Course Timeline
Creative Jam Deadline: Feb 8
Raid 1: Due February 19
Adobe Tech Day: February 28
Creative Jam: March 1
Raid 2: Due March 15 by 11:59pm
-Peer Review Draft March 7
Raid 3: Due March 15 by 11:59pm
Spring Break: March 18-22
Raid 4: Due April 25
For full instruction on a Raid, click on one of the boxes below:
Raid One – Emergent Technology Survey
Infographics (a clipped compound of "information" and "graphics") are graphic visual representations of information, data or knowledge intended to present information quickly and clearly. They can improve cognition by utilizing graphics to enhance the human visual system's ability to see patterns and trends. (Wikipedia)
Raid Overview
Companies have been using data visualization models for decades. Infographics—as we are familiar with them—are often used as persuasive modes using a combination of text, images, numbers, and colors. Not only do we see these on campus bulletin boards, but we see them circulate on Facebook, Twitter, and popular websites.
Infographics are a great way to get the attention of the reader or convey a lot of technical information in a quick and effective way. For this raid, you will create an infographic about the software you analyzed and provide further explanation underneath like you would see on product pages of websites. The images represented should be product and company logos and screenshots, but all other graphics should be creative commons or original. See the below instruction for further details.
Raid Instructions
Your Emergent Technology Profile should include a prominent infographic, the company and software logo, interview quotes, and contextualizing text.
- Choose a software you want to make a profile for.
- Choose a software to make your infographic (Infogram, Canva, or Illustrator)
- Decide what Content you will include.
- Choose Delivery method.
- Submit!
-Programs-
For this individual raid, you have agency over how you accomplish this task. If you choose a web-based software, your time will be easier with the drag and drop features and you will accomplish more in a shorter amount of time. If you choose one of the Adobe programs, you will have to work a bit harder and longer, but you will have full customization over what you do. See the program profiles below for more details.
-0- Note: If you choose to use Adobe Illustrator, your score will be weighted by increasing the score by 10%. (i.e., If you earn an 82, 8.2 points will be added to your score.)
-Content-
You are required to include the following content in your infographic. How you organize it, what extra content you want to include, and how much text you use is up to you. The listed content below is more of a guide than a template.
- At least two quotes from two different people
- Simple, short quotes that favor the program and/or function
- Can be from YouTube videos, Articles, or Personal Interviews. Make sure you cite.
- Software Uses
- Overall use/function of the software. What does it do?
- Key Software Functions
- What are some key or unique selling points?
- Brief Production History
- When was it made? Was it updated? How has it evolved?
- Affordances
- What are advantages and what can it do well?
- Limitations
- What are the limits? What are some drawbacks?
- Technical Documentation
- Manuals and other technical documentation.
- Reviews and Tutorials (typed and multimodal)
- Other reviews and tutorials that you can find online. (Positive and negative?)
- Examples of compositions from software (final products or in-game screenshots).
- Artwork, videos, flyers, games, etc.
-Composition-
There are several different approaches to this particular infographic. You can make it more text heavy or more graphic heavy. You need to have at least 5 graphics (icons, frames, arrows, etc.).
Text Heavy
The text heavy infographics will be a more heavily weighted assessment on the technical writing. More text means more thought on organization, arrangement, and proximity of text and graphics.
EXAMPLES: ONE | TWO | THREE | FOUR
Graphic Heavy
The graphic heavy infographics will be a more heavily weighted assessment on the graphic design. More graphics means more thought on organization, arrangement, color, contrast, proximity, and perspective. You want to make sure there is enough text to convey the information to the audience, but not too much to get lost in.
-Personal Frame and Reflection-
In addition to the infographic, you are required to preface the graphic with a personal frame of about 200 words. If you have a graphic intensive infographic, you can break up the frame around the graphic. This should be your experience with the program and your take on it. The reflection should be Journey Log 4 where you explain your experience making the graphic with screenshots of the process.
-Delivery Method-
Panel profiles such as these are rarely Word or GoogleDoc documents. These hypertextual, multimodal compositions are typically on websites. Your delivery method should be chosen with your audience and product in mind. What is the best way to represent your panel profile?
Suggested Delivery Methods:
- Adobe Spark: An easy to use scrolling platform that should be familiar to all students. Limited in organization, but very sleek.
- Wix or Weebly: Drag and drop website builders. Can make several tabs to help organize your information. Named URLs. Easy to use.
