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Fall 2009
Architecture 98 / 198
1 Unit(s)

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About the Course:

Someone designed this font. Someone wrote this sentence. Someone designed the chair you're sitting on... and someone designed the video games you play.

In this course we will play video games and discuss what makes them tick - then we'll test out our theories by designing levels and playing those. What makes something "fun," and how is that related to real-world architecture, to the built environment around us?

This is intended as a survey course. It is primarily lab / discussion. You will need a wirelessly networked laptop to bring to class, and that laptop has to be capable of running the (free) games we will use to study.

You'll design (1) a race track, (2) a first person shooter multiplayer deathmatch arena, and (3) a real-time strategy battlefield.

And you're going to have fun doing it. That's an order.

• Open to all majors. There is no programming at all. In fact, I'd almost say I would prefer non-CS majors to bring in new perspectives.
• Open to all genders. No Y-chromosomes required.

1. Trackmania Nations: http://www.trackmania.com/tm/index.php?rub=nations

2. Sauerbraten: http://www.sauerbraten.org/

3. Glest: http://glest.org/en/index.php

How to Enroll:

1. Fill out the Google Docs webform when it gets activated, which will be about a week before the beginning of the semester. (That gives you about two weeks to sign up.) - https://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?hl=en&formkey=dFllR3VZR3dpZV9FZGJna1kwMWxpM3c6MA

2. Come to the first day of class, listed below.

I'll randomize all the responses on the webform and then pick the first 10: if you're one of them and you're there in-class, you get in. There will also be a short wait-list drawn up for the first few weeks.