The second semester of my third year has finally started, and I finished my first week. Already, I feel like I’ve been at school for a month. So much has happened, and I can tell this semester is going to be extremely exciting! I’m going to split everything into Classes and Jobs, to make it easy.

Classes:

I’m taking 5 courses this semester, same as normal. The classes are listed below, as well as my initial thoughts about them.

Core:

I’m taking two core classes, The Global Condition and Human Rights and Responsibilities. While they don’t have the same immediate appeal as my Core classes last semester (Food Writing and Canadian History through Film), I think I’m going to be enjoying these classes a lot. We get to talk about history and try to analyse things from new view points, which I always love doing. I actually wanted to take a history class last semester but it’s hard to find one that will fit into my curriculum. So it’s nice to be able to have something like this. I think that I’m going to really enjoy these classes, and they don’t seem like a lot of work either. That’s great, it’ll give me more time for my major classes.

Intermediate Graphics and Animation:

This class is going to be intense. Last time I felt this kind of energy from a class was Game Architecture, and that class was one of the first classes I felt like I would fail. I didn’t, and came out a better time manager and worker because of it. I hope I don’t have the same problem with this class. I’m not taking any classes though. The day after my first class I finished the first assignment (due next week), and on the second day I went into the labs when we didn’t have class to help others with it. I’m also planning on going to my professor’s, Dan Buckstein, office hours a lot this semester, and I want to make sure I understand this as well as I can. I might not be able to do any of the bonus prompts (not yet at least), but I’m positive if I work hard I can get an A in this class.

The class is also using my professor’s custom built animation and rendering program, Animal3D. I’ve been really happy using it so far, and Dan has done an amazing job getting everything working. I’m looking forward to making some really cool shaders in it and porting them to Unity!

Game Systems and Development

I’ve been looking forward to this class for almost 2 years now. I want to be a systems/technical designer, and this class will prove that I can do it. Throughout the semester, we are making 3 prototypes of different groups of game play (physicality, logic, and altered states). We have to come up with and create a game loop showing off the different mechanics we make, as well as a bunch of research and testing backing up (or disproving) our intended play experience. I had a smile on my face the entire class. I want every project I make in this class to be portfolio ready, and I’m ready to commit the time to make that happen. The biggest challenge I can see is coming up with ideas. I know that I’ve never been the best of coming up with them on the fly, but luckily I have a week to think about it. I’ll probably be making posts about this class as well.

Production 2:

This is the biggest class of my junior year. All game majors come together, in teams of 4-5, to make one game over the course of semester. For the first three weeks, we have to make three different prototypes of games, prove their worth, and test them. Afterwards, we choose one game to continue development on for the next 5 weeks. Around week 8, the teams present their games to the entire school, and the classes decide which games get cut from production. The teams that get cut move onto other teams, and they continue development on the un-cut projects. This is a mini-capstone, and I’m really glad it is run this way. Now, next semester, when I start capstone, I’ll have a good idea of how everything will work, and know the level of quality that will be expected from a game to have it go through. I’m also just really excited to be working in a team again. We all work so well together, and I can tell that we’re going to make a really good game!

Jobs:

Student Ambassador:

I’ve had this job since my first year, and I’m really happy to have kept with it. As an ambassador for the college, I give tours, help with admission events, and do any kind of project that the school, specifically admissions, needs me to do. I’ve made some great friends in this job, and some great job references as well. I met three of my favorite alumni friends from that job, and I still keep in touch with them. While I’m just a normal SA right now, I’ve been thinking of applying for a more senior role on the time for next year. There are 2 non-standard roles on the SA team, LEAD and Tour Trainer. LEAD’s are the management of the SA team, and they are in charge of creating schedules, keeping the office on track, and directing the SA team. Tour Trainers are in charge of making sure we have tour rooms, the tour script is up to date, and that everyone is ready to give tours. I’d be applying for the LEAD position. I’ve had my former bosses, as well as former LEADs tell me that they want me in that position, and I want to do it. My only hesitation is time. Next year, I have my senior capstone, which has historically sucked time away from game majors. Also, there is the matter of my second job…

Interactive UX Designer at the EMC

I finally got into the Emergent Media Center! The EMC is a functioning game studio, hosted by the college, that takes on real life clients and creates games and interactive media for them. I’m going to be working on a Sandbox team, which is a team dedicated to exploring and pushing the boundaries of what games should be. I’m super excited to be working there, and I can’t wait to prove myself! I also feel really comfortable in this role, since the team I’m going to be on has a focus on XR, and I did an entire semester long research project on VR controllers and how to make the most intuitive and engaging experience for the player. I haven’t started yet at the time of this post, but I’m expecting it to be a blast!