Computer Science (COMP) 486

Overview

This course teaches the skills of game development for both mobile devices and browsers. In the first half of the course, students will learn how to develop interactive games with Android and mobile device emulators. In the second half, students will learn how to develop browser-based games with the use of HTML5 and JavaScript.

There are three assignments in this course. For the first two, students will implement simple games with Android (Assignment 1) and HTML5 and JavaScript (Assignment 2), respectively. The last assignment (Assignment 3) asks students to design and develop a role-play game, adventure game, or a turn-based strategy game using the skills they have learned in this course. After completing this course, students will have good examples of their experience and abilities in game development to include in their portfolios.

Outline

Part I: Mobile Game Development

• Unit 1: Getting Started with Android Development
• Unit 2: First Android Game Development—Tappy Defender
• Unit 3: Second Android Game Development—Platformer
• Unit 4: Third Android Game Development—Asteroids

Part II: Browser Game Development

• Unit 5: Introduction of HTML5 and Java Script
• Unit 6: Data Storage and Exchange behind the Game
• Unit 7: Graphics, Canvas, and Game
• Unit 8: Create and Animate 2D Graphics
• Unit 9: 3D and Game

Learning outcomes

Upon successful completion of this course, you will be able to

• develop high-quality interactive games for mobile devices.
• apply fundamental game design and principles to create realistic animations.
• use Android’s rich feature set in mobile game development.
• use OpenGL ES 2, a rich graphics library, with Android for mobile game development.
• describe all necessary concepts and knowledge of HTML, JavaScript, PHP for browser-based games and their backbone service development.
• use Ajax and JSON for data exchanging between a game and its backbone services.
• implement a secure data-transferring method with RSA keys.
• recognize existing JavaScript game libraries.
• develop a browser-based game.

Evaluation

To receive credit for COMP 486, you must achieve a course composite grade of at least C− (60%), with an average grade of at least 65% on the assignments and an average grade of at least 50% on the presentation and discussion. The weighting of the composite grade is as follows:

To learn more about assignments and examinations, please refer to Athabasca University's online Calendar.

Materials

This course either does not have a course package or the textbooks are open source material and available to students at no cost. This course has a Course Administration and Technology Fee of $146, but students are not charged the Course Materials Fee.

This eBook is available through the following link. Your login credential are the same as those you use in MyAU. If you have questions or problems, please contact the Library Information Desk for assistance.

You can access this book in many ways. You can choose to read the book online, download the full book for 21 days, or do PDF chapter downloads. If you download the book for 21 days, after that period is up, you will need to return to the online version and read the book there, download individual PDF chapters, or download the full book again for another 21 days.

Other Materials

The remaining learning materials for COMP 486 are distributed in electronic format. At this time, those materials include:

• The course Study Guide
• Detailed descriptions of the requirements for the individual assignments
• A course evaluation form

Important links

• Academic advising
• Program planning
• Request assistance
• Support services