Course Descriptions

GAME Course Descriptions

• GAME 150 INTRODUCTION TO GAME DESIGN (3)

  Covers beginning concepts in game studies, theory and non-digital game design. Topics will be applied to the production of game and simulation development projects. Note: Additional lab time outside of class may be required to complete course projects. Lab fee required. [AH]

• GAME 160 GRAPHICS FOR GAME DESIGN (3)

  Introduces 2-D computer graphics, including image generation, capture and processing. Particular emphasis on applications to interactive multimedia and computer game design. Provides basis for further study in 3-D graphics. Note: Additional lab time outside of class may be required to complete course projects. Laboratory fee required.

• GAME 250 GAME SCRIPTING (3)

  Advances a student's knowledge of game software design by examining advanced functions, variable types, software design tools and programming concepts. Expands upon materials covered in COSC150: Introduction to Game Design while also introducing students to more complex types of data and programming structures. Introduces students to the software design process and focuses on developing good software design habits as well as advanced knowledge of programming techniques. By the end of the course, students are able to implement more fully their game design ideas in a software prototype. Lab fee required Prerequisite: COSC 150 or equivalent.

• GAME 260 INTRODUCTION TO 3D GRAPHICS (3)

  Introduces students to modeling,texturing, lighting, rendering and simple animation using industry-standard tools. Provides a foundation for further work with sophisticated 3-D imaging tools. Additional lab time outside of class may be required to complete course projects. Lab fee required. Pre or co-requisite: GAME 160, CMAT 212 or equivalent

• GAME 315 PROGRAMMING FOR INTERACTIVE DESIGN (3)

  An introduction to object-oriented computer programming framed in the technical aspects of game programming. The course covers variables, control structures, functions, arrays, data types, classes, inheritance and polymorphisms. Students apply these concepts to build a series of small games. Laboratory fee required. Prerequisite: GAME 250 or equivalent and Simulation and Game Design major.

• GAME 320 GAME CONCEPT AND DESIGN (3)

  An advanced exploration of the practice of game design. Students learn both game design theory and best practices to build an understanding of how gameplay is constructed and shaped. Develop practical game creation experience through rapid prototyping exercises, theoretical design problem-solving, and semester-long guided design projects. Lab fee required. Prerequisite: COSC 150 [GD]

• GAME 324 DESIGNING FOR HUMANS (3)

  Introduces key concepts of human/computer interaction, including how humans interact with technology to find and process information. It also introduces the concepts of systematic software testing to students of applied information technology and students of interactive simulation and computer gaming. Students learn principles of interface and software construction and apply them to practical problems of software or game evaluation in the process of learning principles that underlie good interaction and play design. Readings cover theory of human/computer interaction, interaction design and usability testing. Laboratory fee required. Corequisite WRIT 300. [IL]

• GAME 330 GAMES FOR LEARNING (3)

  Conveys the skills necessary for students to begin a career in instructional video game design. Expands on previous game design courses but focuses on the creation of serious games for adult and child learning. At the end of the course, students design, develop and test a working prototype of a video game for learning. Lab fee required. prerequisite: COSC 150 or equivalent, by permission of the program director

• GAME 370 LEVEL DESIGN (3)

  Builds on an existing understanding of game design concepts, scripting and 3-D asset creation and provides students with the opportunity to apply this to advanced level design utilizing professional tool sets. Projects are team based and emulate industry best practices using a current 3-D game engine. lab fee required, prerequisites: COSC 150, GAME 250, and GAME 260 or their equivalents

• GAME 380 ADVANCED TOPICS IN ART AND ANIMATION (3)

  Focuses on the development of 2D art and animation skills, and their application to real-time simulations and games. Projects creatively apply an advanced understanding of traditional 2D art and animation techniques to the creation of portfolio-quality work. Students develop a sensibility and vocabulary to critique 2D art and animation. NOTE: Additional lab time outside of class may be required to complete course projects. Prerequisites: GAME 160 or CMAT 212.

