XNA Programming

XBOX 360 beats the competition

Brian Scarbeau — Thu, 15 May 2008 14:30:47 GMT

Microsoft has released sales figures on the XBOX 360 and they have reached the 10 million sold mark. The Wii is close behind with 8.8 million sold.
Great opportunity for game developers!

L.T.'s 1945 Game

Brian Scarbeau — Tue, 13 May 2008 15:04:15 GMT

Video: LT's 1945 XNA Game

Bailey's Shooter Game

Brian Scarbeau — Mon, 12 May 2008 15:35:59 GMT

Video: Bailey's Shooter Game

Nick's Crazy Bird Shot Game

Brian Scarbeau — Mon, 12 May 2008 14:39:02 GMT

Video: Nick's Bird Shot XNA Game

Salman's Sonic Game

Brian Scarbeau — Mon, 12 May 2008 12:00:22 GMT

Video: Salman's Sonic Game

Wrapping up teaching XNA Game Development

Brian Scarbeau — Sat, 10 May 2008 17:18:25 GMT

Next week is the last week of teaching XNA Game Development to my students. My year long planning for the course has really paid off and I'm proud of the 2D games that my students created. All of the games were deployed on the XBOX 360 to show the game play.

I've posted some of the games that they created and I hope you like them too.

Here are some DO's and Don'ts when teaching XNA.

Do's

Stick with one version of XNA and use it for the Semester.

Teach your students the art of game design.

Prepare by learning XNA- Take the online class by called XNA Xtreme 101 by 3dbuzz or purchase their DVD. They do an excellent job explaining the concepts.

Use the XNA lessons that Microsoft MVP, Bill Reiss has on his site. MVP George Clingerman has some good tutorials on his site as well.

Tell your students to look up things on their own. You as a teacher, won't have all the answers. The Creators Club is a good place to go.

Use the Beginner's Guide to XNA Game Studio Express lessons that are online. Granted the bandwidth is slow but well worth it.

Take a look at all of the XNA books that are currently available. All have something to offer.

Have patience with your students because they will ask a lot of questions and you won't have all the answers.

Get an XBOX 360 for your class so your students can deploy the game to it.

Set time limits on phases of projects so you that students can meet deadlines.

Have fun!

Don'ts

Don't underestimate the knowledge of your students. I spent a great deal of time teaching students C# and there really was no need to spend all that time because the students had JAVA knowledge and much have that knowledge transferred over to XNA.

Plus, I thought I'd have a hard time teaching collision to my students and we just used BoundingBox collision and all was fine.

Don't spend a great deal of time trying to get sprites. Use free sprites. It takes away from class time. The same goes for music as well.

Don't forget to promote what your students have accomplished in class. Blog about it and post videos for all to see.

Don't get frustrated.

Technorati Tags: XNA,XNA Creators Club,Microsoft,computer science education,games,teaching

Jonathan's Monty Python XNA Game

Brian Scarbeau — Fri, 09 May 2008 14:34:48 GMT

Video: Jonathan's Monty Python XNA Game

Paras' Helicopter XNA Game

Brian Scarbeau — Thu, 08 May 2008 15:03:55 GMT

Video: Paras XNA Helicopter

Kyle's Sonic Game

Brian Scarbeau — Wed, 07 May 2008 18:04:25 GMT

Video: Kyle's XNA SONIC GAME

Are you serious about games?

Brian Scarbeau — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 20:54:05 GMT

Nearly 400 U.S. colleges and universities, including MIT and Carnegie Mellon, now offer formal training in game development, ranging from elective courses to full degree programs. The increasing complexity of computers and game systems requires teams of dozens of artists, producers, and programmers to create a game. "Twenty years ago, a game was made by one guy, or two or three people," says International Game Developers Association executive director Jason Della Rocca. "The games you see now take up to 200 people to make. You need a more institutionalized pipeline of training developers." Vocational schools have a lead in issuing certificates in game development, but universities are catching up as more students demand full degree programs. The University of Maryland Baltimore County's program provides broad-based training in visual arts and computer science. UMBC computer science professor Marc Olano says the school's gaming classes are designed to give students a solid education that will make them employable outside of the game industry. However, there are plenty of jobs for gaming majors. The average developer's salary was $73,000 last year, according to Game Developer magazine, while computer and video game sales have tripled since 1996. "Students are demanding these types of programs, and schools are listening," Della Rocca says. "These classes do well in terms of filling classrooms." Baltimore Sun (04/20/08) P. 1A; Emery, Chris

Technorati Tags: Microsoft, XNA