This course explores the history, culture, and design of video games from their earliest digital experiments to todays immersive, networked worlds. Students will examine key milestones in hardware, software, and genre evolution, while analyzing games as cultural, political, and artistic artifacts. Alongside lectures and readings, students will engage directly with games (playing, reviewing, and critiquing them) to develop a deeper understanding of how mechanics, story, technology, and society intertwine. Class activities include discussions, critical reviews, short papers, and creative exercises in game asset design. The course culminates in a final project where students design and build a simple playable game using a no-code, Python-based RPG editor.

**COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES (CLOs) By the end of the course, students will be able to: 1. Identify major technological and cultural milestones in video game history. 2. Analyze games as reflections of cultural and social dynamics. 3.Evaluate the evolution of game genres and mechanics. 4.Apply fundamentals of game design in critique and creation. 5. Design and present a basic game prototype.



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