SAIC
Spring 2013
Friday 9-4
MI 819
Instructor: Jake Elliott - jake@dai5ychain.net
Art Games considers computer based games as New Media artworks and art as a game-like system. Computer-based games constitute a significant form of new screen media and cultural activity. Artists work with game-like structures and approaches to create New Media projects. Students will play, discuss and develop art games that share relationships to forms of gameplay from text-based adventure games to first-person shooters, strategy games and simulators to conceptual games of chance. This advanced level studio course enables students to hack, modify, and critique existing games, and independently author games as New Media artworks.
Each week, we'll look closely at two or three artgames practitioners and their work. We'll explore these games not only as outstanding examples in the field but as jumping off points for our own experiments. How do these artists challenge us to think variously about videogames as being bigger, smaller; more or less "realistic"; more personal, more abstract; as formal experiments, or as casual diaristic rituals.
You're also required to participate in a game jam of your choice at some point during the semester. The following Friday, you'll let us know how it went and show us your game. I'll post a list of suggested game jams here shortly.
We'll learn to develop games in the game engines Twine, Stencyl and Unity.
Week 8 - 3/15 -- Spring break, no class
Week 15 - 5/3 -- Critique Week, no class