Course Syllabus

DIG 4778C - Game Design Tools & Plugins (Advanced Unity Scripting)

Game and Interactive Media, Nicholson School of Communication and Media, College of Sciences

Number of Credit Hours: 3

Table of Contents

General Course Information
Course Description
Course Materials and Resources
Student Learning Outcomes
Course Activities
Grading Information
Course Schedule
Policy Statements
Remote Instruction

Instructor Information

Instructor: Paul Varcholik, Ph.D.
Office Location: CMB 115J
Office Hours: T R 1:30-5:00pm (Zoom)
Phone: 407-235-3581
Digital Contact: paul.varcholik@ucf.edu

Course Information

Term: Fall 2020
Course Number & Section: DIG 4778C Section: 0M77 (Lecture ), M177 (Lab)
Course Name: Game Design Tools & Plugins (Advanced Unity Scripting)
Credit Hours: 3
Class Meeting Days: M (Lecture) W (Lab)
Class Meeting Time: 1:30pm - 3:20pm
Class Location: Zoom
Course Modality: V (Video Streaming)

Enrollment Requirements

Course Prerequisites (if applicable): DIG 3727C - Game Level Design

Course Description

This course will present game development techniques for designing tools for other designers to use, implement plugins, and extend the game engine to accomplish game development goals.

Course Materials and Resources

Required Materials/Resources

No required textbook. Course material will be provided by the instructor, through UCF LinkedIn Learning, and through publicly accessible online sources.

Optional Materials/Resources

C# 6 for Programmers, 6th Edition

Student Learning Outcomes

The student will be able to employ Visual Studio, .NET Core, and the C# language to create a game.
The student will be able to use GitHub for managing the source code and content of this application.
The student will be able to employ Slack for individual and group communication.
The student will gain experience creating tools to aid game designers in the making of a game.
The student will reinforce and extend their experience using the Unity 3D game engine.
The student will be introduced to class libraries and sharing code between client applications.
The student will be introduced to Web-distributed APIs (Web Services) and the RESTful service architectural style. The student will be able to create software that consumes such Web Services.
The student will be introduced to modern development platforms/frameworks for game design tools and plugins.
The student with gain an understanding of the tool of a Tools Developer in the game industry.
The student will gain an understanding of data-driven game architecture.
The student will gain an understanding of file processing and and commonly encountered file/data formats, including JSON.

Course Activities

There will be numerous individual and group programming projects (see assignment schedule)
There will be a final project requiring an in-class proposal and presentation.
There will be regular reading assignments and/or video instruction assignments
The student is expected to participate in course discussion
The student should have regular access to the Internet and be prepared to switch between face-to-face instruction and remote instruction. Students should monitor this course on WebCourses@UCF and the course Slack Channel during and between class meetings.

Activity Submissions

Assignments will be primarily submitted through GitHub. Details of this process are provided in Assignment 2: First Commit to GitHub. Specific submission instructions are provided for each assignment.

Attendance/Participation

Students are expected to come to class on time. There will be no excused absences except for documented medical reasons or other serious emergencies. If a student has any urgent need to be absent due to illness, serious family emergencies, special curricular requirements (e.g., judging trips, field trips, professional conferences), military obligations, severe weather conditions, or religious holidays, notify (via phone, email, or Slack) the instructor prior to the class they will be missing or as soon as possible afterwards. Excused absences do not relieve the student of meeting all requirements of the course.

Attendance will factor in the determination of course grades in the following way:

3 unexcused absences are allowed with no impact to your grade
On the 4th unexcused absence you lose 10% (1 full letter grade)
On the 5th unexcused absence you fail the course

Please recognize that this is not an asynchronous Web course. This is a V (Video Streaming) course and the material has a specific pace and you are required to (remotely) attend the lectures and labs. In these extraordinary times, I will be accommodating with absences, but you must not treat this material as if it were self-paced, learn-on-your-own, and where there are few or no course meetings; that is not the modality for this course. Treat this course the same as you would for a typical face-to-face course except that we will meet via Zoom.

