EDGE

Empowering Game Design Education

Course Content
Course Information
This course explores specific concepts and practices to consider when designing for transformative impacts.
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Welcome! Start Here for Important Information from Your Instructors
Schedule & Instructions
Course Calendar
Assessments & Deliverables
Policy on Generative AI
Learning Objectives and Success Criteria
Course Materials
Unit 1: Role-playing Game Design Basics
This course explores foundational concepts and practices to consider when designing analog role-playing games for transformative impacts.
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Overview: Role-playing Game Design Basics
Discussion Forum Instructions
Orientation Quiz
Sign up for Your Playtest and Feedback Group
Discussion 1: Introduce Yourself and Connect!
Discussion 2: Tabletop Role-playing Games — Design Basics
Discussion 3: Live Action Role-playing Games (Larp) — Design Basics
Unit 2: Transformative Leisure Role-playing Game Design
These types of games are not necessarily played for an educational or therapeutic purpose, but they can be designed with specific goals in mind and players might find them transformative in a variety of different ways.
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Overview: Transformative Leisure Role-playing Game Design
Discussion Forum Instructions
Discussion 4: Workshop Design Brainstorming
Instructions for Major Assignment 1: Playtest Scenario and Playtest Plan
Playtest 1: Return to #Feminism
Discussion 5: Designing Transformative Leisure Role-playing Games
Unit 3: Therapeutic Role-playing Game Design
These types of games are designed for a therapeutic purpose or to help participants develop social skills.
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Overview: Therapeutic Role-playing Game Design
Discussion Forum Instructions
Reflection Journal 1: Emotional Debriefing and You
Discussion 6: Therapeutic Role-playing Game Design
Unit 4: Educational Role-playing Game Design
These types of games are designed for an educational purpose according to specific learning objectives, such as curricular materials or helping participants develop social skills.
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Overview: Educational Role-playing Game Design
Discussion Forum Instructions
Discussion 7: Learning Objective, Workshop, and Educational Debrief Brainstorming
Submission of Major Assignment 1: Playtest Scenario and Playtest Plan
Schedule Playtest 2: Playtest and Feedback Session
Instructions for Major Assignment 2: Framing Transformative Game Design
Discussion 8: Educational Role-playing Game Design
Unit 5: Research and Design Specifics
We will discuss ways to design and iterate role-playing games, but also how to take that process a step further.
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Overview: Research and Design Specifics
Discussion Forum Instructions
Discussion 9: Specifics of Researching Role-playing Games
Discussion 10: Specifics of Role-playing Game Design
Playtest 2: Playtest and Feedback Session
Reflection Journal 2: Reflection Models and You
Unit 6: Styles and Cultures of Design
As we have discussed before, role-playing games emerge from specific design and play communities.
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Overview: Styles and Cultures of Design
Discussion Forum Instructions
Discussion 11: Styles and Cultures of Role-playing Game Design
Submission of First Complete Draft of Major Assignment 2: Framing Transformative Game Design
Peer Review Instructions for Major Assignment 2
Unit 7: Ritual, Symbolism, and Culture in Game Design
In this Unit, we will deepen into specific practices for designing rituals, narratives, and symbolism in role-playing games.
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Overview: Ritual, Symbolism, and Culture in Game Design
Discussion Forum Instructions
Discussion 12: Culture, Ritual, and Symbolism Design Brainstorming
Reflection Journal 3: Cultural Role-playing and You
Submission of Peer Reviews for Major Assignment 2
Unit 8: Role-playing Game Design and Conflict
As with our first class, this unit will cover both conflicts surrounding certain facets of game design within gaming communities.
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Overview: Role-playing Game Design and Conflict
Discussion Forum Instructions
Discussion 13: Conflict in Role-playing Game Design
Unit 9: Representation and Tech Ethics in RPG Design
In this unit, we will primarily focus on the way disabilities are represented in role-playing game design.
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Overview: Representation and Tech Ethics in RPG Design
Reflection Journal 4: Representation, Tech Ethics, and You
Unit 10: Framing Transformative Game Design
Welcome to our last unit on your reflections and analysis of the transformative game design process.
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Overview: Framing Transformative Game Design
Reflection Journal 5: Transformative Game Design and You
Submit Final Draft of Major Assignment 2: Framing Transformative Game Design
Transformative Game Design 1

Overview: Therapeutic Role-playing Game Design

Welcome to our unit on therapeutic role-playing game design! These types of games are designed for a therapeutic purpose or to help participants develop social skills under the direction of trained mental health professionals. We will also discuss emotional debriefing, which can be an important framing activity not only after therapeutic role-playing games, but also after any transformative game.

In this Unit, we will cover:

  • Emotional debriefing
  • Post-play activities
  • Safety design fundamentals
  • Psychotherapy, drama therapy, and role-playing games
  • Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and role-playing game design
  • Reflecting for self-awareness

Note: Some of the materials below may not be available outside of this course. We are providing them as part of your education within this course. Do not distribute PDFs. 

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Required materials:

Videos:
Readings:
  • Bartenstein, Lennart. 2022. “Larp in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: Making Larp a Standard Method.” Nordiclarp.org, April 22.
  • Brown, Maury. 2018. “Post-Play Activities for Larp: Methods and Challenges.” Analog Game Studies V, no. II (June 2).
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