Wiltshire College

Gaming Software
Introduction
Software plays a huge part in gaming. No matter what platform you use, there is
at least one piece of software making that platform work the way that it does. In
this article, I will be providing knowledge about software used in gaming
platforms.

Platform Dependency

The OUYA console [Fig. 1]

Inside this issue:

Introduction and
Platform

Operating Systems,
Drivers and Code

Code Languages
3
(Continued), Graphical and Sound APIs
(Application
Programming
Interface) and
Software for
Television
Bibliography

All platforms use software, but

some have software that is unique
to them. Some of the platforms
prefer to keep their software for
their products and so that
software is unable to be used
anywhere else. This is called
Dependent Software. Where
software is able to be used
cross-platform, it is called
Independent Software. All
platform software is somewhat
independent though, as almost all
games were originally made on a
computer and then ported over to
work on the relevant platform.

example of a platform that does

this is a console. Most consoles
have exclusive games that work
with the platforms software to
get as much out of that system as
they can. Some consoles also
encourage backwards
compatibility, such as Sonys
PlayStation and PlayStation 2.
The software that was exclusive
to those consoles made it possible
to play the games of the original
PlayStation on its newer
console, the PlayStation 2.
Platform dependency made it
possible.

Dependent Software

Independent Software

To ensure that the software is

used exclusively for that
platform, the creators of the
software make it so that it can
work perfectly with that platform
and nothing else. The software
makes it so that games will
require a specific development
cycle for that platform, ensuring
that their games will be unique to
that platform and no others. An

Independent software has a

cross-platform compatibility.
This is because this type of
software was made to work
independently to the platform.
For example, many games are
made for PC, PlayStation 4 and
Xbox One. They are made on PC
and then made so that the
software can work independently
of the platform software so that

they can be played on the

consoles too. There has recently
been the release of a new
platform called the Ouya (seen in
Fig. 1). This platform was made
to encourage an easier and more
open development cycle and on
the website it often boasts about
how many games are made for it
and how easy it is to make them
in your own bedroom.

Gaming Software

Operating Systems (OS)

Different versions of Microsoft

Windows OS [Fig. 2]

Operating systems are pieces of

software that control the
devices hardware resources
such as the CPU, GPU, sound
card, etc. The OS is the main
piece of software in a device as
it controls all of its functions,
from running a piece of
hardware, such as processing
sound from a sound card or
graphics from a graphics card,
to running other pieces of
software too, such as a game or
application on the device. Each

device has its own OS.

Console OS
Sony PS3 - Xross Media Bar
Microsoft Xbox 360 - Xbox
360 System Software
Nintendo Wii - Wii System
Software
Mobile OS
Sony PSP - Xross Media Bar
Nokia N-Gage - Symbian OS

The operating system of a device

cannot directly access a piece of
hardware on its own. To access it,
there must be a driver. Drivers are
installed on the computer as a gateway
from the OS to the hardware device
and allow the operating system to
work with it. For example a mouse and
keyboard would need drivers so that
when somebody presses a key on the
keyboard or clicks something with the
mouse, the OS then accepts that input
and responds to the action accordingly.
Due to hardware being inaccessible for

developers after purchase, the hardware

sold is unable to be updated easily.
However, developers are able to update
the piece of hardware by updating its
driver and making it more efficient or
easy to use. The user can then install the
update for the driver or a new driver
entirely and then their hardware device
will be interpreted in a different way by
the OS, improving its ability to work
with the dedicated platform. A way to
improve hardware performance without
using drivers is to add a firmware
upgrade. This can be acquired from the

Code Languages

Interpreted Languages for

Games

Page 2

Interpreted languages are the

slowest types of coding
available. As each line of code
is read, it is checked and then

Computer OS
Microsoft Windows - XP /
Vista / 7 / 8 (Most Recent
Versions)
Apple OS X Lion / Snow
Leopard / Mavericks (Recent
Versions)
With every OS release, the
device is able to do more and
more due to the increasing
capability with every update.

Updating an NVIDEA
GeForce graphics card
driver [Fig. 3]

Drivers

Code languages are used to

instruct the computer to do
many different actions like
running a game. When the user
clicks on the game, lines of
code are sent out and the CPU
understands the language and
executes the command. There
are four different types of code.

