Course Maps & Pathways

Game Art & Design 2 (GAD2)

Game Art & Design 2 (GAD2)

Welcome to Game Art & Design 2. In this advanced capstone course, you and your classmates will operate as a collaborative indie studio to build and publish an original Vertical Slice game. Working with open-ended creative briefs, you will sculpt custom hero characters, build modular 3D environments, engineer gameplay mechanics in Unreal Engine 5, conduct external playtesting, and release your game.

Course Scope: 6 Units · 34 Modules & Assignments · 100 Standards Covered

Unit 1: Studio Formation, Concept & Greenlight

What you will learn: In this unit, you will form our studio department teams, pitch original game concepts, vote as a studio to select our title, author the master Game Design Document (GDD), set up Git source control, and defend the project at the Greenlight Milestone.
6 Modules · 17 Standards Covered

Module 1.1: Studio Roles & Team Charter ASSIGNMENT & READING

You will choose paired department roles (art lead, technical artist, level designer) and sign the studio charter.

Roles on a Creative Team

Code: PROD-102 · Studio hierarchy, paired ownership, and team accountability

Studio Roles & Team Charter

ID: team-role-charter · Deliverable: Signed studio team charter document

Standards: 16.2 8.1 9.1 8.5

Module 1.2: Concept Pitches (Individual, Class Votes) ASSIGNMENT & READINGS

You will pitch a 90-second vertical slice concept to the class, and the studio will vote on our greenlight title.

Genres and Player Profiles

Code: GAME-103 · Bartle player taxonomy, target demographics, and genre mechanics

Pitching a Concept

Code: PROD-105 · High-concept elevator hook, core mechanic, and visual style

Concept Pitches

ID: studio-concept-pitches · Deliverable: Pitch slide deck & vote log

Standards: GD.18.3 13.2 2.3 10.2

Module 1.3: Team Game Design Document ASSIGNMENT & READING

You will collaborate with your team to author the living GDD detailing gameplay loops, narrative, and asset lists.

The Game Design Document

Code: PROD-201 · Living GDDs, technical constraints, and feature tables

Team Game Design Document

ID: team-gdd · Deliverable: Studio living GDD document

Standards: GD.18.2 16.4 2.5

Module 1.4: Scope & Vertical Slice Definition ASSIGNMENT & READING

You will define the precise boundaries of our 5-minute playable slice and cut feature bloat.

Scope and the Vertical Slice

Code: PROD-204 · Must-have vs nice-to-have features, vertical vs horizontal slices

Scope & Vertical Slice Definition

ID: scope-and-slice · Deliverable: Vertical slice scope contract

Standards: 16.9 GD.18.3 5.8

Module 1.5: Production Schedule & Task Board ASSIGNMENT & READINGS

You will set up the team Kanban board (Trello/GitHub Projects) and initialize the Git LFS project repository.

Task Boards and Sprints

Code: PROD-203 · Kanban workflow, estimating task duration, and sprint cycles

Version Control for Teams

Code: PROD-202 · Git LFS, branching strategies, conflict resolution, and pull requests

Production Schedule & Task List

ID: schedule-and-taskboard · Deliverable: Personal task list screenshot and reflection

Standards: 16.5 16.7 2.8

Module 1.6: GREENLIGHT: Pitch to Approve the Project GREENLIGHT MILESTONE

You will present the studio's greenlight defense to approve budget, pipeline, and commence production.

The Creative Brief

Code: PROD-103 · Stakeholder signoff criteria and milestone deliverables

GREENLIGHT: Pitch to Approve the Project

ID: greenlight-pitch · Deliverable: Greenlight presentation recording & signoff

Standards: 13.2 2.3 16.8

Unit 1 Reference Shelf (Supplemental Reading)

PROD-104 Project Planning & Milestones PROD-206 Budgets & Resources GAME-208 Rapid Prototyping

Unit 2: Worldbuilding, Blockout & Art Bible

What you will learn: In this unit, you will develop the game’s world lore, author the official Art Style Bible so all team assets look unified, greybox the entire 5-minute slice in Unreal Engine, and build our master asset pipeline registry.
5 Modules · 14 Standards Covered

Module 2.1: World Bible & Environmental Storytelling ASSIGNMENT & READINGS

You will author world history, factions, environmental visual clues, and lore guidelines for level artists.

