics.

Though many browsers in phones and tablets may not support Flash Player games, you can export your creations in the form of native apps for devices such as Android and Blackberry.

Eco-system

When flash web portals came to be, many people thought of them as places where children got a chance to play with their homemade creations. That was then, but now the game industry brings in millions of dollars in revenue and the games range from simple to complex. The beauty of Flash games is that they can run on devices such as tablets and mobile phones and with this capability; they are eligible for sale in online stores such as Google Play Store.

Community

One of the essential things in game development is to have a community from whence you can get support in various ways. Flash has undergone a lot of evolution ever since it got founded and the new features, as well as its long journey, attract coders and designers. There are many materials which you can go through so that you can benefit from the ideas of others, making you better at what you do. Get everything from books to libraries to tutorials (Adobe Flash CS5 library explained). You also get to go through numerous conversations in the forum where you can get insights.

AS3

This language is the default setting for Flash though there are other languages that you can use when writing code. Older styles include AS2 and Haxe. For you to make fantastic flash games, you need to understand how to program. It is much easier for you to learn how to code than to learn coding and game development at the same time.

For those who are familiar with languages such as Java or other OOP languages, learning how to use AS3 will not be a hurdle, and they should adapt fast. You, however, need to be conversant with display lists and display list programming. Learning how to go about event handling as well as garbage collection will help you get a great foundation in AS3 which will help you create incredible games. Once you have mastered these aspects, you will find game development to be quite comfortable, and you will have lots of fun in the creation process.

Flash games are very interactive, and the end user will be pleased with the end product. You can make lots of money from the development if you wish to go the commercial route. Read up on AS3 and get down to making a game today.