The aim of this unit is to provide learners with an understanding of the underlying principles of game design. Learners will examine visual style and gameplay present in games by undertaking structured gameplay. They will generate game design ideas and learn about and prepare initial formal documentation to communicate these ideas.
The unit aims to provide learners with an understanding of the underlying principles of game design that define the way that games work. Learners must appreciate these key game attributes before applying them to their own game ideas.
| Course Code: | NE36 | Fee €450 Exam fee: €35 |
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| Duration: | Six classes |
Awarding Body |  |
| Start Dates: 2 intakes/yr | January/February | September/October | |
| Entry Requirement: | Applicants must be a minimum of 18 years old |
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| Award |
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Learning outcomes:
On completion of this unit a learner should:
Unit Content
Understand the principles of game design
Visual style: world (terrain, architecture, objects); characters; non-playing characters (NPC); feedback
interface; perspectives (2D, 3D, first-person, third-person, scrolling, aerial, context-sensitive); full motion
video (FMV)
Gameplay: interaction model, eg avatar, omnipresence; single player; multiplayer; narrative; game setting,
eg physical, temporal, environmental, emotional, ethical; goals; challenges; rewards; player actions;
rules; difficulty; game mechanics (inventory, scoring, win condition); balance; feedback; game structure
(flowchart); addiction
Be able to generate ideas for a game concept
Stimulus: brief (original intellectual property (IP), franchised IP)
Genre: sports; adventure; action; simulation; strategy; puzzle; role play; management; educational
('serious'); viral marketing
Market research: audience (age, gender, core, casual, gaming communities, preferred game genre); similar
games already in the market
Target platform: desktop computer; console; mobile device; television; online
Ideas: brainstorming; gameplay; visual style; mood boards; storyboards; concept art
Be able to prepare game design documentation
Purpose of design documents: high-level concept (unique selling point (USP), one-line sales pitch); game
treatment (concept document); design document
Document layout: title; format; genre; market research; audience; language; territories; content, eg
overview, objective, theme, structure, features, characters, mechanics, story, environment
Document production: structure; writing style, eg professional language, second person voice; selective
graphic content; presentation style, eg word-processed, spellcheck, proofreading, saving, versioning,
backups
Be able to present a game concept to stakeholders
Be able to present a game concept to stakeholders
Presentation: format, eg verbal, individual, group, audio-visual; communication skills (clarity of expression
in speech, visual style)
Stakeholders: eg venture capitalists, franchise holders, publishers, producers, design team members
Unit Assessment
Assessment takes the form of written assignments, observations, in-class tests, verbal assessment and projects
To gain the unit learners must achieve, as a minimum, the Pass grade; the Pass grade is in effect the gaining of the credit for the unit, and this contributes to the overall qualification grade. All units must be passes within the rules of combination to achieve the overall qualification.
The table below shows the number of points scored per credit at the unit level and grade
| Level | Points per credit | ||
| Pass | Merit | Distinction | |
| 5 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| 6 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
Learners who achieve the correct number of points within the ranges shown in the 'qualification grade' tables below will achieve the qualification Pass, Merit, Distinction or Distinction* grades (or combinations of these grades appropriate to the qualification).