- Wordpress: A more advanced website platform that gives the user nearly full customization options over their delivery.
- Infogram: If you make your infographic in Infogram, you can type out your full panel profile with some customization options in the program itself.
Requirements Overview
- Create infographic.
- Include all aspects of content listed above.
- Choose a delivery method to contain the infographic and content.
- Include personal frame and reflection
- Include citations at the bottom for any cited information and images.
Performance Record
- Infographic Neatness: Does it look like an infographic as explained in workshop, Digital Writer, and Writer/Designer? Does it have necessary components? (15%)
- Content Inclusions: Does the panel profile include all nine (9) content pieces? Does it have the personal frame and reflection? (60%)
- Correctness: Is the panel profile clean, meet requirements, and is free from errors? (15%)
- Specialization: Was the specialization fulfilled? (10%)
Total Raid Points: 100XP
Specializations
- Warrior: Entire piece should be at least 1250 words. Must also include a total of four (4) quotes from outside sources.
- Ranger: Must have a total of ten (10) links to other sources about the software with context.
- Mage: Must use Illustrator and Weebly, Wix, or Wordpress for infographic.
- Bard: Must make graphic intense infographic with at least ten (10) unique graphics.
- Builder: Use the iconography and aesthetics of Minecraft to represent your infographic. Be creative!
Submission Instructions
To submit this raid, please link your site (delivery method) directly to the Quest Board in the class folder.
Some Examples:
(Although these aren't all infographics, they show good examples of how companies organize their "about" sections for technology)
Some Resources that May Help!
thenounproject.com (icons)
Kelsey Sheaffer's Presentation
Link about Logos and Colors (displayed below)
Raid Two: The Critical Review
Scholars should be able to talk about what we like and what we do not with a certain level of nuance, understanding our role as [users] and how our experience may differ from other people’s, being able to explain what it means to have a user interface that does not follow conventional configurations, or discuss the differences between the male and female player characters in terms of mechanics. There is so much more that [software] analysis can talk about beyond the quality of the graphics or the difficulty curve. (Clara Fernandez-Vara, pg. 4)
Raid Overview
Reviews have become an integral genre in the age of online purchasing, but they are not a new one. Book, film, and technology reviews have been published in the academic and consumer realms for decades. Reviews not only give us a better understanding of a product for purchase, but they also give us a comprehensive history and experience which adds depth to the product. These comprehensive reviews cover the realms of context, overview, and formalities as explained by Clara Fernandez-Vara in Introduction to Game Analysis.
For this raid, you will choose a production software or game to conduct a detailed analysis in the form of a review. The audience of the review is up to the student, but a specific discourse community, argument strategy, and exigence should be considered. There is also an opportunity for this to be sent out for review in a journal or site. To engage in common workplace practices, students will work in pairs to write the review, weaving both voices together for a uniform composition.
The overall goal of the review is to present yourself as an “expert” of sorts, but this does not mean you need to be the best use of the software. Instead, it means that you have a great paratextual understanding of the software. Fernandez-Vara says:
What expert means, however, is determined by what we want to achieve with our analysis. This means that expertise can be negotiable.…other sources of information become critical to help us become experts; even if one is a professional player, paratexts will bolster our knowledge and we will do a better job.…As a rule of thumb, becoming an expert on a specific game involves learning everything you need to know to achieve the main goals of your analysis. (pg. 24)
Using the resources your partner offers and dividing up the goals of the analysis will give you the space and time to become an expert in your content area. Remember, time is the enemy of all projects, so get organized quickly.
Raid Instructions
Your collaborative review needs to be well-written, organized, and utilize both video and images to best represent your reviewed communication software or game (software) based on the principles outlined by Clara Fernandez-Vara in her book, Introduction to Game Analysis. The steps you should take are listed below:
- Choose a software and collaborator for your review.
- Go to Quest Board > Raid Sign Up
- Establish your “Plan of Action.”
- Details below (Due Feb 26)
- Conduct your research and gather data.
- Peer Review (March 7)
- Complete requirements for completion.
