CRN for Winter 2023: 16152
Dr. Joshua A. McCoy, Assistant Professor
Computer Science and Cinema and Digital Media Departments
Email: jamccoy at ucdavis dot edu
Office: 3033 Kemper Hall
Office Hours: TBA
http://joshmccoy.com
https://faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu/mccoy/
https://www.twitter.com/deftjams
https://www.twitch.tv/deftjamz
Meeting Time: Tuesdays and Thursdays at 10:00 AM - 12:50 PM in Cruess 1106
Final Examination Period: Tuesday, March 21 at 3:30pm
This course studies game platforms and their effect on development, design, the player, and the public. The domains of the class will be focused around video games including their design, development, and production while exploring platforms and their contexts through a holistic perspective Through developing a set of games in and for the Pico-8 platform, students will further their technical skills in procedural literacy, content and asset creation, development of gameplay systems, and problem solving in digital media. Alongside technical development, production methods (e.g. game design documents, team software development methodology, playtesting, etc.) will be required. Finally, students will communicate their games to the outside world through pitches, open play testing sessions, press kits, and making their game accessible on the internet.
A copy of Pico-8 (provided by CDM).
One of the Platform Studies Series of books depending on your workgroup (purchased by student).
- 20% Platforms Studies Presentation
- 30% Game 1
- Design Document
- Peer Review
- Code Review
- Game Critique
- Report
- 40% Game 2
- Pitch
- Design Document
- Peer Review
- Play Testing and Development Iteration
- Code Review
- Game Critique
- Publishing and Press Kit
- 10% Participation and Attendance
| Grade | Point Threshold |
|---|---|
| A | 95 |
| A- | 90 |
| B+ | 87 |
| B | 84 |
| B- | 80 |
| C+ | 77 |
| C | 74 |
| C- | 70 |
| D+ | 67 |
| D | 64 |
| D- | 60 |
| F | 0 |
The initial game project serves as an initial foray into Pico-8 development. The emphasis will be on making a playable prototype based on game pitch in small teams.
The second game project is most impactful activity in the course. In teams, students will work through a standard indie development cycle from pitch to beta. This includes concept pitches, game design documents, prototypes, alphas, betas, gameplay testing, critiques, demos, presentations, and code reviews. This project necessitates a significant commitment of time and engagement. The resulting beta versions of the games will be held to a high standard of qualtiy among serveral dimension including art, visual design, user interface, gameplay, and rhetoric.
Every students will work in a team to give a long-format presentation over one of the books in the MIT Platform Studies series. To do this, every member of the team must read the subject book and work as a team to give an presentation that communicates the main themes and inferences of their book. These groups will be formed in class and assigned a book to purchase, read, and present over.
| Week | Meeting 1 | Meeting 2 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Introduction to Video Game Environments Introduction to Platform Studies Introduction to Pico-8 Game Designer Card Excercise |
Basics of Lua Programming in Pico-8 Overview of Pico-8 Tools and Structure First Game |
| 2 | Sprites and Sprite Maps Pico-8 Building Blocks |
Pico-9 Sound Tutorial One Page Design Documents |
| 3 | Review Sound Carts Game 1 Studio |
Game Pitches Game 1 Check-in |
| 4 | Physics Systems Game 1 Due: Play and Report One Page Design Documents Dues |
Game 2 Pitches Due 16 Color Pixel Art Choosing Platform Studies Reading |
| 5 | Debugging | Economy of Tokens Collision Detection |
| 6 | Game 2 Teams Due Games and Rhetoric Game Design Workshop: Battle Battle |
Platform Studies 1 Game Design Workshop: Battle Battle |
| 7 | Game Engines vs Platforms | Platform Studies 2 Game 2 Prototype Due Game Design Workshop: MDA |
| 8 | Audio and Video Signals | Platform Studies 3 Game 2 Playtesting |
| 9 | Game 2 Alpha Due Audio Systems |
Platform Studies 4 Game 2 Workshop |
| 10 | Artificial Intelligence for Games Game 2 Workshop |
Platform Studies 5 Game 2 Beta Due Discussion About the Course Evaluations |
This course has no formal attendance policy. However, regular attendance is greatly recommended to be successful in the course as many of the class meetings will involve programming and one-on-one learning. If you expect to be consistently absent, please discussion the situation with your instructor.
The UC Davis Code of Academic Conduct (http://sja.ucdavis.edu/files/cac.pdf) will be strictly enforced in this class. In particular, plagiarism, academic dishonesty, and cheating will be dealt with severely. Any breach of the Code of Academic conduct can result in failing the assignment, failing the course, and displinary action via the Office of Student Support and Judicial Affairs (http://sja.ucdavis.edu/).
The use of laptops and technology in general are encouraged in this course as long as they are not disruptive to the rest of the class. If you choose to use a device with a screen, please sit in the back of the room to avoid distracting your fellow students. You are required to ask for permission before video or audio recording in the classroom. In general, students will be treated as adults capable of managing their technological lives while being respectful of others in the classroom.
Students are not permitted to make visual or audio recordings, including live streaming, of classroom lectures or any class related content, using any type of recording devices (e.g., smart phone, computer, digital recorder, etc.) unless prior permission from the instructor is obtained, and there are no objections from any of the students in the class. If permission is granted, personal use and sharing of recordings and any electronic copies of course materials (e.g., PowerPoints, formulas, lecture notes and any classroom discussions online or otherwise) is limited to the personal use of students registered in the course and for educational purposes only, even after the end of the course.
To supplement the classroom experience, lectures may be audio or video recorded by faculty and made available to students registered for this class. Faculty may record classroom lectures or discussions for pedagogical use, future student reference, or to meet the accommodation needs of students with a documented disability. These recordings are limited to personal use and may not be distributed (fileshare), sold, or posted on social media outlets without the written permission of faculty.
Unauthorized downloading, file sharing, distribution of any part of a recorded lecture or course materials. or using information for purpose other than the student's own learning is prohibited unless prior authorization is given by the instructor.