Peliosaamisen koulutuskokonaisuus University of Tampere / SIS / TRIM Game Research Lab Frans Mäyrä, frans.mayra@uta.fi PhD, Professor of Hypermedia, esp. Digital Culture and Game Studies
GameLab history and background Culturally and socially oriented research of new media, its use, design and significance History in research work done during 1980s and 1990s in the Department of Arts & Literature, then in the Hypermedia Laboratory, INFIM - now: SIS/TRIM Since early 2000s, games research has been a strong focus area within interactive media/hypermedia, along with rapid international development of the research field During 2002-2011, the number of externally funded research & development projects in games and digital culture: 33 Over 100 publications, several original game prototypes as well as international and domestic conferences and seminars The international Digital Games Research Association - DiGRA was established on UTA/GameLab initiative (www.digra.org)
Koulutuksen tavoitteet Tavoitteena on tarjota opiskelijoille yleiskuva pelitutkimuksesta sekä perehdyttää peleihin, pelitutkimukseen ja pelisuunnittelussa tarvittaviin ydintaitoihin. Opetuksen pääpaino ei ole teknisissä valmiuksissa tai ohjelmoinnin ja projektinhallinnan kaltaisissa käytännön taidoissa, vaan opinnoissa tähdätään erilaisissa pelialan tehtävissä tarvittavaan syvempään ymmärrykseen pelien luonteesta ja toiminnasta. Opinnot rohkaisevat oppimaan pelien rikkaasta kulttuuriperinnöstä, sekä hakemaan tutkimukseen perustuvia, luovia lähestymistapoja pelillisyyden analyysiin ja soveltamiseen.
M1: Johdanto pelien ja leikkien historiaan ja teoriaan (Introduction to the History and Theories of Games and Play) laajuus: 6 op toteutus: 5 lähipäivää, 16 etäpäivää Module description: The history and culture of digital games will be studied in multiple ways. It will discuss the history of computer software and hardware that runs from early prototypes in the 1950s and 1960s to arcade, console and PC games, and concludes with the contemporary trends of online games, multimodal game forms and mobile gaming.
M2: Pelianalyysi ja pelattavuuden arviointi (Analysis of Games and Evaluation of Playability) laajuus: 6 op toteutus: 5 lähipäivää, 15 etäpäivää: Module description: The core concepts and the functionality of games are the subjects of this second course module. Analyzing the fundamental principles and patterns of games and playability will provide the conceptual basis for designing games that are fun to play with, and aesthetically and intellectually rewarding. The course assignments include both analysis tasks as well as exercises in the use of various playability evaluation methods.
M3: Pelisuunnittelun perusteet (Game Design Fundamentals) laajuus: 6 op toteutus: 6 lähipäivää, 16 etäpäivää Module description: The module is targeted at the conception of new games, rather than the analysis of existing ones. In Game Design Fundamentals the student will practice generating ideas for games and defining the game focus as well as, in a second step, the conceptual breakdown of these ideas into game components and structures. The student will learn to conceptualize a game by handling rules, game objects and elements, game worlds, action and interaction structures and integrating them into gameplay while paying attention to the fundamentals of game balancing and aesthetics.
M4: Pelien prototypointi (Game Prototyping) laajuus: 6 op toteutus: 6 lähipäivää, 16 etäpäivää Module description: In this module, the prototyping of game mechanics, controls and user interface is introduced. The prototyping methods will include the use of low-level methods like paper prototyping, scaling up to different kinds of playable, interactive prototypes. The relation between game concept, documentation and prototyping will be discussed.
M5: Projektityö (Project Work) laajuus 6 op, Toteutus: 6 lähiopetuspäivää ja 12 etäpäivää Module description: Concluding Module 5 consists of a period of self-directed project work, where students form teams and select one interest area from the topics covered in the previous course modules and specialise into it. The project concludes with either an analysis, evaluation or design oriented work. The final project work may be an analysis of an existing game design, or conclude with a prototype and portfolio documenting the development of a novel concept for a game. Analyses of the design process and a selfevaluation of its outcome will be required.
More information Contact details: TRIM, Research Center, www.trim.fi Game Research Lab web site: gamelab.uta.fi & http://www.facebook.com/utagamelab Professor Frans Mäyrä, frans.mayra@uta.fi, gsm 050 336 7650, www.uta.fi/~frans.mayra/ www.fransmayra.fi (blog)