REALISTIC MULTIMEDIA AND ANIMATION (MSc)

COURSE OUTLINE

Responsible: Ioannis Pachoulakis

1. GENERAL

SCHOOL School of Engineering
ACADEMIC UNIT MSc in Informatics Engineering
LEVEL OF STUDIES Postgraduate
COURSE CODE ΜΠ200Λ SEMESTER 2nd
COURSE TITLE Realistic Multimedia and Animation
INDEPENDENT TEACHING ACTIVITIES
if credits are awarded for separate components of the course 		WEEKLY
TEACHING HOURS		 CREDITS
3 4
2 3.5
Total 5 7.5
COURSE TYPE
general background, special background, specialised general knowledge, skills development		 Specialised general knowledge
PREREQUISITE COURSES None
LANGUAGE OF INSTRUCTION and EXAMINATIONS English
OFFERED TO ERASMUS STUDENTS Yes (in English) — Spring Semester
COURSE WEBSITE (URL) https://eclass.hmu.gr/courses/TP274/

2. LEARNING OUTCOMES

Learning outcomes

The course combines three fundamental ingredients in game programming: (a) physics, basically mechanics – kinematics and dynamics, (b) related mathematics and (c) numerical methods to describe and follow up the evolution of a specific problem. Additional game elements such as user interaction, guidance and control, will be implemented for a user-centered experience. Finally, students will have the opportunity to develop games of increasing complexity using popular/free game engines.

Due to the material mix and focus, attending the course requires an avid interest in game development. Ideal candidates are:

  • Natural Sciences graduates (they have a good understanding of physics/math, but may need work on programming and SW engineering).
  • Informatics graduates (they have a solid background in programming/SW engineering, but may need to build physics/math knowledge). 
General Competences
  • Describe and follow up the evolution of a specific problem
  • User interaction and guidance and control
  • Support a user-centered experience.
  • Development of games of increasing complexity using popular/free game engines

3. SYLLABUS

Theoretical Lecture Units

  • Recap: Basic Game Ingredients: Physics, Math, Numerical Methods, Design and Implementation. Points and Lines, Coordinate Systems, Distances between points and shapes, Applications to Collision Detection, Trigonometry.
  • Vector and Matrix Operations: Scalar and Vector physical quantities; Common Geometrical Transformations (Translation, Scaling, Rotation) and their combinations.
  • Rigid Body Motion: Speed, Velocity, Acceleration, Newton’s Laws, Forces (gravitation, spring, friction, torque, Momenta (Linear & Angular), Center of Mass, Inertia Tensor, Work, Kinetic & Potential Energies, Conservation Laws.
  • Rotational Motion and Rotational Dynamics.
  • Rigid Body Motion: Newtonian & Lagrangian Dynamics – Equations of Motion for a Particle and for Particle Systems, the effect of Conservative and Dissipative Forces.
  • Detecting and Handling Collisions.
  • Relevant topics in Linear Algebra and Calculus.
  • Selected Numerical Methods: Euler & Taylor methods, Runge-Kutta Methods, Extrapolation Methods, Numerical Stability.
  • Topics in Game Engines: Workflow, Models, Environment, Shaders, Textures, Effects, Lighting Models, Transparency, Scripting, etc.

Laboratory Exercises

  • Programming in a game engine environment to demonstrate theoretical concepts as well as the capabilities and limitations of gaming machines.
  • Build games from scratch and / or convert / augment existing games

4. TEACHING and LEARNING METHODS - EVALUATION

DELIVERY
Face-to-face, Distance learning, etc.		 Face-to-face
USE OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY
Use of ICT in teaching, laboratory education, communication with students
  • Powerpoint, Simulation Packages
  • e-class
TEACHING METHODS
The manner and methods of teaching are described in detail.
Activity Semester workload
Lectures 39
Homework 26
Self-study 160
Course total 225
STUDENT PERFORMANCE EVALUATION
Description of the evaluation procedure
  • [30%] Weekly HWK assignments (theory or lab problems): These are individual - not group - assignments, intended for you to practice new material and hone your skills. Unless otherwise stated in the assignment itself, hwks will be due the following Tuesday @ 13:00 after they are announced in class (late HWK penalty 20%/day).
  • [30%] Final Written Exam: Two weeks before the end of classes
  • [40%] Term Project: Develop your own game using a game engine of your choice – kicks off around week #5. Term projects will be presented in class in the last 2 weeks of the semester.  
    Project-level credit break up is as follows:
    • 10% : Project planning and execution: (make a plan, discuss it in class and follow up diligently)
    • 20% : Live Demo (quality of work, professionalism, oral presentation)
    • 10% : Packaging-Documentation: you will hand in a software package with source code, executables and detailed report detailing representative test run cases - also your code must be appropriately commented.

5. ATTACHED BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bibliography:

  • “Beginning Math and Physics for Game Programmers – 3rd ed”, W. Stahler, New Riders, 2004, ISBN 978-0735713901
  • “Physics for Game Developers – 2nd ed”, D. M. Bourg, O’Reilly, 2013, ISBN 978-1-449-39251-2
  • “Physics for Game Programmers”, G. Palmer, A.Press, 2005, ISBN 1-59059-472-X
  • “Mathematics for Game Developers”, C. Tremblay, Thomson, 2004, ISBN 1-59200-038-X
  • “Game Physics, Second Edition”, D. H. Eberly, Morgan Kaufmann, 2010, ISBN 978-0123749031
  • Selected Articles & other readings from the current bibliography

MSC IN INFORMATICS ENGINEERING, HELLENIC MEDITERRANEAN UNIVERSITY