MFC4113 - Game On

Objectives:

Assessment tasks are designed to enable students to demonstrate the Learning and Employability outcomes for the relevant level of study. Level Learning Outcomes are embedded in the assessment task(s) at that level. This enables a more integrated view of overall student performance at each level.

Content:

This module introduces students to core concepts of play and games, game art and game engine skills, developing their knowledge and understanding of theories and exploring their practical implementation. With a strong focus on non-digital games at first, students will, through playing and reflecting on games, identify different types of games, mechanics, areas of play, rules and themes. Students will take part in design activities – designing levels, game design challenges and eventually putting together a design for a playable game prototype.

Students will start to develop their 3D modelling and game engine skills and knowledge, working on props and preparing them for the game engine pipeline, then making use of them as assets in a game engine. Students will follow an industry workflow to create a game ready asset and take it into a game engine.

Learning and Teaching Information:

Lectures
Hours: 20
Intended Group Size: Cohort

Workshops
Hours: 20
Intended Group Size: Cohort

Games and Playthroughs
Hours: 20
Intended Group Size: Cohort

Guided independent study
Hours: 240

Further Details Relating to Assessment

Assessment tasks are designed to measure the extent to which you have satisfied the Level Learning Outcomes for your programme. Some modules, for example where there are professional body (PSRB) requirements, will also test for module-specific skills and knowledge.

Artefact: Design a playable game
Students will create a playable game prototype. This will be an analogue game - e.g. a board game or card game, etc. Incremental stages of this assessment will include things such as reflecting on and analysing games they have played, creating demos individually and in teams and peer reviewing them to refine their work and finally creating a small playable game. Students will apply the theory that they have explored through the semester and take advantage of play-testing each other’s designs to iterate on their ideas.

Portfolio of Game Assets
Students will spend the first half of the semester learning the fundamentals of 3D modelling to enable them to create a computer game prop/asset - this could range from a simple collection of crates to a more complex model of a building. In the second part of the semester, following industry workflows, they will investigate game engine basics, to be able to take their prop in to a game engine, apply lighting and textures and present there as part of a game level. The specific outputs for the portfolio will be negotiated between the tutor and the student and the number of outputs will be determined by the complexity of the assets.

Formative assessment will take place early on in the semester and involve analysis of game play.

In Games Design classes, formative assessment serves to bolster the skills essential for module completion and success. This includes engaging in practical computer lab workshops, undertaking design and modelling tasks, delivering case study presentations, writing essays, completing short quizzes and conducting specific investigation tasks. The provision of formative feedback is integrated seamlessly into class sessions, ensuring an ongoing and iterative process to enhance learning outcomes. This will provide ample opportunities for feedback and feed forward to students before their assignments.

Further details of assessment are available in the Assessment Handbook for your programme and in Assessment Briefs provided by Module Tutors.

Assessment:

001 Artefact: Design a playable game, End of Semester 1 50%
002 Portfolio of Game Assets, End of Semester 1 50%

Fact File

Module Coordinator - Tim Balmforth
Level - 4
Credit Value - 30
Pre-Requisites - NONE
Semester(s) Offered - 4S1

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