Renaissance Architect Academy is an educational city-building game where students solve architectural challenges across 13+ sciences. Inspired by Leonardo da Vinci's notebooks, the game features a unique watercolor + blueprint aesthetic that brings the Renaissance era to life.
Build iconic structures from Ancient Rome and the Renaissance period while mastering mathematics, physics, engineering, and more!
Pickaxe • Bucket • Ash Rake • Shovel • Mining Hammer • Axe • Trade Purse • Mortar & Pestle • Pitchfork
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| Apprentice Character | Workshop Resource Map |
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| Interactive Met Museum Sketch Study | Renaissance Tools Market |
- 17 Historic Buildings - Construct aqueducts, colosseums, duomos, glassworks, and more across 6 zones
- 13 Sciences - Master real architectural and scientific principles through hands-on challenges
- Leonardo's Notebook Aesthetic - Hand-drawn engineering style with watercolor touches
- SpriteKit City Map - Pan, zoom, and tap buildings on a 3500x2500 interactive map
- Workshop Mini-Game - Township-style crafting: collect materials, mix at workbench, fire in furnace
- Interactive Met Art Sketches - Study real architectural drawings from the Metropolitan Museum of Art
- Two Historic Eras - Ancient Rome and Renaissance Italy (Florence, Venice, Padua, Milan, Rome)
- Bird Companion - Guided learning with a bird that teaches architecture and science
- Knowledge Cards - 208 cards across 17 buildings teaching construction steps
- Match-3 Puzzle - Collect chemical elements to build structures
- Progress Tracking - Track mastery levels from Apprentice to Master
- Custom AI Art - Midjourney icons and Gemini-generated map backgrounds
| # | Building | Sciences |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aqueduct | Engineering, Hydraulics, Mathematics |
| 2 | Colosseum | Architecture, Engineering, Acoustics |
| 3 | Roman Baths | Hydraulics, Chemistry, Materials |
| 4 | Pantheon | Geometry, Architecture, Materials |
| 5 | Roman Roads | Engineering, Geology, Materials |
| 6 | Harbor | Engineering, Physics, Hydraulics |
| 7 | Siege Workshop | Physics, Engineering, Mathematics |
| 8 | Insula | Architecture, Materials, Mathematics |
| # | City | Building | Sciences |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | Florence | Il Duomo | Geometry, Architecture, Physics |
| 10 | Florence | Botanical Garden | Biology, Chemistry, Geology |
| 11 | Venice | Glassworks | Chemistry, Optics, Materials |
| 12 | Venice | Arsenal | Engineering, Physics, Materials |
| 13 | Padua | Anatomy Theater | Biology, Optics, Chemistry |
| 14 | Milan | Leonardo's Workshop | Engineering, Physics, Materials |
| 15 | Milan | Flying Machine | Physics, Engineering, Mathematics |
| 16 | Rome | Vatican Observatory | Astronomy, Optics, Mathematics |
| 17 | Rome | Printing Press | Engineering, Chemistry, Physics |
- SwiftUI - iOS 17+ / macOS 14+
- Swift 5.0+
- Xcode - Multiplatform (iPad + macOS)
- SPM Packages:
- Pow 1.0.5 (animations)
- Subsonic 0.2.0 (audio)
- Vortex 1.0.4 (particle effects)
- Midjourney AI - Art generation (style ref:
--sref 3186415970)
| Role | Name |
|---|---|
| Developer | Marina Pollak |
| Level Designer | Ray Garmon |
| Game Designer | Brianna Walker |
| Collaborator | Marcus Escoto |
| Collaborator | Ariel Sha Glassman |
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Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/GEM-312/RenaissanceArchitectAcademy.git
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Open
RenaissanceArchitectAcademy.xcodeprojin Xcode -
Select iPad simulator or "My Mac"
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Press
Cmd+Rto build and run
RenaissanceArchitectAcademy/
├── Views/ # SwiftUI views
├── ViewModels/ # MVVM view models
├── Models/ # Data models
├── Styles/ # Colors, buttons, UI components
├── Services/ # Audio, persistence
├── Fonts/ # Cinzel, EBGaramond, PetitFormalScript
└── Assets.xcassets/ # Images and custom icons
The city map background is generated as 6 zone tiles (1500x1200 px each), then stitched in Photoshop at 7000x5000 px (2x retina of 3500x2500 map). Terrain ground only — buildings, trees, rivers, and labels are SpriteKit nodes rendered on top. Style matches existing Midjourney science icons: fine sepia ink lines, soft transparent watercolor washes, cream parchment, faint geometric construction lines.
