Game Demo
Final Project
Overview
Over the course of the semester, you (and optionally a team) are tasked with conceptualizing, designing, prototyping, and pitching a video game. The game does not need to be large, overly complex, or even fun; after all we only have limited time during the semester to work on it. The game can be 2D or 3D, any genre, and any subject matter of your choosing, but be sure to be "school" appropriate (university appropriate, really). Additionally, you will formalize your game and pitch in the form of a design document and final presentation.
Here is a list of the major components of the project and their weighting on the final grade for the course (due dates can be found here):
- 0% - Team declaration
- 10% - Concept presentation
- 5% - Monthly progress check points
- 5% - Weekly progress journal
- 10% - Demo presentation
- 20% - Design document
Team Declaration
First, please email the instructor your team declaration. Teams can be maximum of three team members. However, if you would like a team of four or more, please discuss this with the instructor for approval. With the declaration of team members, also create a mock company name for your game pitch. Teams are listed here:
| Game | Company | Members |
|---|---|---|
| Green Banana | Banana Studios | Tracy Nguyen, David Qin, Paul Torre |
| Hazmateer | Benthic Games | Vincent Camp |
| Driftwood Harbor | Carbonated Games | Will Saada |
| Give Me Strength | Gold | Trevor LeForge |
| ? | Guan Games | Gil Guan |
| Arcade 101 | Insert Name Here | Sinan Kivanc |
| Godkiller | No Name Studios | Renae Taylor |
| Dungeon Defense | Numb Thumb Studio | Tuan Le |
| Quanta | Orion Games | Greg Bischoff |
| A Dicey Journey | Segment | Lawson Johnson |
| Kralambuja | SpyroTech | Doga Barsgan, Palmer Robins, Aaqil Zakarya |
| ? | Stormtrooper Studios | Noah Applebaum, Chris Cushman, Alec Justice |
| Edgevale | Vulcan Forge | Are Oelsner |
Concept Presentation
A week after team declaration, your game company will present the results of the conceptualization stage of design. Please make a short (2-3) slide presentation to show the class. Remember to be visual! Include the following types of design decisions:
- Code name for your project, company name, team members
- Base concept (how you will entertain and why it is a good experience)
- Genre
- Identify a similar game (note the difference)
- Define the audience
- Players role
- Essence of the play experience
- Concept art?
Monthly Progress Check Points
Twice during the semester in lab, I will formally check in with your team. At the check points your game should be in a playable state. You should be approximately one-sixth of the way done with your game at the first checkpoint (you will have quite a lot of learning to do in Unity). You should be approximately one-half of the way done with your game at the second checkpoint (menu system and primary gameplay mode implemented). These will be entirely completion points, zero or full credit.
Weekly Progress Journal
Each week you are to keep a journal of individual progress for this class. I will not remind you of the due-dates, but they are due each week before class on Wednesday. Please include the following in your journal entry for each week:
- Breakdown of hours spent on this class, e.g., class time, reading, programming, etc.
- Tutorials completed/Unity learned - here describe what new components of Unity you learned about. Give links to tutorials completed, and provide thoughts/reflections.
- Description of team progress - here describe overall progress the team made on game design and implementation.
- Description of individual progress - here describe specifically what you did in regards to the team progress. Of course, if you are a solo team you do not need this section.
- Some image in relation to this week, e.g., concept art or screen shot of current gameplay.
Demo Presentation
During the final exam slot, you and your team will pitch your game. Presentations should summarize the overall design choices made (your design document) and demo your game prototype. You have approximately 10 minutes for this presentation --- be sure to practice. Please submit the presentation and a separate zip file of your game to the instructor prior to the due date. Use the following to plan your presentation:
- 1 min - Game concept
- 1 min - Game world, story, and characters
- 1 min - Flowboard of game
- 1 min - User interfaces in the game
- 3 min - Game mechanics
- 3 min - Live game demo
Design Document
At the end of the semester, a design document will be due with your game prototype. There is no length requirement, but please have each component of the design document well thought out and well written using clearly demarcated sections, subsections, and subsubsections. Please separate the current implementation vs the ideal design as necessary to different subsections. Half-baked ideas and speedily written components will loose points. I will be grading on clarity, thoroughness, and completion (not on the quality of the design). Content of the sections should be determined from the reading. Also, remember to be visual — include lots of images! To submit, please email a PDF to the instructor prior to the due date. Please include the following components:
- Game Concept
- Market/Business
- Characters
- Game World
- User Interface
- Flowboard (description of game modes)
- Story/level progression
- Game script (rules and core mechanics of the game)
- References (any standard reference style, e.g., APA and be sure to include any and all online sources from which you took code from)
Here is the rubric. Additionally, significant points may be deducted per section of the rubric if there is not sufficient progress in the prototype implementation, e.g., no mechanics implemented or no UI provided — if you don't have the design backed up with an implementation this will become an issue and points will be deducted.
