Project on iOS - Game Development using SpriteKit Framework

This game development course focuses on fundamentals of Games in iOS. The lessons will help you learn the Games in iOS Theory, Game Development, SpriteKit Framework and Game Development, Practical Examples, Usage of Xcode 6.2.

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 1h | 8 Videos | 89309 Views |   All Levels

About IOS 8

iOS operating system, developed by Apple, released its eighth major OS,  iOS 8, in September 2014. iOS 8 was cited as having many major changes as compared to the earlier Apple Operating Systems. Though iOS 8 is majorly based on the main iOS 7 redesign, it includes many improvements and interface advancements. Within a year of its release, iOS 8 was installed on 87% of compatible Apple devices.

Major features that have been introduced in iOS 8 are:  Continuity, Extensibility, Quicktype, Health, iCloud Drive and Family Sharing. It also carries key enhancements for Photos, Messages, Spotlight etc. Let’s learn in detail about these features.

Continuity

As an apple user, you use various Apple devices such as iPhone, iPad, and Mac. The continuity feature in iOS 8 provides a smooth, secure experience between all these devices. The Apple ID, that you use to log in to all your devices, serves as the link that ties them all together. Picture this, you are browsing on your phone. The moment you leave your iphone, pick up your Mac PC and open the browser, you will see that iOS has picked up from where you left.

• Airdrop: You can also use the new AirDrop cross-compatible feature to push data among all your Apple devices.
• Constant Hotspot: With Instant Hotspot, you can run your Mac or iPad Wi-Fi through your iPhone or iPad cellular connection and access the web.
• Calling & SMS: You can make or receive calls as well as text and video messages from your iPad or Mac while your iphone lies idle.

Extensibility

extensibility  is among the latest feather in the iOS 8 cap nd also one of the most important  since the App Store was launched  in 2008.

Following are the added features that extensibility in iOS 8 offers

• Interactive notifications
• Inter-app communications: Enable photo filters and editing tools to project them in other apps
• Widgets: Display widgets into Notification Center’s today view
• Document Picker: Open your files in any supporting app. Also specify an another storage provider
• Third-party keyboards : Provide system-wide third-party custom keyboards
• Access your files without any barrier via iCloud Drive, Dropbox or Google Drive.

Take advantage of all these features un a completely secure iOS 8 environment.

Messages

• The newly introduced touch-and-hold radial controls in iOS 8 help you to easily create and share video and audio clips as messages.
• Add larger number of pictures and videos to your messages easily with larger thumbnails
• View and share location, photos and videos as a part of the conversation in the new Details section
• Enable do-not-disturb or completely drop out of specific conversations for group messages

Family Sharing

Often, there is a lot of stuff that needs to be shared among family members or close friends. With family Sharing feature in iOS8, up to 6 family members can combine their iTunes music, movies, TV shows, books, apps, and games, simultaneously. This means, if you have downloaded the latest number, your family members would also be able to listen to it on their devices. all you need is to have  the same credit card on all the shared accounts even if you have different Apple IDs and passwords,

This is not all. Family sharing has an added advantage for families having young children. every in-app purchase they make would have to be approved by you as you will be infirmed through a notification that will appear on your iOS devices.

It sets up a shared Photo Stream and shared Calendar automatically. You can also unable shared location and shared Find my iPhone/iPad.

iOS Game Development Course Description

With so many advantages and added features, thousands of users are sure to switch to iOS 8 and that would result in an increased demand of iOS 8 games. Have you ever considered developing your own games in iOS 8? Do you want to pursue this as a hobby or even as a full-time profession? The good news is that it is absolutely possible to learn to make your own games on iOS 8. You can take up an online e-course for iOS 8 games training.

This course would familiarize you with the basics of iOS game development. It takes a comprehensive and thorough approach for teaching game development using SpriteKit framework.

Let us have a look at our iOS 8 Games training Course curriculum. Our course is broadly divided into two sections:-

1) Introduction to Games in iOS 8 and

2) Practical examples of how to create the Games.

Section 1: Introduction to Games in iOS 8

This section has been further divided into three parts:

• Games in iOS Theory

Theory is an essential part of learning any skill. Similarly, iOS game development also involves theoretical concepts and algorithms which need to be thoroughly understood by the candidate. This is very helpful in proper application while creating a game design.

• Game Development

This section introduces the learners to the various tools used for developing games. iOS Game development tools are extremely handy for those who design games as a hobby, passion or part-time profession. Developing own tools can be very time consuming and costly for small time developers or small game studios. However, larger set-ups and bigger game studios develop indigenous engines and tools or modify open source softwares to take care of their internal processes.

• SpriteKit Framework

In game designing, a lot of importance is paid to visuals. We use random textured images called ‘Sprites’ to lend such special effects. SpriteKit is a graphics execution infrastructure that helps to animate these sprites. SpriteKit delivers a conventional adaptation loop that decides upon the contents of frames and renders frames alternatively and efficiently with the help of graphics hardware. You are free to decide what goes into your frame and how transitions take place. It has been optimized to make application of random animations simple and is designed to modify your content thus making it apt for games and apps demanding flexibility in animation. It easily supports special effects such as videos, image effects, filters and masking, a physics library etc., which are hard to do in other frameworks.

