Here is a quick dump of notes from GDC (for an afternoon chat with my team).
If you’re curious, i’d recommend waiting for a more polished and official presentation. this is just quick temp barf

GDC 2015 summary:
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HIGHLIGHTS:
(SESSIONS)
* Scroll Back: The Theory and Practice of Cameras in Side-Scrollers – Itay Keren (Untame – Mushroom 11)
: increidble insight into myriad of camera systems. posted glossary.
* Harvesting interactive fiction –
: parser based games have buy in (you requested it. doesn’t “happen to you”). ChoiceScript, Twine, and Inkle writer.
: forcing players to make choices based on an ambiguous setup is engaging.
* Encouraging engagement in large+ courses – Sean gouglas sgouglas@ualberta.ca
: their course (sts350) had on campus, online (400 students!) and a MOOC version (27000?)
: seems like all moocs are primarily videos with quizzes.
: ask simple questions now and then just to say “are you still paying attention”. Be a friendly listener. We should do this. Not all quizzes need to be about eval.
: used avatars for icebreaker and buy in. They then showed up in reports, forums, and submitted work. but didn’t imrpove social interaction with other students.
: used avatars (+badges) to exemplify skin/gender preference, and gamification examples (“you already did it”)
: Wish they had a managed rollout, instead of positng whole course at once (mostly due to forums). But House of Cards rollout definitely helped with course completetion.
* Teaching games with games
: many cool examples. BattleBattle (design evolution in large team). hopscotch (no programming needed). Flappybird dissection. 6 stickies. Atelier unicorn (.com). 12 IPs and production problem sim (people end up preferring bad IPs).
: no teachers first day of class. just left big present. Plus coins for meeting weekly design jam. part of grade, but could trade.
* The design in narrative design
: Diegesis. raw mechanics can be cold. Abstract. Timer runs out and you lose. But a fictional side can make it meaningful.
: player death is a common thing, but very harmful to suspension of disbelief.
: when he plays d&d he often asks who built these dungeons and why and how do they still work after thousands of years? Portal asks this. Manhunt also.
: clarity is usually more important than nuance. GTA objective arrows verses The Getaway’s turn signals
: it is hard to have other players there in 3d space, which is why we have so much audio diaries and loudspeaker intrusion from enemy. It is so you feel not so alone, without having to put someone in space with you.
* Making It to Break It: Designing Hack ‘n’ Slash
: by end of game you can hack game code itself. By entering a room based on a. Function (procedurally generated) Share with james?

…out of time!

(NEWS)
– Oculus is sponsoring mobile VRjam, starting in April. big cash prizes.
– Pubudu (intel) eager to work with OSU.
– OptiTrack pimped during Disney VR talk.

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LOOKUP:
(BOOKS)
adventure books that had you write down variables, to tweak the free choice branching problem
eric zimmerman – “rules of play”

(GAMES)
Shinobi (vert camera – Itay’s fav game)
Devil World (not released in US?)
Jazz Jackrabbit (camera gets ahead of you)
Luftrausers (crazy camera considerations)
With those we love alive,
dark room,
blood and laurels,
Solarium,
ender plot’s .. “Choice of games:…” .
creatures such as we.
Codename cygnus (speak it aloud)
Morra (classic game like roshambo)
Jeff watson usc @remotedevice – “reality ends here” (and tangent/atelier comes up)
“this war of mine”
Hack N Slash

(WEB)
-Camera glossary itaykeren.tumblr.com
-Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet blog (inspired Itay’s talk)
– Vlambeer gave talk on “jw’s work” on super crate
– ChoiceScript (choice of games), Twine, and Inkle writer.
– baudrillard, again, with regard to game theory. They covered this and other deep thoughts (post connectionism or something?)
“cohort” model .(mooc ?)
http://flappybird.io/
– 2playerProductions made cool vids showing mechanics of old emulators. Look em up.

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IDEAS:

Ingress – sponsor zombie ARG around campus? competing mad scientists to cure or enhance the breakout?