PLEASE NOTE: INTERNATIONALS ARE WELCOME, MOST CLASSES, AS WELL AS PROJECT COACHINGS AND SLIDES ARE IN ENGLISH.
However, some talks will still be in German.
Lecturers: Prof. Eric Jannot
Room: E42,
Sessions are typically held on Thursdays from 8:30 to 12:00; please read below for exceptions.
Please note that we will be working regularly with Mural.
To pass the course, students must submit their own completed project as a wiki page with a download or itch.io link, as well as five research contributions (see Seminar Structure below).
Final submission will be made digitally via this course page (link to your Wiki project page) by the 19th of January, 23:59.
Components of the game project submission:
• Game: A download link to a playable prototype. Quality over quantity applies here: better to submit a small, working prototype than a larger, non-functional one. The prototype should convey the core concept (a testable scenario). A gameplay capture video with sound would also be a great addition to the Wiki page.
• Game Design Document (GDD): All relevant aspects should be addressed briefly but clearly, including: short description, story, aesthetics, mechanics, and technology (refer to the GDD template). Depending on the nature of the game, these sections can range from a few sentences to several paragraphs. The intended message in relation to the course theme must be clearly articulated.
• Project Documentation: What did you accomplish? What is still missing? How many hours did each team member contribute, and in which areas? How did the original plan compare to reality? What were your lessons learned? What are your next steps?
• Ongoing Submissions: Five contributions focused on LGBTIQ+ topics have to be posted on Miro. Details are outlined in the Seminar Structure.
Procedure:
For 5 out of the 14 sessions, you will create contributions on Miro addressing the seminar theme. The goal is to generate relevant, personal knowledge, engage in open exchange, and reflect the diversity of possible knowledge and its sources. For this reason, the seminar does only provide limited content prompts beyond this Wiki.
Each contribution should take approximately 2 hours and be published on Miro. A good submission reflects genuine interest and was produced with care and thorough research. You are free to take either an artistic, journalistic, or empirical approach:
• The artistic approach focuses on subjective experiences. Knowledge is generated through emotional and aesthetic exploration.
• The empirical approach draws on classical research methods: careful source evaluation, proper citation, and formal presentation, similar to what you’re familiar with from academic writing.
Examples of past contributions can be found on this Miro board focused on the theme Death, Dying, and Video Games.
Formats
The possible formats are numerous; the following list is merely a set of examples:
Possible Subjects
• History → Pirates and democracy, the sufragettes
• Media Artifacts (film, series, comics, advertisements, books)→ Poverty and Success in Sims. Ready Player One…
• People → Karl Marx, Piketty, Chomsky
• Personal Experiences
• Problems / Solutions: Solarpunk as a speculative utopia, Arcologys, digital democracy
• Viewpoints→ The Gilet Jaune Movement in France, does AI benefit democracy?
• Games and politics: Gamergate, Workification
• Community→ Communal Spaces,
Session Structure
• Review and comment on newly submitted research contributions
• Instructor input/exercises
• Free work time and group coaching sessions
| Milestone | Datum | Nr. | Titel | Inhalt | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Konzeption (GDD) + Prototyp |
9.10 | 1 | Introduction |
Safe Space Policy What is Democracy?
|
|
|
16.10 (ONLINE) |
2 | Political Games |
Pitching Game Ideas Let's Play Political Games
|
||
| 23.10 | 3 | Projektpitches |
Short Project Presentation (each Team 5-8 Min)
Guest |
||
|
30.10 ONLINE |
Speculative Design | Heutige Folien | |||
|
04.11 (TUESDAY |
5 |
Guest Talk |
Guest Talk: Thorsten Wiedemann about Game Development in frail democracys. | ||
|
Projektentwicklung / erweiterte Grundlagen Milestone: spielbares Level |
13.11
|
6 | How to Test | Wie werden Spiele richtig getestet? | |
|
20.11 (Online)
|
7 | Guest Talk (ONLINE) | Feedback Project Development | ||
| 26.11 Gameslab |
8 | Playtesting | Playtesting Session zusammen mit MGD2/MGD3 Alle Gruppen haben Rechner mit allem notwendigen Material aufgebaut und vorbereitet. Externe Gäste sind willkommen! |
||
|
04.12
|
9 | Politics in Games |
Feedback Playtesting How are politics & idealogies explicitly or implicitly shown in videogames? |
||
| Projektfinalisierung |
11.12 | 10 | Political Games | What kind of videogames are overtly political? What do they want to achieve? And are they successful by doing so? |
|
|
18.12 (ONLINE) |
11 | Let's Play | We'll have a look at some political content in chosen videogames. | ||
|
08.01
|
12 | Guest Talk | Guest: Prof. Christian Stöcker | ||
| 15.01 | 13 |
Präsentationen (Online) |
Präsentation von ca. 10 Minuten pro Gruppe.
|
||
|
21.01 WEDNESDAY GAMESLAB |
14 | Playtesting |
|
||
| Team Name & Student Names | Working title (Link to your wiki page) | Genre / Short description | Engine | Pitch (pdf) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nici Vogelgesang, Gina Renoldi | Wählerwille | godot | ||
| Dennis Richter | RealPoliticsIdle | Clicker Game | Unity | |
| Name | My expertise | My idea |
|---|---|---|
Making Games for Civic Education
How can Design be a motor of change?: A Manifesto
Games of Empire: A book about Games and global Capitalism
Workification: How games become work and reflect social reality
A Manifesto for responsible Game Design
Some Political Games
Participation and Code of Conduct
Participation in this seminar requires an open-minded attitude towards the topic; no prior knowledge is expected.
Respectful interaction is expected at all times, including situations where opinions differ.
Any form of discrimination or harassment will not be tolerated, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, disability, appearance, ethnic background, age, religion, or social status.
Please be respectful when an opinion differs from yours. Criticize the content, never a person.
If you're feeling personally attacked, tell the other person that you're feeling so and stop the interaction, if the situation can't be resolved in a constructive way. Seek council from your professor.