Using Greenfoot as a tool for serious games programming education and development

Abstract

Greenfoot is an educational programming environment that aims to motivate students in learning object-oriented programming (OOP) through the development of simple games and simulations. Several studies have presented positive results regarding the usage of Greenfoot as a tool for introducing novices to OOP. In this article, we propose using Greenfoot as a tool for introducing novices to (serious) games programming, as well as a tool for implementing serious games (SGs). As a proof of concept, the design and implementation of an SG for learning OOP utilizing Greenfoot and a survey on the perceptions of graduates that had been introduced to SGs programming with Greenfoot in the context of a relevant Master course are presented. The results show that Greenfoot, although not developed for this purpose, can be utilized both as a tool for introducing novices to (serious) games programming and as a tool for developing SGs.