Attribution & Permission

Don’t take credit for work you didn’t produce! (e.g. images, music, etc). Clearly indicate the origin of any materials you source externally and where exactly you got them, so it’s clear which parts of your submission are originally authored/created, and which have been appropriated, reworked, and how.

For any materials you share publicly (e.g. putting your game on itch.io) you need to consider copyright obligations. For example: do you have permission to use a particular tune? Did you ask the creator? Is it public domain or Creative Commons?

For any materials you share publicly you also need to consider privacy obligations. For example: for anybody identifiable in a photo or video clip you take, do you have their permission to show them?

Discord

We use Discord to send out class announcements, field questions, and share progress with each other. You can use it in the browser or download a free client for lots of different operating systems.

Class Attendance Policy

As an enrolled student, you have made a commitment to this class and your attendance is a significant part of that commitment. Attendance will be taken at every class. An absence is considered excused if the student has informed the course instructor or TA by email or in person before the beginning of the class and the excuse is considered reasonable by the instructor. If a student needs an official excuse for medical or other reasons, please go to the Advising & Learning Assistance Center https://info.rpi.edu/advising-learning-assistance/

Late Policy: All students are required to be on time and in attendance for each class. Students arriving to class more than 10 minutes late may be counted as absent. Two (2) unexcused absences will result in a reduction of one entire letter grade.

Adherence to deadlines is expected. It is the individual student's responsibility to keep track of deadlines and to present the work to the class and instructor on the specified dates.

If you are concerned about your creative trajectory or your grade at any point during the semester, please do not hesitate to contact your Instructor and schedule an appointment.

Academic Integrity

Class Specific

Collaboration and discussion about class projects is actively encouraged and is in no way considered cheating. This is a studio course, and personal ownership of information is not deemed to be appropriate.

Projects are expected to reflect personal endeavor but may also be collaborative in nature when the nature of the collaboration is clearly indicated.

The Rensselaer Handbook of Student Rights and Responsibilities and The Rensselaer Graduate Student Supplement define various forms of Academic Dishonesty and procedures for responding to them. All forms are violations of the trust between students and teachers. Student-teacher relationships are built on trust. For example, students must trust that teachers have made appropriate decisions about the structure and content of the courses they teach, and teachers must trust that the assignments that students turn in are their own performance. Acts that violate this trust undermine the educational process.

Various forms of Academic Dishonesty are outlined in the Rensselaer Handbook of Student Rights and Responsibilities and The Rensselaer Graduate Student Supplement and you should make yourself familiar with these. In this class, all assignments that are turned in for a grade must represent the student’s own work.

 In cases where help or found assets were used, or teamwork was allowed, a notation on the assignment should indicate the name or source of each author or asset in the collaboration. Submission of any assignment that is in violation of this policy will result in a penalty. If found in violation of the academic honesty policy, students may be subject to two types of penalty. The instructor administers an academic [grade] penalty and the student is reported to the Dean of Students or the Dean of Graduate Education as appropriate. The first violation results in 0 grade for that assignment. The second violation results in failure of the course. If you have any questions concerning this policy before submitting an assignment, please ask for clarification.

Support Services
Student Health & Wellness:
https://studenthealth.rpi.edu/health-and-counseling-services/mental-health-counseling-services

Student Success Labs

https://success.studentlife.rpi.edu/success-labs

The Writing Lab

https://info.rpi.edu/comm-d

“Center for Global Communication+Design (Comm+D). If you would like help with writing assignments, visual design projects, or oral presentations, please visit the Center online at https://info.rpi.edu/comm-d to find helpful resources or to schedule an appointment. Comm+D is a FREE resource for all members of the Rensselaer community.”

Advice for successful performance in the course:
Come to class prepared by doing the assignments and participate. You are invited, encouraged, and expected to engage actively in discussion, reflection and activities.

Students with Disabilities:
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute strives to make all learning experiences as accessible as possible. If you anticipate or experience academic barriers based on a disability, please let the instructor know immediately so that we can discuss ways toward success.  To establish reasonable accommodation, please register with The Office of Disability Services for Students. After registration, please make arrangements with the instructor as soon as possible to discuss your accommodations so that they may be implemented in a timely fashion.

General Information for Success in the Class

We're a mix of many people with many backgrounds with many levels of experience. We'll use the Django Code of Conduct which breaks down to the following list; although, I would encourage following the link to read the details. It's a common practice in many FLOSS and similar software communities.

·   Be friendly and patient

·   Be welcoming

·   Be considerate

·   Be respectful

·   Be careful in the words that we choose

·   Try to understand why we disagree

This was developed by the TODO Group which has many more useful links for further information, for example, Geek Feminism.

Another thing to be aware of - the “be a reasonable person” as described at Carnegie Mellon's CS site: Reasonable Person Principle

Required Materials

• An active RCS account.

• Approximately 200 GB usb drive and or high-capacity external hard drive will be necessary to back up and archive your work

• Other materials on a project basis

• You may be making a number of digital prints/manifestations of your work on or off campus. The costs of digital printing vary but be prepared to incur approximately $25 in fabrication/material costs.

Electronic Communication

Email: All students are expected to have an active electronic mail account and join the class Discord and should check in at least four times a week for class essential class information or updates.

Work Habits

Always back-up your work frequently; that is, every time you make something you think is worth keeping.  Systems crash when least expected and you could lose all your work.  It is a good idea to make three backups (on different media), as storage media are sometimes unstable. Always save onto your own media or into your account as files left on hard drives will be removed.

Also, please keep in mind the highly addictive aspects of working with computers. Many people lose track of time and later wonder why they have severe back, neck and eye problems.  It is a good idea to take a rest every 15 to 20 minutes.  Look up or beyond your computer or, better still, at a long distance to relax your eyes.  Take a walk or stretch.  Fatigue can lead to frustration. Stay in touch with your body's needs.

Try not to harm or deface any equipment, environment or software in any way or lose files and folders belonging to our class or other classes. 

Many thanks to the contributions of:

• GDC talk where game developers and professors Douglas Wilson and Bennett Foddy present a close look at the "Game a Week" model of game education https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9O9Q8OVWrFA

• Professor Kathleen Ruiz’s pioneering Experimental Game Design course http://homepages.hass.rpi.edu/~ruiz/EGDSpring2022/Experimental.htm

• Justin Buergi's brilliant insights and excellent study suggestions

• Li Zheng's insights and lecture/discussion contributions

Discussion

Suggested Readings