Portfolio

Old as Dirt

Old as Dirt is a web-based, team-based educational game developed by the CoRE Learning Foundation in Western Australia to teach Earth Science through interactive gameplay.

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Old as Dirt

Unity, WebGL

Old as Dirt is a web-based, team-based educational game developed by the CoRE Learning Foundation in Western Australia to teach Earth Science through interactive gameplay. Designed for classroom collaboration, the teacher acts as the presenter, controlling the session from their computer, while students join in groups via their browsers to participate and control inputs in real-time. The game gamifies STEM education, making complex scientific concepts engaging, accessible, and fun.

XGameDev contributed to the development and expansion of Old as Dirt by porting the existing game from desktop (Windows and Mac) to an online WebGL application. The project involved extensive bug fixes, performance optimizations, and feature enhancements.

Key Contributions

  • WebGL Porting: Adapted the game for online play, ensuring smooth performance and compatibility across various browsers.
  • Backend Development: Designed and developed backend APIs using Node.js and Express.js, deployed to Firebase Functions.
  • Database Management: Designed and implemented Firebase Firestore for scalable, real-time data storage.
  • Authentication: Implemented basic authentication to prevent
  • Multiplayer to Single-Player Conversion: Modified multiplayer-only games to support both multiplayer and single-player modes, allowing students and teachers to familiarize themselves with gameplay before collaborating in teams.
  • Matchmaking System Improvements: Refactored and optimized matchmaking logic for better user experience.
  • Infrastructure Migration: Replaced Azure with Firebase Hosting to improve scalability and reduce costs.
  • Admin Web App Development: Created a custom Angular-based web app for admin users to:
  • Manage user accounts
  • Monitor analytics and metrics, including logins, API key usage, games played, and user interactions
  • DevOps & CI/CD: Implemented a full CI/CD pipeline to:
  • Automate API builds and deployments to Firebase Functions
  • Build Unity WebGL applications and deploy them to Firebase Hosting
  • Performance Optimization: Improved game asset handling for better loading times and smoother gameplay. 
  • Documentation & TDD:
  • Implemented Test-Driven Development (TDD) for backend APIs
  • Integrated Doxygen to generate automated documentation for both frontend and backend code
  • Sponsorship & Active Development: Became Garner Sponsor in the project to ensure ongoing development and improvements.
  • UI/UX Enhancements: Improved the user interface and experience, making it fully responsive and allowing dynamic screen resizing.
  • Deployment Environments: Set up development, staging, and production environments for streamlined deployment and testing.
  • Infrastructure Configuration: Managed DNS, CDN, and hosting configurations for optimal performance and security.
  • Analytics & Monitoring: Integrated Google Analytics to track user behavior on both frontend and backend systems. Integrated Sentry to monitor both front-end applications and backend API microservices.
  • Testing & Quality Assurance: Conducted rigorous testing and QA to ensure stability across platforms.
  • Agile Project Management: Managed development tasks using Agile Scrum methodologies with Jira.

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