Please take the time to familiarize yourself with Zoom by visiting the UCF Zoom Guides. You may choose to use Zoom on your mobile device (phone or tablet).

Things to Know About Zoom:

You must sign in to my Zoom session using your UCF NID and password.
The Zoom sessions are recorded.
Improper classroom behavior is not tolerated within Zoom sessions and may result in a referral to the Office of Student Conduct.
You can contact Webcourses@UCF Support if you have any technical issues accessing Zoom.

Make-up Exams and Assignments

Per university policy, you can submit make-up work (or an equivalent, alternate assignment) for authorized university-sponsored activities, religious observances, or legal obligations (such as jury duty). If this participation conflicts with your course assignments, I will offer a reasonable opportunity for you to complete missed assignments and/or exams. The make-up assignment and grading scale will be equivalent to the missed assignment and its grading scale. In the case of an authorized university activity, it is your responsibility to show me a signed copy of the Program Verification Form for which you will be absent, prior to the class in which the absence occurs. In any of these cases, please contact me ahead of time to notify me of upcoming needs.

Assessment and Grading Procedures

Your final grade is derived from a pool of points from all assignments and attendance. Grades will be made available online through WebCourses@UCF.

Letter Grade	Points
A	90-100
B	80-89
C	70-79
D	60-69
F	59 or below

Details on individual assignments will be provided during the course and may alter how an assignment is graded. In general, however, grading is often based upon the following criteria:

Criterion	Description
Correct Files on GitHub	The expected files have been submitted to source control and unexpected files have been omitted.
Absence of Failure / Correctness	Your code builds cleanly (no warnings or errors) and runs without crashing. Note: indiscriminately suppressing exceptions with a global exception handler will not circumvent this criterion.
Git Commits for Each Module	(Specific to transcription assignments) At the completion of each module, you must have at least one matching git commit. You must not make just a single git commit after you have completed the final module.
Design	This measures the approach to solving a programming problem. How is the code organized? Are appropriate data structures employed? Is code duplication minimized? Is the code efficient?
Coding Style	This measures the readability and consistent application of guidelines for formatting, naming conventions, capitalization, and the use of white space.

Programming assignments must build without warning or error. Warnings are treated as errors, and all errors are subject to the following penalties:

Occurence	% Deducted
1^st occurrence	10%
2^nd occurrence	25%
3^rd occurrence	50%
4^th and subsequent occurrences	100%

Thus, the first occurrence of a build warning/error, on an assignment, will result in a maximum grade of 90% of the total points available for that assignment. A student’s actual grade may be further reduced by normal grading procedures (i.e. other problems with the submission that are not related to the build warning/error). After the 3rd occurrence, subsequent submissions that contain build errors will result in a 0% grade on those assignments.

Grades for late assignments will be reduced by 10% per day late. Assignments later than one week will receive no credit, unless pre-approved by the instructor.

Consult the latest Undergraduate or Graduate catalog for regulations and procedures regarding grading such as Incomplete grades, grade changes, and grade forgiveness.

Course Schedule

The course schedule is available through this link.

University Services and Resources

Academic Services and Resources

A list of available academic support and learning services is available at UCF Student Services. Click on "Academic Support and Learning Services" on the right-hand side to filter.

Non-Academic Services and Resources

A list of non-academic support and services is also available at UCF Student Services. Click on "Support" on the right-hand side to filter.

If you are a UCF Online student, please consult the UCF Online Student Guidelines for more information about your access to non-academic services.

