COSC 3550
Programming Computer Games
Spring, 2014


Course Description:
This course will explore the algorithms, data structures, and tricks used to program computer video games. We will be programming in Java and focussing on arcade-style video games (new and "classic") rather than text-based adventures or strategy games such as chess.

Course Syllabus

Homework Assignments

Final Exam Topics list

SECOND EXAM (On-line exam)
The second exam was on the computer, in class, on Friday, March 28. Anything we've studied so far this semester is fair game. Here's a list of topics since the first exam. You should review the Exam 1 topics as well. If you want a rough idea of what such an exam is like, here's the exam from several years ago. Some of these questions are a bit dated (esp. use of Vector in problem #4).

Study Topics for Exam 1

Class Demos
This is a link to a directory of class demos. They are not intended to be self-explanatory (although they might sometimes be), but rather are created as visual aids to the lectures. I'm making them available here so you can play with them and study the examples further after class. In other words, I can't imagine how you would take intelligent notes on some of this stuff, so here are my "animated notes".

Neat Sites
This page contains links to various interesting web sites related to Computer Game programming.


Java 3D example programs from Sun

TexList.aoi
This binary data file has all of the built-in Java3D textures pre-defined. If you import textures from here into ArtOfIllusion and use these textures, then you can comment out the mtllib line in the .obj file and use the predefined Java3D textures.

Java 3D zip file (about 370MB)
This zip file contains a stand-alone version of Eclipse and Java3D. If you unzip it, and run eclipse.exe in the eclipse folder, you'll have Java3D ready to run and/or compile programs. In particular, you might want to unzip this onto a flash drive (the file expands to about 850MB). The eclipse workspace will also be on that flash drive, so you'll have a full portable Java3D development environment that should run on any Windows PC. The file expands to about 850MB. This currently seems to be the easiest way to use Java3D in the MSCS labs.

Eclipse with Java3D

Download Java3D

Java3D API

Java3D Tutorial

Java3D Development Wiki

Navigation keys
This is a list of what various keys do in the KeyNavigatorBehavior of Java3D.

Java 7 API

Davison book website


This site created and maintained by Dr. Michael C. Slattery of Marquette University.
You can contact me at mikes (a) mscs.mu.edu.