Presentation given at the AECT 2011 conference in Jacksonville, Florida about the NIU video games camps for middle and high school students.

1. Aline Click, Northern Illinois University
Jason Underwood, Northern Illinois University
AECT 2011

2.  The Digital Convergence Lab
 Games Camp
◦ Theconcept
◦ The technology
◦ The experience
◦ Lessons learned
 Virtual Worlds Camp
◦ The concept
◦ The technology
◦ The experience
◦ Lessons learned

3.  Interdisciplinary Partnership
◦ University Libraries and Division of
Outreach, Engagement, and
Information Technology Services
 Innovative technologies and innovative
application of technologies, with an
emphasis on learning
 Primary Missions
◦ Experiential Learning
◦ Shared Research and Development
◦ Community Outreach

4.  Provide an environment that engages middle-school aged kids of
all backgrounds and skill levels to the concepts and practice of
media design and development, fundamental concepts of logic
and programming, and provide an outlet for creativity.
 Objective of games camp: By the end of this
camp, you will design and develop
a video game.
 4 Days, 9a-4p
 2009, 2010, 2011

5.  DCL Staff
◦ Educational Technology
◦ Media Specialists
◦ 3D Artist/Programmers
 Graduate Assistants
◦ Art
◦ Educational Technology
 Faculty Fellow
◦ Art Education

6.  GameMaker (by YoYo Games)

7.  GameMaker
◦ Lite/Full exports to .exe
◦ Other (new) versions export to HTML5, Mac version creates
Mac Apps
◦ Strong community

8.  Hammerhead (Beat Creator)
http://www.threechords.com/hammerhead/download.shtml
 BXFR (Sound effects) http://www.bfxr.net/
 GIMP
 Audacity

9.  Play/Discuss
 Build
 Play/Discuss
 Build
 Play/Discuss
 Lunch
 Think, Design, Playtest, Change
(GameTech, Boys and Girls Club of America, 2009)

10.  Play-Consoles
 Games you love/What makes a good game
◦ Not too hard, not too easy, gets harder
with you, space out, don’t notice time
◦ Fun
◦ Looks good
 Play/Design Tour-Knytt Stories
 GameMaker
 Play/Design Tour-World of Goo
 GameMaker Clown Game
 Game Ideas Brainstorm
 Design Documents

11.  Play Consoles
 GM: Deconstruct Clown
 GM: Improve Clown
◦ Lives, Health, Shooting, Rooms
 Design Documents
 Play/Design Tour: Aquaria
 GM: Getting Started
 Play/Design Tour: VVVVVV
 GM: Worktime/Special Topics
◦ Gravity, Enemy health

12.  Play/Discuss-Braid
 Image Editing/Creation
◦ Gimp
◦ Backgrounds, characters, enemies, pickups
 Audio Creation
◦ Audacity, Hammerhead, BXFR
◦ Sound effects, game music
 GM: Worktime/Special Topics
◦ Variables
◦ If-Then
◦ Large rooms

13.  GameMaker: Worktime
 Play Testing
 Reflection
 Packaging
 Sharing/Celebration
 Where do we go from here?

15.  OLPC
 “Build time” is resource intensive
 Staff Debrief
 Balance whole class versus
individual instruction
◦ Job Aids/Web/Youtube
 Expectations
 Consoles/Games/Building
 Lunch Games

16.  Learned how to create game by:
◦ Instructor demo: 75%
◦ Asked peer: 56.3%
◦ “Messing Around”: 37.5%
 I enjoyed creating my digital game:
◦ 87.5% Strongly Agree, 12.5% Agree
 I was able to create the content of my game to convey my message to
players
◦ 18.8% Strongly Agree, 43.8% Agree, 37.5% Don’t Agree
 I feel like I learned how to identify and solve problems
◦ 37.5% Strongly Agree, 50% Agree, 12.5% Don’t Agree
 My ability to express my thoughts and ideas has been enhanced
through making games
◦ 50% Strongly Agree, 43.8% Agree, 6.3% D
 I used many artistic skills to create my digital game.
◦ 37.5% Strongly Agree, 50% Agree, 12.5% Don’t Agree

