| Jan. 15 |
Week One |
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Course overview |
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| Jan. 20 + 22 |
Week Two |
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Setting up web log // Introduction to video games |
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King, L. (2002) Introduction. In King, L. (Ed.), Game
on: The history and culture of video games (pp. 9-19). New York: Universe
Publishing.
Jenkins, H. (2000, September/October). Art form for the digital age. MIT's
Technology Review, 103, 117-120. [PACKET] |
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TH |
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Virtual worlds: Multi-player games |
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Chick, T. (2003) Massively
multiplayer on-line games. Week 1 and Week 5 in Gamespy’s series
of articles about virtual environments. Second Life Starter
Guide (Skim before class)
Explore the Second Life web site |
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| Jan 27 + 29 |
Week Three |
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Virtual worlds: Multiplayer games |
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Stephenson, N. (1993). Excerpts from Snowcrash (pp.
19-27, 35-45). New York: Bantam. [PACKET]
Herz, J. (2002) Gaming the system.
In King, L. (Ed.), Game on: The history
and culture of video games (pp. 9-19). New York: Universe Publishing.
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Virtual worlds: Constructing new identities |
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Turkle, S. (1995). Life on the screen:
Identity in the age of the Internet. (pp. 177-209). New York: Simon & Schuster.
[PACKET]
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| Feb. 3 + 5 |
Week Four |
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Virtual worlds: Gender hacking |
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Turkle, S. (1995). Tiny sex and gender trouble (Chapter
8). In Life on the screen (pp. 210-232). New York: Simon & Schuster.
[PACKET] |
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TH |
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Movie: eXistenZ |
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Directed by David
Cronenberg.
Note: Class will run 22 minutes late today. Please let me know in advance
if you will need to leave before the end of the movie.
Ondrejka, C. (2003). Escaping the gilded cage: User-created content and
the building the Metaverse. (Distributed in class.) |
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| Feb. 10 + 12 |
Week Five |
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Game design: Why do we play games? |
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Crawford, C. (1982). Why do people play games? (Chapter
2). In Art of computer game design (pp. 16-24). Berkeley: McGraw-Hill. [PACKET] |
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TH |
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Game design: Beyond the screen |
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Costikyan, G. (1998). Don't be a vidiot: What
computer game designers can learn from non-electronic games. Paper presented
at the 1998 Game Developers Conference. Published by author to the world-wide
web. |
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| Feb. 17 + 19 |
Week Six |
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Game design: What is play? |
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Salen, K. and Zimmerman, E. (2004) Defining play. Excerpt
from Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals (pp. 301-11). Distributed in
class. |
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TH |
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Game design: Rules |
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Salen, K. and Zimmerman, E. (2004) Defining rules.
Excerpt from Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals (pp. 117-125). Distributed
in class. |
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| Feb. 24 + 26 |
Week Seven |
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Game design: Cheating |
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Salen, K. and Zimmerman, E. (2004) Breaking the rules.
Excerpt from Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals (pp. 267-285). Distributed
in class. |
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TH |
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Game aesthetics: Space |
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Jenkins, H. and Squire, K. (2002) Art of contested
spaces. In King, L. (Ed.), Game on: The history and culture of video games (pp.
64-75). New York: Universe Publishing. |
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| Mar. 2 + 4 |
Week Eight |
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Game aesthetics: Space
Wolf, M. J. P. (2001). Space in the video game (Chapter 3). In M. J. P.
Wolf (Ed.), The medium of the videogame (pp. 51-75). Austin, TX: University
of Texas Press. [PACKET] |
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TH |
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Game aesthetics: Time
Wolf, M. J. P. (2001). Time in the video game (Chapter 4). In M. J. P. Wolf
(Ed.), The medium of the videogame (pp. 77-91). Austin, TX: University of
Texas Press. [PACKET] |
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| Mar. 9 + 11 |
Week Nine |
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Exam #1 |
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Game aesthetics: narrative |
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Pearce, C. (2001) Story as play space. In
King, L. (Ed.), Game on: The history and culture of video games (pp.
112-119). New York: Universe Publishing.
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SPRING BREAK |
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| Mar. 23 + 25 |
Week Ten |
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Game aesthetics: Narrative |
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Poole, S. (2000). Never-ending stories (Chapter 5). In
Trigger happy: Videogames and the entertainment revolution (pp. 90-111).
New York: Arcade Publishing. [PACKET] |
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Game aesthetics: Cinema and videogames |
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King, G., & Krzywinska, T. (2002). Introduction:
Cinema/videogames/interfaces. In G. King & T. Krzywinska (Eds.), Screenplay:
Cinema/videogames/interfaces (pp. 1-32). London: Wallflower Press. |
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| Mar. 30 + Apr. 2 |
Week Eleven |
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Game aesthetics: Machinima |
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Salen, K. (2002). Telefragging monster movies. In King,
L. (Ed.), Game on: The history and culture of video games (pp. 98-111).
New York: Universe Publishing.
Ebert, R. (2000, June 2000). The ghost in
the Machinima: Will the use
of video game technology to make movies result in art or kitsch?
Yahoo! Internet Life,
68. [PACKET]
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Social aspects: Violence |
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Thompson, C. (2002) Violence and the political
life of video games. In King, L. (Ed.), Game on: The history and culture
of video games (pp. 22-31). New York: Universe Publishing.
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| Apr. 6 + 8 |
Week Twelve |
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Social aspects: Warfare |
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Harmon, A. (2003, April 3). More than just a game,
but how close to reality? New York Times, p. G1. [PACKET]
Robins, K. (1994). The haunted screen. In G. Bender & T. Druckrey
(Eds.), Culture on the brink: Ideologies of technology (pp. 305-315).
Seattle: Bay Press. [PACKET] |
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Social aspects: Gender and games |
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Taylor, A. (2002). My story: Girls playing
games. In King, L. (Ed.), Game on: The history and culture of video games (pp. 56-57). New York: Universe Publishing. [PACKET]
Relph, J. (2002). Broads,
a bitch, never the snitch. In King, L. (Ed.), Game on: The history
and culture of video games (pp. 58-61). New York: Universe Publishing.
[PACKET]
Guest speaker: Dr. Jennifer Henderson
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| Apr. 13 + 15 |
Week Thirteen |
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Social aspects: Sexuality |
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Consalvo, M. (2003). Hot dates and fairy-tale romances:
Studying sexuality in video games (Chapter 8). In M. J. P. Wolf & B.
Perron (Eds.), The Video Game Theory Reader (pp. 171-194). London: Routledge.
[PACKET]
Exam #2 (take-home) distributed |
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Wrapping up loose ends
Exam #2 (take-home) due at beginning of class |
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| Apr. 20 + 22 |
Week Fourteen |
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In-class work
Meet with AD to discuss game status. |
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Game presentation / critique (Group 1) |
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| Apr. 27 + 29 |
Week Fifteen |
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Game presentation / critique (Group 2) |
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Game presentation / critique (Group 3) |
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Final project due by
8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, May 11th. |
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Reading list