Policy Statements

Academic Integrity

Students should familiarize themselves with UCF’s Rules of Conduct. According to Section 1, "Academic Misconduct," students are prohibited from engaging in:

Unauthorized assistance: Using or attempting to use unauthorized materials, information or study aids in any academic exercise unless specifically authorized by the instructor of record. The unauthorized possession of examination or course-related material also constitutes cheating.
Communication to another through written, visual, electronic, or oral means: The presentation of material which has not been studied or learned, but rather was obtained through someone else’s efforts and used as part of an examination, course assignment, or project.
Commercial Use of Academic Material: Selling of course material to another person, student, and/or uploading course material to a third-party vendor without authorization or without the express written permission of the university and the instructor. Course materials include but are not limited to class notes, Instructor’s PowerPoints, course syllabi, tests, quizzes, labs, instruction sheets, homework, study guides, handouts, etc.
Falsifying or misrepresenting the student’s own academic work.
Plagiarism: Using or appropriating another’s work without any indication of the source, thereby attempting to convey the impression that such work is the student’s own.
Multiple Submissions: Submitting the same academic work for credit more than once without the express written permission of the instructor.
Helping another violate academic behavior standards.

For more information about Academic Integrity, students may consult The Center for Academic Integrity.

For more information about plagiarism and misuse of sources, see “Defining and Avoiding Plagiarism: The WPA Statement on Best Practices”.

Responses to Academic Dishonesty, Plagiarism, or Cheating

Students should also familiarize themselves with the procedures for academic misconduct in UCF’s student handbook, The Golden Rule. UCF faculty members have a responsibility for students’ education and the value of a UCF degree, and so seek to prevent unethical behavior and when necessary respond to academic misconduct. Penalties can include a failing grade in an assignment or in the course, suspension or expulsion from the university, and/or a "Z Designation" on a student’s official transcript indicating academic dishonesty, where the final grade for this course will be preceded by the letter Z. For more information about the Z Designation, see http://goldenrule.sdes.ucf.edu/zgrade.

Course Accessibility Statement

The University of Central Florida is committed to providing access and inclusion for all persons with disabilities. This syllabus is available in alternate formats upon request. Students with disabilities who need specific access in this course, such as accommodations, should contact the professor as soon as possible to discuss various access options. Students should also connect with Student Accessibility Services (Ferrell Commons, 7F, Room 185, sas@ucf.edu, phone (407) 823-2371). Through Student Accessibility Services, a Course Accessibility Letter may be created and sent to professors, which informs faculty of potential access and accommodations that might be reasonable.

Campus Safety Statement

Fully online course sections (W, V)

Though most emergency situations are primarily relevant to courses that meet in person, such incidents can also impact online students, either when they are on or near campus to participate in other courses or activities or when their course work is affected by off-campus emergencies. The following policies apply to courses in online modalities.

To stay informed about emergency situations, students can sign up to receive UCF text alerts by going to <https://my.ucf.eduLinks to an external site.> and logging in. Click on “Student Self Service” located on the left side of the screen in the toolbar, scroll down to the blue “Personal Information” heading on the Student Center screen, click on “UCF Alert”, fill out the information, including e-mail address, cell phone number, and cell phone provider, click “Apply” to save the changes, and then click “OK.”
Students with special needs related to emergency situations should speak with their instructors outside of class.

Sections with face-to-face components (M, RA, RV)

Emergencies on campus are rare, but if one should arise during class, everyone needs to work together. Students should be aware of their surroundings and familiar with some basic safety and security concepts.

In case of an emergency, dial 911 for assistance.
Every UCF classroom contains an emergency procedure guide posted on a wall near the door. Students should make a note of the guide’s physical location and review the online version at <http://emergency.ucf.edu/emergency_guide.htmlLinks to an external site.>.
Students should know the evacuation routes from each of their classrooms and have a plan for finding safety in case of an emergency.
If there is a medical emergency during class, students may need to access a first-aid kit or AED (Automated External Defibrillator). To learn where those are located, see <http://www.ehs.ucf.edu/AEDlocations-UCFLinks to an external site.> (click on link from menu on left).
To stay informed about emergency situations, students can sign up to receive UCF text alerts by going to <https://my.ucf.eduLinks to an external site.> and logging in. Click on “Student Self Service” located on the left side of the screen in the toolbar, scroll down to the blue “Personal Information” heading on the Student Center screen, click on “UCF Alert”, fill out the information, including e-mail address, cell phone number, and cell phone provider, click “Apply” to save the changes, and then click “OK.”
Students with special needs related to emergency situations should speak with their instructors outside of class.
To learn about how to manage an active-shooter situation on campus or elsewhere, consider viewing this video

