Game Technologies:
Objectives
Today, computer gaming is one of the fastest growing areas of the Information Technologies industry. There is a substantial research base on the technical issues of gaming. Motivations behind game playing, game preferences of players, interaction patterns of game players in the gaming environment, cognitive processes involved in game playing, application of the gaming approach in formal learning environments, societal impacts of games and gender issues are only some of the issues that are widely explored by researchers.
M.S. in Game Technologies is the first graduate program in Turkey to allow students to study these topics and to conduct research in the area. The primary aim of the program is to detect proper methods for the game development industry and to help students to become experts in game development. Students in this program will participate in realistic team projects to gain experience.
Career Opportunities
Graduates of the program can work in computer game development industry.
Program Structure
Program is related with the following scientific areas: Physics, Mathematics, Computer Science, Electronical Engineering, Industrial Design, Computer Education and Instructional Technologies.
The Department encourages students from all disciplines to apply but acknowledges the need for a common foundation in computer programming, data structures and algorithms, linear algebra, operating systems and computer architecture. A deficiency program consisting of related courses is available for entering students to complete their preparation before taking graduate level courses.
Degree Requirements
- 3 core courses (3 credits each)
- 4 elective courses (3 credits each)
- 1 seminar course (non-credit)
- Master's Thesis (non-credit)
A total of 21 credits are required.
Graduate Curriculum
Core Courses
Name: Foundations of Simulations and Games
Description: This course will provide students with a sound introduction to the theories of gaming/simulations and examine cognitive/social factors and the design of computer games/simulations. So, the course will have a more psychological and social focus rather than a technical one. It will be organized around a collection of readings and real-world exercises. The format of this course is problem-centered. The lectures, presentations and other resources will be used to support the problems that students are working on throughout the semester.
Name: Introduction to Computer Graphics
Description: Introduction to computer graphics. The rendering pipeline. Rasterization algorithms. Two-dimensional and three-dimensional transformations. Quaternions. Hierarchical modelling. Animation. Viewing transformations. Rendering basics. Illumination and color models. Geometrical Modelling. Hidden surface elimination problem. Shading, deformation, ray tracing, radiosity, texture mapping, fractal representation and various other advanced techniques are discussed. Concepts of motion are introduced for the generation of digital animation.
Name: Computer Animation
Description: Main techniques covered in this course include: keyframing, story-boarding, kinematics, physically based dynamics modeling, motion capture, scene composition, lighting, and sound track generation. Advanced topics such as dynamic simulation of flexible and rigid objects, facial animation, and behavioral/AI based animation are also studied.
Elective Courses
Name: Artificial Intelligence in Computer Games
Description: The course presents the theoretical basics of artificial intelligence (AI) and their application to behavior modeling in game development. The first part will introduce common AI architectures, which can be used in game design, and the second part will cover basic AI techniques towards entity behavior modeling. In the course, students will be given term papers to be read, which will be summarized and presented in the class. Additionally, the students will form groups, and each group will develop a term project involving behavior modeling in computer games.
Name: Virtual Reality
Description: The selected topic for this semester will be virtual reality. The emphasis will be on input and display technologies and on computational models: Stereoscopic display, head-mounted displays, holographic displays, force display, tracking technologies. Building and displaying virtual worlds. Applications of virtual reality.
Name: Multi-player Game Design
Description: This course aims to provide the students familiar with aspects related to Multi-Player Game Design. This course aims at presenting the techniques and concepts required to develop a multi-player game. Content areas include: introduction, multiplayer games, massively multiplayer online games, game play and scenario issues in multi-player games, software architectures, server design for non-playable characters, testing and performance evaluation.
Name: Physics for Computer Games
Description: The course provides the basics of classical mechanics and numerical methods to solve typical physics problems of game programming. After a gentle introduction to game physics by presenting basic concepts, kinematics, force and kinetics, collision are given together with mathematical tools that are frequently used for physics based game programming. Programming studio sessions will provide an opportunity to share programming practices among participants.
Name: Game Aesthetics
Description: This course aims to provide the students familiar with aspects related to game aesthetics. This course aims at presenting fundamentals of visual design. Content areas include: history, basic visual design, visual design in an interactive content, world design, motion graphics and game art. Special emphasis is placed on how visual aesthetics play a role in the game experience.
Name: Geometric Modeling
Description: -
Links
1) University of Pennsylvania, M.Sc. in Computer Graphics and Game Technology
2) University of Southern California, Master of Computer Science with Specialization in Game Development
3) Carnegie Mellon University, Entertainment Technology Center, The Entertainment Technology Program
4) The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, School of Design, M.Sc. in Multimedia and Entertainment Technology
|
