Search 2001 (2000)
Platform: Win32
Language: C++
Graphics: DirectX 7
After reaching the limit of what I was capable of doing with Turbo C++ and the Borland Graphics Interface on my MS-DOS computer, I pooled some money, purchased a new computer, and began work on a new version of my game, this time with an upgraded operating system (Windows 98) and an upgraded development environment (Visual C++ and DirectX 7).
I found that with DirectX, many of the things I wrote on my own before were already packaged in the tools. I could make icons using bitmaps using bitmap editors, and they in turn were easily imported using DirectDraw. I could use DirectSound to play sounds instead of hard coding the pc speaker with frequency and delays.
I had also previously been working only in very low resolution (320×200), but I spoke to a guy who was a ‘real’ game developer … and he told me that modern games needed to run in at least (640×480). Of course that meant a lot more artwork on my part, which filled up the programming time I had saved by using DirectX.
It all went very smoothly at first… and I was very proud with what I was creating… …that is, until I played the demo of a game that would run on my new computer … Thief: The Dark Project.
Wow! What an incredible game! The concept was new, the graphics were amazing… but I had no idea how they did any of it! There I was, thinking that with DirectX 7 I was finally catching up to the game industry, only to find that I was actually years behind.
What else could I do? I talked my way into a 3D graphics course at my local university.
And so, “Search 2001” died before it was more than a few months old.
