Homework: Week 7. This link takes you to the homework assignment due at the beginning of the next class session.
Be sure to study up for the third exam next week (20 points) on the terms, concepts, and principles from the material presented in the Who Makes Games and How unit from Weeks 6 and 7 plus Chapters 10 and 11 of the course textbook (Game Development Essentials: An Introduction). Be sure to study the Lesson Review Sheets handed out in class and make sure you've read all the Required Reading material found in each week's assignment links.
About This Week's Lesson:
This week we conclude our fascinating two-part series that is a true 'survey of the game industry' by continuing our discussion of who does what in the game industry. In this installment, we look at the "Big Five" who labor in the trenches to create a game vision and turn it into a finished product. These include the designer / writers, artists, programmers, sound engineers, and producers. We also look at the all of the ancillary positions that fill up this great big boat we call "making games." We'll consider those who do licensing, marketing, sales, PR, etc. In short, everyone not covered in last week's lesson who affects the game industry is our subject this week. Although the game industry itself is not a role-playing game, there are a lot of roles to fill and a lot of players in them.
These links feature the supplemental material that you are responsible for knowing before the first exam (that takes place at the end of this week's class session). Be sure to click on every link in this section!
Article: Jobs in Video Game Development by Olivia Crosby
This three part article covers all the basic information, including some perspectives on skills, salaries, and risk. If you're seriously considering a career making computer games, you should read this.
Article: 2007 Game Developer's Salary Survey by CMP Media LLC
Want to know approximately what the job you're seeking pays? This wonderful little reality check filled with extremely useful charts and graphs will help definitely you decide if you're looking into the right career!
Article: Guidelines for Developing Successful Games by Bruce Shelly
Bruce's advice is sage wisdom, indeed. You'll want to know this material before coming to class next week to finish your brainstorming.
Article: The Right Decision at the Right Time: Selecting the Right Features for a New Game Project by Pascal Luban
This is another article that is worth struggling through before class next week. It will help focus your decision about what features should and shouldn't be in your original game proposal and why. Caution: it is very analytical.
These supplemental links are worth pursuing only if you are seriously interested in working in the game business and want to know about it in the broadest possible sense. This material will not be directly included in the exams, but if you're serious about delving deeply into the subject of game production, here's some more lessons from others who have also "been there."
Article: Entry-Level Video Game Designers by Jill Duffy
Can you get an entry-level job as a game designer? For all you aspiring video game creators who have been told you need to break into the industry elsewhere before stepping into the design department, read on...
Article: Developer Working Conditions Hide a Cancer in the Games Industry from Rob Fahey
As a developer working for Vivendi Universal Games attempts to take a class action against his employers for unpaid overtime, the industry should look closely at the working conditions of creative staff - and ask what they mean for project planning and the bottom line, says Rob Fahey.
Article: My "Next" Games: Families, Psychology, and Murder by Ernest Adams
If you need some ideas for pitching the 'next' thing in games, here's some thoughts from industry design luminary Ernest Adams on the kinds of games he wishes he could make.
Article: Women over 40 biggest online gamers by Ben Berkowitz
Take note! Perhaps this is a game market you should be exploiting?
Article: A Primer on Industry Analysts by Ben Calica
Who are these guys and why does everyone think they're so gosh darn important?
Bibliography: Week 7
