The information presented in this syllabus is subject to expansion, change, or adjustment during the quarter.

Instructor:

Name: Christopher A. Egert
Office: Bldg. 70, Room 2515
475 - 4873
cae (*at*) it.rit.edu

Office Hours:

Tuesday 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM
Thursday 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM
and by appointment

Course Text and Materials

• Readings will be provided as handouts or web URLS.

Important RIT Deadlines

Last day of add/drop is Monday, March 17, 2008. Last day to withdraw with a grade of "W" is Friday, May 2, 2008. The deadline for withdrawing from a course with a W grade is the end of the 8^th week of the quarter. The withdraw process must be completed online before the deadline.

NOTE: IT department policy states that a student has one quarter to challenge any grade. After that, grades cannot be challenged

Course Description

This course provides Master of Science in Game Design and Development students with capstone project experiences. Students are expected to work in cohorts towards the implementation of a game system that properly illustrates proficiency in the application of theory and practice towards a large-scale project. For each student, individual responsibilities for the group project will be defined in consultation with both the group and the faculty.

Prerequisite Courses

Students must successfully complete the Capstone Design course and present a satisfactory capstone project proposal to the faculty before enrolling in this course.

Course Goals and Objectives

The primary goal of this course is for students to apply both the theory and practice learned in the Masters of Science in Game Design and Development towards a specific problem within the field. Students will complete capstone projects within one quarter, based upon their previous work in the Capstone Design course (4002-887). Students will work within cohort groups to complete the capstone project experience, however, each student will be independently responsible for the completion of a particular aspect of the overall project. Faculty associated with the Game Design and Development program will evaluate the project. Additionally, the group will present to the faculty as part of an end-of-the-year exhibit. (In the unlikely event that students do not complete their project in time for the show, a second exhibit will take place in the fall for any remaining projects).

Specific Objectives (Learning Outcomes)
Students will be able to apply theory and practice from the field of Game Design and Development towards the completion of a large-scale capstone project.

Course Organization

Capstone Deliverable
The primary deliverable for this course is the game itself. Students will incorporate prior experiences in coursework for the final deliverable. The capstone will consist of a group component, comprised of students from each year's cohort along with an individual component. The capstone will be evaluated against the design document formulated in the prior course.

Development Documentation
The capstone design document will be transformed into documentation for the final deliverable. This will include discussion of the implementation process, a walkthrough of the final product, and an in-depth analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the implementation. In addition, the final documentation will include detailed writeup of the each student's individual research topic.

Presentation
During the exam week, students will be required to present their capstone. As part of the presentation, students will present their final implementation as well as the process by which they reached their final goal. The presentation will conform to standard capstone presentation practices set forth by the Information Technology department.

Participation & Creativity
Portions of your grade in this course are based upon participation and how ideas are drawn from previous coursework. I expect students to make the connections between all of their areas of study in the program.

Website
The course website is located on the RIT myCourses system. You will only be allowed access to the section of the course in which you are registered. You will use myCourses to retrieve class notes, assignments, and supplemental materials. In addition, myCourses will be used as a discussion forum as well as a dropbox.

Grading

The grading scale used along with the grading criteria is as follows:

Finally...

Any or all of the previous information is subject to change or adjustment during the quarter.