| Game of Life NMIC 393, FMA 393 Spring 2005 Professor Hana Iverson h.iverson@temple.edu Professor Sarah Drury sdrury@temple.edu Tuesday, 10am-2pm AH 222 |
| Description This class will look at gaming structures and how they create a “universe”, including a consideration of social interaction on the web, and the ways our lives and our media operate interactively. How can observation and participation in everyday gaming structures be translated into the notion of an interface? Reviewing a broad sample of work that demonstrates media collaborations across the fields of journalism , television, new media, and theatre, and both traditional and electronic games. Students will be given assignments and readings to provoke analysis of digital environments, to explore interactive narrative, and to inspire the creation of an interactive universe of their own construction. The final assignment will be to create the prototype of a game that other people can play that creates an interface in real or virtual space (or a combination thereof). Students will work in a broad array of material and media platforms; different software applications will be discussed as formal issues arise from the work presented. The documentation of the final projects will become an on-line portfolio for the class. |
Goals of the Course The purpose of this course is to use the elements of our individual worlds—on a personal and social level—and to discern game structures within those elements. In thinking about how to create an interface, we will consider what engages each individual and how to extend that engagement to the notion of interactivity. The study of game structures will extend to group process in framing projects for group participation. Students will be asked to work both individually and in teams, and to create short games on the way to a final project prototype. In addition to individual and group projects, students will be asked to demonstrate their integration of the material presented through writing assignments and class critique. Students will be expected to attend all classes as active participants in both class exercises and dialogue.On-line Access All students are expected to have frequent, dependable access to the internet, with a printer attached. In addition, it is essential that each student have an active Temple e-mail account, for email with the teachers and with each other, and for access to the class Blackboard site. If you have any difficulties with either Internet access with printer or your Temple e-mail account, please see either teacher after the first class. |
| On-line resources Online resources (readings, links and downloads) can be found on Blackboard. The web site will grow over the course of the semester. |
| Instructor Contact The best way to reach the professors is by email. We generally check our email several times a day and therefore will respond quickly. If you want to make an appointment to meet, please use email to do so. Even though there will be a sign up sheet on Prof. Iverson’s and Prof. Drury’s office door, a sign-up appointment will not be confirmed until you have sent an email and received a reply. |
| Readings Required Text:Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals, by Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman, MIT Press, 2003. $49.50. This book can be purchased online new or used. Students should order the book immediately. Other readings will be provided online |
| Class Participation This is a project based class and project completion will carry a major weight in assessing the student’s progress. Although there are relatively few writing assignments for this course, they should be treated seriously and handed in on time. In-class presentations and overall student participation are an essential part of the process of understanding and integrating the material. Every effort will be made to help prepare students for formal presentations and to facilitate informal participation. Therefore participation is an important factor in assessing the student’s grade. |
| Attendance and Lateness Policy Attendance Policy: Three or more absences will affect your grade. Five absences will result in a failing grade for the course. If you are going to be absent, please inform BOTH teachers by email at least 24 hours in advance. ABOVE ALL< KEEP BOTH OF US INFORMED BY EMAIL. If you are absent, it is YOUR responsibility to contact another student for the class notes from that day, and to make up any work in a timely fashion.Lateness Policy: 3 latenesses of up to 10 minutes will be counted as an absence. Being more than 10 minutes late will be counted as an absence. If you are late, it is your responsibility to let the teachers know when you come into class that you are here, and to make sure you have been marked as present. |
| Grading Research, attendance and participation: 25% Short assignments: 15% Writing assignments: 15% Mid-Term Project: 20% Final Project: 25% |