HomeUncategorizedInterview with David Baron

Interview with David Baron


David Baron is the author of Game Development Patterns with Unity 2021, we got the chance to sit down with him and find out more about his experience of writing with Packt.

Q: What is/are your specialist tech area(s)?

David: Game Development

Q: How did you become an author for Packt? Tell us about your journey. What was your motivation for writing this book?

David: Several years ago, I got contacted by a Packt recruiter who saw one of the presentation slides I did for a Unity meetup conference about software design patterns. He asked me if I wanted to write a book on the subject matter. The challenge of writing a book was something that intrigued me.

Q: What kind of research did you do, and how long did you spend researching before beginning the book?

David: For the 2nd edition of the book, I decided to write the book while developing a new game. So each chapter of the book showcases an actual coding challenging that I’m facing while creating a complete prototype of a game. Thus, I’m researching the book’s subject matter while solving real problems and writing my findings in each chapter.

Q: Did you face any challenges during the writing process? How did you overcome them?

David: The core challenge of writing this edition of the book is that I started the process just before the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, once the crisis began, it slowed me down and caused a lot of uncertainties. I overcame this challenge by slowing down the writing schedule to take the time to readjust to a new lifestyle.

Q: What’s your take on the technologies discussed in the book? Where do you see these technologies heading in the future?

David: Automation of the development process thru artificial intelligence will change the future of game development. AI, deep learning, and computer vision are already being leveraged in some studios to automate and optimize production processes. The creative aspect of game development will stay a human specialization, but the technical side will get more automated in the next decade.

Q: Why should readers choose this book over others already on the market? How would you differentiate your book from its competition?

David: This edition of the book is unique because I wrote it while programming an actual game. Therefore everything presented, I implemented in the context of a project. And it’s a book without any pretension; in a sense, I’m not trying to preach about a specific way of doing things. I’m only showcasing how I use software design patterns in creative ways to build systems and mechanics for a game in Unity.

Q. What are the key takeaways you want readers to come away from the book with?

David: This book introduces how we can use software design patterns to build unique game systems and mechanics in Unity while maintaining a scalable and structured codebase.

The book is the start of a learning journey, not its final destination. Therefore, the reader should come away from it with the sense they got introduced to a practical subject matter but still know that there’s a lot to learn.

Q. What advice would you give to readers learning tech? Do you have any top tips?

David: Always stay a student and never stop learning. This simple mindset is the ultimate trick to maintaining a long career in tech.

Q. Do you have a blog that readers can follow?

David: https://dbaron-gamedev.medium.com/

Q. Can you share any blogs, websites and forums to help readers gain a holistic view of the tech they are learning?

David: If you are a beginner or professional, I would recommend watching a GDC presentation a day; there’s always something to learn:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0JB7TSe49lg56u6qH8y_MQ

Q. How would you describe your author journey with Packt? Would you recommend Packt to aspiring authors?

David: Do as much research as possible before starting the writing process. If you are writing a programming book, remember that everything revolves around the code examples; if they are defective and not interesting, then the rest will be the same. So start by writing the code before the chapters.

Q. Do you belong to any tech community groups?

David: Before COVID-19, I would go to a tech meetup every week.

Q. What are your favorite tech journals? How do you keep yourself up to date on tech?

David: Here, https://slashdot.org

Q. How did you organize, plan, and prioritize your work and write the book?

David: I use Trello to plan each chapter and Milanote to brainstorm ideas.

Q. What is that one writing tip that you found most crucial and would like to share with aspiring authors?

David: Do as much research as possible before starting writing. Know the subject before writing about it.

You can find David’s book on Amazon by following this link: Please click here

Empowering Organizations with Power Virtual Agents is Available on Amazon.com