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Alex Dev

Ready to level up your game-making skills and step into the world of 3D game creation? Look no further than this comprehensive and standalone course, designed to take you through the process step by step, even if you have no previous experience in game development.

I've even included a 1.5 - hour crash course for those who have zero knowledge in Unity.  While it's better to have some experience and knowledge of C#, don't worry if you don't have it, because I'll cover everything you need to know to create an astonishing action-packed video game.

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Ready to level up your game-making skills and step into the world of 3D game creation? Look no further than this comprehensive and standalone course, designed to take you through the process step by step, even if you have no previous experience in game development.

I've even included a 1.5 - hour crash course for those who have zero knowledge in Unity.  While it's better to have some experience and knowledge of C#, don't worry if you don't have it, because I'll cover everything you need to know to create an astonishing action-packed video game.

A unique asset pack of 3D models was created specifically for this course. Once you complete the course, you can keep these along with the scripts you'll create and use them however you like.

  • Throughout this course, you'll learn how to create a versatile player controller using an Entity Component System (ECS).    You'll discover how to setup New Input System, how to animate 3D characters, manage camera controls, and understand the essentials of 3D physics, including colliders, mass, and velocity.

  • Moving forward in the course, we focus on how to create an advanced and expandable weapons system, essential for any shooter game.  This includes creating a variety of weapons and learning how to setup both the logic and animations for visuals to bring them to life in your shooter game.

  • We're going to place a heavy focus on optimizing game performance and personal workflow to ensure the FPS doesn't drop below 120 and your project does not turn into an unmanageable disaster. At the end of each section, we'll clean up the project, and you'll have access to my projects for downloading.  This allows you to double-check your work or start from a specific point of the course, if you wish to do so.

  • In the next part of the course, you'll learn to craft challenging enemies for your game's enemies.  We're going to create melee enemies with different weapons and attack sets who use shields for protection, dodge your bullets, and throw items at you.  Ranged enemies can use covers to hide, throw grenades, and advance from different angles.  We'll also introduce two bosses with unique abilities.  All of this will serve as a great example for you to become very sophisticated in enemy AI design.

  • Then, we're going to learn how to design procedural level generation.  This system will allow you to create an endless number of levels, significantly reducing development time and ensuring that your game offers fresh, engaging content for players every time they play.

  • To improve gameplay even further, we're going to develop a quest system.  You will learn how to create different missions and setup different goals for the player.

  • Next, we'll build a functional and scalable UI to bring your game to completion. 

  • Then, we're elevating the experience by integrating new gameplay element - CARS. You'll master creating a versatile car system, allowing you to fine-tune vehicle behavior in every way possible.

  • We'll finish the course by adding an audio system and visual polish, making your game not only engaging and fun to play but transforming it into an immersive experience that's both visually stunning and audibly rich. This phase includes smoothing out bugs and enhancing mechanics, ensuring every aspect of your game shines and operates seamlessly.  It’s about elevating your game's overall quality, ensuring it’s not just functional but exceptionally polished.

  • After mastering these comprehensive skills and polishing your game to perfection, it will be time to celebrate your significant achievement. This course isn't just about learning; it's about recognizing the hard work you've put into transforming your dream game into reality.

And there you have it. A journey from the basics to a fully polished, high-quality video game. And you can start that journey with a single click. 

Enroll in the course today and learn how to create games you've always wanted.

Enroll now

What's inside

Learning objectives

  • Create playable game projects - good for your portfolio, or just for your own sense of achievement.
  • Learn c#, a modern versatile programming language.
  • Develop strong and transferrable problem-solving skills.
  • Learn object-oriented programming in real-world scenarios
  • Acquire a comprehensive understanding of game design principles
  • Write clean, maintainable code and design scalable game architectures

Syllabus

Important to know - Q&A and Bugs
Watch Before You Start
Important to know - Mindset of the course
Important to know - Crash Course
Read more
Important to know - Before we begin
Crash Course for Beginners
Install Unity
Basic tools, Windows and Components
Creating Tank with simple shapes
Execution order, Input and Movement
Tank's rotation
Tank's aim
Tower's rotation
Shooting bullets
Setup small playground
Collision detection and simple camera controller
Character Development
Setup testing ground and Character Import
Setup New Input System
Setup movement
Setup gravity
Setup aim
Rig Setup and Animations
Setup walk animation
Setup run animation
Setup fire animation
Gun visuals and Animations
Create weapon controller
Setup weapon 3D model's
Animation rigging - Setup
Rig aim constraints
Left hand IK - attach left hand to the gun
Left hand IK - diffrent weapons
Weapon animation layers
Introducing layer sync
Reload Animations
Weapon Grab Animations
Clean up
Camera and Aim
Setup Camera
Camera Settings
Player Aim and Decomposition of Player Movement
Smooth character rotation - Lerp & SLerp
Camera's Lookahead
Decomposition of Aim and Camera
Create a bullet
Setup bullet's direction
Setup Precise Aim
Setup Target Lock
Visualise Aim with Laser
Colliders and Rigidbodies
Update project to LTS
Import 3D models
How to setup 3D colliders
Important about Pivot point
Rigidbody
Collision detection type
Flexible mass of a bullet
Shiny bullet & URP setup
Impact Visual Effect of a Bullet
Training ground upgrade
Weapon System
Weapon class
Weapon type
Weapon slots
Weapon pickup
Weapon's ammo
Weapon's reload
Weapon's model
Equip weapon
Backup weapon model
Reload speed & Equipment speed
Object pool - Bullet pool
Weapon's fire rate
Weapon ready check
Shoot type : Single and Auto
Bullet's spread
Multi-shot and burst shot
Gun distance
Camera distance
2+ weapon slots
Performance and Workflow
Global object pool
Constructor
Scriptable object
Weapon data
Interaction System
Closest interactble
Interaction and inheritance
Weapon pickup interaction
Drop current weapon as pickup item
Ammo box pickup
Enemy Melee
Brief enemy design
AI Navigation Setup
State Machine Setup

