Game Design: Professional Practice

Semester(s) Offered: Spring

Credits: 4

Course Call Number: GAMES-UT 152, GAMES-GT 155

Prerequisite(s): None

Taught By: Eric Zimmerman

Game Design: Professional Practice builds a connection between the work of students at the NYU Game Center and the professional daily work of a practicing game designer in the real world. What does a game designer do, apart from the production tasks of software development or printing and manufacturing? In this class we will practice the skills of concept creation, communication, documentation, and design and production planning that are the heart of what many game designers do at their job.

Students will also take a handful of “game design tests” based on actual job application design tests in use in the game industry. In-class work will be supplemented by visits to local design studios where we will speak with working game designers about what it is they do at their job.

Upon completion of this course, the student will:
1) Understand what constitutes the daily practice of a game designer working in the game industry.
2) Train core skills related to professional game design, including concept brainstorming, communicating ideas, production planning, and writing specification documents.
3) Be able to conceptually invent and document in a written text any game project, and present it confidently to a publisher, or in another professional context.
4) Become familiar with game design “tests” that are in use throughout the game industry.
5) Become aware of cultural, economic, and professional issues relevant to the work of game designers at work today across the game industry.
6) Know how to approach and communicate with experienced game designers.