- Write a 280 character summary or "tag line"
- Choose at least 3 keywords
- Write a 150-250 word experiential Review (individual)
The review needs to touch on at least two of the three following content areas: context, overview, and formalities (function). There is advice on how to prepare, organize, and write the review in Fernandez-Vara’s text, but the ultimate execution of the review is up to the students based on their intended audience and purpose. See below for more details:
Readings:
Clara Fernández-Vara's Introduction to Game Analysis (Chapter 1 - The Whys and Wherefores of GameAnalysis)
Clara Fernández-Vara's Introduction to Game Analysis (Chapter 2 - Preparing for the Analysis)
Clara Fernández-Vara's Introduction to Game Analysis (Chapter 3 - Areas of Analysis 1: Context)
Clara Fernández-Vara's Introduction to Game Analysis (Chapter 4 - Areas of Analysis 2: Game Overview) [read sparingly]
Clara Fernández-Vara's Introduction to Game Analysis (Chapter 5 - Areas of Analysis 3: Formal Elements) [read sparingly]
Clara Fernández-Vara's Introduction to Game Analysis (Chapter 6 - Writing the Analysis)
“Content Areas”
Note about content areas: The content areas should be your H2 headings. The content areas are just guides to help you stay organized. The bulleted suggestions are also guides. You can do only a few or all of them in the content area.
1. CONTEXT
“Providing the context helps us situate the game historically, culturally, socially, and economically. Videogames are the product of their time, therefore learning about the socio cultural and industrial environment in which they were produced is crucial to understand them” (Fernandez-Vara, pg. 56).
Software is a product of its time. The need, social events, and economic demands all change the production history and reception of software. Fernandez-Vara discusses “paratexts” and how we receive texts based on what surrounds the main text. In short, “The context of the game comprises the circumstances in which the game is produced and played, as well as other texts and communities that may relate to it” (Fernandez-Vara, pg. 14). The contextual area of the review can discuss, but is not limited to:
- context inside the [software];
- production team;
- [software] genre;
- technological context;
- socio-historical context;
- economic context;
- audience;
- relations to other media. (Fernandez-Vara, pg. 59-60)
For further information on the context content area, see Fernandez-Vara’s Chapter 3.
2. OVERVIEW
“An overview of the game’s main defining elements helps readers situate themselves by explaining briefly what the game is about…By taking into account how the game was played, appropriated, and transformed by the community, the analysis also acknowledges that games are a human activity, not merely a set of rules or code in a computer” (Fernandez-Vara, pg. 56).
An overview of software is just as it sounds, an overview of all that makes up the software. This section attempts to encompass how the software is used, experienced, and extended through the community. This is the human centered section that is difficult to separate the reviewer/user. The overview area of the review can discuss, but is not limited to:
- number of [users];
- rules and goals of the [software]/[software] modes;
- [software] mechanics;
- spaces of the [software];
- fictional world of the game [reality established by software];
- story;
- [software] experience;
- [software] communities. (Fernandez-Vara, pg. 88)
For further information on the overview content area, see Fernandez-Vara’s Chapter 4.
3. FORMALITIES (FUNCTION)
“The formal qualities of the game are not limited to technical specifications, or a breakdown of specific design features that may be typical of some game reviews. An analysis of the formal aspects must inquire how they work, hypothesize why they are there, and most importantly, how they relate to the player’s experience” (Fernandez-Vara, pg. 56-57).
The formal content area is about how the software functions, or how you accomplish what the software was intended to do. Where the contextual section is the widest lens of analysis, the formal is the most zoomed in and specific. This technical section will explore the ease or difficulty of action as well as the affordances and limitations the software has. The formality area of the review can discuss, but is not limited to:
- rules of the [software];
- diegetic vs. extradiegetic rules;
- save [function];
- relationship between rules and the [established reality];
- values and procedural rhetoric;
- procedural content vs. hard-coded content;
- [software] dynamics;
- the gap between the [user] and the [software]: mediation;
- control schemes and peripherals;
- difficulty levels/[software] balance;
- representation (visual design, sound design, and music);
- rule-driven vs. goal-driven [software];
- levels and level design [interface design];
- choice design;
- cheats/mods/hacks/bugs. (Fernandez-Vara, pg. 122)
For further information on the context content area, see Fernandez-Vara’s Chapter 5.
If you choose to do Three (3) content areas:
If you choose to do three content areas, you can get extra credit. Each needs to be represented well under the appropriate headings. If you choose to do all three, you will need to aim for the higher end of the word count.
Plan of Action
For you Plan of Action report, you need to provide the following information:
- Student 1 // Student 2 // Student 3 (if applicable)
- Software for Review
- Informational Link
- Target audience of review
- Content Areas to Review (each area should have several sentences for each question)
- Why this area?
- Resources for area?
