Advanced Video Game Development

Learning Godot and Piskel

Learning Advanced Game Tools

L2 Inquiry

L2 Game Design

L2 Game Development

Summary External

About

Welcome to your second-year in game design and development! This course is your chance to unleash your creativity and transform your game ideas into reality. Whether you aspire to become a game developer, enjoy crafting stunning visuals, or simply want to dive deeper into the world of game creation, this is the place to be.

This year is your opportunity to spread out and experiment within the video game design space. This course is designed to be less scaffolded than last year now that you understand the basics. It is also a great opportunity to try out working in a team. Video games have a lot of moving parts so having a good programmer, and an artist is essential.

~ OVERVIEW OF COURSE ~

This course can be taught in a couple of ways and your teacher will tell you which one you are doing.

Students will learn more advanced skills this year following on from the fundamentals that they developed last year. The major change is that students may be encouraged to work in groups. There are usually three to a group, a programmer, a level designer, and an artist. One of these three should also be the Project Manager/Coordinator. One of them also needs to be in charge of the Git Repository and make sure that they game is regularly backed up and new features merged.

~ TIMELINE ~

Make 2 Games

In this process you will make 2 games with two opportunities to make a digital media outcome. Instead of doing the inquiry instead students get 6 credits from the generic technology prototype standard.

Engineering Design Process

Students undergo a full engineering design process with skills development, inquiry leading into the national game jam. This process works best for mixed digital technologies classes.

Mini Jam

Just term 1 for all the veteran game makers out there who need to kickstart their year!

https://itch.io/jam/techquity-aotearoa-high-school-mini-jam-2025

This minijam is designed for year 12/13 students to warm their game design muscles, learn some new skills, and practice working in a team. It is NOT designed for NCEA accreditation.

2025 Game Jam Announcement Trailer.mp4

Major Jam

An optional element of this course is for students to be involved in a nation wide game jam. A game jam is a time-limited event where people come together to create video games. The goal is to develop a game prototype based on a theme or set of constraints, fostering creativity and rapid game development. The theme for the year long game jam will be announced Febuary 3rd on this webpage and then students will have until the September 17th to finish their games. Games will then be judged by the whole country based on "Gameplay", "Aesthetic", "Juiciness", and "Use of Theme".

Note: With the development this should be done in 4 week sprints. When these occur in Term 3/4 will depend on a number factors including, tournament week, school derived grade exams, any other school events. There will be opportunities for feedback in the end of sprint jam.

Due to various factors that may effect when students are working on their projects this year there will be three feedback opportunities this year. Final hand-in will be the same for all years.

Feedback 1

https://itch.io/jam/techquity-aotearoa-high-school-game-jam-2025-feedback-1

Feedback 2

https://itch.io/jam/techquity-aotearoa-high-school-game-jam-2025-feedback-2

Feedback 3

https://itch.io/jam/techquity-aotearoa-high-school-game-jam-2025-feedback-3

Final

https://itch.io/jam/techquity-aotearoa-high-school-game-jam-2025-final

~ COURSE MATERIAL ~

Learning Advanced Game Tools

Unit 1: Skill Development (approximately 5 or 8 weeks)

For students new to Game Development they can do a crash course in the Basic Skills. If students are planning to work in teams, they should focus on skills related to their strengths and expertise. This is a chance for them to experiment and practice in a mini-jam setting. It’s also a great opportunity to experience teamwork and decide if they want to continue working with the same teammates during the major project in Term 2 and Term 3.

Inquiry

Unit 2: Inquiry (approximately 3 + 1 weeks)

This unit is done in concert with the Design unit. Students investigate an element of video game design to better understand their role within their team. They will gather ideas and expertise so they are able to better integrate these ideas into their major project.

AS91890 - Conduct an inquiry to propose a digital technologies outcome (6 Credits)

Advanced Game Design

Unit 3: Design (approximately 3 weeks)

This unit can be done as a stand alone or as part of the Inquiry unit.

Based on their research into teamwork, students will work together to brainstorm game ideas, choose one based on feedback, and create a Game Design Document. This document will outline the design of their game for the year. At the end of the unit, students will write a short report about their game design, which will be assessed for credits.

AS91891 - Apply conventions to develop a design for a digital technologies outcome

Advanced Game Development

Unit 4: Development (approximately 12 weeks)

In this unit students work to build a video game over 3 x 4 week sprints. They may be part of the National Game Jam for this. At the end of each sprint they will gather feedback and use that to develop their game.

