Game Design and Development Decal Fall 2025
I hope you enjoyed your Halloween! Unfortunately… now it’s time to get back to work
We are having the Alpha Playtest THIS THURSDAY! Consult the Project 3 spec for details, but in general this means most/all mechanics should be in place! Work hard and get your Projects prepared for your next big milestone!
For those who pay attention to our lectures, the next lecture on Accessibility has been postponed to 11/18.
Finally, Bear Jams is finally here! Challenge yourself in our weekend-long game jam this weekend on November 7-9th. (Check the Announcement for more details.) Come participate—there’s nothing to lose!
Date Due Assigned Tuesday (11/4) None None Thursday (11/6) Project 3, Milestone 2 (have ready BEFORE class) Project 3, Milestone 3 (due 11/20)
Schedule
Week 0
- Sept 2
- Lecture Infosession
- LabLab 0: Unity Setup
- Sept 4
- Lecture Infosession
- LabLab 0: Unity Setup
Week 1
- Sept 9
- Lecture Intro to Unity
- LabLab 1: Intro to Unity
- ReadingGame Design Principles
- Sept 11
- Lecture Game Design
- LabProgrammer: Lab 2: Basic Scripting / Artist: Lab 3: Pixel Art and Spriting
- ProjectProject 1
Week 2
- Sept 16
- Lecture Game Art Fundamentals
- LabProgrammer: Lab 4: Advanced Scripting / Artist: Lab 5: Tilesets
- ReadingGraphics vs Aesthetics
- Sept 18
- Lecture Fundamentals of Animation
- LabProgrammer: Lab 6: Colliders and Rigidbodies / Artist: Lab 7: Animation
Week 3
- Sept 23
- Lecture Game Loops
- LabLab 8: Animator and Blend Trees
- Reading13 Principles of Gameplay
- Sept 25
- Lecture Git Tutorial
- LabProgrammer: Lab 9: UI and Layering / Artist: Lab 10: UI Asset Creation
- ProjectProject 2: Game Jam
Week 4
- Sept 30
- Lecture User Interfaces
- LabProgrammer: Lab 11: Coroutines / Artist: Lab 12: Environment Design
- ReadingHow to Pitch your Project
- Oct 2
- Lecture Design Docs and MVPs
Week 5
- Oct 7
- Lecture 3D Modeling
- Lecture Project 2 Showcase
- ReadingEffectively Organize with a Game Design Document
- Oct 9
- Lecture Pitch Day
Week 6
- Oct 14
- Lecture Work Day
- Lab Optional: Lab 13: Transitioning, Saving and Building
- ProjectProject 3: Final
- ReadingTeam Structures in Game Development
- Oct 16
- Lecture Tutorial + Level Design
- LabOptional: Lab 14: 3D Rigging, Skinning, and Animation
- Project Milestone 0: Game Design Doc
Week 7
- Oct 21
- Lecture Game Feel
- LabOptional: Lab 15: Raycasting
- ReadingTips for Better Playtesting
- Oct 23
- Lecture Work Day
- Project Milestone 1: MVP Playtest
Week 8
- Oct 28
- Lecture Music and SFX
- LabOptional: Lab 16: Lighting
- ReadingInsightful Playtest Questions
- Oct 30
- Lecture Work Day
Week 9
- Nov 4
- Lecture Accessibility
- LabOptional: Lab 17: Delegates and Events
- ReadingAccessible Controllers
- Nov 6
- Project Milestone 2: Alpha Playtest
Week 10
- Nov 13
- Lecture Guest Lecture
Week 11
- Nov 18
- Lecture Work Day
- Reading AI in Gaming
- Nov 20
- Project Milestone 3: Beta Playtest
Week 12
- Nov 25
- Lecture Work Day
- Reading Tutorial Designs
Week 13
- Dec 2
- Lecture Building and Publishing
- ReadingGamification
- Dec 4
- Lecture Course Postmortem
- Project Milestone 4: Final Submission
Week 15
- Dec 9
- GDD Showcase