- Direction of area?
- Division of Labor
- Time commitment
- How much time are you going to play/tinker?
- How much time are you going to research?
- How much time are you going to write?
- How much time are you going to Revise?
Overview of Requirements
- Typed in a readable, professional font.
- Organized with H1 and H2 headings.
- Include text, images, hyperlinks, and embedded videos.
- Images and videos should be original screen captures.
- Citations should be (Author/company) with a hyperlink.
- Between 1250 and 1800 words (not including reference page, keywords, summary, or experiential.)
- Individual experiential reviews between 150-250 words.
- Collaborative 280 character summary or "tag line." (abstract)
- At least 3 keywords.
- Final step: Publish to website (Spark, Weebly, Wordpress, Wix, Infogram) or InDesign
Performance Record
Content Areas | 100 |
Development & Correctness | 25 |
Experiential | 10 |
Summary & Keywords | 5 |
Specialization | 10 |
Specialization Requirements
Both players should have same specialization. Applies to whole project.
Warrior: Write two different experiential reviews (per collaborator) in two different genres with different purposes.
Mage: The individual experiential reviews need to be in video format between 2-4 minutes long using your self, images, and captured footage (include citations).
Ranger: Reference at least four reviews, six tutorials/walkthroughs, and the official site or manual, plus two examples of experiential reviews of a similar program.
Bard: If you are working within a communication program, each player creates a 2 minute experience of the “product.” If you are playing a game, each player creates a 1:30-3 minutes “trailer” that represents the review.
Builder: (Reserved for those reviewing games) Build a notable structure from your game in MEE and do a quick walkthrough of it using Camtasia. (individually)
Examples
Paul Tassi: 10 Things I Wish I Knew...
Paul Tassi: Game Reviews
FinancesOnline Premiere Pro Review
Student Examples
Minecraft: Education Edition Review
Paper Explaining Formatting and Citations (here)
Extra Credit Opportunities
- Use all three content areas (explained above).
- Post your experiential review to a content relevant site and screenshot.
Raid Three – Lessons for Learning
[The continuum of participation encompasses] the activities of not only content creators but also audiences and practices of participation, because the practices of audiencehood—quoting, favoriting, commenting, responding, sharing, and viewing—all leave traces, and therefor they all have effects on the common culture of YouTube as it evolves” (qtd in Arroyo, 2013, 20-21)
Raid Overview
A large part of our learning happens outside of the classroom. When we need to learn something, we often go to YouTube, Google, or ask for help on social media sites. Most people are consumers; never creating or contributing content, but constantly consuming others’. We often think we don’t have anything to contribute to the community, but that just isn’t true. Advanced Composition classes move students from being confident writers to confident contributors.
For this raid, you will create a minimum of three (3) video tutorials totaling a minimum of 20 minutes in screen time about a software of your choice. All of these videos should be either uploaded as a cohesive YouTube playlist or a standalone webpage with context for what the tutorials will accomplish. To possibly ease the burden of creating content, all students have the option to collaborate on the raid in pairs (2). As long as the labor is evenly split, collaborators are free to create a production plan how they see fit.
Raid Instructions
Your video tutorial series needs to be on a software of your choice in which you can make at least three (3) video tutorials around three (3) distinct tasks. For production software, you should make a cohesive series that teaches the needed skills towards a similar goal (either a completed project or basic, intermediate, or advanced skills). For gaming software, you should make videos around how to finish a quest, find an artifact, tips to play, or something similar. No matter what type of video you make, your audience and purpose should be clearly stated. Once you post the videos, a link to the series should be linked to the Quest Board.
- Choose a software you want to make a video series for.
- Decide if you want to work alone or collaboratively.
- Decide on how the series will be organized and what content to include.
- Choose Delivery method.
- Submit!
- Write your reflection, and post to Journey Log.
-A Note on Delivery Method-
1) Submit your completed videos to YouTube with the following information:
- Appropriate title with a number for the sequence (if they are sequential). [Photoshop Tutorial 1/3: Learning the Toolbar]
- In the description, include all authors, a link to the software’s company site, a brief explanation of the audience, purpose, and outcome of the tutorial.
- Relevant keywords
- Include a link to assets if applicable
2) Make sure to create a playlist for your videos and make sure they are in the appropriate order.
3) The next step varies depending on your method:
- If you are finished, link the playlist link to the Journey Log Sheet under each collaborator’s name.