• GAME 390 GAME JOURNALISM (3)

  Focuses on building the reporting and writing skills needed to write game reviews and other video game-related news articles. Students regularly practice writing game-related pieces and develop their critical analysis skills through peer review; they are expected to learn through practice, peer review and review of existing published works. Topics covered include: What is journalism and how does game journalism differ? How do the elements of video games translate to written works, and how does one translate game concepts to a general reading audience? Lab fee required. prerequisite: COSC 150 and WRIT 300

• GAME 402 INTERACTIVE NARRATIVE (3)

  Covers advanced principles of creating interactive narrative experiences, from creative writing to storyboarding and interaction design. Focuses on examples of successful and experimental interactive narrative from across media, including video games,electronic literature, interactive fiction and gamebooks. lab fee required. prerequisites: COSC 150 and WRIT 300

• GAME 405 THE BUSINESS OF GAME DEVELOPMENT (3)

  Examines the past, present and future of the video game industry, with an emphasis on business organizations and practices that have evolved along with the medium. Particular attention is given to opportunities and requirements for new ventures in games and other areas of interactive design. Laboratory fee required.

• GAME 407 SOCIAL MEDIA AND GAMES (3)

  Examines games and simulations as systems designed for common use and collaboration and the ways non-game social media can promote markets for digital entertainment. Theoretical approaches are compared to current implementations and tested in one or more limited practical experiments. Laboratory fee required. Prerequisites: GAME 320 and WRIT 300

• GAME 408 HISTORY OF VIDEO GAMES (3)

  This course surveys the history of video games, from the first experiments in the decades following World War II, to the current era of consoles and network games. Despite being a relatively recent medium, video games have already undergone significant evolution from their earliest roots. We will be examining these transformations in terms of art, narrative, graphics, audio and game mechanics. Throughout the course, we will position these trends within the cultural roles games have played and speculate on the future of the form. Lab fee required. Prerequisite: COSC 150 and WRIT 300

• GAME 410 INTERMEDIATE 3D ART AND PRODUCTION (3)

  Improves an existing understanding of 3-D modeling, texturing and animation for interactive simulation applications, including scenic and character design for computer games. Practical assignments allow students to advance skills in industry-standard programs (e.g., 3D Studio and Maya). Readings, critical examples and visits from industry experts provide broader contexts for skills. Laboratory fee required. prerequisite: GAME 260

• GAME 415 CODING TOOLS FOR DESIGNERS (3)

  Teaches programmers to create modular tools for other team members, including non-programming game designers. Tools may consist of components, kits, macros, level editors and other augmentations for game engines. Programmers apply design knowledge to analyze and develop for a specialized set of end user needs. Through an iterative development process, students apply solid principles of user interaction design to create tools that are intuitive. Prerequisite: GAME 315

• GAME 418 DESIGN OF MULTIPLAYER GAMES (3)

  Examines the design principles and challenges underlying games and interactive simulations designed to be used collaboratively or in situations of simultaneous use, from multiplayer console games to massively multiplayer Internet games and their associated virtual communities. Assignments include development of modules or levels for popular multiplayer games and systematic study of Internet game communities. Laboratory fee required. Prerequisite: GAME 250

• GAME 420 ADVANCED 3D ART AND PRODUCTION (3)

  Builds on 3-D design concepts learned in COSC 260: Introduction to 3-D Graphics and COSC 410: 3-D Modeling to explore cutting-edge, industry-standard techniques for the creation of 3-D game graphics and animation. Projects focus on emerging technologies and practices and on optimization of models for real-time simulations. Students are required to apply creatively an advanced understanding of 3-D modeling to portfolio- quality work. Additional lab time outside of class may be required to complete course projects. Laboratory fee required. Prerequisite: GAME 260, GAME 410 or their equivalents

• GAME 425 GAMES CRITICISM (3)

  An analysis and critique of the games medium, through the lens of a rotating area of focus. Students will gain a broadly foundational understanding of the theory and practice of media and arts criticism before applying that skill set in performing critical analysis of games within a selected domain (such as genres, specific creators, historical eras, etc.). Critical projects will consistently involve analytical writing, and may also include multimedia work, presentations or creative projects relevant to the course topic as well. This course will aid students in building a critical vocabulary to communicate about the games medium in an effective way.