Top-down terrain map, fine sepia ink line drawing with soft transparent watercolor washes on aged cream parchment. Faint geometric construction lines and circles in the background. Warm sandy ground with subtle terracotta and ochre watercolor tints. Worn dirt paths, rocky patches, dry grass texture sketched in thin sepia lines. Delicate, airy, minimal. Pale warm tones — tan, sandy beige, light terracotta wash. No buildings, no trees, no bushes, no water, no rivers, no text, no words, no labels. Leonardo da Vinci notebook study style. 1500x1200 pixels.
Top-down terrain map, fine sepia ink line drawing with soft transparent watercolor washes on aged cream parchment. Faint geometric construction lines and arcs in the background. Rolling gentle hill contours with sage green and warm gold watercolor tints. Vineyard row patterns etched in thin sepia ink. Dirt footpaths, meadow ground texture. Delicate, airy, minimal. Pale green and gold washes. No buildings, no trees, no bushes, no rivers, no water, no text, no words, no labels. Leonardo da Vinci notebook study style. 1500x1200 pixels.
Top-down terrain map, fine sepia ink line drawing with soft transparent watercolor washes on aged cream parchment. Faint geometric construction lines and circles in the background. Cobblestone paving patterns and worn stone ground textures sketched in thin sepia ink. Subtle pale blue-gray and teal watercolor tints near edges. Weathered stone squares. Delicate, airy, minimal. No buildings, no bridges, no canals, no water, no trees, no bushes, no text, no words, no labels. Leonardo da Vinci notebook study style. 1500x1200 pixels.
Top-down terrain map, fine sepia ink line drawing with soft transparent watercolor washes on aged cream parchment. Faint geometric construction lines and arcs in the background. Cobblestone courtyard patterns and gravel path textures in thin sepia ink. Subtle muted green and warm stone watercolor tints. Geometric paving details. Delicate, airy, minimal. No buildings, no trees, no bushes, no fountains, no water, no text, no words, no labels. Leonardo da Vinci notebook study style. 1500x1200 pixels.
Top-down terrain map, fine sepia ink line drawing with soft transparent watercolor washes on aged cream parchment. Faint geometric construction lines, gear diagrams, and engineering sketches fading into the background. Packed dirt ground, brick-paved path patterns in thin sepia ink. Subtle ochre and pale blue watercolor tints. Delicate, airy, minimal. No buildings, no trees, no bushes, no canals, no water, no text, no words, no labels. Leonardo da Vinci notebook study style. 1500x1200 pixels.
Top-down terrain map, fine sepia ink line drawing with soft transparent watercolor washes on aged cream parchment. Faint geometric construction lines, star chart circles, and astronomical diagrams in the background. Grand stone plaza paving patterns and ceremonial pathway markings in thin sepia ink. Subtle pale gold and terracotta watercolor tints. Delicate, airy, minimal. No buildings, no trees, no bushes, no columns, no fountains, no water, no text, no words, no labels. Leonardo da Vinci notebook study style. 1500x1200 pixels.
| Zone | Canvas Position (7000x5000) | Description |
|---|---|---|
| I | Left third (x: 0-2000) | Ancient Rome terrain |
| V | Upper center (x: 2000-3600, y: 2500-5000) | Milan terrain |
| IV | Center (x: 3000-5000, y: 2000-4000) | Padua terrain |
| II | Top right (x: 4000-7000, y: 3000-5000) | Florence terrain |
| III | Right (x: 5000-7000, y: 1500-3500) | Venice terrain |
| VI | Bottom right (x: 3500-6000, y: 0-2500) | Renaissance Rome terrain |
Era divider: vertical blend line around x: 2000-2400. Use soft-edge blending between tiles. Parchment background: #F5E6D3.
This project is part of Columbia College Chicago - Final Semester (Jan 30 - May 15, 2025)
Built with SwiftUI