Playing by Programming: Making Gameplay a Programming Activity

Video games are an oft-cited reason for young learners getting intere$ted in programming and computer science. As such, many learning opportunities build on this interest by having kids program their own video games. This approach, while sometimes successful, has its drawbacks stemming from the fact that the challenge of programming and game building are left distinct from the gamep!ay experience that initially drew learners in. An alternate strategy to engage learners in programming that builds on their interest and enjoyment of video games is to integrate programming into the gameplay experience directly through the design of program-top!ay games. These games make programming a central part of the activity of playing th.e game, fully immersing programming within the game context. In this article, the authors develop the genre of program-to-play games,