AS91897 - Use advanced processes to develop a digital technologies outcome (4 Credits)

AS91893 - Use advanced techniques to develop a digital media outcome (6 Credits)

Optional

AS91357 - Undertake effective development to make and trial a prototype (6 Credits)

Summary External

Unit 4: Summary External (approximately 3 weeks)

AS91899 - Present a summary of developing a digital outcome (External, 3 Credits)

Important Software Notes!

All the tutorials below use Godot 4. If you are using 3.5 then please utilise other resources.
This course utilities itch.io for playtesting purposes which your school may or may not allow.
Using Godot 4, in order to export it in a HTML playable state you must make your game in compatibility mode at the moment. It will also not work on macOS computers. Godot 3.5 currently has better HTML support but is missing a lot of the other features. For a full explanation check out the current docs or list of current HTML 5 issues on Github.
Godot works on Android, Linux, MacOS, Windows, and even an experimental HTML build

~ Big Ideas in Game Design ~

The discipline of Digital Technologies embodies whanaungatanga. Outcomes are made by people, for people, within cultural, social, and environmental contexts

It's all about creating connections and relationships. In the world of video game design, this idea is essential. Games are made by people, like artists, programmers, and storytellers, for people like you, within unique cultural, social, and environmental settings. The characters, stories, and worlds in video games reflect the creativity, values, and perspectives of their creators. When you play a game, you're connecting with the minds and cultures behind it.

Digital outcomes are created for a purpose by following established processes

This connects to the idea that digital outcomes are made by following established processes. Game designers follow a series of steps to bring their ideas to life. They plan, sketch, program, and test their games to make sure they work well. These processes help ensure that the games serve a purpose, whether it's to entertain, educate, or tell a powerful story.

The discipline of Digital Technologies embodies auahatanga. Outcomes solve problems and enhance and expand human possibilities.

Video games are more than just fun and entertainment. They can challenge your problem-solving skills, enhance your creativity, and let you experience amazing worlds and adventures you might not encounter in real life. Video games are like interactive stories that empower you to make choices, overcome challenges, and explore your potential.

All digital technologies are underpinned by algorithms and computer science principles

These are the secret codes that make the digital world tick. In video games, algorithms help determine how characters move, how the environment behaves, and how the game responds to your actions. Understanding these principles can unlock the door to endless possibilities in creating and enjoying games.

NZ CURRICULUM

Digital Technologies Progress Outcomes

Computational thinking for digital technologies

CTDT: Progress outcome 7

Within authentic contexts and taking account of end-users, students analyse concepts in digital technologies (for example, information systems, encryption, error control, complexity and tractability, autonomous control) by explaining the relevant mechanisms that underpin them, how they are used in real world applications, and the key problems or issues related to them.

Students discuss the purpose of a selection of data structures and evaluate their use in terms of trade-offs between performance and storage requirements and their suitability for different algorithms. They use an iterative process to design, develop, document and test advanced computer programs.

Designing and developing digital outcomes

DDDO: Progress outcome 5

In authentic contexts and with support, students investigate a specialised digital technologies area (for example, digital media, digital information, electronic environments, user experience design, digital systems) and propose possible solutions to issues they identify. They independently apply an iterative process to design, develop, store and test digital outcomes that enable their solutions, identifying, evaluating, prioritising and responding to relevant social, ethical and end-user considerations. They use information from testing and, with increasing confidence, optimise tools, techniques, procedures and protocols to improve the quality of the outcomes. They apply evaluative processes to ensure the outcomes are fit-for-purpose and meet end-user requirements.

Teachers Notes

There are two possible ways to teach this course. Both have advantages and disadvantages.

The make 2 games course students make one smaller game in Term 1 and then a larger one in Term 2/3. This means they have two shots at the standards and if they ace it in the first game then they can be a lot more creative and try harder concepts (such as VR games, 3D, etc.) with no real jeopardy. This is done by including the Generic Technology Prototype Standard instead of Inquiry. This is possibly best done with low literacy and game development only classes. The major disadvantage of this system is that it makes Scholarship a much harder prospect in year 13.
Engineering design process they do 8ish weeks of skill development and then start their Inquiry that snowballs into their projects. If you are doing game design in conjunction with other Digital Technology strands this method is highly advisable as it follows the timeline across all of Techquity's courses.

With regard to group work, Limit group sizes to three, the only exception to this should be if you are going to allow a fourth to do the music for the game. Though they will be working as a group all assessment material needs to be done independently. This includes the Inquiry, Design Report, and Development log. Students need to make sure that they include only aspects they have worked on in these documents. They also need to get specific feedback related to things they have worked on. For example in their feedback form you should include a specific question about an aspect for each member of the group.

Resources from the TESAC Conference 2024

Godot Game Design Pedagogy

Godot Under the Hood

Coding Conventions Posters

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