Game Story and Characters

Welcome!

Shared on April 7th by Mike Eilers

Well, hello again! Welcome to GAM353, our further exploration of writing for video games. Take some time to look over the shell and start your reading for the week, we've got the usual intense schedule of projects and discussions -- so get started early!

Game Story and Characters

Shared on April 7th by Mike Eilers

Welcome to GAM353. This course is a companion course to GAM351, Writing for Interactive Environments. In GAM353 we will explore the use of characters, story and setting in video games in greater depth and detail, and write our own original stories and characters in a peer-reviewed environment.

All of our assignments this semester will be peer-reviewed, and all of them will be modular, designed to fit one into the next to create a complete game story "treatment". Our goal is to create a portfolio piece with a solid game backstory, major plot elements, characters and setting.

Along the way we will examine the characters and story elements of favorite games from the past, taking these memorable elements apart and dissecting the reasons for their success; we will incorporate these secrets in our own work.

There is no textbook for the course; instead we will be reading extensively from Web articles, columns, blogs and educational resources. You will be expected to read all assigned articles, and to do research on your own and report back to the group.

Each week will have one discussion, one assignment, your reading assignments and resources. Get started early in the week and keep an eye on what the next week will bring; as usual our pace will be frantic, and you don't want to get left behind!