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Activities

Be better prepared before your course. Deepen your understanding during and after it. Supplement your coursework and achieve mastery of the topics covered in The Complete Guide to Unity 3D : Making a Top Down Shooter with these activities:
Brush up on C# fundamentals
Reviewing C# syntax and object-oriented programming concepts will make understanding the game logic and scripting in Unity much easier.
Browse courses on C# Programming
Show steps
  • Review C# syntax and data types.
  • Practice creating classes and methods.
  • Work through basic C# tutorials.
Review 'Unity in Action, Third Edition'
Use this book as a reference to better understand the Unity game engine.
Show steps
  • Read the chapters related to scripting, physics, and animation.
  • Refer to the book when encountering difficulties with specific Unity features.
Create a simple prototype weapon system
Building a basic weapon system will reinforce your understanding of scripting, animation, and game mechanics in Unity.
Show steps
  • Create a new Unity project.
  • Implement a simple weapon firing mechanism.
  • Add basic animations for firing and reloading.
Four other activities
Expand to see all activities and additional details
Show all seven activities
Review 'Game Programming Patterns'
Familiarize yourself with common game design patterns to improve code structure and maintainability in your Unity projects.
Show steps
  • Read the chapters on command, observer, and state patterns.
  • Identify how these patterns can be applied to the top-down shooter game.
Follow Unity's ECS tutorial
Working through a tutorial on Unity's Entity Component System (ECS) will deepen your understanding of this powerful architecture.
Show steps
  • Locate a comprehensive ECS tutorial on the Unity website.
  • Follow the tutorial step-by-step, implementing the code examples.
  • Experiment with modifying the ECS code to understand its behavior.
Document your learning journey
Creating a blog or video series about your experience with the course will help solidify your understanding and share your knowledge with others.
Show steps
  • Choose a platform for your content (blog, YouTube, etc.).
  • Document your progress, challenges, and solutions as you work through the course.
  • Share your content with the online community.
Contribute to a Unity open-source project
Contributing to an open-source Unity project will provide valuable experience in collaborative development and expose you to different coding styles and techniques.
Show steps
  • Find an open-source Unity project on GitHub or GitLab.
  • Identify a bug or feature to work on.
  • Submit a pull request with your changes.

