Bring electronics and programming to life by building your own playable game with an Arduino and a 16x2 LCD display.In this hands-on beginner-friendly course, you’ll learn how to connect common electronics components to an Arduino, write to an LCD screen, read button input, and write code that turns simple hardware into an interactive game. By the end of the course you’ll have created a real project you can play, modify, and expand.To set you up for success, and avoid component damage, we start with a basic introduction to electronics including, what voltage and current mean, how buttons and resistors are used, and how to safely connect components. Then you'll wire up a 16x2 LCD and buttons so you'll be ready to build your own game step by step.You’ll learn how to:Read button presses for player inputMove a character across the screenCreate custom LCD characters and simple animationAdd obstacles and collision detectionTrack score and high scoreAdd a pause menuIncrease difficulty as the game progressesand more!You’ll also learn how to think like an embedded developer—breaking a larger idea into smaller features and building them one piece at a time.This course is ideal for beginners who want to learn Arduino through a real project instead of disconnected examples. It’s also great for hobbyists, parents, students, and anyone curious about electronics and how to use code to interact with real hardware.By the time you finish, you’ll have the skills to customize your game and build your own future Arduino projects.If you’ve wanted to learn Arduino but didn't know where to begin, this is the place.
What you'll learn
Connect electronics components to an Arduino
Write code to display information on an LCD screen
Read button inputs to control game actions
Create custom characters and animations on the LCD
Implement collision detection and scoring mechanics
Design a game that increases in difficulty
Course objectives
Build a playable game from scratch with Arduino
Understand key concepts in electronics and programming for embedded systems
Develop problem-solving skills by breaking a project into smaller, manageable parts