Want To Make Video Games?

Invader Zim writes "Looks like Levelord, of Ritual fame, and some folks at id, and Ensemble Studios have teamed together with Southern Methodist University to create a new school for people that want to work in the video games industry. It's called the Guildhall. Also a story about it at GameTutorials."

Southern Methodist???

[The Bungi]

Does that mean they get to do only "clean" games with no gore and no naked chicks?

Just wandering about the curious choice of school, given the problems we've seen lately with WalMart not carrying theose "ultra violent" games. Free speech and so on.

SMU

[Alien54]

Founded in 1911, SMU is a private, comprehensive university located in Dallas, Texas.

Had me worried for a second. But a school in Texas would probably be an okay place to learn how to code first person shooters.

I had nightmares about what kind of video games a truly christian university would focus on.

Re:Good idea

[kraksmoka]

have a friend who's a game tester for ea (yes, paid to play) and his ultimate goal is to develop games. starting in testing and workin hard is a great place to start, learn about games and bugs and get the foot in the door.

course testing only pays $8/hr. to start, but right now, they're giving him 80+ hours a week, so i think he's happy with em.

80 hours of games a week, that would be a light week for an evercrack head, right?

Fine Print

[Dave_B93]

*** Actual courses availible When They're Done

With Romero on the staff you might see admissions by 2007 ;-)

after the test...

[Anonymous Coward]

Bill: "Man, that midterm was Chaotic Evil"
Bob: "word"

Re:Don't do it!

[Anonymous Coward]

It's called truth in advertising. Did we all pretty much go to the "Video Game COllege" and at least double-majored in "Doom" and "Civilization".

wow

[pummer]

this is nuts. in a few years, we'll have
H ollywood
I s
O ut
O f
I deas
S o
W e
N eed
A
U niversity.

Yeah, I got nothin'.

Re:SMU

[crawdaddy]

Probably something along the lines of Rise of the Triad, except the only weapons besides the Hand of God would be a bible and a cross, each having several different forms of attack. For example, the crucifix could be used like a boomerang, a stabbing weapon, or be used to call down the wrath of god. The speed enhancement would be bicycles and the armor would be a black suit and tie. It be some kind of AD&D mod, instead of ROTT, though. That way there's less work involved in adding Pray and Bless spells.

Re:Southern Methodist???

[Computer!]

Also mildly off-topic, but if their graduates are any indication, they are a school full of rude, elitist jackasses with terrible taste in music.

Re:Nintendo?

[gpinzone]

Your friends lied. They went to hamburger university, [mcdonalds.com] but were too ashamed to admit it. While stumbling for an answer, they looked around the room and the first thing they saw was your Nintendo sitting in the corner. Like Jan Brady in the "George Glass" fiasco, they blurted out, "Nintendo! Um, yeah...Nintendo college." Yeah right. Boy are you gullible.

Re:Southern Methodist???

[poot_rootbeer]

Oh, so it's Southern Methodist...

Re:Don't do it!

[dillon_rinker]

DUH priests play DnD...haven't you ever heard of clerics?

Re:Good idea

[Anonvmous Coward]

"Game testing isn't really the fun-filled job you'd think it would be. You sit there and do one part over and over again. Or you die on purpose. You aren't paid to play the game, your paid to do very specefic things in specefic parts of the game. You're hunting for bugs, not playing for kicks. Just warning you."

I remember one guy saying that he had to test every single play in a football game to make sure that it's consistent with what the interface shows you. Can you imagine that? It'd be as tedious as spell checking a /. article.

Who cares? Do it the id way.

[Viewsonic]

1. Program game. 2. Release as shareware. 3. $$$ PROFIT $$$ Easy as pie. Unless you're completely untalented, in which case you probably shouldn't be creating games, neh?

Re:SMU

[BRSQUIRRL]

I had nightmares about what kind of video games a truly christian university would focus on.

Yeah, the possibility of games where your character is rewarded for something other than stealing, killing, or picking up prostitutes...that terrifies me too...

Re:Southern Methodist???

[mypalmike]

> If congress passed a law that says we all must
> do our shopping for entertainment products at
> Wal-Mart, I'd agree with you.

Actually, a "you must buy everything at Wal*Mart" addendum was quietly slipped into the homeland security bill at the last moment before it was passed.
-_-_-

Re:Nice idea ... but ...

[enos]

NO ONE IS HIRING!!!!!

Exactly. These poor fellows can't find a steady job, so they're forced to teach. ;)

Re:Good idea

[Anonymous Coward]

You sit there and do one part over and over again.

So it's like Everquest?

SMU? WTF? also the site doesn't work....

[greymond]

Did anyone else happen to take notice of the fact that this course(s) are going to be held at SMU - a private college that has a STRONG christian influence....I can see it now....

SMU: So what is the name of your project you are working on?

Student: Well I'm thinking of making an add-on to "Omnikron"

SMU: Oh and what do you do in this game?

Student: Well the game originally dealt with you transfering your soul into a character in another world through your game but you end up losing it to this demon and....

SMU: Excuse me but I don't think that would be a suitable game for our viewers!

Student: But i'm going to make it so Jesus saves you from hell

SMU: Oh, well in that case you get an A

*on a side note - the site wouldn't work on my Mac (as in I kept getting errors when trying to click on the links) - but on my PC it worked fine - nice going SMU!

Re:Thank God!

[colmore]

Southern Methodist University has a very appealing female/male university, and a *lot* of young actresses (very good theater school.) This sounds like the best possible place to go after most CS degrees.