Career center

Learners who complete The Complete Guide to Unity 3D : Making a Top Down Shooter will develop knowledge and skills that may be useful to these careers:
Game Developer
A Game Developer designs and codes video games. Given that this course covers Unity 3D and creating a top-down shooter, it helps build a foundation in the specific skills that make up the role of game developer. A prospective Game Developer should take this course to learn how to implement player controls, set up animations, manage camera controls, and understand 3D physics, all within the Unity 3D environment. Furthermore, the course delves into creating advanced weapon systems, enemy AI, procedural level generation, and UI design, all of which are vital to a well rounded game developer.
Unity Developer
A Unity Developer specializes in using the Unity game engine to create interactive experiences. This course provides a comprehensive guide to Unity 3D by making a top down shooter. The course focus on ECS, the New Input System, 3D physics, and character animation helps build a foundation in the core competencies of Unity. A prospective Unity Developer might take this course because it covers essential skills such as creating weapon systems, designing enemy AI, implementing procedural level generation, building functional UIs, and integrating audio and visual enhancements. These topics will serve to build a portfolio in the Unity Engine.
Gameplay Programmer
A Gameplay Programmer is responsible for implementing the rules, mechanics, and interactive elements of a game. This course helps build a foundation in the implementation of gameplay for a top down shooter in particular. The course includes lessons on camera controls, 3D physics, and character animation, with important information that will serve a gameplay programmer. This course may be useful because it covers creating weapon systems, enemy AI, procedural level generation, quest systems, and vehicle systems, all of which contribute to engaging gameplay.
Weapons Programmer
A Weapons Programmer focuses on designing, implementing, and balancing the weapon systems within a video game. This course focuses on creating an advanced and expandable weapon system, making it potentially useful for someone wanting to become a Weapons Programmer. The course covers creating a variety of weapons, setting up logic and animations, managing ammunition, and implementing different firing modes. Moreover, it teaches optimization techniques to ensure smooth performance, even with complex weapon mechanics that may be helpful to a weapons programmer.
AI Programmer
An AI Programmer specializes in creating the artificial intelligence that controls non-player characters and other in-game elements. This course may be useful. The course specifically addresses the creation of challenging enemies, including melee enemies with different weapons and attack sets, ranged enemies that use cover, and boss characters with unique abilities. Anyone wanting to become an AI Programmer should consider how the course includes different approaches to AI design within the Unity engine.
Tools Programmer
A Tools Programmer develops software and scripts that help other developers create game content more efficiently. In the course, there is procedural level generation, enabling the creation of endless levels, which may prove useful. This course may be useful because it focuses on optimizing game performance and personal workflow, including project cleanup and access to downloadable project files. Learning these habits can help an aspiring Tools Programmer develop efficient workflows.
Mobile Game Developer
A Mobile Game Developer creates games specifically for mobile devices. Although this course focuses on a top-down shooter, the skills learned in Unity 3D are transferable to mobile game development. The course covers topics, such as the New Input System, UI design, and performance optimization, which are valuable for mobile platforms. A prospective Mobile Game Developer may find this course useful because it helps build a foundation in Unity game development.
VR Developer
A VR Developer creates immersive experiences for virtual reality platforms. While this course focuses on a top-down shooter, the core skills learned in Unity 3D may be useful for VR development. The course covers topics, such as 3D physics, character animation, camera control, and UI design, which may translate to VR projects. A prospective VR Developer should consider how this course helps build a foundation in the Unity engine, and will expose them to workflows.
AR Developer
An AR Developer builds applications for augmented reality, blending digital content with the real world. This course, while centered on creating a 3D game, may be useful for learning the fundamentals of working with the Unity engine. The course covers topics, such as character animation, physics, and UI design may be useful. An AR Developer should consider that this course helps build a foundation in Unity development, which may serve as a springboard for AR projects.
Level Designer
A Level Designer crafts the environments and layouts within a video game. The course covers the design of procedural level generation, which streamlines level design. In addition, the course may be useful because it covers training ground upgrade, giving experience with making appealing levels. A prospective Level Designer should consider taking this course to understand how to create diverse and dynamic game environments efficiently in Unity.
Animator
An Animator creates motion and visual effects for various media, including games. While this course focuses on game development, the character animation techniques taught are directly relevant to an animator. Because the course covers rig setup, animation implementation, and visual effects, someone wanting to become an Animator may find this course useful. The course also includes the New Input System.
Simulation Developer
A Simulation Developer creates software that models real-world systems or processes for training, research, or entertainment. Although this course focuses on game development, the skills learned in Unity 3D can be applied to simulation projects. The course includes the application of 3D physics, AI, and procedural generation. A prospective Simulation Developer might take this course to understand how to implement interactive systems and user interfaces using a game engine.
Software Engineer
A Software Engineer designs and develops software applications. While this course focuses on game development, it teaches fundamental programming concepts and problem-solving skills that are applicable to software engineering. The course includes learning C#, object-oriented programming, and how to write clean, maintainable code. Someone wanting to become a Software Engineer may find the course useful because they may learn how to create scalable architectures.
UI Designer
A UI Designer specializes in creating user interfaces for software and games, focusing on usability and aesthetics. The course covers building a functional and scalable UI to bring your game to completion. The course may be useful to a UI Designer, since it provides practical experience in creating user interfaces within the Unity environment. Overall, the course will be useful to anyone wanting to master functional and scalable UI.
Sound Designer
A Sound Designer creates and integrates audio elements into games to enhance the player experience. This course elevates the experience by teaching the learner to add an audio system to their game. The course will be useful for a sound designer as it shows how to integrate Unity with audio effectively. Overall, the course will be useful to anyone wanting to master functional and scalable UI.

Reading list

We've selected two books that we think will supplement your learning. Use these to develop background knowledge, enrich your coursework, and gain a deeper understanding of the topics covered in The Complete Guide to Unity 3D : Making a Top Down Shooter.
Provides a comprehensive guide to Unity, covering a wide range of topics relevant to game development. It's a great resource for understanding the fundamentals of Unity and exploring advanced features. It can be used as a reference text throughout the course and beyond. This book is commonly used as a textbook at academic institutions.
Provides valuable insights into common design patterns used in game development. Understanding these patterns will help you write cleaner, more maintainable code for your Unity projects. It is particularly useful for grasping the concepts behind the Entity Component System (ECS) used in the course. While not a prerequisite, it serves as excellent additional reading.

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