IVC Board Games

Game Design class update!

Prior to teaching this college course, I spent three years teaching game design to middle school students. I always told them the instruction they were receiving was on part with a college course, but to be honest I wasn't always sure about that. I certainly modeled it off of the game design course I took under Celia Pearce at Georgia Tech, and always assumed my students could build with any tool any other novice could build with, regardless of age, but I never really knew for sure. However, thanks to the sample syllabus I was provided before I built my version of this course, and my fortunate opportunity to work as Kurt Squire's TA for UCI's version of a game design course, I've since learned that I have, indeed, modeled my version of the course as many would model a college course. And now that I'm at the halfway point, with student work samples galore, I can also say that the only real difference in work quality between middle schoolers and college students is that college students work quicker, more efficiently, and have access to better personal resources. Idea-wise, I had many middle schoolers whose idea were just as well developed. Generally speaking, that is.