Deployed Active Duty Military Students

Copyright

This course may contain copyright protected materials such as audio or video clips, images, text materials, etc. These items are being used with regard to the Fair Use doctrine in order to enhance the learning environment. Please do not copy, duplicate, download or distribute these items. The use of these materials is strictly reserved for this online classroom environment and your use only. All copyright materials are credited to the copyright holder.

Third-Party Software and FERPA

During this course you might have the opportunity to use public online services and/or software applications sometimes called third-party software such as a blog or wiki. While some of these could be required assignments, you need not make any personally identifying information on a public site. Do not post or provide any private information about yourself or your classmates. Where appropriate you may use a pseudonym or nickname. Some written assignments posted publicly may require personal reflection/comments, but the assignments will not require you to disclose any personally identity-sensitive information. If you have any concerns about this, please contact your instructor.

Regarding COVID-19

University-Wide Face Covering Policy for Common Spaces and Face-to-Face Classes

To protect members of our community, everyone is required to wear a facial covering inside all common spaces including classrooms (https://policies.ucf.edu/documents/PolicyEmergencyCOVIDReturnPolicy.pdf). Students who choose not to wear facial coverings will be asked to leave the classroom by the instructor. If they refuse to leave the classroom or put on a facial covering, they may be considered disruptive (please see the Golden Rule for student behavior expectations). Faculty have the right to cancel class if the safety and well-being of class members are in jeopardy. Students will be responsible for the material that would have been covered in class as provided by the instructor.

Notifications in Case of Changes to Course Modality

Depending on the course of the pandemic during the semester, the university may make changes to the way classes are offered. If that happens, please look for announcements or messages in Webcourses@UCF or Knights email about changes specific to this course.

COVID-19 and Illness Notification

Students who believe they may have a COVID-19 diagnosis should contact UCF Student Health Services (407-823-2509) so proper contact tracing procedures can take place.

Students should not come to campus if they are ill, are experiencing any symptoms of COVID-19, have tested positive for COVID, or if anyone living in their residence has tested positive or is sick with COVID-19 symptoms. CDC guidance for COVID-19 symptoms is located here: (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/symptoms-testing/symptoms.html)

Students should contact their instructor(s) as soon as possible if they miss class for any illness reason to discuss reasonable adjustments that might need to be made. When possible, students should contact their instructor(s) before missing class.

In Case of Faculty Illness

If the instructor falls ill during the semester, there may be changes to this course, including having a backup instructor take over the course. Please look for announcements or mail in Webcourses@UCF or Knights email for any alterations to this course.

Course Accessibility and Disability COVID-19 Supplemental Statement

Accommodations may need to be added or adjusted should this course shift from an on-campus to a remote format. Students with disabilities should speak with their instructor and should contact sas@ucf.edu to discuss specific accommodations for this or other courses.

Remote Instruction

The university has provided several resources to assist students with remote learning: https://digitallearning.ucf.edu/newsroom/keeplearning/

Live and Recorded Lectures: This course will include synchronous (“real time”) sessions that will also be available as a recorded session for later review in Webcourses@UCF. Students who are unable to attend on-campus sessions, are expected to review these available sessions. Such recordings/streaming will only be available to students registered for this class. These recordings are the intellectual property of the faculty and they may not be shared or reproduced without the explicit, written consent of the faculty member. Further, students may not share these sessions with those not in the class or upload them to any other online environment. Doing so would be a breach of the Code of Student Conduct, and, in some cases, a violation of the Federal Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

Technology Access – If students do not have proper access to technology, including a computer and reliable Wi-Fi, please let the instructor know as soon as possible. Information about technology lending can be found at https://it.ucf.edu/techcommons/ and https://library.ucf.edu/libtech.