Example course: LMC 4725 Games as Cultural Practice
Course Description:
This course focuses on play and the means or material culture of play as represented through toys and games. Play engages humans cognitively, emotionally, and physically at all ages, it is ubiquitous in society, and it has been central to human development over millennia. In keeping with this centrality of play in human lives, this course explores the human experience of play through games throughout history as well as in contemporary culture where it looks at the trajectory of digital games that have been developed to support playful experience.
Further, this course looks at both historical and contemporary theory about, and issues concerning play, development, and games, to understand how emerging technologies and critical practices may offer us ways to reshape and rethink how we engage with our world through play and games.
Students will engage in alternative play and game design exercises and, working both individually and in teams, they will conceptualize, plan, and create both analog and digital games. They will also be required to research, analyze, and critique games through essays and presentations.
While considering all age groups, there will be an emphasis on game artifacts for children (to age 12).
Course development 2011-2021
Course development and teaching: Introduced courses with asterisks, including cross-college joint course in digital games
- LMC 4720 Interactive Narrative
- LMC 3404 History of Social Media: Social Media as Play and Entertainment*
- LMC 3404 History of Social Media
- LMC 3206 Communication and Culture: History of Social Media*
- LMC 4813/ID4823: Physical Play and Children’s Games
- LMC 4730: Experimental Digital Art: Physical Play and Children’s Games*
- LMC 3206: Communication and Culture: Disney Special FX*
- LMC 3206: Communication and Culture: Interactive Narrative*
- LMC 3314: Technology of Representation: Animation *
- LMC 3314: Technology of Representation: Children’s Books*
- LMC 3314: Technology of Representation: Material Culture of Communication*
- LMC 3402: Fundamentals of Graphic Design
- LMC 4906: Portfolio Development
- LMC 4102: Senior Research Thesis
- LMC 4699: Undergraduate Research
- CS 4912: CM Senior Design