[game_edu] New Video Game Design Textbooks

[Ian Schreiber]

Umm... while I don't know the author personally and can't say either way, what do you mean these are the ONLY comprehensive books written to teach game design? Jesse's Book of Lenses, Tracy's Game Design Workshop, and my and Brenda's Challenges for Game Designers (just to name a few off the top of my head) don't count for some reason? Perhaps you can clarify what you mean by "comprehensive" here...

Also, looking at the author's credentials, I am rather curious what kind of experience he's drawing on here. Looks at first glance like he's a highly experienced teacher but I don't see anywhere where it says what games he's actually made, or failing that, what kind of formal training or other credentials he has to act as an authority on game design. Not that this is a show-stopper - I'm sure there are ways to teach something even if you've never actually studied it or done it yourself - but it's one of those things that I normally see as a red flag and I'd suggest the author/publisher address this in their promotional materials. If Mr. Ploor is on this list (or someone else around here knows him well) I'd love to hear more.

Lastly, can you clarify what "video game design composition" means? I've not heard this term before. Looking at the topics on the publisher website it looks like this is being used as a synonym for "video game development" (it seems to try to cover content creation from the game designer's perspective, but also art/animation, audio, and programming... seems like a pretty tall order for a single-year high-school-level curriculum unless some of these topics are seriously abbreviated). Curious if there are specific tools or platforms being used here that greatly simplify some of the development aspects.

- Ian



________________________________
 From: Leo Moreno <LMoreno at avhsd.org>
To: IGDA Game Education Listserv <game_edu at igda.org> 
Sent: Thursday, February 28, 2013 3:37 PM
Subject: Re: [game_edu] New Video Game Design Textbooks
 

 
I wanted to confirm the authors credentials and involvement with game design at the education level.  Michael Ploors’ books are the ONLY books written at the comprehensive level to teach a game design course.  The books focus on the production tracks where students produce as a team across all inter-disciplinary areas.  Mr. Ploor also has directly been involved and influence the state of California with adopting game design for CTE.  He has also helped to create the game design contest for FBLA and currently a consultant for the National STEM Video Game Challenge.
 
Many years ago, his book helped us to become a HS level game studio acting as an virtual enterprise.
 
Leonard A. Moreno
FAST Academy
Video Game Design
Palmdale High School
2137 E. Ave. R. Palmdale CA 93550
661.273.3181 Room 362
http://fastacademy.phsfalcons.org
 
From:game_edu-bounces at igda.org [mailto:game_edu-bounces at igda.org] On Behalf Of Kim Jones
Sent: Thursday, February 28, 2013 12:11 PM
To: game_edu at igda.org
Subject: [game_edu] New Video Game Design Textbooks
 
Goodheart-Willcox, a leading publisher in career and technical education, is releasing a new edition of Video Game Design Foundations in addition to the brand new textbook Video Game Design Composition. Both are authored by Michael Ploor, a business education teacher in the Hillsborough County Public Schools (FL) who frequently speaks at educational conferences and also consults with states on establishing video game education standards. 
 
Both books address the entire spectrum of video game design, from the beginning of the build to the marketing of the finished project. Video Game Design Composition contains more in-depth instruction including theory and application. The content of the books is aligned with the International Game Developers Association’s (IGDA) recommended educational framework.
 
Video Game Design Foundationsis now available, and Video Game Design Composition will be available soon. Learn more by visiting these webpages:
 
http://www.g-w.com/video-game-design-foundations-2014
 
http://www.g-w.com/video-game-design-composition-2014
 
Thank you.
 
Kim
 
Kim Jones | Marketing Manager
Goodheart - Willcox Publisher
P) 708.623.1898 | E) kjones at g-w.com
www.g-w.com
 
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