Video Game Design Foundations

Video Game Design Foundations provides students a complete overview of video game design in a first-year curriculum. This turnkey curriculum is a complete guide to immersion in the field, from beginning each game build project through completion, integration, and marketing. Video Game Design Foundations is specifically designed for a high school first-year video game design class. Content and game builds are age appropriate, and learning is focused on the skills students need to prepare for college and career. The Software Design Guide (SDG) provides the hands-on application of the theory presented in the textbook. The SDG should be considered an integral part of the curriculum. It is where students take the theory learned in the textbook and use that knowledge to build video games. Working in simulated design teams, students will experience all aspects of video game design, from the planning stages, through the design and programming, and concluding with a capstone project. Each chapter in the SDG is correlated to the textbook chapter. There are several activities for each chapter. The last chapter in the SDG is a capstone project that requires students to apply all of the knowledge acquired in the textbook and SDG. The activities in the software design guide make use of The Games Factory 2, which is a fully-functioning game engine (not a demo version). The Games Factory 2 is available free to schools with the purchase of the software design guide. It may be installed on any school owned or leased computer.