Introduction to Programming for Games
My "Introduction to Game Programming" presentation was originally created for the Game Development Club at San Jose State University as a means to introduce people to the ideas of programming. The recording below was taken when I gave a simplified version of the presentation to the Art 108 class (Introduction to Game Design).
As you noticed, assuming you watched the video, my presentation is actually a game! I purposely made it look like a Powerpoint because while overused it's a good way to convey information and the reactions I get from people seeing me control something on the "slides" is great.
I encourage anyone looking to get into game development or struggling with learning programming to try the game out below for yourself. When the character is on screen, press the "Up" key and you will see either pseudo code or real GML code. I made sure to introduce players to the pseudo code first so you can see how the logic translates into actual code. This type of thinking will come more naturally to others, so don't get discouraged if your first game takes longer than you thought to complete (I know mine did...). Just keep your scope small, and actually FINISH IT!
Please note: This does not work on mobile yet!
Controls:
Use the "Enter" key to move through the Slides
Use "WASD" to move your character (the blue circle with a line) when it's on the slide
Use the arrow keys to view the code.
I encourage anyone looking to get into game development or struggling with learning programming to try the game out below for yourself. When the character is on screen, press the "Up" key and you will see either pseudo code or real GML code. I made sure to introduce players to the pseudo code first so you can see how the logic translates into actual code. This type of thinking will come more naturally to others, so don't get discouraged if your first game takes longer than you thought to complete (I know mine did...). Just keep your scope small, and actually FINISH IT!
Please note: This does not work on mobile yet!
Controls:
Use the "Enter" key to move through the Slides
Use "WASD" to move your character (the blue circle with a line) when it's on the slide
Use the arrow keys to view the code.