CMS.611J | Fall 2014 | Undergraduate

Creating Video Games

Calendar

SES # TOPICS KEY DATES
1 Introduction; Guest Pablo Suarez (Red Cross/Red Crescent Climate Center); Game Engines; Meaningful Decisions in Games  
2 Project 1; Brainstorming and Low-Fidelity Prototyping Project 1 Out
3 Revision Control; Game Engines; Vision Statement Project 1 Playable Version Due for Playtesting
4 Project 2 Intro; Project 2 Elevator Pitches; Digital Prototypes; Project 2 Team Choice Project 1 Due, Project 2 Out
5 Agile Software Development Project 2: Vision Statement Due
6 Agile Project Management Project 2: Product Backlog Due
7 Quality Assurance; Playtesting by Genevieve Conley (Riot Games); Focus Testing Results Project 2: Sprint Tasklist Due
8 Project 2 Presentations; Project 3; Digital Prototype with User Interference Project 2 Due, Project 3 Out
9 Guest Lecture – Hidetaka “SWERY” Suehiro (Access Games)  
10 Project 3 Check-In; UI and Usability Project 3: HLDD, Project Backlog Due
11 Game Development and Best Practices by Tim Cowan (EA Games) Project 3: Sprint Tasklist Due
12 Project 3 Presentations; Project 4 Topics by Guest Pablo Suarez (Red Cross/Red Crescent Climate Center); Project 4 Brainstorming Project 3 Due, Project 4 Out
13 Project 4 Planning and Team Formation; Serious Games  
14 Aesthetics Project 4: HLDD Due
15 Freedoms of Play by Scot Osterweil (MIT Game Lab); Project 4 Playtesting; Project 4 Status Report  Project 4: Product Backlog, Sprint Tasklist, Low Fidelity Prototype Due
16 Team Dynamics  
17 Working with Artists by Luigi Guatieri  
18 Fiction and Narrative in Video Games Project 4 Playable Version Due for Playtesting
19 Working with Sound Designers by Richard Ludlow and Andy Forsberg (Hexany Audio) Project 4: Sprint Tasklist, Focus Test Report Due
20 Writing in Games by Heather Albano and Laura Baldwin Project 4: Sprint Tasklist Due
21 Guest Lecture: Blizzard Entertainment Project 4 Playable Version Due for Playtesting
22 Project 4 Check-in Presentations; Scope Project 4: Product Backlog, Sprint Tasklist, Focus Test Report Due
23 Project 4 Feedback; Team Discussions  
24 Running a Game Studio (Guest Lecture by Michael Carriere and Jenna Hoffstein of the Indie Game Collective) Project 4: Sprint Tasklist Due
25 Getting Players to Your Game by Sean Baptiste (Fire Hose Games)  
26 Final Presentation Rehearsal  
27 Final Presentations Project 4 Due
Learning Resource Types
Lecture Notes
Projects with Examples
Course Introduction
Lecture Videos
Instructor Insights