# Calendar

## Instructors

[PT] = Philip Tan
[CFV] = Clara Fernandez-Vara
[JJ] = Jesper Juul
[DR] = Doris Rusch

Course calendar.
SES # | TOPICS | KEY DATES
--- | --- | ---
1 | Lecture: class and syllabus introduction What games and sports do the students/instructors play? Introduction to first reading, syllabus, writing expectations [PT] |
2 | Lecture: design [JJ] |
3 | Workshop: introduction to playtesting [DR] |
4 | Lecture: types of fun and game history [JJ] |
5 | Lecture: game design patterns and twenty formal game questions [DR, CFV] |
6 | Guest workshop, Scot Osterweil: playtesting exercise – poker variants |
7 | Guest lecture, Barry Kudrowitz: toys | First essay due
8 | Workshop: fortunetelling, games of chance and dice (Roulette, Bingo, Tarot) [CFV] |
9 | Lecture: competition and chance [PT] |
10 | Lecture: the player [CFV] |
11 | Workshop: Doris' 1000 blank cards [DR] |
12 | Lecture: card and guessing games [PT] |
13 | Lecture: information [PT] |
14 | Workshop: initial presentation poker deck game, playtest to get feedback, and suggest changes [all] |
15 | Workshop: racing games (Parcheesi, Life, Goose, Mille Bournes) [CFV] |
16 | Lecture: racing games [CFV] | Second essay due
17 | Guest lecture, Dennis Loo: gambling and probability |
18 | Lecture: space games [CFV] |
19 | Guest lecture, Denis Dyack |
20 | Workshop: Go, Chess, Xiangqi, Hasami Shogi, Draughts [PT] | Check-in with the instructors about your board game design
21 | Lecture: possibility space [PT]
22 | Lecture: feedback and emergence [JJ]
23 | Workshop: board game playtest |
24 | Lecture: bending and breaking [JJ] |
25 | Guest lecture, Marc LeBlanc | First team project due
26 | Workshop: LAN party (conflict, competition, and cooperation) [PT] |
27 | Lecture: digital games [JJ] |
28 | Lecture: abstraction and simulation [all] |
29 | Lecture: social play [JJ] |
30 | Workshop: narrative play (riddles, puzzles, and word games) [DR, CFV] |
31 | Guest lecture, Sam Ford: wrestling, meaning, and symbols |
32 | Guest lecture, Joshua Green: That's Just Not Cricket! |
33 | Guest workshop, Stephen Balzac: live-action roleplaying game |
34 | Guest lecture, Stephen Balzac: exploiting the constraints |
35 | Guest lecture, Jason Haas: improv games |
36 | Workshop: playtest for the final project |
37 | Guest lecture, Chris Weaver |
38 | Lecture: course evaluations and postmortem [PT] | Second team project due