GoodGames Storyboard

Games: More than You’d Imagine. What’s in a Game? Who Makes Games? Are you Game? Animated icon Navigation icons, select individual parts of story Play Play’s the entire story Main Navigation Screen

More than you’d imagine: History of games Next / home button Navigation breadcrumbs

More than you’d imagine: Game Systems Next / home button Navigation breadcrumbs Console Games Serious Games Photo of D, PSP, cell phones Handheld Games PC Games Perhaps screen captures from Serious games?

More than you’d imagine: Game system: Console Games Next / home button Navigation breadcrumbs Cool factoids about speed up in console games ‘Did you know… ?!” Factoids on how powerful they are Media clip on the speed ? Analogy on advance rate to cars/planes Video clip

Next / home button Navigation breadcrumbs Cool factoids about MMOG’s ‘Did you know… ?!” How many ? Collaboration ? Video clip More than you’d imagine: Game system: PC Games

Navigation breadcrumbs See below More than you’d imagine: Game system: Handheld Games

More than you’d imagine: Game systems : Serious Games Next / home button Navigation breadcrumbs Games that teach (like the ibm game) Games that raise awareness. (darfur is dying) Other serious references

What is a Serious Game? Marries the play-based, exploratory, reward-based learning that occurs in games to a social, educational or communication mission. ex: America’s Army Darfur is Dying Façade Making History Re-Mission Marries the play-based, exploratory, reward-based learning that occurs in games to a social, educational or communication mission. ex: America’s Army Darfur is Dying Façade Making History Re-Mission

More than you’d imagine: Serious game engines Next / home button Navigation breadcrumbs Cool healthcare uses of game engines video

Game Dev. Stages The Idea The Pitch Proof of Concept Start of Development –Milestone 1 Alpha Beta Gold What’s in a Game: How a Game is Made Navigation breadcrumbs ConceptShip roles

Game Dev. Stages: The Idea Concept for a new game Clearly described: –Outlining the game world, characters, challenges –Lose-or-win scenarios, basic mechanics Becomes the pitch document –Gets the game accepted or rejected by the publisher Time: weeks to months or even years Personnel: Small core team or leads: creative director, lead designer, lead artist, lead writer What’s in a game: How a Game is Made Navigation breadcrumbs

The Pitch Idea presented to publisher (maybe manager, depending on game author) If idea captures interest, usually includes suggested revisions Idea is finally accepted Time: weeks What’s in a game: How a Game is Made Navigation breadcrumbs

Proof of Concept Designer gets budget to build a prototype –Will be thrown away before game done Game design expanded to larger document –Focusing on details of gameplay (play mechanics) –Avoid focusing too much on user interface Budget proposed –Including time and money Game will be developed using the prototype and the design document as guidance Not guaranteed to go to development yet –That determined by success of this stage Time to build prototype and design document: 2 to 3 months Personnel: Small core team or leads: Producer, creative director, lead designer, lead artist, lead writer lead programmer, may include additional members, level designers, other programmers, concept artist, animator, modelers. What’s in a game: How a Game is Made Navigation breadcrumbs

Start of Development Development team assembled –Uses design document that is 90% done Process broken into milestones –Milestones for measuring progress –Game is tested for gameplay and quality How many milestones are there? –Number depends on the size of the project Typically fixed from the beginning –Need to avoid urge to add features (creep) during milestone cycles! Time between milestones: about 2 months Personnel: Small core team or leads: Producer, creative director, lead designer, lead artist, lead writer lead programmer, Add production team: level designers, game programmers, hardware programmers, AI programmers, concept artist, 3D artists, animators, technical artists, modelers, testers, sound design, music composers What’s in a game: How a Game is Made Navigation breadcrumbs

Milestone 1 Most critical milestone Game should have functional (not complete) art, sound and code Can assess feasibility and budget –Make changes, as appropriate Then, rushes headlong into development! Time to complete this milestone: 2-3 months Personnel: Small core team or leads: Producer, creative director, lead designer, lead artist, lead writer lead programmer, Production team: level designers, game programmers, hardware programmers, AI programmers, concept artist, 3D artists, animators, technical artists, modelers, testers, sound design, music composers What’s in a game: How a Game is Made Navigation breadcrumbs

Alpha Lot of variation as to what is an Alpha Complete with Art, Sound and Code Not fully tested Some tuning, last minute additions and changes can still be done Time to achieve Alpha from last milestone: 1 month Personnel: Small core team or leads: Producer, creative director, lead designer, lead artist, lead writer lead programmer, Production team: level designers, game programmers, hardware programmers, AI programmers, concept artist, 3D artists, animators, technical artists, modelers, testers, sound design, music composers What’s in a game: How a Game is Made Navigation breadcrumbs

Beta Finished game, all features tested and tuned External testing to check compatibility issues Users play free of charge in exchange for reporting bugs (Hopefully) no changes to any art, sound or code –Only bug fixes Time to Beta from Alpha: 2 weeks Personnel: Producer, creative director, lead designer, may lose lead artist, lead writer lead programmer, Production team cut way back to a core testing and fixing team: programmers, 3D artist, designer, testers What’s in a game: How a Game is Made Navigation breadcrumbs

Gold Master Accepted as complete Includes known bugs (Time to Gold from Beta: one to two weeks.) Distribution Game is mass produced Put into boxes, shrink-wrapped and shipped to retailers (Time to shelves from Gold: 1 to 2 months) What’s in a game: How a Game is Made Navigation breadcrumbs

Who Makes Games? Next / home buttongame role links icon Navigation breadcrumbs

Who Makes Games? next / home button For Each Role: Possibly a picture/ with bio or media link Describe role? (link to the step) How much they earn. How many on a project (general terms) What other jobs can they do? What do they need to study? (link to the avatar thing) Navigation breadcrumbs

Plan and design Modelling Texturing Skin Weighting Skin Weighting Control Rigging Animation What’s in a Game: OR Who Makes Games next / home button Animation Stuff about the step what’s the goal What’s involved how hard Possibly an example who does it (link to role) Navigation breadcrumbs

Who Makes Games: Salary chart next / home button Navigation breadcrumbs Scientist Engineer Mathematician Finance Medical Dr. Political Scientists Lawyers General Managers CEO, Pilot Medical Dr. Astronomer Top 15 Professions Avg $ K Next 30 Professions Avg $82-108K $

Who Makes Games: Are You Game? Next / home buttongame role links icon Navigation breadcrumbs Game Programmer Producer Digital Artist Hardware Programming Math Art Writing History InterestsRoles Blah blah

Summary Next / home button Navigation breadcrumbs History Retell main points