The Game 1 Prototype Pitch (G1PP) project results in the creation of a 2 to 3 minute video that presents your Game 1 Prototype to prospective players. The G1PP is challenging because it requires you to distill the idea and the experience of your G1P into a compact but convincing pitch.
The first submission for the G1PP is the final submission. Although the project itself is a video, the only document you need to submit is a memo that provides the streaming link to your pitch.
For the full specifications, see Submission Requirements.
The Game 1 Prototype Pitch (G1PP) project brings together elements of information architecture, game design, design thinking, and technical description into a video presentation for general (educated, but nonexpert) listeners/viewers. Two strategies are key to your success with this project: creating a connection with audience members; and, framing the game play and appeal for those same audience members.
The G1PP project highlights communication concepts and strategies that complement those emphasized in the Game 1 Prototype project. Both assignments focus on shaping experiences for players, communicating about design, and mastery of appropriate design technologies. The Pitch project emphasizes presentation and video production within that mix.
Just as there are multiple layers of formality in writing, the same is true of public speaking. Presentations take many forms: formal events at professional meetings, leading discussion in meetings, providing updates on projects in the moment and on the fly. Pitch presentations specifically also emphasize persuasion and celebration. Thus, this project combines elements of many different types of presentations.
Video has emerged as a core medium for the game design industry, regardless of the game category or primary audience. Although the technologies for video production are less expensive and more accessible than ever, implementing them into the communication process still requires time and strategy. This project offers you opportunities to consider how to use video effectively into your professional communication toolkit.
Deliverables: memo, video
Document scope: 150 words (memo), 2 to 3 minutes (video)
Project value: 200 points
Evaluation rubric: _Eval_G1PPitch.pdf
Recommended tool(s): Microsoft Word (memo); Adobe InDesign (screening materials); Techsmith Capture/Camtasia (video); scanner/scanning app; smart phone w. digital camera/digital video capabilities
The G1PP requires you to present your prototype game to prospective players. To do so effectively, your vid must engage the audience with meaningful content and a sense of what makes the game appealing. Consider as well what qualities and strategies make a pitch video successful at connecting with viewers. By extension, consider how the core strategies of information architecture might inform your design decisions.
Pitch videos rely on a range of strategies and design components. Build a streaming document to use as the foundation for your screencast video. Your pitch should incorporate the following content and design elements.
Game Architecture. As you are plan for the kind of content that will connect most effectively with audience members, consider our previous discussions of how information architecture contributes to game design: Game Architecture.
Test your video. Test the resulting video file prior to submitting your project. Make sure that the audio is strong and clear and that the video is free of glitches or unintended background sounds.
Set up your pitch for streaming by posting the video file to Screencast.com (or another streaming service). One advantage of Screencast.com over some other services is that you control whether or not your files are publicly accessible. Copy the SHARE link and add it to your project memo (see below) prior to submission of the project.
A memo of transmittal introduces the accompanying document to its audience(s). Your memo should be addressed from you to me, and should introduce the accompanying pitch. Your memo should incorporate the following content elements.
This section is designed to help you be strategic in the development of your project components. Consider the following hints and tips. Use this set of recommendations as a checklist for quality control.
You establish your technical writer/designer ethos with the way you present your descriptive details. Be as specific and concrete as you can throughout your discussion. The more meaningful details you incorporate into your pitch, the more likely you are to create a connection with audience members.
Consider what viewers might find most useful. Provide as much detail, explanation, and evaluative discussion as you can in the allotted time. Draw on your Research Journal and your Journey Map for content.
All designs are more easily understood through visual representation. Show game elements, features, play, or any other details that you can through images and video.
Establish a connection with your audience. Sustain that connection throughout your video. Consider what would help you create a connection between the ideas that drive your game design and your prospective playing audience. For example, consider the needs and expectations of a potential player in seeking out a game pitch like yours.
Remember that communication in professional and technical contexts values highly the ability to write and speak with economy, directness, and professionalism. Another way of saying this is to make every word count. Stay focused on the details necessary to understand your game. Write and rewrite until your textual and audio content make sense, and represent careful, concise, professional communication.
Focus on the little and big details. Proofread your on-screen document carefully. Make sure your audio is strong and clear. Review what you say and how you say it. Check the quality of your audio and video. Redo material that does not meet expectations. Test your SHARE link after you add it to the Memo.
Design a document that presents completely the pitch's core content. Because you will record a screencast of your movement through this document, it is most effective to design a document that fits on screen and requires no scrolling. That means using the landscape orientation rather than portrait in your design package.
I recommend Adobe InDesign for this project. Your transitions between screens during the screencast will go more smoothly if you convert your pitch document to PDF before you record your video.
I offer this caution about using Microsoft PowerPoint. Although a slideshow created in PowerPoint suits your needs for this task, I strongly recommend that you avoid using any templates provided by Microsoft. Such templates are designed to meet outdated standards for projected documents, and are not at all appropriate for a professional document such as the one you need to create here.
Consider as well that if you want to integrate any other video content, such as a "live" demonstration of game play, that you can prepare in advance to make that content easier to integrate. If you resize and reposition the demo window so it fills the same space on screen as your pitch document, then you can pause during the recording process to put that demo space in the recording window.
Screencasting tools allow you to designate a recording window, which may be a portion of your computer screen or the whole screen. The contents of that window are recorded during the screencasting process. Designate the pitch document as your recording window, rather than the whole screen. This is more professional. However, it is also more effective because it eliminates unnecessary screen content, and may allow you to record the screencast document at a larger scale.
Once you have completed your recording, review your video to make sure that (1) your delivery is professional, coherent, and well paced, (2) your video is clear and free of flaws, and (3) your audio is clear, audible, and free of distracting clicks or other background sounds.
Although it is possible to upload a video file (typically an .mp4 format file), such files can be large. Screencast.com allows you to share a link with others that, when selected, provides access to a video stream. Because most email packages (including SVSU Vmail) have limits on file size for attachments, this sharing option is often the most effective. Always test your link before you submit your project.
Read and attend carefully to these submission guidelines. Failure to do so may result in points lost on the final evaluation of your project.
Create a project folder inside your shared class folder on Dropbox.com. Remember, I can only view files that you place inside the shared folder. Until you place files in that space, you have not in practice submitted them.
Name the folder Game1PPitch.
Your pitch submission on Dropbox requires only a single document. Model your filename on the example listed here.
Note. Do not share the file with me. By placing it in your project folder, you have already shared it by default.
Locate the forum designated for sharing Game 1 Prototype Pitch (G1PP) videos on SVSU Canvas. Post the SHARE link for your pitch along with a brief introduction to the game.
The final project submission is worth 200 possible points. You will earn points according to the standard described on the policies page (see Policies for a description of these categories).
The specific areas of emphasis for this project are drawn from the description and discussion of the project, and are detailed in the evaluation rubric (_Eval_G1PPitch.pdf).
Remember that I will only post the point values for projects on the Grades page in SVSU Canvas. I will post the details relevant to that evaluation in your class folder in a project-specific file.
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