• GAME 430 TOPICS IN TECHNICAL ART (3)

  Revolving topics focusing on technical art skills, and their application in a team-based setting where artists collaborate with other developers. Students will learn and apply one or more skill sets such as (but not limited to) advanced rigging and skinning, scripting of shaders or 3D software extensions, designing systems for artists and animators, and integrating art assets into a game engine. Projects require the creative and technically-sound application of these skills, and work will be assessed for both aesthetic qualities and technical proficiency. NOTE: Additional lab time outside of class will be required to complete course projects. This course may be repeated for up to six credit hours when the topic changes. Lab fee required. Prerequisites: GAME 250 and GAME 260.

• GAME 435 GAMES, CULTURE, AND SOCIETY (3)

  Explores the relationship between games, culture and society. Students will be introduced to foundational theory for understanding how the games medium participates in and influences relationships between people and their understanding of the world, before applying those theories in directed analysis of a specific domain (such as history of the medium, social media, etc.). Critical projects will involve analytical writing, and may include multimedia work, presentations or creative projects as well. This course will help students to understand the impact games have on the world at large.

• GAME 440 FRONTIERS OF GAME DESIGN (3)

  Focuses on one or more emerging technologies or practices likely to shape the video game industry in the next three to five years. Students both investigate the history and rationale of the innovation and develop practical experiments or proofs of concept indicating possible applications. Laboratory fee required. GAME 250 or GAME 315 or equivalent, and Simulation and Game Design major.

• GAME 445 PRACTICAL GAME PROGRAMMING (3)

  Builds upon existing knowledge students have acquired to introduce production environment programming concepts and habits. Examines common programming techniques used in a business environment, which may include program modeling, unit testing, and/or advanced programming patterns. The course will take an application-based approach to understanding the fundamental problems of working in a complex programming environment which requires teamwork and integration of code across multiple levels. Laboratory fee required. Prerequisite: GAME 315

• GAME 450 SGD INTERNSHIP (1 - 3)

  Provides students with hands-on work experience in applied simulation and game development. Students may arrange placement with an external organization, subject to written approval by the instructor and an official of the organization. Alternatively, students may participate in an in-house project managed by the instructor. In the latter case, students attend regular class meetings as part of their project work. Students may earn up to 3 credits for this course and it may be repeated for credit. Laboratory fee required.

• GAME 469 GAME DEVELOPMENT PROJECT I (3)

  Constitutes the first part of the capstone experience in the Simulation and Game Design major. Students work through design assignments to practice project management and team coordination. Students also research and propose individual project concepts, some of which are selected for group development as the final course project and for further work in Game Development Project II. Laboratory fee required. prerequisites: Simulation and Game Design major with senior status, GAME 320, GAME 260 and GAME 250. For those in the Coding and Development Track, GAME 315. For those in the Technical Art track, GAME 410. pre- or corequisite: COSC 155 [CAP]

• GAME 470 GAME DEVELOPMENT PROJECT II (3)

  Provides the capstone experience for students in the Simulation and Game Design major. Working with faculty and visiting industry experts, students propose a concept for a computer game or applied interactive simulation, developing that concept over the course of the semester through several stages of specification and prototyping. Theoretical readings and critical studies of existing games provide insight and context. Final prototypes are presented publicly at the end of the course. Lab fee required. prerequisite: GAME 469 and Simulation and Game Design major with senior status. [OC] [CAP]

• GAME 477 COMMUNITY -FOCUSED GAME DESIGN (3)

  Students collaborate with the community to build a game focused on solving a problem or addressing a community need. Possible projects can incorporate a range of digital and communication skill sets and might include physical games (card,board), alternate or augmented reality, browser-based games, simulations or other forms as appropriate to the project. Lab fee required. prerequisite: COSC 150

• GAME 497 TOPICS IN SIMULATION AND GAME DESIGN (3)

  Intensive exploration of topics in simulation and game development of mutual interest to faculty and students. Content varies according to the current interests of faculty and students. The topic for study appears under that name in the class schedule. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes. Laboratory fee required.

• GAME 499 INDEPENDENT STUDY (1 - 3)

  The pursuit of independent study under the supervision of a full-time faculty member. The number of credits to be earned is determined by the supervising faculty member before the study begins. Students may earn up to 3 credits for this independent study. Laboratory fee required. prerequisite: varies; see class schedule or instructor