SpriteKit is inbuilt in iOS, therefore you do not require downloading additional libraries or worrying about support and updates.

 Section 2: Practical Examples of how to create games

• Game Development Continued

You are taught some more nuances of Game development in this section.

• Practical Examples

After covering the basics, you would be given practical examples to get a deeper insight into game development.

• Games in iOS 8

Get a glimpse of the various games available in iOS 8 to have an idea about the kind of games you can develop.

• Usage of Xcode 6.2

Xcode is an integrated development environment (IDE) developed by Apple. It consists of a set of software development tools that help you to develop programme for OS X, iOS etc.

• Further Practical Examples

Explore some more practical examples of iOS 8 games to perfect the art of iOS game development. As an example, look at how the game “Spaceship” is developed  in xCode 6.2

The main objective of iOS8 game training is to acquaint you with the fundamentals of games in iOS 8 and to provide you with the know how to build your own iOS games.. You will learn game development theory with practical examples, SpriteKit Framework and usage of Xcode 6.2.

Pre-requisites to iOS Game Development Training

• Basic knowledge of Software development and coding: Having a foundation in software development is important. Knowledge of:
• Intermediate knowledge of Objective-C: As Objective-C is the main programming language for OS X and iOS and their APIs, thus you must be able to work comfortably with it.
• Basics of MacBook handling: Developing game on iOS 8 would require you to be familiar with MacBook. You are expected to know how to carry out the basic operations and main functions in the device.

• • Coding
  • Basic programs such as Photoshop
  • 3D modelers like Blender, Flux etc. and
  • Design theory

Target Audience for this training

• Students: Game development can be a lucrative career for young students. Mobile industry is growing at a fast pace and this industry holds a great promise for youngsters who wish to venture in this field.
• Professionals: IOS 8 Training for games will familiarize professionals with a host of new tools that are being used to develop games, A course in Game development can help professionals hone their skill and achieve an edge over others in the industry.
• Enthusiasts: If game development is your hobby, then this course is for you. Get an insight into, what goes into developing a mobile game.

FAQs

• Is it difficult to learn about IOS 8?

 No, anyone with a passion to learn can easily learn about iOS 8. If you go stepwise, yopu can even learn from the scratch. You can easily jump the steps, you already know about. Basically there are a large number of resources out there that can help you learn about iOS8 coding, development tools and instructions.

• What is new in iOS8?

iOS 8 has introduced a host of new features  such as custom keyboards, widgets, messages features and improved inter-app sharing and camera app in Apple devices.

• Where can  IOS 8 be applied?

iOS 8 is an improved and enhanced version of its predecessor’s iOS6 and iOS7 and just like them, it is used as Operating System for Apple Devices.  It has a lot of features that have either just been added or improved. Look for Apple Pay, Details section, custom keyboards and messaging apps. You can say that it can be applied to almost any sphere of life.

Course Testimonials

Steven Allen

It is a wonderful course for all aspiring iOS game developers. After completing this, I am pretty confident that I would now be able to create iOS games without hitch. Teaching with the help of examples is a major USP of this course and makes learning easier.

Brian Moore

The course is great and easily comprehendible. It covers major aspect of iOS8 game development training in detail. The curriculum is meticulously planned to give a thorough insight and knowledge to the learners. I highly recommend this online learning course for all.

Helen Walker Scott

I took up this course recently and I must say within a short period of time, I have gained expertise tio develop my own games. I am completely satisfied with the course content and extremely happy at my decision to take this up. Keep up the Good work.

Elsa Bhaskar

Awesome learning experience! Just completed iOS game training course. It’s an excellent resource to learn, create and develop your own games in iOS8 platform. The tutorials are very useful and have been greatly helpful in improving my iOS8 development skills.

Career Benefits

This iOS training course will prove to be very beneficial for you.

You would be able to develop wonderful games with SpriteKit framework based on latest Swift language. It will also acquaint you with the entire procedure of iOS game development: right from taking up a new project, proceeding to creating the game through frame development, learning through practical examples of creating games in xCode 6.2,  publishing it on AppStore and even marketing it!

Thus, with this course you would be able to establish yourself as a professional game developer, opening an array of opportunities for yourself. This career is expected to grow by a whopping 20% within a decade. The revenue growth of the gaming industry has exceeded the revenue growth of film industry in the last few years, thus attracting large capital investors.

As a game developer, you would either be working as Game Artist, Game Designer or Game Programmer. Once you achieve about 5 or more years of experience in this field, you can easily earn USD100,000 annually.

But always keep yourself updated with the latest skills, software’s and technologies in the ever-growing gaming industry to stay ahead of competition.