Game Maven from Crunchzilla is the third and most advanced
programming tutorial in the Crunchzilla series. It teaches teens
and curious adults a little about programming by helping them
code a few casual games in Javascript.
It's easy to play. Follow the instructions and do what
Game Maven says. Feel free to occasionally skip to the next lesson
if there is something you don't want to do.
You can always come back to it later!
Click on the Reset button if you really mess up your
code and want to start over on a lesson. Click on the Back button
to go back to a previous lesson. You can jump to a specific lesson
or back to the beginning using the "Lesson Sections" link.
Game Maven saves what lesson you are on, so feel free to stop
at any time and come back later. As long as you come back on the
same browser on the same machine, you'll get back to your lesson.
If you haven't done Code Maven
from Crunchzilla yet, you probably should do that
first unless you already have a lot of programming experience.
Game Maven assumes you mostly know what Code Maven covered and
might be really hard if you don't.
Besides, Code Maven from Crunchzilla is fun
too, you wouldn't want to miss it!
Have fun!
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Jump to a Lesson Section
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the c in things like c.save()?
c is a variable Game Maven creates for you that contains the Canvas' 2D context.
The code that creates the variable c, which is hidden, looks like
var c = document.getElementById('pane').getContext('2d');
How can I save my code and use it outside of Game Maven?
Short answer: You can copy-and-paste your code and then load that code in
an HTML file (either loading a separate Javascript file or inlining the
Javascript in your HTML file).
Longer answer: A minimal HTML file that works would look like this:
<html><body>
<canvas id=pane width=400 height=400></canvas>
<script>
var c = document.getElementById('pane').getContext('2d');
// PASTE YOUR CODE HERE
</script></body></html>
If you copy that into a file, then copy-and-paste your game code into it, then
save the file with a filename ending in .html, you should be able to load the
file in any web browser and play your game.
Is there any other code that is hidden from me?
There is also a bit of hidden code to try to stop animations when you
change lessons and the code you write is instrumented to try to
prevent infinite loops. You shouldn't need those to run your game
outside of Game Maven.
Why aren't you telling me more about the syntax and terminology of Javascript?
There are already a lot of tutorials and textbooks out there that teach Javascript
programming by explaining what a variable is, what variable scope is, what the syntax
of an if statement looks like, how each of the operators work, and so on. If you want
that, there are many choices available, many of which are excellent supplements to
Game Maven.
What is hard to find is a tutorial that is fun, immersive, and gets you immediately
building cool things. Game Maven skips a lot of the syntax and explanation you
can get elsewhere (Google for it when you need it) and instead jumps straight into
the fun of what you can do if you learn to code.
Why doesn't this work perfectly on an iPad (or other mobile device)?
Game Maven will load on many mobile devices, might even be a bit playable
depending on your device, but it isn't designed for mobile. Why not?
Mostly because it is hard to type on mobile. Writing large amounts on a mobile
device is difficult, and it is even worse when what you are trying to write is code
and you need to keep looking at other parts of the code. Trying to write
large amounts of traditional code on a mobile device is not a good experience.
Because of that, no one seems to have created a great app yet for learning to code on
mobile, but there are good apps out there that teach programming
concepts (such as Hopscotch, Move the Turtle, and Cargo-bot).
Can I use Game Maven offline (when not connected to the internet)?
Sure! Game Maven only uses the internet at the very
beginning, to load the website, and then never contacts the
internet again.
So, for example, you can load Game Maven on a
laptop, then go on an airplane or walk to a park where there is
no internet connection, open your laptop there, and use Game
Maven without the internet. It even still saves your place so
you get back to the same lesson when you return! You don’t need
an internet connection except at the very beginning
when the website loads.
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About
Game Maven from Crunchzilla is live Javascript programming for
fun. It's an interactive tutorial with a focus on action over explanation.
When you work through Game Maven, you dive right into coding, and the
code you write immediately yields visible results.
