Create a Game Loop with C and SDL

2 hours on-demand video content
Access on mobile and desktop
Last updated July 2021

Course description

This is a super short tutorial on how to write a simple game loop using C and SDL. We'll code a simple C project from scratch and learn how to configuring our C compiler to work with the SDL library.

You will learn how to write a minimal game loop, adjust a variable delta-time, and correctly configure a fixed time between frames. The final result will be a skeleton of a small 2D game that can be used as a starting point for more advanced projects.

The tools you'll need

All you really need is a code editor and a C compiler. All the tools we'll use are cross-platform, so you can follow along with either Windows, macOS, or Linux!

Is this course for you?

This course has no formal prerequisites. However, you should already know the basics of coding (if-else, loops, functions) and how to use the Linux command-line.

This short course is a good option for those who want to try my teaching style before enrolling in other courses.

About the instructor

Gustavo Pezzi is a university lecturer in London, UK. He has won multiple education awards as a teacher and is also the founder of pikuma.com.

Gustavo teaches fundamentals of computer science and mathematics; his academic path includes institutions such as Pittsburg State University, City University of London, and University of Oxford.

Course content

2 hours total length • 9 Chapters • Last updated July 2021

1. Introduction

Motivations & Learning Outcomes
A Quick Reflection About Game Engines

2. Project Dependencies

Libraries and Dependencies
Environment Setup
Installing Libraries on Linux
Installing Libraries on macOS
Configuring Visual Studio on Windows
Picking a Code Editor

3. Building our Code

Compiling our Code with GCC
Makefiles
Player Movement
Quiz: Compilation and Linking

4. Creating an SDL Window

Creating an SDL Window
Representing Boolean Values in C

5. Handling Keyboard Input

Polling SDL Key Events
Quiz: SDL Events

6. Rendering our SDL Window

SDL Rendering
Rendering a Rectangle/li>
Quiz: Rendering

7. Game Update

Update Function
Fixing our Time Step
Variable Delta Time
Using SDL Delay
Quiz: Update and Delta Time

8. Proposed Activity

Exercise: "Breakout" Game
Collision Detection
Uncapped Framerate
SDL Delay Accuracy
What About Determinism?

18. Conclusion and Next Steps

Conclusion
Moving Forward

What students are saying

4.91

5 star		97.7%
4 star		0.0%
3 star		0.0%
2 star		0.0%
1 star		2.3%

Kevin De Baerdemaeker

@0xBFK

"I never really thought that creating your initial game loop is this easy! Why did I think I wasn't going to be able to understand this? Looking forward now to start the course I actually bought, if the quality is the same it's going to be great. I like how the videos were straight to the point, but explain some of the background when context might be more important."

23 Jul 2022

Harshad Saykhedkar

@harshad_geek

"Fabulous course! Very well structured course, just right level of difficulty without getting overwhelmed. It clarified the concept of delta time and game loop very succinctly. I thought as a game developer who has shipped 1-2 small games I understood these ideas before the course but there were nagging gaps that this course helped fill. I also like the how the instructor wrote all the code in front of us line by line. So this was not that 'How to Draw the Owl' kind of a course (if you've seen that joke ;-P )."

16 Jul 2022

Michael Dick

Computer Science & Math student

"Great for Low Level Understanding! If you're an individual that wants to know everything about low-level computing, or anything that deals with graphics, games, etc, then try this course. The breadth of material and applications of what we do here is absolutely amazing."

14 Jul 2022