Syllabus
January 28
- Introduction
- Research in Play: Candyland
- Steven Johnson's The Case Against Candyland
February 4
- Research in Play: Classic Board Games
- Explore BoardGameGeek
- Taylor: Chapter 1
- Blog Post #1: Childhood Multiplayer
February 11
- Research in Play: Munchkin
- Taylor: Chapter 2
- Blog Post #2: Report on Board Games
February 18
- Research in Play: Experimental Card Games
- Taylor: Chapter 3
- Blog Post #3: Cheating and "Sportsmanship"
February 25
- Class Cancelled!
- Blog Post #4: Elements of Game Design
March 4
- Doom and the First Person Shooter
- Morality in Gaming
- Rape in Cyberspace
- The Serenity Now incident
- Taylor: Chapter 4
- Blog Post #5: Moral Gaming
March 11
- Games in Popular Culture
- Midterm Review
- Taylor: Chapter 5
- Explanation for Multiplayer Game Presentation
March 18 - Spring Break
March 25 - Midterm Exam!
April 1
- Guest Speaker: Yvonne Shepard - social game developer
- Castronova: Chapter 1 and 2
- Blog Post #6: The "MMORPG" - first notes for MMO presentation, see main page for details
April 8: No Class! Submit your Final Project ideas
April 15
- In class reports: Multiplayer Worlds
- Research in Play: Spore and Little Big Planet
- Castronova: Chapter 3
- Blog Post #7: Future Thoughts: Imagine your "near-future." What will your job be in ten years? What will your friends' jobs be like? What will the governement be like? Will the Internet be the same, or very different? Who will have the most power in controlling your life, your neighborhood, your state, your country, your company? Will those things even be different from one another? Think realistically but imaginatively. Remember, ten years ago, most people would not have predicted the world you live in. As you are putting together your vision, make direct reference to Castronova's speculations about the future of virtual worlds. Do you agree or disagree? To what extent do you think your daily transactions will occur within virtual spaces? How will your job be impacted by the digital economy? Remember to acknowledge your citations.
April 22
- Considering Content
- Final Project Meetings
- Multiplayer Worlds Reports
- Castronova: Chapter 4 + 5
- Blog Post #8: Little Big Planet: Watch the Bruce Branit World Builder Video here. Consider the parallels between this interface and the Little Big Planet level builder. What are the similarities and differences? What appear to be the limits to the constructive possibilities in both toolsets? Look at videos of user created levels in LBG, like those on this list. Do they stretch the limits of the toolset? Do they, indeed, build a world?
April 29
- Research in Play: Wii Games
- Castronova: Chapter 8
- Multiplayer Worlds Reports
- Blog Post #9: Future Games: Consider your favorite genre of game. How do games in the genre rely on user-created content? How might they expand that usage in the future?
May 6
- Research in Play: Personal Games
- Castronova: Chapter 9 + 10
- Blog Post #10: Final Thoughts
- Multiplayer Worlds Reports
May 20: Final Projects Due!