On our very first official day of making stuff, we had a special guest maker introduce Game Design. Greg Austic is an alternative energy researcher by day, a game designer by night, and can often be found at Ann Arbor’s Maker Works. Greg started off the session by explaining the three basic elements of game design: Design/theme, Story, and Games that already exist (as examples of different types of games). Working in small groups, the kids brainstormed ideas for each element, and then used ideas from each list to create new game ideas.

“We could make a game that played like GAME, with plot like STORY, and with cool DESIGN themes.”

Greg provided a list of questions to consider, which included “What would make someone want to play and re-play your game?” “Who is the audience?” and “What would be the challenges of making your game?” Some groups jumped into planning a specific game right away, while others brainstormed several different combinations before zoning in on details for a particular one. It was clear that some of the kids had been thinking about making their own game for years– and now they had the terminology and formula to express their ideas. Some of the results:

A combination trading card, board, and rock, paper, scissors game with a Hunger Games theme
A map game where users receive personalized maps of the town they live in that are integrated with Google maps
An open-ended god game where users create their own god avatar and try to get followers
A battling game featuring Pokemon that look like real creatures
A chess action game where each move becomes a duel between the pieces, which each have their own special powers

One interesting note, especially considering Greg’s question about the challenges of making these games– every student named a video or online game as their favorite, and their brainstorming ideas reflect that. The session wrapped up with Greg asking the kids to research their game ideas to see what’s been done before so that they can think about how to make their games unique– and therefore more fun to play!

-Jessica S.