T5Y3 How can I improve my car game?

Success steps

  • Log into j2e; open MrW’s blog and Scratch
  • Scratch – File – Upload from my computer
  • Help others load their project
  • Know where you are on the learning journey and what your next step is – use sheet to help
  • Use the catch up cards in class if you need to catch up!
  • Be curious, resilient and reflective.

Here is the planning sheet if you want to have a go yourself:  http://code-it.co.uk/scratch/smoking_car/scratch_smoking_car_game.pdf

T5Y4 Scratch: How can I improve my maze game?

  • Open Scratch page, click file – upload from my computer – find your file
  • Use catch up cards and each other, but try to think for yourself first –  can you work it out?

 

Recap learning journey on code-it website

Timescale – this week and next to finish game then we will evaluate our game and the skills we have learned.

So far we have done…

  • CAT
    • When left arrow pressed, turn left 15 degrees
    • When right arrow pressed, turn right 15 degrees
    • Forever move forward
    • Forever change costume – walking
  • BACKGROUND
    • Draw maze walls one colour
    • Draw start and finish places (could be text or picture)

Next steps

  • if cat hits the wall – stop (put this in the moving block)
  • make a coin sprite
    • show at the beginning
    • hide when sprite touches (forever checking)
    • make a variable called “score” (data blocks)
    • add one to score when sprite touches coin
  • Add another maze to the backgrounds
    • Get it to change background when you finish the maze
  • Make a “lives” variable – start the game with 3 lives and lose one every time you hit the wall
  • Add an intro/instructions screen at the beginning
  • Add a “Game over” screen which appears when there are no more lives left
  • Make up your own variation

Y6 Scratch LQ: How do I make my game?

  • Be resilient – Don’t expect to have a game in the first session.
  • Be strategic – Focus on one thing at a time

A suggested order:

  1. Choose your sprite
    1. from library?
    2. Search online for picture
      1. search for png files, eg search “zebra png”
      2. save image as…
      3. in Scratch, import from file
      4. ** edit in Scratch to get 2 (or more) costumes
  2. Make your sprite move
    1. keyboard/mouse controls
  3. Design your background(s)
    1. decide what is actually the background
      1. obstacles, coins etc to collect,… may be better as sprites
    2. photo background
      1. search online and save image as…
      2. make sure they are marked for reuse
      3. be careful if you want your sprite to react to colours

Useful links:

  1. Platform game:  http://scratch.mit.edu/projects/18995992/
  2. Maze game:  http://scratch.mit.edu/projects/22804830/
  3. List of example code you may want to use and adapt: http://www.code-it.co.uk/scratch/primarygamesmaker/ScratchPrimaryGamesMaker.pdf
  4. Primary games maker info and resources:  http://code-it.co.uk/scratch/primarygamesmaker/primarygamesmakeroverview.html

Y5/6 Scratch LQ: How do I turn my ideas into code?

  • Write/think what you want your sprite to do – in detail
  • Try to think like a computer

Try these examples

Keyboard controls

  • If I press right arrow, move 10 steps
    • Test it out
  • If I press right arrow, move 10 steps left (use -10)
    • Test it out – you should now be able to move left and right…
    • But does it look good?  How can we improve it?

Gravity

  • Move sprite down all the time
    • Moving down means reducing the y coordinate
    • All the time = forever loop

Platforms

  • If sprite is standing on a platform, don’t fall 
  • Draw some platforms on the background.  Make them the same colour
  • You need to add an “if” part of your gravity block:
  • if sprite not touching colour of platform then fall
  • You need to find a NOT block for this

Jumping

  • When I press space bar, jump
  • Jump is the opposite of fall – change the y value
  • Can you jump in mid-air?  How can you stop this?

 

 

Sprites for your game

  • Search for png images, eg “zebra png” (This will find pictures with no background)
  • Use “search tools” – “usage rights” – “labelled for non-commercial use”
  • Save image as…  then in Scratch import sprite from file
  • You may need to edit pictures if you want different costumes