CS4850 (Building Game Engines) course reviews and ratings at Northeastern (NEU). Compare professors with RateMyProfessor reviews.
Discusses the components of game engines and strategies for their software implementation. Includes graphics management algorithms (animation, scene graph, level of detail); basic artificial intelligence algorithms (search, decision making, sensing); and related algorithmic issues (networking, threading, input processing). Explores the use of data-driven software design. Offers students an opportunity to use a rendering engine and to build and integrate several software components to create a complete game engine. Requires students to work on several individual assignments to apply the algorithms and then develop a project in a team. Offers students an opportunity to learn team/project management; work division; team communication; and the software development cycle of implementation, testing, critique, and further iteration. Students who do not meet course prerequisites may seek permission of instructor.
Data updated October 2026.