CS103: Intro to Game Design with Minecraft

****This course assumes students know very little about Minecraft or has limited expereince with it. If your child has been playing Minecraft a lot and is 10+ year old, CS104 Minecraft Coding with Lua will be a better course to take. As part of this course, you are required to purchase your own minecraft account (we will provide instructions once you enroll), which will be ~$30 one time fee. This will be your own life-time Minecraft account.**** 

This course is designed for students who are interested in learning how to design and build their own games within the popular sandbox game, Minecraft. In this course, students will learn the fundamentals of game design and programming using Minecraft's Redstone component.

Throughout the course, students will learn how to design and build game mechanics, including traps, puzzles, and machines, using Minecraft's Redstone circuitry. Students will learn how to use Redstone components such as switches, levers, pressure plates, and comparators to build complex systems, and use logic gates such as AND, OR, and NOT to create sophisticated circuits.

In addition to building game mechanics, students will also learn the basics of level design and game balance, exploring how to create engaging and challenging game environments. Students will also learn how to use command blocks to create custom game rules and objectives, and how to use Minecraft's built-in World Edit tool to create and edit game environments.

By the end of the course, students will have gained a solid understanding of game design and programming concepts and will have designed and built their own Minecraft games.

Prerequisites: None. This course is open to all students interested in game design and programming. No prior experience with Minecraft or Redstone is required, although familiarity with the game will be helpful. A minecraft account is required.
You will need a Windows or Mac computer as well as a headphone with a mic. Tablets/Chromebook not allowed.
Minecraft