This is the main section of the project but needs the least guidance from us. It's a case of the students now putting their plan into action and building, coding and testing their game as they go.

There's no fixed order to do things. Sometimes designing the world first (or at least the basic shape of it) can help, other times getting the characters in and their key functions working is a better place to start.

 

We would recommend that students are given at least three lessons to build and code their games. 

Below are some key points to emphasise before they start and to revisit throughout the lessons they spend building and coding their games.

 

 

Don't start until the plan is detailed and complete.

They should have a very clear purpose for their game and should be able to explain that in their own words. If they don't know the main point of their game, its genre and how a player will win or lose the game they should not start building and coding.

They should also have a clear drawing with labelled features for their world design.

 

Use the plan!

Make sure their completed plans are available to the students during every lesson and remind them to follow the ideas they have worked on. Everything they add should have a purpose and should be included on their plan. They may wish to add to this content later in the process, but their plan should guide their initial work.

 

 

 

 

Use the help guide

Before they open Kodu Game lab, ask them to open an internet browser and navigate to our help guide. This could be on the computer they are working on or on a separate device such as an iPad.

 

1. Open your web browser

 

 

2. Type this URL into the address bar: tinyurl.com/koduguide - Note that this must go in the address bar to work. A normal Google search will not find the address.

 

 

Press ENTER

 

Or they can scan this QR code (available on the lesson slides) if they have a device with a camera.

 

If they have it open on the same computer they will be working on, make sure they know how to switch between Kodu and their browser without having to close either one.

Remind them about how to navigate the help guide using the links on each page or by using the arrow keys (or swiping the screen on a touchscreen device.)

 

Add a character before you build

A very simple but important concept. Remind the students to add their first character to the game before they start adding any land. This gives them an idea of scale straight away and will stop them from designing a fantastic-looking world and then adding a character and realising the world is way too big or small.

Also, remember to keep an eye on the meter on the right of the screen which shows how full your world is.

Green = All is good

Orange = Take care, it's getting full

Red = There's too much in your world. Your computer will probably struggle to cope and the game will get probably very laggy or crash on you. Delete some land or characters.

 

 

Collect and use feedback

At least once in each lesson you spend on this, put the students into pairs and ask them to spend a few minutes at each of their computers. Ask them to explain to their partner what they have done so far, how it links to their plan and what they plan to do next.

When the games get to the point where they are playable, they can test out each other's games and give feedback.

Ask them to make notes of any useful feedback on the back of their planning sheet so they can include the changes at some point.

 

 

Be aware of deadlines

Explain to the students that if life we often have to work to deadlines, and sometimes this means adjusting a plan to reduce or increase the expected outcome. So make sure students are aware of how much time they have for building and coding all the way through the project, so they can assess where they are up to with their plan and adjust their plans as needed so they will have a working game at the end.

For some students this may involve extending an idea that was fairly simple, for others, this might be reigning things in.

Adding new levels is a great way to expand a game and is covered in the help guide.