Your objective

This chapter will be split into a number of topics. It will contain a simple step-by-step process from beginning to end. Here is the outline of our tasks:

• What are design patterns?
• Why you should plan for change
• Separating the what and how
• An introduction to interfaces
• The advantages of compartmentalizing code
• The problems with using design patterns in games
• Project setup

What are design patterns

Famously documented in the book Design Patterns: Elements of Reusable Object-Oriented Software by Erich Gamma, John Vlissides, Ralph Johnson, and Richard Helm, also known as the Gang of Four (GoF for short), design patterns are solutions for common programming problems. More than that, they are solutions that were designed and redesigned as developers tried to get more flexibility and reuse from their code. You don't need to have read the Gang of Four's book in order to understand this book, but after finishing you may wish to read or reread that book to gain additional insights.

As the Gang of Four title suggests, design patterns are reusable, meaning the implemented solution can be reused in the same project, or a completely new one. As programmers, we want to be as efficient as possible. We don't want to spend time writing the same code over and over, and we shouldn't want to spend time solving a problem that already has an answer. An important programming principle to follow is the DRY principle, Don't Repeat Yourself. By using and reusing design patterns, we can prevent issues or silly mistakes that would cause problems down the road. In addition, design patterns can improve the readability of your code not only by breaking apart sections that you would have put together, but also by using solutions that other developers are (hopefully) familiar with.

When you understand and use design patterns, you can shorten the length of a discussion with another developer. It is much easier to tell another programmer that they should implement a factory than to go into a lengthy discussion involving diagrams and a whiteboard. In the best-case scenario, you both know about design patters well enough that there doesn't need to be a discussion, because the solution would be obvious.

Although design patterns are important, they aren't just a library that we can just plug into our game. Rather, they are a level above libraries. They are methods for solving common problems, but the details of implementing them is always going to be unique to your project. However, once you have a good working knowledge of patterns, implementing them is easy and will feel natural. You can apply them when first designing your project, using them like a blueprint or starting point. You can also use them to rework old code if you notice that it's becoming jumbled (something we refer to as spaghetti code). Either way, it is worth studying patterns so your code quality will improve and your programming toolbox will grow larger.

With this toolbox, the number of ways to solve a problem is limited only by your imagination. It can sometimes be difficult to think of the best solution right off the bat. It can be difficult to know the best place or best pattern to use in a given situation. Unfortunately, when implemented in the wrong place, design patterns can create many problems, such as needlessly increasing the complexity of your project with little gain. As I mentioned before, software design is similar to writing poetry in that they are both an art. There will be advantages and disadvantages to the choices you make.

That means in order to use patterns effectively, you first need to know what problem you are trying to solve in your project. Then you must know the design patterns well enough to understand which one will help you. Finally, you'll need to know the specific pattern you are using well enough so you can adapt it to your project and your situation. The goal of this book is to provide you with this in-depth knowledge so you can always use the correct tool for the job.

There are many design patterns out there, including the foundational patterns from the Gang of Four book, architectural patterns, and many more. We will only be touching on the ones that we feel are best used for game development. We feel it is better to supply you with deep knowledge of a select few patterns than to give you a primer on every possible pattern out there. If you're interested in learning more about all of the ones out there, feel free to visit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Software_design_pattern.