Last Call... for now

Ok, folks, that is *it* for this class anyway. Hope you had a good time and learned a thing or two. Hopefully, you've developed an interest in the topic and will add it to your diet as a writer. If you should find that you have questions or concerns on a forward-going basis, please don't hesitate to reach out.

Cheers!

Tech Requirements!


For those of you needing something special for your presentations this week, you must let me know ASAP! This is definitely a case of "if you snooze, you lose" - our tech team is great but they can't work miracles.

Grist for the Mill

For those of you beavering away at your interactive presentations, here are a few of the online properties we discussed in the last class. Remember to consider the following elements:

Audio layer - how are background sounds used to create mood/atmosphere?

Music - how is music used to drive the experience?

Colour Scheme / Palette - which colours have been chosen and why?

Static vs Dynamic Presentation - has motion or animation been used effectively?

Interactive Jewels - what features have been added to increase the site's stickiness or viral marketing potential?

The Package - if you've seen the movie, does the final package add up to a compelling interactive presentation?


The Sites:

The Blair Witch Project

Memento

Austin Powers - YEAH BABY!

Kung Pow the Movie

Altoids - Corporate, but a great metaphor

Mentor Sessions - Take Note

For those of you scheduled for mentoring hours over the next week, a small suggestion: send me a *short* synopsis of the script you want to work with and your notional project idea. This will help us to hit the ground running.

Machinima, Machinima, Say have you seen Machinima?

Required Reading!

Scan this one and honestly ask yourself if this technique does not simply BLOW YOUR MIND!!!

Ok, I exaggerate, but it is interesting, no?

A Quick Recap

For those of you with an interest in reliving the drama, the passion, the pure in-your-face excitement of last week's class, I thought I'd include a list o' links to some of the properties we visited/discussed.

Homestarrunner! (singing) Everybody! Everybody!

Broken Saints Brooke's magnum opus

BMW Films Cool car, cool site and Gary Oldman with fangs!

PopCap.com Compulsive time wasting made easy

Gamasutra The motherload of information.

The Week Ahead

This week we're going to be getting into the real meat of interactive narrative with two (almost) back to back classes. The first (Wednesday) will deal with a modeling approach to storytelling and will revolve around a somewhat experimental in-class exercise. This process will expose you to the basic thinking that underlies "n" dimensional storytelling. The second class (Friday) will touch on the visual aspects of the interactive medium and the user (audience? participant?) experience. By the end of this week, you should be in good shape to tackle your projects.

I've noticed that mentoring hours, btw, are fully booked. Hmmm, this is a good thing - please be on time for your sessions. If you want/need a session but weren't able to sign up, please contact me and we'll work something out.

Fantasy Economics - Why economists are obsessed with online role-playing games. By Robert Shapiro

Required Reading!

Ok, I find this one fascinating... but then again, how much of a life do I have? Read on...

Btw, you can download the entire study here. But it isn't necessary to read the whole thing. Unless you're keen and really want that extra one percent. Any takers?

The Globe and Mail

Required Reading!

Convergence with a corporatey propaganda sorta twist. Wanna start a pool to see when this project collapses?

The Onion | Video-Game Characters Denounce Randomly Placed Swinging Blades

Required Reading!

... er, ok, maybe not required. Suggested?

Amazing DoCoMo (int'l edition)

Required Reading!

Dated but interesting take on DoCoMo, Japan's uber-wireless provider.

Lucky's VB Gaming Site - View Article

Network, damn you!

Check this out and we'll discuss it further in class tomorrow. This will make up part of your first week's assignment.

IGDA Vancouver

Network, damn you!

Check out the "Proof of Concept" event coming up next week. Might be worth a look-see for the keener of mind.