Intro to 3D Game Design - Level 2 is the second course in STEM Qwest's 3D game making series. Successful completion of the Level 1 course is a prerequisite for enrollment in this Level 2 course.  *Game creation software is included! Please read notes at the bottom of this class description regarding software. 

This course will follow a “flexible schedule” and does not have scheduled online meetings. This flexible schedule allows students to work at any time, 24/7 for the duration of the 4-week course. Thus, keeping all students working at a similar pace but not requiring them to attend online class meetings at a set time.

On average, students will complete 4-5 hours of work per week during the 4-week course (Approx. 16-20 total hours). Students can also add to the games they create during the course or create their own games not included in course assignments. There is no limit on the number of games they can create! 

This course will use the Outschool classroom as “home base" for the course. Lessons and assignments will be posted each Monday for the following week. Once students complete the weekly tasks they will post their weekly checklist which includes the web link to the game they created. Then, learners can see and play the games created by their classmates!   

Class participants will create their computer video games with *AgentCubes Online (ACO) software. ACO uses object-oriented programming to simplify the programming process while creating visually attractive and increasingly complex 3D video games. Because of this "low ceiling/high threshold" approach, prior coding and programming skills are not required. However, if you have some prior experience you can use your knowledge and skills to create more intricate games with advanced programming techniques. 

Level 2 class participants will create four 3D video games with ***AgentCubes Online (ACO) software. ACO uses object-oriented programming to simplify the programming process while creating visually attractive and increasingly complex 3D video games. 

For "Week 1: Getting Started" students will become even more familiar with the ACO game creation software while making their first game of the course, a Q*bert clone.

In "Week 2: Getting Better" students will learn more about animations and level design. The game for this week teaches physics integration by programming a “bouncing” ball in Breakout!

During "Week 3: Getting Good" students will create a clone of the classic game Space Invaders. Enemies space craft will move in unison as they shoot at your Starship Commander. Shoot back to destroy the Martian Invaders and Motherships! 

For "Week 4: Level up!" students will create a game called Tank Attack. This game will improve your programming skills and have you shooting at an enemy tank in 4 directions. Some additional programming can also make this into a 2-player game. 

For "Week 5: First-Person View" students will learn how to add first-person perspective their ACO games. Once students understand how to program this feature, they can then add it to any existing games they have created or make new ones with the first-person programming where the camera angle follows and faces the given direction of the player "in" the game. 

Students can also use the final week to submit any late or missing work, play the games created by other students and/or create their own game(s) with the skills they have learned throughout the course.

*AgentCubes Online (ACO) software is required for participation in this course. ACO subscriptions for 90-days are included with the course fee! The software publisher is a separate entity and not affiliated with STEM Qwest. After registering for the course, STEM Qwest will contact each learner to create their ACO account. 

*All computers must have a WebGL enabled web browser to run ACO. Google Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, and Internet Explorer version 11+ are generally sufficient. To test if your web browser is compatible please visit: https://get.webgl.org/ 

As a "Flex" course offering, this class does not include live class meetings in Zoom but teacher-to-learner and learner-to-learner interaction are expected from course participants in the online classroom. These interactions will take place using the Outschool message delivery system so learners and the teacher can interact on a one-on-one basis for questions and feedback. Group discussions will be visible to all learners in the course and students are expected to post, share, play, and comment on the games of their classmates.  

This course will follow Outschool’s “Flexible” refund policy. For more information on the Outschool refund policy, you can view the website here:   
https://support.outschool.com/about-outschool/refund-policies-and-happiness-guarantee