PROGRAMS
Game Development Courses 2
ENGINE DEVELOPMENT II
The Engine Development II Course focuses on the generic and universal issues involved in programming for 3D engines, taking into account lower-level graphics libraries as well as other 3D hardware issues. Course topics include programming object and camera motions, collision detection and collision response, integration, performance analysis and special effects such as particle systems.
ENGLISH COMPOSITION
This course designed to help students refine their own writing processes while developing an in-depth personal and intellectual inquiry into a subject of their choosing. The course connects personal reflection with critical analysis, providing varied opportunities for writing and strengthening language skills. As the course unfolds, a series of assignments leads students through a continually deepening creative research process that develops into a complex and detailed written project.
GAME PREPRODUCTION
In the Game Preproduction Course, students plan the genre and scope of their game project, including designing the gameplay, and determining technological issues. Students decide what kind of features the game will have and exactly how they will be accomplished before assigning individual tasks and beginning production.
GAMING PROJECT
In the Gaming Project Course, the final project serves as the culmination of skills developed during the Game Development Program, demonstrating the student’s discipline and mastery of computer game development. Students are placed into groups and given the task of writing a computer game. During the independent study component of the course, a faculty team evaluates the completeness of each team’s plan and progress. Evaluation of each student’s successful completion of the course is based on the completed game, the game presentation, and the game documentation.
HISTORICAL ARCHETYPES AND MYTHOLOGY
Historical Archetypes and Mythology explores how myths, fairy tales, and folklore link disparate cultures. This course provides an analysis of common themes and underlying similarities of human cultures while exploring how these myths and archetypes continue to define individuals and cultures. Students will examine how myths and archetypes influence popular entertainment, and how corporations and media outlets use these tools to create dramatic messages, sell products, and influence consumer behavior. Topics will be enhanced by group discussion, in-class workshops, research and writing assignments.
LINEAR ALGEBRA
Linear Algebra is the second of two pure math courses in the program. The course begins with a brief review of selected topics in geometry, algebra II, and trigonometry. Students then build on that foundation for applications in collision detection and motion of objects. Vectors and matrices are introduced to control the way objects move and interact on screen, and students create libraries of code functions that can be used in future courses. This course is a prerequisite for the Physics course.