- If you want to make a webpage for the tutorial series, do the following: On either Spark, Wordpress, Weebly, or Wix, embed your videos individually with contextualizing explanation for each video, general tasks, and screenshots from the videos. These explanations should be substantial and explain what is going on, why the tutorial was made, and what the viewer will be able to do after watching it. The website URL should be linked to the Quest Board under each collaborator’s name. This method is weighted.
-0- Note: If you choose to use the Webpage delivery method, your score will be weighted by increasing the score by 10%. (i.e., If you earn an 82, 8.2 points will be added to your score.)
Reflection Requirements
The reflection is submitted as Journey Log 6.
If working solo:
Your reflection should be minimum 300 words and include screenshots of the recording, editing, and submitting phases of the raid if applicable. You should discuss at least one (1) Habit of Mind and your overall experience with making the video series. More detailed questions in the quest log.
If working collaboratively:
Each collaborator must submit their own reflection on their journey log. Each reflection should be a minimum of 500 words and include screenshots or photos of their role in the raid. Each collaborator should explicitly talk about their role, but also what it was like collaborating on such a project and the technical video skill that went into it. Make sure to mention at least one Habit of Mind.
Requirements Overview
- Create at least 3 video tutorials at a minimum of 20 minutes total time.
- Appropriately name the video and include a sequence number.
- Include contextual information in the description.
- Choose a delivery method for the video series.
- Submit a reflection (Journey Log 6)
- Include citations at the bottom for any cited information and images.
Performance Record
Section 01
- Tutorial Conciseness:Is the tutorial edited, concise, and accomplish the goals it sets out to complete? (70pts)
- Instructional Design:Is the narrator clearly understood and are the instructions logical? Can the instructions be followed? Are assets available if needed? Are instructions available to average audience? (70pts)
- Context and Delivery:Is the context surrounding the video correct? Are there links to the software and relevant information to support the tutorial? Were the submission instructions followed? (20pts)
- Technical Requirements: Are the technical requirements met? Is it uploaded, edited, accessible, and have the technical information available? (20pts)
- Reflection:Was the reflection done and posted to the Journey Log? Remember to abide by your specializations (20pts)
Section 02
- Tutorial Conciseness:Is the tutorial edited, concise, and accomplish the goals it sets out to complete? (70pts)
- Instructional Design:Is the narrator clearly understood and are the instructions logical? Can the instructions be followed? Are assets available if needed? Are instructions available to average audience? (70pts)
- Context and Delivery:Is the context surrounding the video correct? Are there links to the software and relevant information to support the tutorial? Were the submission instructions followed? Are the titles, descriptions, tags, etc. relevant and helpful to the audience? (30pts)
- Reflection:Was the reflection done and posted to the Journey Log? Remember to abide by your specializations (30pts)
Total Raid Points: 200XP
Submission Instructions
- Post the playlist link to the Journey Log Sheet under each collaborator’s name.
- If you make a webpage for the tutorial series, the website URL should be linked to the Journey Log Sheet under each collaborator’s name.
Some Professional Examples:
Editing Lessons with Zach King
Webpage Delivery Method Example
Student Examples:
Extra Credit Opportunities:
- Create a short (3-5 second) video introduction with a logo, music, and possible animations. This should be at the beginning of each video. 10xp
- Embed gifs of main tasks on your website. 20xp
- Include closed captioning for accessibility purposes. 10xp
Raid Four – Tanked Presentations
Raid Overview
For your final raid, you will embody a gaming company in small guilds to create a game, marketing campaign, and prepare for a presentation to four "sharks." The game should be influenced by a social or a gaming issue and created by modding Minecraft: Education Edition. The game itself should be a fifteen (15) minute experience in either completed or concept form (explained below) The presentation portion of the raid is inspired by the popular ABC show Shark Tank—a two-minute pitch followed by roughly an eight-minute Q&A between the Sharks and guild. The guild will be assessed on teamwork, creativity, rhetorical justification, completeness, and presentation.
There are four "roles" that each guild needs to assign: 1) a Project Lead (or guild leader) who will be responsible for keeping the guild on task, ensure they meet deadlines, and the overall presentation of the project; 2) a Game Specialist that is the game visionary, primary coder, and designer/builder; 3) a Media Specialist who is the primary builder and responsible for logo design and the development diary; and 4) a Technical Writer that will focus on the marketing materials and website. Based on the overall goal and composition of the guild, these roles will shift, but the responsibilities of the guild are still the same. Ready?
