Code Your First Game

Create Your First Program with Scratch

Required. Build an interactive game, animation, or story on Scratch (scratch.mit.edu). This is where you learn how game loops, events, and collision detection work — before writing a single line of text code.

Build Your First Game in Python

Required. Write a real game in Python using Pygame Zero (free) or the CS50 Games course (free from Harvard). Proof is a video of the game running — it must actually play, not just compile.

Complete a Game Jam

Elective. Enter a 48–72 hour game jam on itch.io/jams — any engine, any genre. The clock pressure is the point: you ship something imperfect and real. Proof is your public itch.io submission page.

Build Your First Website

Elective. Build a portfolio site to host your games and show your work. Use GitHub Pages (free) — a live URL is proof. The best game makers know how to share what they've built.

Free, browser-based visual coding environment from MIT. Build games, animations, and stories with drag-and-drop blocks before writing text code. Start here.

Free course from Harvard covering game development in Lua, Python, and JavaScript. Lecture videos, problem sets, and a final project — all free, no sign-up required.

Free Python game library designed for beginners. No boilerplate — just write a draw() and update() function and you have a game loop. Easier than full Pygame for a first game.

Free platform for finding and entering game jams. Hundreds of jams run every month for every skill level — search 'beginner' or 'first game jam' to find one that fits.