A Class Over Discord?
Yes! You’ll get to know your classmates in our dedicated class channel on the Game Not Included Discord. Have jam sessions, troubleshoot technical issues, and share valuable feedback with your peers as you learn alongside them. Never used Discord before? That’s okay! We’ll give you a tour on the first day.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Do I need Photoshop?
No! Any digital drawing software will work. There are even drawing tools that will run in your browser that you can use to follow along with lessons. On the first day we’ll cover the basics of choosing the right software for you.
Q: What sort of hardware do I need?
At a minimum you will need a computer or tablet that has stylus capabilities. This can either be a touch screen such as an iPad, a laptop or desktop with a touchscreen, or a computer with an accompanying tablet accessory.
Q: How long is class?
Class will run every Tuesday from 7 to 9pm, with front-loaded lectures. The second half of class will be dedicated work time for us to work on projects together.
Q: I still have questions!!
Fear not! Email me at hello@gamenotincluded.fun and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.
WEEK 1: TITLE SPLASH
This week is ice-breaker week. Get acquainted with class procedures and meet your classmates in this first session. We’ll help you decide which programs you will use for class and cover how projects will be delivered throughout the session. The second half of class we will start on our first project and leave time for feedback and questions.
Project Name: TITLE SPLASH
Description: Don’t get hung up on coming up with a name for your game! Pick a direction and run with it. We’ll focus on making your world feel real by hammering down a title and making it stick with some jazzy splash screens.
WEEK 2: Main Character
It’s character week! We’ll talk about what makes a solid character design, and how you can bring your world to life through the eyes of your main “player” character.
Project Name: CHARACTER REF
Description: We’re going to be pulling our character ref sheets together for our main characters. You’ll have a collection of details to choose from, starting with an orthographic view. We’ll start the week off with some brainstorming sketches and send you on your way to complete your full designs in time for next week.
WEEK 3: Foliage and Biome
You have your explorer, but what are they exploring? This week we’re going to focus on the terrain, the climate, and the plantlife of your world. By focusing on the environment of your world, you’ll start to piece together details like how the inhabitants survive in your chosen landscape.
Project Name: BOTANIST BONANZA
Description: To start off our environmental exploration, we’re going to hone in on just one plant to focus our attention. I’ll take you through the process of brainstorming plantlife, and we’ll harvest our bast ideas to bring some greenery (or any color really) to the world.
WEEK 4: Monsters, Critters, Creatures!
While making your terrain for your biome it’s nearly impossible not to think about who might already be inhabiting this world. What kinds of monsters are lurking in the dark of night? How do the hunted outsmart a predator? Now’s the time to think about creature design, from the tip of a tail to the point of a claw.
Project Name: TRACK THAT
Description: Design a creature starting with the footprints they leave behind. We’ll take a look at the pawprints, slither marks, claw scrapes and residues of wildlife here on this planet as inspiration for a new kind of creature.
WEEK 5: Items and Tools
While making your terrain for your biome it’s nearly impossible not to think about who might already be inhabiting this world. What kinds of monsters are lurking in the dark of night? How do the hunted outsmart a predator? Now’s the time to think about creature design, from the tip of a tail to the point of a claw.
Project Name: BACKSTOCK BACKLOG
Description: You’re the shopkeeper in town for this project and you’ve got a laundry-list of strange and wonderful wares to sell! It’s time to do inventory on all of your stock, see what’s selling and maybe what you can pawn off on another shopkeeper nearby…
WEEK 6: ARCHITECTURE
The architecture of a city tells its own sort of story. This week we’ll strap on our city planner’s hard hat as we zone-out our world’s structural style. Is your world full of sleek, new skyscrapers- bustling with strange technologies? Or are your towns more of the ancient-village ruins type?
Project Name: CROSS-SECTION CONSTRUCTION
Description: This project will tackle both the exterior and interior design of the buildings in your world. We’ll make good use of the layer functionality of digital painting to create a cross-section view of a structure within your world.
WEEK 7: Mapping
A place without a map is only a collection of things. This sagely saying was made up by me just now! But adding your world objects to a map is about more than just logistics- plotting out the journey of your character, thinking about the relationships of each area of interest, you can discover so much story hiding in the longitude and latitude of a map.
Project Name: CARTOGRAPHIC CHAOS
Description: You’ve collected quite a few components to a world from your mind. But how do they all exist together? It’s time to think about where things exist in your world, and how each object might interact with another.
WEEK 8: Story
What is a world without the story that holds it together? This week we’ll take the details we’ve been piecing together throughout the course and weave them together into a scene-setting opening for our game’s story.
Project Name: CUTZINES!
Description: Using storyboarding techniques we’ll be creating our own opening cutscenes to our worlds. Everything we’ve created so far is your inspiration, so introduce us to your world through the eyes of your main character. What challenges are in store for them? Who will they meet along the way?
WEEK 9: share out
It’s time to look back at everything you’ve created for your world. Characters and creatures, towering mountains, strange artifacts and structural marvels, all of these things were created from your own mind. But don’t sleep on your chance to show your classmates around, why not give them a tour?
Project Name: TOUR GUIDE
Description: It’s time to show us what you’ve got. Get ready to give a tour of the world you’ve created and spotlight the details you’re most proud of. Take questions from your peers, share your technical accomplishments, and give us a glimpse into the world of your mind.