Step One: Choosing a Guild and Signing the Contract
After the project is announced, the class will decide on potential roles based on interest and skills. Typically, this is done in a discussion/spreadsheet hybrid in class so the entire class can see who has declared what skills/roles. Here is the suggested method of choosing a topic:
- Choose/Define Roles.
- Form Team Around Skills.
- Game Specialist Pitches Idea.
- Team Discussion.
- Start Drawing Up Contract.
Other teams have decided to start with an idea and then forming a team based on the idea. Either way works well and you will have plenty of time in class to decide on the guild.
Remember, the roles are flexible, but here are the four key roles:
- Project Lead (or guild leader) who will be responsible for keeping the guild on task, ensure they meet deadlines, and the overall presentation of the project (±20xp);
- Game Specialist that is the game visionary, primary coder, and designer/builder;
- Media Specialist who is the primary builder and responsible for logo design and the development diary;
- Technical Writer that will focus on the marketing materials and website.
If you only have three members, the Media Specialist and Technical Writer can be combined. If you have more, You can have secondary Game Specialists, Media Specialists, or Technical Writers.
After all the roles are set and the theme is chosen, fill out you guild contract under your designated guild folder on Drive. This contract needs to be maintained by the Project Lead/Guild Leader.
Step Two: Exploring Minecraft: Education Edition Potentiality
Everyone in class should be comfortable with Minecraft: Education Edition (MEE) and has at least experienced the MakeCode suite from class. Not all team members need to build or code, but PLANNING is very important. Building takes longer than the coding, but here are some things to remember:
- there are fill/clone commands to make building easier (example);
- command blocks to create conditionals;
- building agents to help with building/mining;
- Scoreboards and other command functions(full list);
- MakeCode (press "C");
- use signs, blackboards, and NPCs for dialogue;
- Remember version control!

Some advice from a Minecraft Expert!
The more you experiment, the more potential you will see for your own game. It is best to have one or two coding and multiple builders. Remember to use fill/clone commands to make building easier!
Step Three: Coding Expectations
The assessment of the game is conducted based on the creativity and utility of the modding and coding in addition to the level design. See the expectations below:
- Mods: There should be at least five different mods using MakeCode to alter actions in the game.
- Level Design: You need to build a world with structures to have a "level" to play through. You should use NPCs, Villagers, and command blocks to make your world feel alive. You can use allow and deny blocks to help with building the level boundaries.
- Command Blocks/NPCs: Using both, you can teleport, build things, change conditions, and much more to show progress of time and action. You should have at least four different examples of these.
- [optional] Proof of Concept: You have the option of making a proof of concept which demonstrates the beginning workings of a game; a sample. This does not have to have a conclusion, but would demonstrate a level within a larger concept.
XC OPPORTUNITIES
-At least 16 unique NPC/Command Block/MakeCode mods. (20XP)
-Build an iconic structure into your level [should have reference pictures. (10XP)
Step Four: Marketing Materials
The marketing materials cover a large breadth of mediums and modes, but they are classified in two ways: 1) Product Materials and 2) Company Ethos. This is the opportunity to show off what you've learned this semester and venture out into new programs and software to get the task done. Remember to document your process! Posters and treatments can be made with Illustrator, InDesign, PowerPoint, Canva, Infogram, Word, etc.. Cards and box art can be made with Word, Canva, Illustrator, PowerPoint, etc. Websites should be Wix, Weebly, or Wordpress.
Product Materials
- The Game: The delivered game (Remember to include world file AND MakeCode file/link).
- Box Art: Printed box art for a DVD case (Google PC Template) to represent the game and platform it is intended for. (printed x 2)
- Posters: Every game needs to have at least one advertising poster printed (printed x 1; 11x17).
- Treatment Sheet: An explanation and rational of the game and its functions. Can include marketing data, company information, and other relevant information. (printed x 5)
- Game Tutorial: This tutorial should be an edited 5-15min video explaining to the player how to play the game. [XC, creatively work a tutorial into the game without interfering with the level and "story"; 20XP)
- Development Diary: This is a documentary of the whole process. This should have footage from each week, voiceover, interviews, and footage of the game being made (and other supporting materials). (10-15 min).
- Game Manual: The manual should serve two purposes: 1) To explain the functions of the game; 2) To showcase the codes that were made and an explanation of their functionality.
Company Ethos
- Company Website: A site to represent the company, the product, resources, and team.
- Company Logo: A company logo should be created and displayed on all materials.
- Business Cards: A business card with the company name, logo, and website (printed x 5)
Step Five: The Presentation
On the day of the presentation, guilds will submit a printed "Guild Contract," along with copies of the paper marketing materials to the Game Master and all the sharks.
The presentation will be broken into THREE parts:
- You will have up to Two Minutes to pitch the game to the sharks.
- Presentation materials will then be given to the Sharks (about 60 seconds)
- Up to Eight Minutes of Q&A from Sharks
Each presentation will total 10 minutes. We will start promptly at the start of class, and we will quickly move into the first presentation. Each guild is expected to be on time and ready to present once the guild before them finishes. Submission Guidelines
- The Company Page should be displayed on the business card and treatment sheet.
- All Marketing Materials should be submitted to the appropriate guild folder and/or printed.
- The game trailer/demonstrations should be embedded on the company site AND the mp4 file should be uploaded to the guild folder.
Game World
- The game world and a link to the MakeCode code should be on the company website.
- The game world should also be in the guild folder.
Individual Reflections (emailed directly to the GM as GoogleDoc) with the following:
Overall reflection on role, process, and completion of the game (300-450 words)
Has this process changed your understanding of game design, technical writing, and/or coding? (100-250 words)
Performance Record of other Guild Mates (100-250 words)
What would you do Differently? (100-250 words)
Submission Checklist
The checklist is also in the guild contract, but here is a reiteration of it:
- Print and submit the completed Guild Contract
- Treatment (Sales Sheet)
- An explanation and rational of the game, its functions, and the social issue being addressed. Can include marketing data, company information, and other relevant information. (printed x 5)
- Company Logo
- Alpha and Beta Testing (See Quest Journal)
- Video (see above for details)
- Tutorial
- Development Diary
- Company Site
- 3 pages (landing page with game info || About us with headshots and roles || Resources with downloads, videos, and cited materials)
- Business Cards (printed x 5)
- Poster (printed x 1)
- Box Art (Printed x 1)
- Game Manual (Digital on site)
- Individual Reflection
Extra Credit Opportunities
- Playtest/Testimonial XC video
- Show at least two people playing your game (in video/images) and their feedback for the game (50 XP)
- Extra Posters, box art, and videos
- You can create extra marketing materials for an extra (10 XP) each (up to 50xp). All extra artwork should be original and distinct. I.e., don't just change the background color.
STUDENT EXAMPLES HERE (Click)
Game and Code Examples
-Game |o| Code - Park it
-Game |o| Code - Labyrinth
-Game |o| Code - Retirement
Shark Rubric HERE (Click)
Revision Guidelines
Revision is an important part of composing. In this class, you will be able to revise any assessed quest, adventure, journey log, or raid as long as you received at least ONE point on the composition. This does not mean that you may turn in work that you originally missed for a better assessment.
Revisions allow a player to rework a piece of writing (following the below criteria) in order to receive up to an 89%. Just because a revision is submitted does not mean the player will automatically receive the full points. If you wish to revise, please make sure you follow the below instructions.
Meaningful Revision
Revision is much more than clicking "accept" on a suggested edit or comment. Revision should be a thoughtful reworking of your ideas and words in order to improve clarity and expand on research. This can take on the form of moving around or eliminating sentences and paragraphs, adding supporting evidence through research, or expanding on new or already written ideas. Revision is part of the overall writing process which helps writers clarify their thoughts and expand their learning.
In order for players to engage in this process, I have outlined requirements for revisions in Composition as follows:
- First, make a copy of (duplicate) the document and make revisions to the copy (version control). Clearly label the revision as such.
- All changes should be highlighted in yellow (this includes additions, changes, and rearranging).
- Changes should be inspired by comments from the game master or fellow players.
- Revisions should go above and beyond the call of the quest, adventure, or raid.
- This means that you cannot just write to word count or add sources which will bring you up to the required amount.
- A short reflections (300 - 600 words) should accompany the revision which explains the revision process. The reflection should not say "the instructor told me to do it, so I did." Instead, players should explain what lead to the revisions they made and why they felt the changes needed to be made.
Revisions should be placed into the same folder as the original submission. The reflection is to be emailed to the game master along with a statement of completion of a specific piece of writing and which folder it is in.
All assigned work is available for revision as long as you have received at least ONE point. All revisions are due by April 25th.