Nintendo DSi - DSi System

Software

processed before moving on to

the next line. This means that if
there is a loop in the
programming code, the same
line is checked over and over.
Examples of this type of coding
are Java and C# and are most
commonly used in mobile
games due to its simplicity in
the languages.
Compiled Languages for
Games
Compiled languages are read
considerably faster than
interpreted languages and are

developer and added to the

hardware device. It is
recommended that the user of any
hardware device ensures that the
drivers are always kept up to date
so that the devices performance
is always at its highest. For
example a sound card can give
off a certain quality of sound
when it was originally bought,
but after the driver update is
downloaded then it can run at a
much higher quality than before.
The same is true with a graphics
card.

used for larger games that need

faster processing to run and
display. The reason that these
languages are read faster than
interpreted languages is
because they dont require
every line of code to be read
every time. They are able to run
approximately 6 times faster
than interpreted languages and
are also able to be compressed
so that it can be read even
faster. An example of this type
of language is C++.
(Continued on next page)

Volume 1, Issue 1

Code Languages (Continued)

Object-Oriented

Scripting

Object-oriented coding is a type

of code that is placed inside an
object. The code is only
activated when called for and
will execute when told. This
type of programming places the
code inside an object so that it
can be used later on in the
programs run time when it is
needed. Examples of languages
that use this type of
programming are C++, C#, Java
and J2SE.

Scripts are used in the

background of a game and
work alongside the games
engine. They are short lines of
code and are used to execute
advanced actions such as
running a cutscene and defining
a runtime event. They are used
to render objects as you get
closer to them, trigger sounds
and to turn on lighting as the
player reaches a certain point.
Scripting is also used in a
games AI (Artificial

Intelligence) and tells them their

purpose. Scripts also help AI to get
out of spaces where they may get
stuck by telling them that if they are
unable to move in that direction, then
go here first or it could teleport them
out of that spot and back on the right
track. All scripts are unique to
the games engine that they are
run on, for example the
UnrealScript is a script used
exclusively for the Unreal
Engine. Other examples of a
scripting language include
QuakeC, Maya and JavaScript.

Graphical and Sound APIs (Application Programming

Interface)
APIs are sets of tools that are
used for the building of
software programs, for example
video games. APIs make
building games a lot easier, by
basically providing the
developers with building blocks
and allowing them to put these
blocks together to form a
working game. They are able to
interpret languages for games
and compiles its scripting from

scripts like UnrealScript, Lingo,

QuakeC, Visual Studio, Maya
and many more.
There are three main graphical
APIs:

OpenGL

DirectX

Direct3D

used graphical APIs.

There are three main sound
APIs too:

OpenAL

Direct Sound

JavaSound API

These are the most commonly

used sound APIs.

These are the most commonly

Software for Television

Television uses software to
display video from different
channels. There are three main
types of software for television.
Conditional Access
Conditional access is the most
commonly used software in
TVs. Access to certain channels
is restricted by scrambling the
TVs access to it and the conPage 3

tent is encrypted until the user

enters the required information,
such as an adult password so
that children are unable to
watch 18+ films or the user is
unable to access channels due
to needing to pay for that service.
iTV
iTV is an internet-based service
that allows for the streaming of

content via linked software

codes. To use the iTV service,
you must pay a license fee as it
is government enforced.
ETV
ETV is acquired in the form of
a Smart Card and is provided
by the service provider. The
Smart Cards allow customers to
access certain content on their
TV.

DirectX 11, a graphical API

[Fig. 4]

Conclusion
In the future, software is most
likely going to be used for
everything. Instead of using
hardware such as a USB stick,
people will resort to using
cloud services such as Google
Drive and DropBox.
Game-wise, I believe that all
games will be sold digitally,
like Steam is already doing.
Some games will be released
half-finished like the Early
Access system that has also
been introduced on Steam,
where players can see the
stages in its development and
help out the developers by
reporting bugs and giving
ideas for improvement. The
developers can then add these
features in a software update.
For some gamers this change
will be great and they will find
it interesting, but for others
they feel that the game should
be released as a finished
product and not some game
that is nowhere near
completion.

Bibliography (All Last Checked 26/01/15)

[Fig. 1] The OUYA console - http://upload.wikimedia.org/

wikipedia/commons/a/af/OUYA-Console-set-h.jpg
[Fig. 2] Different versions of Microsoft Windows OS https://roboscan.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/ms-os.jpg
[Fig. 3] Updating an NVIDEA GeForce graphics card driver - http://en.community.dell.com/cfs-file/__key/
communityserver-discussions-componentsfiles/3524/6457.Capture1.JPG
Information on coding languages - http://
www.landofcode.com/programming-intro/computerprogramming-languages.php
[Fig. 4] DirectX 11, a graphical API - http://
www.mtbs3d.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10002/directx-11logo.png