Worldbuilding and Environmental Storytelling

Code: GAME-205 · Visual lore, architectural styles, and environmental decay

Narrative in Games

Code: GAME-107 · Embedded vs emergent narrative, audio logs, and environmental text

World Bible & Environmental Storytelling

ID: world-bible · Deliverable: Published studio World Bible document

Standards: GD.18.4 15.1 15.3 GD.17.3

Module 2.2: Art Style Guide ASSIGNMENT & READINGS

You will create our Art Style Guide specifying color keys, shape language, texel density, and material rules.

Color Scripting and Mood

Code: DESN-201 · Emotional color progression, lighting keys, and mood palettes

Brand Identity and Style Guides

Code: DESN-116 · Style guides, art bible rules, material consistency

Art Style Guide

ID: art-style-guide · Deliverable: Studio Art Bible deck

Standards: GD.17.4 13.3 10.3

Module 2.3: Greybox the Vertical Slice ASSIGNMENT & READING

You will construct the entire playable 5-minute slice in Unreal Engine using blockout geometry.

Level Blockout Workflow

Code: UE-206 · Scale metrics, combat arenas, and pacing blockouts

Greybox the Vertical Slice

ID: greybox-slice · Deliverable: Master greybox level commit in Git repo

Standards: GD.18.4 GD.17.6

Module 2.4: Asset List & Pipeline Doc ASSIGNMENT & READING

You will itemize every model, audio effect, and UI asset with assigned artists, LODs, and file prefixes.

Asset Management and Naming

Code: PROD-108 · Asset registries, prefixes (`SM_`, `M_`, `T_`), and LOD poly budgets

Asset List & Pipeline Doc

ID: asset-list-pipeline · Deliverable: Complete master asset manifest spreadsheet

Standards: GD.18.1 16.6 4.5

Module 2.5: Milestone Review 1 MILESTONE REVIEW

You will conduct Sprint Review 1: playable greybox walkthrough, style guide review, and blocker resolution.

Meetings, Standups, and Notes

Code: PROD-106 · Retrospectives, unblocking dependencies, and action logs

Milestone Review 1

ID: milestone-review-1 · Deliverable: Milestone signoff document

Standards: 16.8 8.4 10.5

Unit 2 Reference Shelf (Supplemental Reading)

DESN-202 Silhouette & Readability UE-207 Landscape & Environment BLND-302 Modular Kit Building

Unit 3: Production Sprint: Custom Assets

What you will learn: In this unit, you will build our game’s custom 3D assets: sculpt and retopologize the hero character, model at least 3 original environment props per student, integrate Fab assets with legal license audits, and run daily paired standups.
5 Modules · 18 Standards Covered

Module 3.1: Hero Character (Custom, Required) ASSIGNMENT & READINGS

You will sculpt, retopologize, and texture our project's hero character with game-ready topology.

Character Proportions & Silhouette

Code: CHAR-101 · Anatomical landmarks, heroic proportions, and silhouette clarity

Sculpt Blockout & Base Meshes

Code: CHAR-102 · Primary facial planes, dynamic topology sculpting, and symmetry

Hero Character (Custom, Required)

ID: hero-character · Deliverable: Game-ready rigged character model

Standards: GD.17.5 AV.17.2 AV.17.4 GD.17.4

Module 3.2: Environment Props (Custom, 3 Minimum) ASSIGNMENT & READING

Each student will model, unwrap, and texture at least 3 custom environment props adhering to the Art Bible.

