This course is being jointly taught by the University of Illinois at Chicago and Louisiana State University, using uncompressed video over high speed optical networks. Most of the lectures, and the course material, will be provided by Prof. Jason Leigh through the UIC Course CS426, and LSU students will take these lectures interactively. At LSU, students from the College of Basic Sciences (Computer Science) and the College of Art and Science (FMA) will take part in interdisciplinary project teams.

This course is an introduction to the theory and practice of video game design and programming. Video game programming is one of the most challenging disciplines in Computer Science because it attempts to combine, in real time, concepts in: computer graphics, human computer interaction, networking, artificial intelligence, computer aided instruction, computer architecture, and databases. In this class students will form project groups consisting of both CS and Art majors, to design, build and demonstrate a simple video game. Some of the topics you will learn include:

• Video game history
• Taxonomy of video games
• Gameplay design - components of a video game experience
• Software architecture for video games
• Intro to 3D graphics and stereoscopic computer graphics
• Hardware architecture of contemporary video game platforms
• Human physical and perceptual limits & stereoscopic computer graphics
• Game AI (artificial intelligence)
• Multiplayer game design
• Game physics
• Intro to real time shading effects, such as Toon Shading, Reflections, Lens flares, Shadow

Acknowledgements: This course would not be possible without the support of the LSU Center for Computation & Technology and the Louisiana Optical Network Initiative. The technologies used for networking make use of research and development carried out through the NSF EnLightened Computing project (0509465) which at LSU involved faculty and researchers in the Department of Computer Science and Center for Computation & Technology. This course also leverages much of the work and organization prototyped during CSC 7600 Spring 2007 led by Prof Thomas Sterling.

Instructors

Dr Gabrielle Allen
Department of Computer Science, Louisiana State University
Email: allen@bit.csc.lsu.edu
Web: http://www.cct.lsu.edu/~gallen
IM: gridrebel

Dr Stephen David Beck
Department of Music, Louisiana State University
Email: sdbeck@lsu.edu
Web: http://www.cct.lsu.edu/~sdbeck
IM: sdbeck

Shalini Venkataraman
Center for Computation and Technology, Louisiana State University
Email: shalini@cct.lsu.edu
Web: http://www.cct.lsu.edu/~shalini
IM: svenkataraman05

Students should approach Dr Allen and Dr Beck for administrative issues regarding the class and Shalini for anything related to the course content

Office hours: (Frey Building, Room 320): 10.30am - 2pm.

General Information

Location: Frey Building, 3rd Floor Classroom (307)
Times: Friday 2pm to 5pm

Prerequisites

Suggested Prerequisites: CS1351, CS2259, with some algorithms covered in CS3102

Textbook

Core Techniques and Algorithms in Game Programming
Daniel Sanchez-Crespo Dalmau
New Riders Press.

Grading

Grading scale will be fixed during the first few weeks. Most of the marks will be provided for the final project.

Class Policies and Other Notes

1. Students are responsible for checking their mail regularly using their LSU addresses.
2. A mail list for the LSU class has been set up, gamestudents@cct.lsu.edu
3. The class was originally offered as CS3999 (independent research) but was then also offered as CS4700. Students are encouraged to take it as CS4700.
4. Original Announcement of Class
5. If you email me make sure the subject includes CS3999 or CS4700
6. A google groups for the class has been setup at http://groups.google.com/group/cs426-fall-07. Please be sure to apply for membership there (it is not automatic).
7. More policies may follow.

Gaming Lab

Frey Building, Room 320 (The Imaginarium) - Details coming soon...

Lecture Schedule and Videos

Local copies of the ppt slides and video of the class will be maintained here.
For complete notes please refer to Prof Leigh's CS 426 Fall 2007 schedule

Project Groups