Game Studio · With Krea
How to make a map for your game
This course shows your kid how to make a map for a game: a whole world drawn on paper, with named places, paths, and things in the way. Krea hosts 5 short films about the big shapes, the places, and the paths, and the last film turns the map into five game levels in Game Studio. Plan on about 5 minutes of films and an hour of drawing.
- Ages
- 6 to 13
- Time
- 5 films, about 5 minutes, then about an hour of drawing
- Host
- Krea
- You need
- Paper, pencil
- Status
- Coming soon. Kids vote in the app for the courses they want first.
The intro film
Krea's 45-second intro film is coming soon. Here's what Krea says in it.
Transcript
Hi, I'm Krea. I love ideas, and I love maps.
A map is a promise. It says: there's somewhere to go.
Today, you draw a whole world. Your world.
Is it cozy? Wild? Spooky? Silly? You pick.
First, you draw big shapes. Land. Water. Mountains.
Then you name five places. A name tells what happens there. Who would visit Grumble Swamp?
You draw paths between them, and something in the way.
Then those five places become five levels in your game.
Get a big sheet of paper. Let's make a world.
The 5 lessons
Lesson 1. Pick your world
A world starts with one big feeling.
- Pick a feeling: cozy, wild, spooky, or silly
- Pick a place: an island, a city, a forest, or space
- Write the world's name at the top of your paper
Where: Paper
Lesson 2. Big shapes first
Draw land and water before the small stuff.
- Draw the edge of the land
- Add water: a sea, a river, or a lake
- Add one big landmark everyone can see, like a mountain
Where: Paper
Lesson 3. Places with names
A good name tells the player what happens there.
- Draw five places around your map
- Give each one a name
- Draw one small picture in each place
Where: Paper
Lesson 4. Paths and blockers
Paths connect places, and blockers make the trip fun.
- Draw a path from the start to the last place
- Put something in the way, like a river or a gate
- Mark where the hero finds a way past it
Where: Paper
Lesson 5. From map to levels
Each place on your map becomes one level of your game.
- Snap a photo of your map
- Turn the five places into five levels, in order
- Give each level one new thing from your map
Where: Game Studio · Level Design
What your kid makes
Your kid ends with a hand-drawn world map with five named places, paths, and blockers, the plan for a five-level game. The map goes into Game Studio's Level Design, and the same world can return later as the setting for a movie or a comic.
Free guides to practise with
Questions parents ask
What if my kid says they can't draw?
Maps are shapes and words. A wobbly circle is an island and a squiggle is a river. The names and ideas carry the map, and those come from your kid.
What age is this for?
Kids 6 to 13. Younger kids draw the shapes and say the names out loud while a grown-up writes. Older kids tend to add more places, secret paths, and a legend.
Does the map need AI at all?
The first four films are paper only. AI comes in at the last step, when the map becomes the levels of a game in Game Studio.