Course Template
Space Invaders with frameCraft – Arcade Game Step by Step
Basics of frameCraft Games with Space Invaders
Didactic Objective
This template leads step-by-step into the construction of a simple Space-Invaders prototype using frameCraft. The focus is on the professional competences to structure a game in **Scene, Entities, Collider, Inputs, Rules, States and Presentation** and systematically transfer these elements into executable code. The construction combines **Modeling and Implementation**, where game objects are first described as named entities with properties and states, and then controlled using loops, rules, collisions, and scene variables. Professionally, the template is to be assigned in the field of game programming with a focus on **structured game logic, object-oriented thinking, and reusable patterns** such as pools, tags, and state variables.
Competence Focuses
The template bundles professional and methodological focuses of the frameCraft-based arcade prototype in sequentially building programming components.
- Understand Game Structure: Window, Scene, Scene Layout, Entity, Collider, and graphical representation are introduced as basic components of a frameCraft game.
- Input modeling: Keyboard actions and virtual touch buttons are bundled under common action names and evaluated in rules.
- Movement control: Horizontal speed, boundary restriction, and time-controlled swarm movement clarify controlled state changes on the game field.
- Object quantities structure: Shots and enemies are organized as recognizable groups with numbered names, loops, nested loops, and tags.
- Game mechanics implementation: Shot pool, collisions, points, HUD display, and hit processing bring the central processes of the prototype together.
- State management: Win, loss, restart, lock variables, and resetting changeable values show handling global scene states.
- Display enhancement: Graphics from basic shapes and explosions as effect pool expand the prototype with visible feedback without additional game logic.
Structure of components
The components lead from static start image over control, shots, enemies, collisions, and states to restart and hit effects; each step extends the existing prototype with a clearly defined functional competence.
Funny spaceship with frameCraft
The entry clarifies the basic structure from GAME, SCENE, SCENE_BUILD, Entity, RECT and GFX and sets a visible spaceship as a starting point for the prototype.
Spaceship with buttons to control
This module adds keyboard actions, virtual buttons, a control rule, vx-movement and boundary as the first interactive game logic.
Single shot to add
The existing prototype is extended by a single prepared projectile, whose activation, position, vy-movement and deactivation show the basic flow of a shot.
Multiple shots with pool
The single shot is expanded to a pool of numbered projectiles, introducing loops, free entities and a fire barrier as reusable arcade patterns.
Enemy line with loop
The template extends the game by multiple enemies, which are systematically generated with a for-loop, numbered names, calculated positions and common tags.
Enemy Swarm with Loops
A two-dimensional swarm of enemies is created through nested loops, resulting in rows, columns, calculated coordinates, and a regular naming scheme.
Hits and Points
Collisions between shots and enemies, deactivation by alive, point values in ctx.vars, and a HUD display connect object states with game feedback.
Enemy Swarm Moving Together
The enemy group receives a time-controlled step movement, with swarm boundaries determined, directions stored, and living enemies moved together.
Game Over in Space Invaders
This module combines game states, status messages, win and loss conditions, and hiding the game field as final logic of the prototype.
Space Invaders: Clean Restart
The restart module shows how input actions, lock variables, RESTART, and explicit start values for variables and entities work together for a robust reset.
Hit Explosion add
Finally, a pool of effects adds short explosions with remaining time, ctx.dt and animated GFX without changing the existing hit and point logic.
Contents at a glance
The following overview summarizes the framework data and subject matter derived from the template.
| Aspect | Classification |
|---|---|
| Category | frameCraft |
| Programming language | Python 2 -> @@ITEM_0001@@Python 2 (no translation needed, as it's a programming language name) |
| Modules | 11 |
| Total duration | 213 min -> @@ITEM_0001@@18 minutes and 33 seconds |
| Central contents | Game window, scene, entity, collider, graphics, control, shots, enemies, collisions, points, game states, restarts, and explosions |
| Teacher focus | Step-by-step construction of a Space Invaders prototype with structured game logic |
The modules make learning objectives and intermediate steps transparent and can be easily connected to teaching series on frameCraft programming. The competency build-up ranges from the basic structure of a game to linking input, object groups, collisions, and states.
You can try out the template via demo access and select or adapt the individual building blocks according to your learning group.