Who Says Video Games Aren't Educational? Camp/Game: Intensive Video Game Creation New Summer 2004 Program July 6 to August 6.

Business Editors/Education Writers

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 12, 2004

Not your typical sleep-away camp, the first Camp/Game: Intensive Video Game Creation will launch this summer from July 6 to August 6. The summer camp is geared toward high school seniors and undergraduate students (17-25 year olds) interested in learning the finer points of the video game industry, exploring their passion for the subject and helping them discover career options in the fast-growing gaming industry.

Camp/Game is a new and unique program initiative created and run by the Division of Entertainment, Technology, Digital Arts and Design (ETDAD), part of NYU's School of Continuing and Professional Studies (SCPS). Unlike the West Coast where game companies and video game educational programs are more predominant, the Northeast has limited resources for students to sample alternatives within the industry. The month-long summer intensive provides students in the region with a creative learning opportunity to discover the world of video game development in their own backyard.

"Camp/Game participants in the area learn the basic creative structure, development and production of video games as well as some business fundamentals in a fun, entertaining, yet structured environment," said Robert Manuel, assistant dean, Division of Entertainment, Technology, Digital Arts and Design.

It's Not all about Playing Games

While at the camp, students have the opportunity to explore available career choices at the same time learning how to create games. In addition to getting a better understanding on becoming 3-D animators, programmers, character and environmental designers, digital and technical artists, art directors, audio engineers and/or producers, the skills gained in video game development may also be applicable to other fields such as architectural visualization, medical imaging and engineering, among others.

The New York-area is the home to many established and emerging artists and has been a hotbed for visual imaging and graphic design. Local metropolitan schools have always provided the educational tools to polish those skills. More recently educational institutions recognized the growth and demand for classes such as 3-D modeling and animation and are beginning to offer more workshops and structured programs to students interested in honing their game development skills. Camp/Game is a more in-depth program for mature high school students and college undergraduates who are serious about video game development as a possible vocation and want to sample the various facets involved in creating a game.

Camp/Game is based on the basic concept that teamwork is of critical importance to game and entertainment production. ETDAD creates a positive environment in which students will emulate the industry practices of working hard, and eating, sleeping and breathing video games. Working in teams, campers will develop new levels and modifications to an existing game title, such as Doom.

During the first week of the program, students will play various games in order to develop a working vocabulary and concept for their project. Throughout the duration of the camp, instructors and guest lecturers will draw parallels between the game production efforts that students are undertaking and 'real-world' game development projects. Campers will be expected to attend and exhibit at weekly "builds" to show their progress to fellow campers. In the remaining weeks, students will break into teams to complete their project. Ultimately, participants will leave camp having created a final pitch demonstrating the game concept, target audience and a working interactive modification to demonstrate their concept.

In addition to NYU's faculty, qualified industry professionals working with campers include game designers, producers and programmers. Moderated video conference calls and/or online chats with industry experts such as game designers, game-related book authors and researchers are also part of the curriculum.

During the month-long camp, students will gain hands-on experience learning the various aspects of creating a video game. Video game programming workshops include: Introduction to Unreal Script, Game Rules Programming, Intermediate Unreal Scrip, Unreal Bots/AI and Graphics & Effects Programming. Animation and 3-D modeling seminar classes include: Introduction to 3DS Max, From Concept to Model, Creating and Applying Texture Maps, 3DS Max Character Studio and 3DS Max Advanced Character Studio II. Level design will feature: Introduction to Unreal Level Editor, Intermediate Unreal Level Editor, Optimizing Unreal Levels and The Great Outdoors. Audio production workshops campers will be participating in include Introduction to Game Audio and Introduction to Game Music.

New York University, located in the heart of Greenwich Village, was established in 1831 and is one of America's leading research universities. Founded in 1934, NYU's School of Continuing and Professional Studies educates more than 50,000 adult learners annually, offering 2,500 credit and noncredit courses that span more than 125 fields. The School, a nationally known leader in adult education, offers busy professionals the choice of 12 masters degree programs, nine bachelors programs, six associates degrees and seven graduate and 110 other professional certificate programs to educate them for leadership in New York City's key business sectors, ranging from real estate, healthcare, management and hospitality to marketing, finance, law, film entertainment and publishing. Please visit SCPS online at www.scps.nyu.edu for more information.