Quick Links
Course Info
Course Schedule
The tentative course schedule is below.
Textbook
The textbook for this course is Game Design Workshop: A Playcentric Approach to Creating Innovative Games by Tracy Fullerton. I have the 2nd Edition so feel free to get that version. It can be found in a few places:
- amazon.com (as low as $15 used)
- chegg.com ($18 for a 90-day eTextbook rental)
- If you know of another good place to buy the book, either digitially or physically, please let me know!
Class Engine
We will be learning and using Unity in this course.
Project
This course has two team projects, one physical game and one digital game.
Information including deliverables and rubrics can be found here.
Week 1
Monday 4/2
Lecture
- Enrollment/Waitlist
- Lecture Introduction
- Class Survey
Assignments
- Assignment 1 due Friday 4/6
Wednesday 4/4
Friday 4/6
Reading
- Chapter 1: The Role of the Game Designer
Lecture
- Lecture Game Design Definitions
- Think about project ideas!
- Game pitches are Monday 4/9!
Assignments
- Assignment 1 is due today!
- Lab 1 is due today!
- Lab 2 due Wednesday 4/11
Week 2
Monday 4/9
Reading
- Chapter 6: Conceptualization
Lecture
- Lecture Conceptualization
- Project Game Pitches
Lab
- Workshop Brainstorming
Assignments
- Nothing new assigned or due.
Wednesday 4/11
Reading
- Chapter 7: Prototyping
Lecture
- Lecture Iterative Prototyping
Lab
- Project Physical Prototyping
Assignments
- Lab 2 is due today!
- Lab 3 due Friday 4/20
- Physical Game Prototyping due Friday 4/20
Friday 4/13
Week 3
Monday 4/16
Reading
- Chapter 9: Playtesting
Lecture
- Lecture Playtesting
Lab
- Project Physical Prototyping
Assignments
- Nothing new assigned or due.
Wednesday 4/18
Lecture
- Project Physical Prototype Refinement
Lab
- Project Physical Prototype Playtesting
Assignments
- Assignment 2 is due today!
Friday 4/20
Reading
- Chapter 2: The Structure of Games
- Chapter 3: Working with Formal Elements
Lecture
- Lecture Formal Elements
- Workshop Formal Elements
Lab
- Project Board Game Production
Assignments
- Lab 3 is due today!
- Physical Game Prototyping is due today!
- Physical Game Production due Monday 4/30
Week 4
Monday 4/23
Lecture
- Project Board Game Production
Lab
- Project Board Game Production
Assignments
- Lab 4 due Wednesday 5/2
Wednesday 4/25
Lecture
- Project Board Game Playtesting
Lab
- Project Board Game Playtesting
Assignments
- Nothing new assigned or due.
Friday 4/27
Reading
- Chapter 4: Working with Dramatic Elements
Lecture
- Lecture Dramatic Elements
Assignments
- Nothing new assigned or due.
Week 5
Monday 4/30
Class was cancelled
Wednesday 5/2
Lecture
- Video Emergent Storytelling
- Project Unity Game Pitches
Lab
- Project Unity Game Team Formation & Brainstorming
Assignments
- Lab 4 is due today!
Friday 5/4
Reading
- Chapter 8: Digital Prototyping
Lecture
- Lecture Game Math
Lab
- Project Unity Game Brainstorming
Assignments
- Digital Game Physical Prototype due Friday 5/11
Week 6
Monday 5/7
Reading
- Chapter 14: The Design Document
Lecture
- Lecture Collision Detection
Lab
- Project Unity Game Physical Prototyping
Assignments
- Lab 0 due Friday 5/11
- Lab 5 due Friday 5/18
- Digital Game Design Document due Friday 6/8
Wednesday 5/9
Lecture
- Lecture Game AI: Pathfinding
Lab
- Project Unity Game Physical Prototyping
Assignments
- Assignment 3 due Friday 5/18
Friday 5/11
Lecture
- Project Unity Game Physical Prototyping
Lab
- Project Unity Game Physical Prototype Playtesting
Assignments
- Lab 0 is due today!
- Digital Game Physical Prototype is due today!
- Digital Game Digital Prototype due Monday 5/21
Week 7
Monday 5/14
Lecture
- Lecture Game AI: Behavior
Lab
- Project Unity Game Digital Prototyping
Assignments
- Nothing new assigned or due.
Wednesday 5/16
Reading
- Chapter 5: Working with System Dynamics
Lecture
- Lecture Object-Oriented Game Development
Lab
- Project Unity Game Digital Prototyping
Assignments
- Nothing new assigned or due.
Friday 5/18
Reading
- Chapter 10: Functionality, Completeness, and Balance
Lecture
Lab
- Project Unity Game Digital Prototyping
Assignments
- Assignment 3 is due today!
- Lab 5 is due today!
Week 8
Monday 5/21
Reading
- Chapter 11: Fun and Accessibility
Lecture
- Workshop BattleBattle! Game Balancing
Lab
- Workshop BattleBattle! Battle Royale
Assignments
- Digital Game Digital Prototype is due today!
- Digital Game Production due Friday 6/8
Wednesday 5/23
Reading
- Chapter 12: Team Structures
Lecture
- Lecture Computer Graphics
Lab
- Project Work on Sprint 1
Assignments
- Nothing new assigned or due.
Friday 5/25
Lecture
- Project Sprint 1 Checkins
Lab
- Project Sprint 1 Checkins
Assignments
- Nothing new assigned or due.
Week 9
Monday 5/28
Academic holiday - Memorial Day observed
Wednesday 5/30
Reading
- Chapter 13: Stages of Development
Lecture
- Workshop Prisoner's Dilemma
- Video Juice it or Lose it
Lab
- Project Work on Sprint 2
Assignments
- Nothing new assigned or due.
Friday 6/1
Lecture
- Project Sprint 2 Checkins
Lab
- Project Sprint 2 Checkins
Assignments
- Nothing new assigned or due.
Week 10
Monday 6/4
Class was cancelled
Wednesday 6/6
Lecture
- Project Playtesting Session
Lab
- Project Playtesting Session
Assignments
- Nothing new assigned or due.
Friday 6/8
Reading
- Chapter 15: Understanding the Game Industry
- Chapter 16: Selling Yourself and Your Ideas to the Game Industry
Lecture
- Lecture Game Genres
- Lecture Virtual Reality
Lab
- Project Sprint 3 Checkins
Assignments
- Digital Game Production is due today!
- Digital Game Design Document is due today!
Finals Week
Monday 6/11
Final Project Displays: Monday 6/11 10:10am - 1:00pm