17.  How did you benefit?
◦ I now know how to make videogames at home
◦ I became even more creative
◦ I may now have a career in this industry
 What did you like?
◦ I liked being able to make your own sprites through your imagination and ideas
◦ Getting to play my finished game in the end
◦ Programming
 What didn’t you like?
◦ The frustration of the computer not understanding
◦ How hard it was
◦ It was too short. All the glitches in my game
◦ Learning the ropes

18.  Provide middle school students an opportunity to learn to build
independently and collaboratively in a virtual
environment, applying design and development concepts in 2D
and 3D art, and provide an outlet for creative energy with a high
impact, engaging experience.
 Objective: Create a presence in a virtual world with a customized
avatar, clothing, accessories, and a structure, such as a
home, castle, fort.
 4 days, 9a-4p
 2009, 2010, 2011

19.  Most attended the first week “Games Camp” but not all
 Ages 11-13
 13 Males and 3 Females

20.  OpenSimulator (OpenSim)

21.  GIMP (Textures)
 QAvimator
(Avatar Animation)
 Audacity (Sound)
Image from Qavimator.org screenshots

22.  Play – Consoles, PC
 Theme Presentation (see lessons learned): Zoo, Tribe, Social
Justice
 Cirkus Animation
 Altgeld Hall
 Introduction to Opensim
 Modeling Basics
 Avatar Customizing
 Texturing

23.  Play/Build
 Creating custom textures
 Creating clothing from templates
 Face templates
 Building structure (fort, home)
◦ Windows, roofs, towers

24.  Play/Build
 Pigeon Impossible Video
◦ Good, Fast, or Cheap
 3D Animation - Qavimator
 Importing Animations
 Adding sound to objects
 Build time
Screenshot from Pigeon Impossible website

25.  Build time
 Scripting
 Celebration

26.  Opensim Challenges
 Theme for Direction
 Building with limits, landform and prim size
 Diversity of Activity/Experience
 Parcels/Etiquette
 Anonymity
 Keeping track of stuff

27.  How did you benefit from the experience?
◦ “It helped me learn how to get past difficult problems”
◦ “I think it helped me when I eventually try to get a job in game
design”
 What are things you liked about the experience?
◦ “Customizing my avatar and space”
◦ “I liked being able to build anything without having to do a 5 hour
search for only one type item, and how everything is accessible to
you”

28.  What are things you disliked?
◦ “the camp is too short!”
◦ “Less lectures”
 Please provide suggestions to help us improve our instruction
◦ “I don’t have any suggestons for the camp I didn’t have any
problems in the camp, in my head the camp is perfect”
 Please provide any other comments…
◦ “It would be nice if you could make the camp a little longer”
◦ “MAKE THE CAMP LONGER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

29.  I would like to have a career in the video game industry.
Strongly agree 37.5%, Agree 43.8%, Disagree 6.3%, Strongly
Disagree 12.5%
 I liked playing with the virtual spaces created by my peers.
Strongly agree 75%, Agree 25%
 I forgot about time passing while participating in the
activities.
Strongly agree 69%, Agree 25%, 6% Disagree

30.  Girls Scouts Game Design Workshop
 Aspergers students (middle and high school)
 At-risk residential camp (high school)
 Teacher Professional Development
 Art Education (undergraduate and graduate level students)
 High School After School Art Club

31.  Jason Underwood: junderwood@niu.edu
 Aline Click: aclick@niu.edu
 Slideshare: http://www.slideshare.net/Aliandrews
 Digital Convergence Lab: http://dcl.niu.edu
 Facebook Group: NIU Digital Convergence Lab
 Twitter: NIUConvergence
 Illustrations by Scott Fleming
 Photographs by Elizabeth Anderson