Course calendar:
| Opening days | Aug 21 4:00-5:30 Introductions to the class and to Willamette, game stories | Aug 22 1:30-3:00 Perusall assignment Salen and Zimmerman, The Magic Circle due Class topic: Gaming and college communities |
Aug 23 10:00-11:30 Exercise #1 due Class topic: Toolbox of game mechanisms |
| Week 1 | Aug 27: Perusall assignment Zimmerman, The Rules We Break Class topic: Game systems |
Aug 39: No assignments. Class topic: Brainstorming and prototyping |
| Week 2 | Sep 3: Exercise #2 due. Class topic: Brainstorming and prototyping continued |
Sep 5: Perusall assignment Koster, A Theory of Fun for Game Design |
| Week 3 | Sep 10: Perusall assignment Seymour: Hex, A Strategy Guide Class topic: Hex play and strategy Matthew Seymour's Hex puzzles |
Sep 12: Exercise #3 due. Class topic: Riftwalker play and strategy |
| Week 4 | Sep 17: Perusall assignment Pozzi and Zimmerman, Don't Follow These Rules Class topic: Playtesting and feedback |
Sep 19: Game design draft #1 due today! Class topic: Playtesting student designs |
| Week 5 | Sep 24: No assignments. Angie Hickman-Newnham class visit |
Sep 26: Perusall assignment on rules writing Class topic: Rules writing |
| Week 6 | Oct 1: Perusall assignment Caldwell, Alexander and Smith, and Hickey Class topic: meaning from games |
Oct 3: Perusall assignment DeKoven, The Well-Played Game |
| Week 7 | Oct 8: Exercise #4 due. Class topic: game revision workshop |
Oct 10: Game design draft #2 due today! Class topic: Playtesting student designs |
| Week 8 | Oct 15: No assignments. Jackson Tegu class visit. |
Oct 17: Perusall assignment Norman, The Design of Everyday Things
Class topic: Usability and universal design principles |
| Week 9 | Oct 22: Perusall assignment Johanson, Inkscape Ultimate Quickstart Class topic: Practice with Inkscape |
Oct 24: Perusall assignment Williams, The Non-Designer's Design Book Class topic: Graphic design principles part 1 |
| Week 10 | Oct 29: Exercise #5 due. Class topic: Graphic design principles part 2 |
Oct 31: Perusall assignment Narcisse, The Natural Class topic: Representation in games |
| Week 11 | Nov 5: Game design draft #3 due today! Class topic: Playtesting student designs |
Nov 7: Perusall assignment Anthropy, The Rise of the Videogame Zinesters Class topic: Personal stories in games, library tour |
| Week 12 | Nov 12: No assignments. Class topic: Work on final drafts |
Nov 14: Game design final draft due. Final game showcase today! |