General provisions

The course is part of Master´s Programme in Transformative Game Design, 60 c

Entry requirements

A Bachelor's degree, equivalent to a Swedish Kandidatexamen, from an internationally recognised university, and Introduction to Transformative Game Design, 7.5 credits. Proficiency in English equivalent to the Swedish upper secondary course English 6.

Learning outcomes

On successful completion of Introduction to Transformative Game Design, the student should be able to:

• Knowledge of the Field: Discuss topics, themes, and theories related to implementation of transformative analog games, including logistics, and safety, and player skills.
• Game Design, Play, and Implementation: Design, facilitate, experience, iterate, and critique implementation strategies for transformative analog games that have specific growth-related goals.
• Perform Academic, Professional, and Reflective Writing: Compose written texts and other communication materials on the implementation of transformative analog games in various formats for distinct audiences.

Content

Building on the work done in previous transformative game design courses (Introduction to Transformative Game Design, Transformative Game Design 1), this course covers the logistics of implementing small and large-scale role-playing games from start to finish. This course emphasizes structures that reinforce the transfer of insights, skills, and goals from play to life. This course focuses on intentionality in game design choices, including specific workshop integration, accessibility, and other facets of game-related procedures. The course addresses practical aspects of implementation including "hands-on game mastering," with an introduction to building and maintaining communities of play that emphasize emotional and physical safety of participants. Students will create an implementation plan as well as write an academic paper

Instruction

The course is delivered through asynchronous group discussions, lectures, and flexibly scheduled synchronous group meetings. Curricular materials may include some or all of the following: video-recordings, research articles, popular texts, game design documents, etc. Students will create tangible game design related projects (mainly within analog role-playing games), alone or in teams, and play and test their games. Students will show and critically discuss the results with their peers, the teacher, and other researchers/stakeholders where indicated. Feedback and guidance on writing will be provided throughout the course.

Assessment

The basis for assessment is the students' active participation in course-related activities, presenting regular progress of agreed-upon deliverables and adhering to deadlines. Moreover, the students should meet regularly with the teacher, following through on directions and conducting themselves professionally throughout the course. Deliverables include oral presentations and written assignments.

If there are special reasons for doing so, an examiner may make an exception from the method of assessment indicated and allow a student to be assessed by another method. An example of special reasons might be a certificate regarding special pedagogical support from the University´s disability coordinator.

Other directives

The course replaces 5SD317, Transformative Game Design 2, 7.5 credits.