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Presentation
Presentation
In this curricular unit, students will be challenged to develop a 2D video game with a special focus on the pre-production and production phases. Students will have to present an idea for a video game, create working groups, develop content focused on the various areas of game design, and communicate, distribute, and coordinate tasks in a joint effort that is intended to be harmonious and fluid from start to finish. Game design can either focus on narrative issues, where the story gains greater prominence or focus essentially on gameplay. As such, this implies that students can combine narratology and ludology (action and narration) strategies in game design to create a prototype that seeks to be, fundamentally, polished, and functional. Along with the prototype, all groups of students will have to develop a Game Design Document that will serve as a report of all the work developed throughout the semester.
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Class from course
Class from course
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Degree | Semesters | ECTS
Degree | Semesters | ECTS
Bachelor | Semestral | 13
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Year | Nature | Language
Year | Nature | Language
2 | Mandatory | Português
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Code
Code
ULP2533-25167
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Prerequisites and corequisites
Prerequisites and corequisites
Not applicable
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Professional Internship
Professional Internship
Não
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Syllabus
Syllabus
1. Introduction to Game Design 2. The teams – design, art, programming, sound, QA, testers, project management, others. 3. Main elements: worlds, characters, stories and narratives, levels, gameplay, mechanics, rules, goals, game system, interfaces, experiences, others. 4. The One-Sheet Document: the first document. Where to start. Industry analysis and trends. structure, objective, communication, target audience. 4.1. Title, genre, synopsis, mechanics, platform, target audience, strengths (unique selling points). 5. The High-Level Design Document: structure, objective, communication, public, target. 5.1. Executive summary, core concept, story, characters, worlds, gameplay, mechanics, rules, objectives, levels, interface and interaction design, sound and music, art, sketches, and storyboards. 6. Evaluate Participation Factors, Test, Polish, Communicate, and Sell.
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Objectives
Objectives
The main objective of this UC is to put students to develop a practical game design project for a 2D video game (GDD + prototype) in groups, which implies having to think, explore and execute their best ideas in the creation of a video game that is, above all, functional and polished. Each element of the group will have a specific role in the development of the work (art, programming, design, sound, among others) but everyone will have to contribute to the most diverse game design elements of the video game that can be thought of as those related to the game system and how it works. It should be noted that the weekly workload of this curricular unit will increase with the progress and entry into the production phase of the projects, with the monitoring of professors in the areas of project management, art and programming in order to consolidate a greater convergence between different areas of knowledge, fundamental in the process of developing videogames.
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Teaching methodologies
Teaching methodologies
The course is based on Project-Based Learning: students develop, in groups, a complete 2D video game (GDD + prototype), from the initial idea to the final presentation. Each group member takes on a specific role (art, programming, design, sound, among others), but everyone contributes to the various areas of game design. The work unfolds in phases: an individual pre-project, group pre-production (concept, game design document) and production (prototype, polishing, promotional trailer). The weekly workload increases throughout the semester as projects progress, with guidance from teachers in project management, art and programming. Assessment is described in the "Avaliação - Instrumentos e Parâmetros de Avaliação" and "Funcionamento da unidade curricular" fields.
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References
References
Bates, B. (2004). Game design (2nd ed.). Thomson Course Technology PTR. Carita, A. (2015). Pensar videojogos: Design, arte e comunicação. Edições Universitárias Lusófonas. Fullerton, T. (2024). Game design workshop: A playcentric approach to creating innovative games (5th ed.). CRC Press. Keith, C. (2020). Agile game development: Build, play, repeat (2nd ed.). Addison-Wesley. Kramarzewski, A., & De Nucci, E. (2023). Practical game design: A modern and comprehensive guide to video game design (2nd ed.). Packt Publishing. Salen, K., & Zimmerman, E. (2004). Rules of play: Game design fundamentals. MIT Press. Schell, J. (2019). The art of game design: A book of lenses (3rd ed.). CRC Press. Schreier, J. (2017). Blood, sweat, and pixels: The triumphant, turbulent stories behind how video games are made. Harper. Sicart, M. (2020). Playing software: Homo ludens in computational culture. MIT Press. Zubek, R. (2020). Elements of game design. MIT Press.
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Assessment
Assessment
Avaliação contínua:
Elaboração de um pré-projecto de um videojogo 2D (conceito, sinopse, jogabilidade, público-alvo, marketing) a ser desenvolvido individualmente e com apresentação na aula (20%);
Av. intercalar do trabalho de cada grupo no desenvolvimento do documento de Game Design e protótipo funcional com apresentação na sala de aula (30%);
Av. final do documento escrito. Apresentação na aula do protótipo final do videojogo 2D, do documento de Game Design: conceito, história, personagens, mundos, níveis, storyboards, jogabilidade, interfaces, fluxogramas, sons, trabalho de equipa e coordenação de tarefas e de um pequeno trailer promocional do videojogo (50%).
Assiduidade: frequência obrigatória a pelo menos 70% das aulas.
Sem avaliação por exame:
A realização de Exame de Recurso não está contemplada nesta Unidade Curricular por não ser compatível com a sua natureza específica, tendo por isso sido definido em Conselho Científico que vigorará apenas o regime de avaliação contínua.
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Mobility
Mobility
Yes