Code: BLND-301 · Quad remeshing, Shrinkwrap modifier, poly-strips, and clean edge flow

Environment Props (3 Minimum)

ID: environment-props · Deliverable: 3-prop asset package integrated into level

Standards: GD.17.4 AV.17.8

Module 3.3: Fab Integration & License Audit ASSIGNMENT & READING

You will source marketplace/Fab environment assets and conduct an attribution license audit.

Licenses: CC, Royalty-Free, Commercial

Code: LAW-105 · Marketplace commercial redistribution rules and license compliance

Fab Integration & License Audit

ID: fab-license-audit · Deliverable: Completed asset license audit registry

Standards: 14.5 14.1 11.6 4.5

Module 3.4: Standups & Handoff Protocol ASSIGNMENT & READINGS

You will run daily 3-minute standups and document paired code/asset handoff notes to prevent blockers.

Handoff and Documentation

Code: PROD-205 · Blueprint comments, material naming, and prefab grouping

Meetings, Standups, and Notes

Code: PROD-106 · Async standup logs, tracking sprint velocity

Standups & Handoff Protocol

ID: standups-and-handoff · Deliverable: Standup minutes & handoff doc

Standards: 16.8 9.3 2.9 2.5 6.4 6.5 6.6

Module 3.5: Milestone Review 2 MILESTONE REVIEW

You will participate in Sprint 2 review: inspect assets in engine, verify texel density, and test performance.

Giving and Receiving Feedback

Code: PROD-107 · Constructive critique during sprint reviews

Milestone Review 2

ID: milestone-review-2 · Deliverable: Sprint 2 milestone signoff log

Standards: 16.8 8.4 5.3

Unit 3 Reference Shelf (Supplemental Reading)

CHAR-201 Facial Structure CHAR-202 Character Topology CHAR-301 Clothing & Armor CHAR-302 Hair Cards & Alpha CHAR-401 Skin Texturing DESN-203 Shape Language ANIM-201 Biped Rigging BLND-209 Rigging Basics PROD-108 Asset Management

Unit 4: Systems, UI & Interaction

What you will learn: In this unit, you will make the vertical slice fully playable: program the core loop win/loss conditions, author UI menus and HUDs, implement required accessibility options (subtitles, colorblind modes, remapping), and build animation blendspaces.
5 Modules · 12 Standards Covered

Module 4.1: Core Loop Implementation ASSIGNMENT & READING

You will script win/loss triggers, scoring, and primary gameplay systems in Blueprints.

Systems and Balancing

Code: GAME-201 · Balancing math curves, difficulty scaling, and risk vs reward

Core Loop Implementation

ID: core-loop-prototype · Deliverable: Playable core loop demo commit in repo

Standards: GD.17.7 GD.17.1 10.7

Module 4.2: UI & UX Pass ASSIGNMENT & READINGS

You will build start menus, pause screens, HUD widgets, and audio feedback on button interactions.

UX and UI Principles

Code: GAME-108 · Visual weight, button states, and screen layout

UI Widgets and HUD

Code: UE-205 · Widget Blueprints, event dispatchers, and focus navigation

ID: ui-ux-pass · Deliverable: Full UI menu flow gameplay clip

Standards: GD.18.7 GD.17.8 12.4

Module 4.3: Accessibility Audit & Fixes ASSIGNMENT & READING

You will implement colorblind shaders, readable subtitle font sizing, and remappable inputs.

Accessibility in Games

Code: GAME-109 · Motor, visual, auditory, and cognitive accessibility guidelines

Accessibility Audit & Fixes

ID: accessibility-audit · Deliverable: Accessibility demonstration video

Standards: GD.20.2 7.6 12.3

Module 4.4: Audio & Feedback Integration ASSIGNMENT & READINGS

You will integrate MetaSounds, audio attenuation volumes, camera shakes, and particle impact effects.

