Game On! Developing a game for Library Instruction Tammy Allgood Fletcher Library Arizona State University at the West campus Game Project Team Project Sponsor: Bee Gallegos, Librarian, Lower Division Coordinator Project Manager: Tammy Allgood – Digital Delivery and Design Librarian Game Design Team: Karen Grondin, Library Specialist at ASU at the West campus Aaron Rostad, Library Specialist at ASU at the West campus Marisa Duarte, Reference & Instruction Librarian at ASU at the West campus Developer: Bob Wohl Why Games? • Prevalence of video games, particularly among teenagers (2003 Gallop poll reported 69% of teenagers play video games each week) • Evidence suggests games can enhance problem solving skills Fletcher Library at ASU • West campus of Arizona State University • Upper Division & Graduate Programs • Lower Division – Fall 2001 - First Freshmen admitted - 269 – Fall 2006 - Around 700 Freshmen Learning Objectives Introduce Lower Division students to: • Library as a physical and virtual place • Library Services • Types of resources • Basics of catalog • Differences between types of sources • Reading, understanding, and using citations to retrieve information Board Game • Introduced Fall 2005 • Began as prototype to computer game • Good learning experience You need to find articles and background information in order to make a presentation. Which resources are best to use? a. Web sites you find using Google b. Books and encyclopedias c. A combination of library resources including journal and newspaper articles and books Answer: c. A combination of library resources including journal and newspaper articles and books Your instructor placed some articles on reserve for your class to read. You can: a. Access them online b. Go to the Circulation Desk to check them out c. Either A or B “Much better that just a lecture” “It was fun! I didn’t fall asleep or anything” “I like the game!! Does Milton Bradley make that one?” Board Game Comments • “This was a great way to learn about the library!” • “Thanks for the great time and the game (although I lost).” • “The game was intense, a fun way to learn about my ASU West Library.” • “The workshop was very informative and was also fun with the addition of the game. I feel like I know the library services and layout better.” Board Game Success Student Survey Results • What are the three most important things I learned from the library game experience? – How to request items – 54.5% – How to search for journals in the catalog – 37.7% – How to search for books in the catalog – 33.8% • Questions I still have about finding information in the library – Where media is located in the library – 33.8% – Using specialized resources such as reference books – 24.7% – Services available at the Circulation Desk – 22.1% Computer Game • Development - Began Spring 2006 • Group – 5 people • Skills - Web development, Flash development, database design, lower division instruction expertise, extensive research in gaming as an educational tool • Funding - Financial support from Library Dean, Marilyn Myers, to hire an outside programmer • Platform - Flash Documentation • • • • Project (Business) Plan High Concept Document* Game Treatment Document* Game Script* * From Andrew Rollings and Ernest Adams on Game Design High Concept Document • • • • • • • Premise of the game Intended audience Genre Unique selling points Target platform Overall storyline Example Game Treatment Document • • 10-20 pages Game overview – – – – – – – • Production details – – – • High Concept Hooks License Game play highlights Technology highlights Art and Audio highlights Hardware Budget Schedule Competition Game world – – – – Back-story Objective Characters Mission Game Script • Everything from High Concept and Game Treatment Documents • Game play outline or flowchart • Design details • Game text • Example: http://www.designersnotebook.com/Wannabe/ctaylordesign.zip Timeline Approximations • Game play design, storyline decisions, documentation - Five months • Design - Two months • Character interactions - One month • Information retrieval - Two weeks • Sound creation - Two weeks • Animations - Two weeks • Bug tracking and documentation – One month Hiring a Programmer • Finding Programmers – Consulted with Game Design Instructor at the Art Institute International in Phoenix - possible student project? – Posted on local Tech ListServ (http://www.aztechwork.org/) – Flash Game Programming Wiki (http://fgpwiki.corewatch.net/) – Game creation web sites • Hiring Programmers – Asked for portfolios from top three candidates – Chose candidate with the most edugaming experience – Top candidate was able to recommend game designer Deliverables • Game logo • Game design (map, isometric tiles, building interiors, characters, icons) • Game skeleton (character walking paths) • Character interactions • Information retrieval systems • Animations Essential Sources • Games, Learning, and Society Conference. Madison, Wisconsin • Branston, C. (2006). From game studies to bibliographic gaming: Libraries tap into the video game culture. Bulletin of the American Society for Information Science & Technology, 32(4), 24-29. • Makar, J., & Winiarczyk, B. (2004). Macromedia flash MX 2004 game design demystified. Berkeley, CA: Macromedia Press : Peachpit Press. • Rollings, A., & Adams, E. (2003). Andrew Rollings and Ernest Adams on game design (1st ed. ed.). Indianapolis : New Riders. • Fletcher Library Game Project Web Site: http://www.west.asu.edu/libcontrib/game/website/ Words of Wisdom for Library Game Developers • • • • • • • • • Do your research Think about starting small Don’t underestimate time needed for design Keep the development group small Project manager should have some understanding of game development Follow document requirements found in Rollings and Adams on Game Design Don’t underestimate time needed for design Hire a professional programmer with a educational gaming portfolio Don’t underestimate time needed for design