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IMGD 2900 Digital Game Design I

IMGD 2900 Digital Game Design I. Class 1: Thursday 10.25. Today’s topics. Class orientation Course design and rationale An abstract microgame engine Assignments 1-3. What this class is not. A course in building [genre] games A course in “level design” A course in game programming

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IMGD 2900 Digital Game Design I

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  1. IMGD 2900Digital Game Design I Class 1: Thursday 10.25

  2. Today’s topics Class orientation Course design and rationale An abstract microgame engine Assignments 1-3

  3. What this class is not A course in building [genre] games A course in “level design” A course in game programming A course in creating game assets A course in writing design documents Easy

  4. What this class is Lehr und kunst Creatively challenging Fun

  5. Course structure A semi-studio course In-class: Lectures, demos, discussion, playtesting, critiquing, journaling Out-of-class: Projects (many) and more journaling

  6. Course structure You will be designing and building games. Lotsof them. You willbe programming, but only game logic, no hard math, graphics or 3D. You will not be producing any art (well, maybe one or two pieces).

  7. Final exam Last day of class (12.13) Based solely on in-class lectures Take notes in your journal or fail

  8. Recommended background IMGD 1000, Critical Studies IMGD 1001, Game Dev Process CS 1101 / 1102, Intro to Program Design or CS 110X, Intro to Programming for Non-Majors

  9. Things you require

  10. Books I recommend

  11. Course web site users.wpi.edu/~bmoriarty/imgd2900/ Complete official syllabus Updated course calendar Announcements Detailed assignments Electronic texts and documentation Other useful resources Use is essential and required

  12. Student assistant Owen Leach (oleach@wpi.edu) Available in IMGD Lab every Wednesday (1 – 3 pm) Also available in IMGD Lab tomorrow (Friday, 10 – 11 am) Always available via email

  13. Attendance Absolutely required 4+ classes missed = Automatic NR Email me ASAP if you will miss class Do not attend with flu/plague symptoms

  14. Grading Basic course objectives met = B Extraordinary effort, creativity = A Most objectives met adequately = C See course Web site for assigment weightings

  15. Emergencies I will announce cancellations by email as far in advance as possible Class is officially canceled if I am not here by 1:15 pm

  16. Courtesy Arrive at class on time Turn off phones and audio devices No distracting PC / laptop / mobile apps No extraneous conversations

  17. Academic honesty Do you own work Read and understand WPI policy Breach of ethics = Automatic NR

  18. Disabilities Visit the Disability Service Office See me ASAP

  19. Office hours Tuesdays Noon - 1 pm and 3 - 4 pm Thursdays 10 - 11 am By appointment: bmoriarty@wpi.edu Anytime door is open (often) Location: Salisbury 211 (IMGD Suite)

  20. Assignment 01 Choose a project partner Exactly twopeople per team Name your team Sit together for rest of course

  21. Assignment 01 (cont.) Make a team Web page Must include: Name of project team Names/logins of team members Link to main .html file of each project, beginning with Assignment 03 Must be readily accessible No password, subscription, malware

  22. Team Boring Mark Lazy (mlazy) Mary Idle (midle) Stupid Toyby Mark Lazy Lame Puzzleby Mary Idle

  23. Dissolving a team Before Class 6 (Monday 11.12) Set up a meeting with me All team members must attend Defend and negotiate Soloists are strongly discouraged and get no mercy!

  24. Assignment 02 Begin and maintain a creative journal Bring your journal to every class Submit on last day of class Used to decide edge grading cases

  25. Journal requirements Write your name on cover or first page Use frequently, and dateevery entry During or after every class After every reading assignment During or after every team meeting At least one substantial item per entry Be legible Nothing too private

  26. A vocabulary ofgame design Why bother? Lehr.

  27. Today’s vocabulary Play Toy Game Design Designer Game Designer

  28. What is play?

  29. What is play?“Work consists of whatever a body is obliged to do, and play consists of whatever a body is not obliged to do.” Mark Twain

  30. What is play?“Work consists of whatever a body is obliged to do, and play consists of whatever a body is not obliged to do.” Mark TwainSuperfluous action

  31. What is a toy?

  32. What is a toy?Something thatelicits play

  33. What is a game?

  34. What is a game?A toy with rulesand a goal

  35. What is design?What is a designer?

  36. What is design?What is a designer? The process by which a designer creates a context to be experienced by a participant, from which meaning emerges.Designers create meaningful experience contexts.

  37. What is a game designer? Play = Superfluous action Toy = Something that elicits play Game = Toy with a rules and a goal Designer = Creator of meaningful experience contexts Game designer = Creator of meaningful experience contexts which elicit superfluous action with rules and a goal

  38. Designers learn bydesigning Designers learn best by directly experiencing the contexts they create. Kunst. Practice.

  39. Designers learn byiteration “Learning how to design iteratively is the single most important skill that a game design student can learn.” Salen & Zimmerman

  40. Game design is asecond-order problem As a game designer, you can never create the play experience, only the context that elicits it. The playerscreate the experience.

  41. Problem #1 Overwhelming preoccupation with production and presentation issues. Little focus on activity design. “The content of a game is its behavior, not the media that streams out of it towards the player.” Hunicke, LeBlanc, Zubek

  42. Problem #2 Game designers don’t get enough kunst. Not enough completed projects, too much time spent on each project. “Your first ten games always suck.” How to quickly get to Game Eleven?

  43. Problem #3 Digital game behavior is defined by code. “All desired user experience must bottom out, somewhere, in code.” Hunicke, LeBlanc, Zubek “Game designers” are losing touch with code; little actual authority.

  44. A tool for teachingfunctional game design Focus on rapid prototyping and iteration, expressed in real industrial code Usable by non-engineers: No advanced math, graphics, 3D, etc Usable by non-artists: No asset creation or pipeline issues

  45. A tool for teachingfunctional game design Industry-standard scripting language Small enough to run on a phone Powerful enough to make interesting, significant games Cloud-based, automatic updates

  46. Perlenspiel 2 An abstract microgame engine www.Perlenspiel.org

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