Tag: Games

Bookmarked TER #115 – Teaching Game Design with Bill Cohen – 22 July 2018 (Teachers' Education Review)

Timecodes

  • 00:00 Opening Credits
  • 01:31 Intro
  • 01:44 Selective Schools
  • 18:46 Feature Introduction
  • 20:31 Interview – Bill Cohen
  • 01:09:12 Sign Off
Cameron Malcher interviews Bill Cohen about game-design. Cohen goes beyond the usual coding and computer-aided approaches to focusing on ‘low-tech’ games. This included engaging with boardgames and outdoor games. This play-based approach focuses on developing clear metalanguage, feedback for mastery and working with an iterative design process. This reminds me in part of Amy Burvall’s notion of ‘rigorous whimsy‘ and BreakoutEDU. Some resources Cohen shared include Boardgame Geek and Lady Blackbird, while in a seperate post, Clare Rafferty has shared a list of games associated with History.

If there is one thing that I have learnt as a teacher is that nothing leaches out fun mor than dropping a layer of education over the top of it – Bill Cohen (50 mins)

Malcher also provides a reflection on the place and impact of select entry schools on equity and equality.

Liked How to beat LinkedIn: The Game by Joe Veix (The Outline)

For those unfamiliar, LinkedIn is a 2D, turn-based MMORPG that sets itself apart from its competitors by placing players not in a fantasy world of orcs and goblins, but in the treacherous world of business. Players can choose from dozens of character classes (e.g., Entrepreneurs, Social Media Mavens, Finance Wizards) each with their own skill sets and special moves (Power Lunch; Signal Boost; Invoice Dodge). They gain “experience” by networking, obtaining endorsements from other users, and posting inspirational quotes from Elon Musk.

via Doug Belshaw
Liked The Toca Boca Story – The Startup – Medium by Danielle Newnham (Medium)

So, our research and strategy has helped a lot and has actually created a great environment for our staff because they bought into the business from the beginning. We have created a confined space in our business with very strict parameters. The business is digital toys; it’s not winning, no losing, no stress, no high scores, no rules. It’s open-ended, focusing on creativity; playful, fun experiences. You have to buy into all of these things before you start here.

We do open-ended children’s apps that don’t have any rules, so you have to focus on the fun. If you start at the company and you know that, then it’s completely free because we don’t go to staff and tell them to make it a different color. As long as you buy into the initial constraints, it’s free. In fact, I have designers who say they have never worked somewhere where they have been given so much freedom, which is ironic considering that we have limited down the market so much. But it is very free for them as long as you buy into the idea — and I think that is a result of strategy. It also creates a good work environment because, quite frankly, if I think I could design better than the designer, then I have probably hired the wrong person. If I can’t bet on the designer to know best, then something is wrong.