Game Feel and Feedback

Code: GAME-203 · Game juiciness, camera shakes, hit stops, and impact cues

Audio in Engine

Code: UE-208 · Sound cues, spatial attenuation radii, and ambient sound zones

Audio & Feedback Integration

ID: feedback-systems-pass · Deliverable: Audio & feedback gameplay clip

Standards: 15.7 GD.17.8

Module 4.5: Animation Integration ASSIGNMENT & READINGS

You will configure Animation Blueprints, 1D/2D blendspaces, and locomotion state machines.

Anim Blueprints & Blendspaces

Code: ANIM-401 · State machines, transition conditions, and movement blendspaces

12 Principles in 3D

Code: ANIM-101 · Anticipation, staging, squash & stretch in 3D game animation

Animation Integration

ID: animation-integration · Deliverable: Animated character gameplay demonstration

Standards: AV.17.7 AV.18.4

Unit 4 Reference Shelf (Supplemental Reading)

GAME-202 Economy & Progression GAME-104 Mechanics, Dynamics, Aesthetics UE-302 Data Tables & Save Systems ANIM-102 Graph Editor ANIM-202 Walk & Run Cycles ANIM-301 Action Poses BLND-210 Keyframe Animation GAME-207 Multiplayer Concepts

Unit 5: Playtest, Iterate & Optimize

What you will learn: In this unit, you will host playtest sessions with guest students, analyze telemetry and feedback data, execute a targeted iteration sprint, optimize Nanite/Lumen performance for 60 FPS, and lock the Beta build.
5 Modules · 13 Standards Covered

Module 5.1: External Playtest (Other Classes) ASSIGNMENT & READING

You will run external playtesting with IMC and guest students, logging player confusion points and bugs.

Playtesting Methods

Code: GAME-204 · Blind playtests, quantitative metrics, and qualitative feedback surveys

External Playtest

ID: external-playtest · Deliverable: Playtest observation logs & video clips

Standards: GD.18.6 12.4 13.6

Module 5.2: Playtest Data Report ASSIGNMENT & READING

You will analyze completion rates, survey metrics, and death heatmaps into an actionable report.

Playtesting Methods

Code: GAME-204 · Data analysis, filtering feedback, and triaging bug priority

Playtest Data Report

ID: playtest-data-report · Deliverable: Published playtest findings report

Standards: 5.1 11.1 10.8

Module 5.3: Iteration Sprint from Findings ASSIGNMENT & READING

You will execute a 1-week sprint fixing the top usability issues and gameplay bugs revealed by the data.

Iteration and Revision

Code: DESN-115 · Prioritizing high-impact player fixes over adding new features

Iteration Sprint from Findings

ID: iteration-sprint · Deliverable: Git changelog and before/after comparison video

Standards: 10.5 5.3 9.6

Module 5.4: Performance & Optimization Pass ASSIGNMENT & READINGS

You will profile draw calls, tune Lumen settings, and virtualize geometry with Nanite to maintain 60 FPS.

Performance and Profiling

Code: UE-210 · Unreal Insights, GPU visualizer, and draw call batching

Nanite and Lumen

Code: UE-301 · Nanite virtualization, raytracing scalability, and lighting optimization

Performance & Optimization Pass

ID: optimization-pass · Deliverable: Profiler benchmark report

Standards: GD.18.8 GD.20.1

Module 5.5: Milestone Review 3 MILESTONE REVIEW

You will participate in Milestone 3 review: Beta build freeze, feature completion, and final bug triage.

Giving and Receiving Feedback

Code: PROD-107 · QA issue tracking and release candidate signoff

Milestone Review 3

ID: milestone-review-3 · Deliverable: Beta feature freeze signoff document

Standards: 16.8 8.4

Unit 5 Reference Shelf (Supplemental Reading)

BLND-212 Poly Budget and LODs

Unit 6: Ship, Showcase & Industry

What you will learn: In this capstone unit, you will ship the game two weeks before finals. You will build a 45-second launch trailer, design capsule key art for an Itch.io/Steam-style store page, host the public arcade showcase, author your studio postmortem, and defend your senior portfolio.
7 Modules · 34 Standards Covered

Module 6.1: Release Build & QA Checklist ASSIGNMENT & READING

You will run the final smoke test, verify installer packages, and tag the Gold Master release in the repository.

