IAT 312 Spring 2022
taught by Chelsea Mills, under the mentorship of Bernhard Riecke.
Here's a Recording of the Showcase
Join us for our live-streamed Game Design Showcase on Tuesday April 5 2022, from 2:30 - 4:20pm
On Tuesday April 5, students from IAT 312 — Foundations of Game Design will showcase their final game design projects where they were tasked to design a (digital) boardgame that is not only fun to play but also “transformative” or “purposeful” (aka “Transformative Fun”, what Lazzaro refers to as fostering altered states): That is, apart from being fun to play, the game should also be meaningful/purposeful or add value by somehow changing the player’s out-of-game behaviours or perspectives. During the course, students reflected on topics that they care deeply about that could help create a better world, and designed a game to tackle that topic.
How to participate?
To participate in our showcase, join us April 5, 2:30 pm Pacific Time in-person at SFU’s Surrey Campus, room 3250 or online by using this Zoom link. Note that the showcase will be recorded.
Schedule:
2:30–2:35: Introductions from the Instructor and TA, overview of the course and the projects in the showcase.
2:35 — 3:25: Game Showcase & team interviews: Each team will be showcased for about 10min starting with the short project video pitch/trailer of their game (using zoom screen sharing), followed by Bernhard interviewing team members and TA screensharing their game in Tabletop Simulator.
3:30–4:15: Game Demos & Gameplay: We will invite student teams and in-person guests to play the showcased games. This is also a chance for interested guests to connect 1:1 with student teams and ask more about their games and their experience in the course. If you have a laptop with Tabletop Simulator installed, bring it along!
14:20: Closing
more details will follow once available.
Details about the Game Projects:
Clout Chase
Standout. Get clout. Don't share your whereabouts.
Clout Chase is a game based on the usage of social network where players post cute pictures and like each other’s posts.
Clout Chase is a multiplayer card game that has players in the role of being an influencer. As an influencer, players choose which posts they think will gain the most likes among the other influencers which will allow their post to land a spot on the trending page. What seems like a simple and fun game, hides a revelation that will make players double think about their actions. The game aims to educate players on online safety and the limits when it comes to sharing posts safely.
From our personal experiences growing up, we have grown accustomed to social media and children may dream of becoming an influencer growing up. However, we think that there are risks and potential dangers that could happen if one is not careful of what they post on social media, especially for influencers who essentially share their life with millions of strangers on the internet. Our game aims to make players realize those risks and dangers, and educate them on online safety and the importance of protecting your information.
project video:
Shoot For The Stars
Don’t Quit, Get Fit.
Train hard enough to make it to the High School basketball team, but make sure not to sacrifice other aspects of life, such as mental health or academics.
Shoot For The Stars is a collaborative game in which players must work together to ensure that each team player will pass their midterm and make it onto the basketball team. Throughout the game, players must learn to balance and navigate various life choices and decide when to make what choices.
As aspiring young adults, we have all had the personal experience of setting personal goals for ourselves that we wished to successfully achieve. However, we’ve also had the experience of falling short of our goals for one reason or another. It is our hope that by designing this game, we are able to better prepare others to set goals, create a plan and successfully stick to that plan.
Project video:
Marine Ecosystem
Cooperate for balance. Maintain the ecosystem.
A cooperative strategy game that gives players a better understanding of the delicate marine ecosystem.
Marine Ecosystem is a survival management game based on balancing and maintaining the marine ecosystem. Each player represents one of three types of species, Predators, Prey, and Mutalists. The main objective for players is to maintain the ecological balance in the ocean. Players need to obtain food resources across different habitats to maintain the population. Players will be required to evaluate their actions based on the characteristics of the habitats and the relationship between other types of species.
We want the player to learn more about how important it is to balance the ecosystem and the harmful effect of human factors on ecosystems. Our team cares about the balance of the ocean’s ecological system and we want the players to learn about the food chain and how the ecosystem works through the game.
Project video:
Chain o' Supply
Manage those supplies, Save innocent lives.
A puzzle strategy game where players need to pack as many supplies/resources before time runs out.
Chain o’ Supply is a fast-paced puzzle strategy game where players need to supply resources to cities taking in refugees escaping from war. Players must fit in as many supplies in their cargo and ship them out, repeating the process before time runs out. However, resources are limited so players must also choose which cities to provide for which supplies before they run out.
The desired impact on this game for the players would be to realize how difficult it is for those who have been displaced by war to survive in these refugee camps. Players should feel the pressure and urgency of managing such a situation while also seeing the real-time outcome of their decisions.
Coffee Conversations
Spill the beans!
A strategic, social card game where a group of players attempt to survive living paycheque-to-paycheque; only through the care and kindness towards others, can everyone prevail.
Caffeinated Conversations is a round based card game where a group of players—characterized as neighbours living in a low-income Co-Op Complex—are trying to make it through the year. Players work through life alongside their neighbours as they face the struggles of monthly rent, looming burnout and possible evictions! At the end of the month, all the neighbours will come together for coffee to share how their month has gone. Players can choose to aid one another and better orient themselves in everyone’s respective situations. Only through careful resource management and considerate collaboration, can players emerge from the year safe and sound together. Peer into this (possibly) foreign world and test your empathy and strategic abilities like you never had before!
There are many assumptions made about those who are forced to live paycheque-to-paycheque, i.e. how it happens, who the people are, and the difficulty of struggling with low income or tough life situations, especially without a proper support system in place. We want to create a game that highlights the importance of a social support system especially for the people who are struggling that no one notices. By creating this awareness, it encourages and reminds others to reach out to their friends and family.
Caffeinated Conversations Trailer
Project video:
