Foundations of Game Design 1a: Introduction
Does your love of video games motivate you to pursue a career in this field? Pursue your passion by learning about the principles of game design through the stages of development, iterative process, critiques, and game development tools. Put these new skills to work by designing your own game!
Units at a Glance
Unit 1: The Evolution of Gaming
Whether you’re new to gaming or are a seasoned professional, you might be surprised to learn that its beginnings reach back much further than Pac-Man or Pong. In fact, humans have played “games” since the dawn of time! In this unit, you’ll learn about the history of gaming as we know it and then jump right into the action with the Unity game engine.
What will you learn in this unit?
- Describe common elements of games
- Summarize the evolution of video games through the generations of consoles
- Explain how changing technology is affecting the industry
- Analyze the impact of the video game design industry on society
- Demonstrate appropriate knowledge and use of industry-standard software
- Install and navigate Unity
Unit 2: What’s in a Game?
Video games can put you in the driver’s seat of a rally car, shrink you down to the size of a mouse, or dispatch you to a mythical mountain to overcome a wizard and steal a dragon’s treasure. You may even have to mimic certain rhythms or dance steps to emerge victorious. No matter what type of video game is at the top of your most-played list, it is sure to make use of six critical elements, creating the unique blend of fun and challenge that keeps you coming back for more. Learning how to use these elements to create a totally immersive and engaging video game will be your introduction to becoming a successful game designer.
What will you learn in this unit?
- Define what a game is and name the six parts of a game
- Give examples of how specific game elements work together to form specific kinds of player experiences that drive different kinds of fun
- Identify the source of “fun” in games and apply this knowledge to evaluate the success of a game’s design
- Distinguish the differences between large corporate design studios and independent studios
- Evaluate and review an existing game
Unit 3: Approaches to Game Design
Whether you’re a solo indie developer or work for a massive game studio, there are some common roles and steps in the game design process. Let’s look at what it takes to make game design a business. Because much of the game design process is performed online, we’ll also cover how we can keep ourselves and our data safe online.
What will you learn in this unit?
- Identify the roles on a game design team
- Discuss soft skills as they relate to game design teams
- Apply appropriate design production techniques
- Identify ethical responsibilities with regard to copyright and infringement
- Implement personal and professional safety rules and regulations
Unit 4: From Idea to Reality
In this unit, we’ll discuss the various ways to identify your audience and tailor your scripts and gameplay to that audience. We’ll work together to create a game world from scratch, sculpting hills and mountains, painting grass and rocks, and eventually creating our first prototype environment! Then, we’ll test out some of Unity’s own gameplay controllers, letting us quickly get started making first-person and third-person games.
What will you learn in this unit?
- Describe how to write a story for use in a video game
- Identify and discuss Unity landscapes and lighting
- Explain how game components, subsystems, and interfaces contribute to game design
- Test and customize gameplay using first- and third-person game controllers within Unity
Unit 5: Visual Design and Typography
A lot of thought and planning goes into creating the visual elements of a game. Design principles have been adapted from traditional art to provide unique and interesting applications within the realm of game development. You’ll learn how to use color theory and typography to convey not only stylistic tone but also emotion within the player.
What will you learn in this unit?
- Understand the elements of design and how they relate to gaming
- Explain each principle of design and how it relates to video design
- Describe how color theory can be used to evoke emotion in the player
- Understand the anatomy of typography and the common pitfalls to avoid
- Design a prototype start menu scene in Unity with both diegetic and non-diegetic text
Unit 6: Level Up!
In this unit, we’ll continue our dev adventures by creating a level blockout in Unity! We’ll design our level with specific mechanics and functionality in mind. Then, we’ll move right into programming that functionality into the scene. Besides exploring scenario development, levels, and mission flow, you’ll get a chance to design some of the mechanics that go into these by using events, listeners, triggers, and more!
What will you learn in this unit?
- Explain how character archetypes and backstory factor into the game design process
- Identify the three elements of a level blockout and explain how they relate to scenario development
- Describe a game loop and how it pertains to mission design
- Understand some of the basic elements of C# coding, including functions, events, and triggers
- Design and code the main menu for a Unity game project
Unit 7: Programming in Game Design
While it takes a wide range of talents and skills to design a game, one of the most prominent skills in game development is game programming. Game programming is the creation of the code used to put all of the audio, art, models, and interactions together! This unit will get you started on your programming journey by demonstrating C# coding techniques in Unity. You’ll learn about programming terms, basic coding skills, and how to apply these concepts to your projects.
What will you learn in this unit?
- Compare and contrast common programming languages and the fields in which they are used
- Explain how collision detection is a basic component of game design
- Apply collision detection to objects and enable physics interactions
- Define the basic building blocks of programming with C#
Unit 8: Branding and Packaging
In this unit, we’ll look at the skills and knowledge required for launching your game development career. From creating an impressive online portfolio to understanding the intricacies of game development beyond the prototype stage, this unit covers a broad spectrum of topics crucial for your professional growth. You will learn how to package and distribute a playable game, manage budgets and resources, and explore different career paths within the game design industry. By the end of this unit, you will have a more complete understanding of what it takes to present yourself and your work professionally in the competitive world of game development.
What will you learn in this unit?
- Explain the importance of an online portfolio as a job search tool
- Create an online portfolio using a WYSIWYG web editor
- Outline how to find employment in the game design industry
- Describe how budgets and human resources are involved in game design projects
- List the steps for playtesting a game
- Build and package a playable game for the Windows operating system
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