Lecture Notes on Game Development with Unity

Introduction to Game Development with Unity

• Speaker: Mark
• Objective: Learn to make video games using Unity.
• Unity: Used in popular games like Cuphead, Hearthstone, Firewatch.
• Personal Journey: Developed a hands-on approach to learning Unity.
  • Step 1: Learn basics of Unity.
  • Step 2: Cement lessons with exercises.
  • Step 3: Experiment and figure out more on your own.
• Outcome: Created a puzzle platformer and an interactive essay with over 100,000 plays.

Tutorial Overview

• Goal: Remake Flappy Bird to learn fundamental concepts of Unity.
• Duration: 40 minutes covering everything from downloading Unity to programming code and building a game.

Setting Up Unity

1. Download Unity Hub: Create a free account.
2. Install Unity Editor: Using version 2021.3.
3. Install Visual Studio: Select game development with Unity during installation.
4. Create New Project:
   • Choose 2D, Core template.
   • Name the project and create.

Understanding the Unity UI

• Four Main Panels:
  • Project Panel: Contains all assets (sprites, sounds, scripts, etc.).
  • Hierarchy Panel: Lists all GameObjects in the current scene.
  • Inspector Panel: Allows editing of selected GameObjects.
  • Scene View: Displays the current scene layout.
• Creating the Bird GameObject:
  • Create an empty GameObject, name it "Bird".
  • Add a Sprite Renderer and assign bird image.

Physics and Input Handling

• Adding Physics:
  • Add a Rigidbody 2D to Bird for gravity effects.
  • Add Circle Collider 2D for collision detection.
• Creating a Script:
  • Name it BirdScript and open in Visual Studio.
  • Use C# to program the bird's behavior.
    • Start: Code that runs once when the script is enabled.
    • Update: Runs continuously every frame.
  • Implement upward velocity when space bar is pressed using an if statement.
  • Allow customizable flap strength via public variable.

Game Development Concepts

• GameObjects: Invisible containers that hold components.
• Prefabs: Create reusable GameObjects (e.g., pipes).
• Timers: Use to control object spawning intervals.
• Triggers and Collisions: Use for detecting when the bird goes through pipes.

User Interface (UI) and Scoring

• Creating UI Elements:
  • Add text for score display and a canvas for layout.
  • Logic Manager GameObject to manage score and game state.
• Scoring Logic:
  • Implement addScore function to increment score when passing through pipes.

Game Over Mechanism

• Implementing Game Over:
  • Create a Game Over screen and button to restart the game.
  • Use boolean variable to track if the bird is alive, preventing gameplay after a crash.

Final Steps and Suggestions for Improvement

• Building the Game: Use File > Build Settings to compile.
• Improvement Ideas:
  • Handle bird going off the screen.
  • Prevent scoring after game over.
  • Add sound effects and animations.
  • Create a title screen and save high scores with PlayerPrefs.
• Encouragement for Creativity: Experiment with different mechanics and ideas.
• Additional Projects: Remake other simple games to practice.

Conclusion

• Learning Approach: Hands-on, self-directed learning for effective retention.
• Resources: Use Unity documentation, community support, and tutorials for further learning.