Week 13 — Curves & Locks
GAME 1303 · Tuesday, November 17, 2026 · 9:00 AM – 1:50 PM
Difficulty is a designed shape, not a side effect. Today you graph your curve before you tune it, and build one challenge whose solution is understanding rather than reflex.
This week at a glance
| Block | Time | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Lecture | 9:00 – 10:15 | Design topic + engine features |
| Exercise | 10:30 – 11:45 | Ex 9 — Curves & Locks — 2 pts, submitted today |
| Lab | 12:00 – 1:50 | Work on your semester project |
Before class
- Game Design Doc due tonight, 11:59 PM in Canvas.
- Build your game this week, not in Week 15. The first build always surprises someone.
Lecture topics
| Section | Topics |
|---|---|
| 001 — Unity 6.x | Health and Score helpers · Spawner and ObjectPool, ramp rate · C# classes and statics |
| 002 — Unreal 5.8 | Health and Score components · Spawners and pooling, ramp rate · Blueprint classes and interfaces |
Exercise — Ex 9 — Curves & Locks
Health, score, a difficulty ramp graphed in advance, and one lock with a teach beat and a test beat.
Open the version for your section:
Worth 2 points: one for Implementation (it builds and runs, the feature works), one for the Design decision (a deliberate, defensible choice beyond the defaults). Due at the end of the class period — late work earns the Implementation point only.
Lab goals
- Make a build today. Seriously. Whatever state it's in.
- Work toward something finishable — cut content if you need to.
- You need a running build for next week's exercise; you cannot do it without one.
Due this week
| What | When | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Ex 9 — Curves & Locks | end of class | 2 pts |
| Game Design Doc | 11:59 PM, Canvas | 10 pts |
Run the matching tab of the course checklist before you submit. Every box on it is a graded criterion.
Next week
Ex 10 — Test & Iterate. Bring a build that runs. Three people will play your game and you will not be allowed to help them.