GAME PRODUCTION

Will your game idea be a hit? A lot of that depends on how well you keep it on track. You'll learn about what should go into your budget, how to manage adaptive challenges and schedule requirements, and how to manage iteration.

• Budget and the cost of game development
• Developing against a roadmap in a Scrum environment
• Balancing iteration against schedule and budget

Assignment #3: Build a project roadmap for your game

Josh began his career in music, providing technology and event production for the GRAMMYs, before eventually moving to gaming with a focus on mobile games. You'll hear from him live on potential routes into the field and some of the challenges he's faced in his roles over the years.

About the Speaker

• CEO at Perfect Day Productions
• Focus on new media and software production
• Managed technology and event production for the Recording Academy (GRAMMYs)
• Produced live games including Battle Nations and Paradise Bay as Executive Producer at Z2/King
• Founding member and board president of Seattle-based not-for-profits The Vera Project and The Service Board

Dan brings almost 20 years of game development experience across all genres and platforms. As a game production veteran, he will join Andy in a live session to discuss everything from establishing a career path, to securing recommendations, and building up industry experience. Dan will reflect on some of the challenges he’s faced over the years, and share his blueprint to a successful career in the game industry.

About the Speaker

• Executive Producer at Bungie
• Currently working on Destiny 2
• Executive Producer at Wizards of the Coast (the studio that brought us Magic: The Gathering, and Dungeons and Dragons)
• Senior Producer at Amazon Game Studios
• Started his career at Amaze Entertainment working on AAA game titles (including The Sims)

Assignment #4: Outline how one point made in the Fireside Chats will impact your decision-making process.

This week, you'll get up close and personal with Agile and Scrum development. In the first lesson of our two-part class, Andy will map out the core elements of Agile game development.

• Scrum distilled
• The essence of Agile development
• Why Agile and Scrum for gaming?

You’ll uncover real-world secrets of Agile and Scrum usage, and understand what’s useful and what isn’t in current game development.

• Scrum: What to keep and what to ditch
• Scrum in real-world development
• What is Scrum-but?

Assignment #5: Build out backlog items for your project

Gaming is a business and, like any other, it comes with risk. This class is about the common risks and red flags to look out for in your planning. You'll get a pragmatic framework for identifying them.

• Most common areas of risk
• Understanding the Cone of Uncertainty
• Requirements gathering

When curve balls hit your project, how can you pivot a project to stay on track? In this class, you'll learn how to assess and mitigate risk throughout a project.

• Understanding common areas of risk
• Risk assessment
• What is mitigation planning?

Assignment #6: Secret assignment

Throughout your project, you’ll need to consume and translate data from multiple sources to keep your project on track — enter Data and Reporting! This class teaches you how to consume data and translate that into actionable next steps. You'll also learn about setting KPIs, knowing when to pivot, and how to relay your findings to the top decision makers.

• Tips for quickly digesting information
• How to understand the state of the game
• Reporting project status
• Understanding the need for KPIs

This class is all about getting through to the finish line. Andy will share from his experiences working with QA and external groups and avoiding crunch and burnout.

• Managing communication channels
• Working with external launch teams
• Sustainable QA and the importance of bug triage
• The real reasons behind crunch and burnout

Assignment #7: Create materials for your project release and a post-release plan.