Packaging a Build

Code: UE-209 · Shipping build configuration, debug removal, and pak compression

Release Build & QA Checklist

ID: release-build · Deliverable: Packaged master game build

Standards: GD.18.8 15.9 4.5

Module 6.2: Marketing Beat: Trailer, Key Art, Store Page ASSIGNMENT & READINGS

You will produce a 45-second launch trailer, capsule key art, and an Itch.io / Steam store page.

Trailers, Key Art, and Store Pages

Code: MEDIA-116 · Capsule art sizes, first 5 seconds hook, and store metadata

Editing: Cuts and Transitions

Code: MEDIA-108 · Rhythmic cutting to music, match cuts, and title cards

Marketing Beat: Trailer, Key Art, Store Page

ID: marketing-beat · Deliverable: Itch.io store page link & embedded trailer

Standards: 13.1 13.3 15.4 15.8 13.8

Module 6.3: Monetization & Content Ecosystem Analysis ASSIGNMENT & READING

You will analyze premium, free-to-play, battle pass, DLC, and UGC creator economy monetization models.

Monetization Models

Code: GAME-206 · Ethical monetization vs predatory dark patterns, and DLC scoping

Monetization Analysis

ID: monetization-analysis · Deliverable: Monetization strategy paper on your portfolio

Standards: GD.18.9 13.4 13.9 12.5 13.7 12.8

Module 6.4: Public Showcase Event PUBLIC SHOWCASE

You will run a live arcade station showcasing the game to parents, industry guests, and the school community.

CTSOs, Leadership, and Community

Code: CAREER-117 · Live demo presentation skills, event setup, and answering player questions

Public Showcase Event

ID: showcase-event · Deliverable: Showcase station photo & feedback log

Standards: 2.3 7.8 16.3 13.6

Module 6.5: Careers, Freelancing & Entrepreneurship ASSIGNMENT & READINGS

You will build your professional demo reel, create contract and invoice templates, and map your industry entry route.

Entrepreneurship and Freelancing

Code: CAREER-204 · Client contracts, pricing creative work, and business basics

Cross-Sector Careers for Game Skills

Code: CAREER-203 · Technical art in architecture, aerospace simulation, and virtual production

Careers, Freelancing & Entrepreneurship

ID: careers-capstone · Deliverable: Demo reel link & freelance business package

Standards: GD.19.3 GD.19.4 GD.19.5 3.9 14.8

Module 6.6: Postmortem & Portfolio Capstone CAPSTONE DEFENSE

You will write a studio postmortem (what went right, what went wrong, lessons learned) and defend your portfolio.

Sustainability in Production

Code: PROD-207 · Sustainable development pace, avoiding crunch, and postmortem analysis

Postmortem & Portfolio Capstone

ID: postmortem-capstone · Deliverable: Published postmortem essay & portfolio defense

Standards: 5.3 3.8 10.8 GD.20.5 12.3 12.2 12.9

Module 6.7: Emerging Tech Briefing: XR, Real-Time & Multiplayer ASSIGNMENT & READING

You will research spatial computing (VR/AR/XR), real-time virtual production, and networked gameplay systems.

XR and Real-Time Production

Code: GAME-301 · Spatial tracking, foveated rendering, and virtual production LED stages

Emerging Tech Briefing

ID: xr-briefing · Deliverable: XR & real-time tech briefing paper

Standards: GD.20.4 GD.20.1 GD.17.9 4.8 12.1

Unit 6 Reference Shelf (Supplemental Reading)

MEDIA-114 Exporting & Delivery LAW-201 Contracts & Terms CAREER-202 Esports Careers PROD-207 Sustainability in Production

Game Art & Design 1 (GAD1)Intro to Media Careers (IMC)