The Fundamentals of C++ Game Development

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Scratchpad Games is the informal trading name for Game Developer, Brian Beuken. It is primarily here to provide support for his Fundamentals of C/C++ Game Programming books. The site contains useful tips and tricks, links to download code content and some video content on different aspects of the books.

Over time it should also include some project content from readers of the book and hopefully create a 1-stop resource for all new game programmers wishing to develop their skills.

About Brian Beuken

I've been writing Games for over 43(gulp) years, on all kinds of systems, and have over 75 projects published, some good, some bad, and a couple of bloody terrible ones, but when you are a contract coder you can't always get to pick the good titles. In that time I've built up a lot of experience which I now pass on to a new generation of coders by teaching at Breda University of Applied Sciences, IGAD program in Breda, The Netherlands, which has been my home since 2008. By teaching many 100's of brand new students I've found ways to get them interested and excited about coding and worked out ways to move them beyond just learning languages so they can start to understand and enjoy some of the more challenging aspects of game development.

In Feb/March 2018 My book, The Fundamentals of C/C++ Game Programming: Using Target-based Development on SBC's was released, which allowed me to share some of these teaching ideas and get more new game developers interested in the nuts and bolts of game development and not rely on Engines to do all the work for them.

In 2024, I was asked to update the book, and was very happy to do so, as the 1st edition sadly became a little outdated by the release of the Raspberry Pi4 which had a different graphic set up from the older Pi3. Much of the Pi3 content in the book has now deprecated for all but the most staunch lovers of the 2018-2020 era of Raspbian OS. The new book attempts to overcome that rapid deprecation, by having more generic code that does not depend on the Pi's specific graphic systems and with the addition of a PC build that emulates the Pi3/4/5 graphic methods.

The second edition is available in Sept/Oct 2025.

I have provided updated code content for the Pi3 for users of the 1st edition, which will allow them to continue to work through the book, even though the code is now a little different, the basic methods and frameworks remain much the same, so all we need is a little adaptability to work through the 1st edition and a few extra pages of specific Pi3 content on this site will explain where that adaptability is needed.

If you bought either book, please take the time to register on the forums, say hello, and feel free to ask for help if you need it. I will respond as quickly as I can to all questions.