Study of architectures, algorithms, and software design patterns used in computer games. Students work with a game engine to design and implement several kinds of games. Topics include animation techniques, physics simulation, user controls, graphical methods, and intelligent behaviors.
Prerequisite:
CSE 386
Required topics (approximate weeks allocated):
Introduction (0.5)
Games and society
Game genres
Languages for Games
Game Design and Development (1.0)
Visual design
Interface design
Storyboarding
Goals and objectives
Choices and outcomes
Debugging
Game Architectures (2.0)
Game Engines
Transformation review
Scene Graphs
Spatial partitioning
3D Modeling (1.0)
Terrain Models
Character Models
Procedural Modeling
3D Modeling applications
3D Model file formats
Advanced Rendering (1.5)
Local lighting model review
Surface effects
Texture Mapping
Parametric Surfaces
Particle Systems
Animation (1.0)
Keyframing and interpolation
Forward and inverse kinematics
Motion capture
Character animation
Artificial Intelligence in Games(2.0)
Agents
Finite state machines
Pathfinding
Collision Detection and Resolution (1.0)
Overlap testing
Intersection testing
Bounding volumes
Physics for Game Developers (2.0)
Particle physics
Translational and rotational motion
Collision response
Rigid-body simulation
Sound (1.0)
Digital representation of sound
Audio hardware
3D audio
Multi-User Games (1.0)
Network programming
Communication Architectures
Management of Dynamic Shared State
Exams/Reviews (1.0)
Learning Outcomes:
Describe and use tools and programming techniques frequently used in game implementation
Describe and apply the common programming structures, patterns, and algorithms used in game development
Describe the purpose of, and be able to use, programming tools such as profilers and debuggers
Use game engines, physics engines, tools, and related libraries designed for 2D and 3D games
Develop interactive games in different genres that exhibit varying levels of complexity
Insert 3D models into computer games and manipulate those models programmatically
Apply advanced rendering and lighting techniques to improve the realism of the game
Apply animation techniques to support real-time, interactive games
Apply collision detection to a game
Apply a physics engine to a game
Apply different computer science disciplines to games
Describe and apply the common artificial intelligence techniques into games
Describe and apply common networking techniques for multi-player games
Describe and implement algorithms used in game engines
Describe the algorithms used for collision detection
Describe the algorithms used for real-time physics simulation
Describe and apply mathematical concepts commonly used in game development
Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering
