Game Design Courses 1 & 2

Adjunct Professor - Santa Rosa Junior College

I taught a 2 class series on game design at the Santa Rosa Junior College, Game Design 1 and 2. It taught those classes for two and a half years, 2 semesters per year. 

Game Design 1 was an introductory course on video game design and utilized a first person shooter level editor (Valve's Hammer level editor) to illustrate and practice game design principles. The course also gave students a firsthand look at how a video game development company operates day to day.

Students were responsible for learning the level design tool during the first half the semester and they were responsible for a fully playable level with gameplay elements they learned during the semester. 

Game Design 2 had a prerequisite of Game Design 1 because when the students begin the semester, they are placed into 6 teams of 5 designers. They are then instructed to create their own story, divide the story into 6 chapter or levels, assign the levels to each team member, and then designate a lead level designer.

Essentially, Game Design 2 was an introduction to creating a full game with team members (to the extent a level editor alone would allow). The held to a milestone schedule with a alpha and beta builds.