Getting Started with GameMaker

Overview

Class Central Tips

This course is all about starting to learn how to develop video games using GameMaker on Windows or Mac. Why use GameMaker instead of using C# and Unity or C++ and Unreal*? Learning to develop games with GameMaker is much easier than learning to program in C# or C++ AND learning Unity or Unreal. If you just want to start learning how to develop games in a more "gentle" way, this is a great starting point. This course doesn't assume you have any game development experience. Don't worry if you've never developed games before; we'll start at the very beginning and start building your game development skills from scratch. Throughout the course you'll develop core GameMaker skills to help you develop games. Module 1: Learn about sprites and sprite strips Module 2: Learn how to implement functionality using events, actions, and code Module 3: Learn how to add sound effects and implement NPC movement Module 4: Learn how to add randomness to your games * I do have Coursera Specializations called C# Programming for Unity Game Development and C++ Programming for Unreal Game Development for those more advanced topics.

Syllabus

Getting Started

In this module, you'll learn about the course and get GameMaker and Paint.NET installed. You'll learn about sprites and sprite strips in GameMaker and get some practice creating and editing sprites in Paint.NET

Do Something!

In this module, you'll learn how to create objects and instances in GameMaker. You'll also learn how to give objects behavior using events and actions, using both GML Visual and GML Code.

Sound Effects and NPC Movement

In this module, you'll learn how to add sound effects to your GameMaker games and edit audio files using Audacity. You'll also learn some fundamental ideas for implementing NPC movement.

Randomness

In this module, you'll learn how random number generators work in computers, and you'll also learn how to add object-level and game-level randomness to your GameMaker games.