Have you ever wanted to create your own video game? It’s easier than you might think! With just a few basic programming skills, you can design a game that you can play and share with others. Think about your favorite video game. Today, we’re going to learn how to make games like that using a tool called PlayLab.
Every good game has a story, and every story needs characters. These characters can do all sorts of things like talk, move around, and interact with each other. They might even score points based on the game’s rules. In this lesson, we’ll learn how to make characters do all these things, step by step, and eventually create a game from scratch that you can play on your phone.
When you open PlayLab, you’ll see your screen divided into three main parts:
Let’s start with a simple task. We want our characters to say something. To do this, you’ll need to connect a “say” block to the “when run” block. Here’s how:
Once you’ve set up your blocks, click the run button to see your character speak. It’s that simple!
As you progress, you’ll learn how to add more features to your game. You can make characters interact, score points, throw objects, and even disappear. The possibilities are endless, and it’s all up to your imagination!
By the end of this lesson, you’ll have created your very own game with unique characters and exciting interactions. Get ready to have fun and unleash your creativity!
Think about your favorite video game. What makes it exciting? Now, create your own game story! Write a short paragraph describing the main character, the setting, and the goal of your game. Share your story with a classmate and discuss how you can bring it to life using PlayLab.
Using PlayLab, create a new character for your game. Decide what your character will look like and what actions they can perform. Experiment with different blocks in the toolbox to make your character move, speak, or interact with other characters. Show your creation to the class and explain how it fits into your game story.
Form small groups and take turns adding blocks to a shared workspace in PlayLab. Each student adds one block to the program, building on what the previous student has done. Your goal is to create a simple game where characters interact and score points. Once finished, play the game together and discuss what each block does.
Create a simple game using PlayLab and invite a classmate to play it. Ask them to provide feedback on what they enjoyed and what could be improved. Use their suggestions to make changes and enhance your game. This will help you understand how to make your game more fun and engaging for others.
Prepare a short presentation about your game. Explain the story, characters, and how the game is played. Demonstrate your game to the class and highlight any unique features you included. After your presentation, answer questions from your classmates and discuss what you learned from creating your game.
Here’s a sanitized version of the transcript:
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If you’d like to create your own game, it’s quite simple. All you need are a few basics of programming, and you can start playing a game that you designed. Do you have a favorite video game? We’re going to take a step toward creating games similar to that in PlayLab. Good games have a story, and every story has characters. Characters that do things like speak, move, and interact with each other, maybe even score points based on the rules of the game. Today, we’ll learn how to do all these things one by one with fun characters and then build a game from scratch that can be shared and played on a phone.
Your screen is divided into three main parts. On the left is the game space where your program will run. The instructions for each level are written below. The middle area is the toolbox, and each of these blocks is a piece of code. The white space on the right is called the workspace, and this is where we’ll build our program. To start off, you’ll need to link your blocks to the “when run” block. You can link multiple blocks together by dragging them out until you see a yellow line, and then they’ll snap together.
In this first puzzle, we’ll make the characters say something by linking the say block to the “when run” block and typing in your message. Once you have your blocks in place, hit the run button to see what you programmed. Get started, and by the end, you’ll be able to create your own game with all kinds of characters that can interact, score points, throw things, and disappear. It’s all up to you!
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This version maintains the original meaning while removing any informal language and ensuring clarity.
Coding – The process of writing instructions for a computer to follow. – I learned coding to make my own video game.
Game – An interactive activity or program designed for fun and entertainment. – We created a simple game in class using coding blocks.
Characters – The people, animals, or objects that take part in a story or game. – I added new characters to my game to make it more exciting.
Playlab – A platform or environment where you can create and experiment with games and animations. – In Playlab, I designed a fun animation with my favorite characters.
Program – A set of instructions that a computer follows to perform a task. – We wrote a program to make the robot move in a square.
Toolbox – A collection of tools or commands that you can use to build or modify a program. – I used the toolbox to find the blocks I needed for my coding project.
Workspace – The area where you arrange and connect coding blocks to create a program. – My workspace was filled with colorful blocks as I worked on my game.
Say – A command used in coding to make a character speak or display text. – I used the “say” block to make the character greet the player.
Run – To start or execute a program so that it performs its tasks. – I clicked the run button to see if my code worked correctly.
Create – To make something new using your skills and imagination. – I love to create new levels for my game using coding.
