1. Students understand why in-game notifications and feedback are important, and learn coding techniques for providing them
2. Students add in-game notifications, sound and information displays to provide player feedback.
The teacher should have the Space Pony Plus game application loaded (in emulator on the PC, if possible shown as a standalone app) and ready to demo to students at the start of class. Make sure to download the source code for SpacePonyPlusGame (AIA) including the necessary sounds and images, and the application code for SpacePonyPlusGame (APK), and make sure to understand it in the context of the lesson plan. An N-page detailed walk through is provided in section 1.
For this lesson, we want to increase the communication between the user and the game using notifications, by adding new sound components to increase the connection between player and game, and adding an informational display at the start of the game.
We will continue to use the {Play} method from a sound component to provide user feedback when the sparkle hits the space pony. We will also introduce the Clock feature which will allow us to continually play a sound loop. Note that there is a maximum size to any sound file that can be uploaded, so we cannot play a long song in the background but instead we will play a short clip over and over again.
Activity 4.12c.1 (Budget 25 minutes)
Teacher shows a demo of the space pony game, and demonstrates how to use buttons to change the game state.
1. Teacher shows students a quick demo of the space pony Plus game, and will lead a discussion about how this game is different than the standard space pony game (music, sounds, notifications).
2. Teacher provide a live coding demonstration for how to add a) more sounds and b) notifications. An example demonstration provided in the Space Pony Plus - Output and Notifications document. As always the demonstration can be given lecture-style, or can be participatory, with students building their own version as they follow along.
3. Teacher extends the demonstration by showing how a sound loop can be created using a clock timer, also in the Space Pony Plus - Output and Notifications document.
Activity 4.12c.2 (Budget 25 minutes)
Student pairs continue to work on their game, introducing collision and edge detection.
1. Students are given 30 minutes to develop their game in App Inventor, with the following requirements
(1) the game must use two or more sounds
(2) the game must display a notification at the beginning and end of the game
4.12c SpacePonyPlusGame (aia) (APP Inventor Source Code)
4.12c SpacePonyPlusGame (apk) (APP Inventor Application)
4.12c Clock Feature (Teacher Resource)
4.12c Sound Component (Teacher Resource)
4.12c.1 Space Pony Plus - Output and Notifications (Teacher Guide)