Game Maven from Crunchzilla is the most advanced programming
tutorial in Crunchzilla series. Game Maven teaches some of the
basics of programming casual video games and is intended for
teens or adults who either have already done most of Code Maven or
already have some programming experience. Code Maven assumes
no prior programming experience and teaches
teens and curious adults a bit about coding in a fun way,
including lots of experimenting
with graphics and animation. Code Monster, the lightest and easiest
tutorial, is like Code Maven but intended for pre-teen children (ages 9-14).
Game Maven is intended to be a fun and exciting introduction to
programming concepts and building computer games. It is a first
step in learning to program. It is
not intended to teach a lot of computer science and programming, but
might convince people who might never have thought they could
program that coding is fun and something they might be able to do.
Game Maven from Crunchzilla is based in Seattle, WA. It is part of the
Crunchzilla suite of game and educational projects being developed by
Geeky Ventures.
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Terms of Use
"Game Maven" is a website provided by Geeky Ventures.
In order to use the Site, you must accept the terms set forth below.
If you are a minor, your parent or guardian must accept the terms and
full responsibility for your use of the website. THESE TERMS OF
SERVICE CONSTITUTE A BINDING LEGAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN YOU AND GEEKY
VENTURES. BY USING THE WEBSITE, YOU AGREE TO THESE TERMS.
The website HTML, text, images, audio, video, software or other
content that is made available on this website are the property of
Geeky Ventures or its content suppliers. Before you use this content
in some way please take care to ensure that you have the relevant
rights and permissions. You are welcome to display on your computer,
download, and print pages from this website for personal and educational
use only.
THE WEBSITE IS PROVIDED "AS IS". Your use of this website is at your
own risk. Geeky Ventures disclaims all warranties, expressed or
implied, including without limitation, warranties of merchantability
and fitness of a particular purpose. Geeky Ventures disclaims
liability for any direct, indirect, incidental, special,
consequential, exemplary, punitive or other damages, or lost profits,
that may result directly or indirectly from the use of the
website. This includes, without limitation, any damage to computer
systems, hardware or software, loss of data, or any other performance
failures, any errors, bugs, viruses or other defects that result from,
or are associated with the use of this website.
Geeky Ventures may modify this agreement at any time, and such
modifications shall be effective immediately.
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Privacy Policy
Game Maven is extremely protective of privacy. Game Maven
keeps almost no information about people who use the website.
Game Maven does not require registration. It does not have
your e-mail address. It does not know who you are. When you
use Game Maven, you are essentially anonymous.
Game Maven does not use cookies. If you leave the website and
come back, there is a feature that will get you back to the
lesson you were on. That does not use cookies. It is done
using HTML5 Local Storage, which stores data on your machine,
not remotely on the webservers. Game Maven does not even know
what lesson you were on or how many lessons people using
Game Maven have completed, and it is a bit of a shame that we do
not, but that is how seriously we take privacy.
Like nearly all websites, Game Maven has web server logs that
may contain the IP address used to access the web server. That
is standard in nearly all webservers and not an attempt at data
collection.
In keeping with standard language in privacy policies,
personally identifiable information will not be disclosed to a
third party unless required by law and we may update this policy
from time to time at our sole discretion.
We are very protective of your privacy. We like it that way.
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Contact
Game Maven can be reached at gamer@crunchzilla.com
Game Maven would love to hear your suggestions for how she can
teach better. Game Maven doesn't like complaints, but you can send
them to her too, and she will get very sad.
Game Maven from Crunchzilla is a product of Geeky Ventures.
Geeky Ventures is based in Seattle, WA.
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Old Browser Warning
Oh my. Game Maven does not like your web browser. Your browser
is really old. You need a new web browser.
Game Maven likes Chrome
and Firefox. You can
play with Game Maven if you have those. Go get them and let's play!
If you want to try to use Game Maven anyway, go ahead and try, but
Game Maven probably will not come out to play. Your web browser
isn't good. She does not like it at all.