Group+Project+1

__**Group Project Assignment 1 – Due Date: 9/21/2010 – READ CAREFULLY**__
If students have any questions or problems, they should ask me either in person or via email before the assignment is due. ===**__ASSIGNMENT__ – Students, in groups of 2 - 3, are to create a card game, using EXISTING decks of cards, requiring players to use only 1 suit when beginning the game (or throughout the entire game). The game should support 2 players and up, with each player using a specific suit (hearts, clubs, spades, or diamonds) as their personal deck. Each player can only use his or her specific suit for play.**===


 * There must be a clear objective and method of winning the game, either via obtaining a specific goal (such as obtaining all the cards in the deck or removing all of an "enemy's" cards from play) or outscoring one's opponents (by having a higher "score" after a set period of time) - these are merely two potential example. Winning should be objective, not subjective. In other words, the winner should be clear and concrete, not based on individual opinion.**


 * One example of play could be a war-type game, where each suit can be an "army," with individual cards within that suit given rankings, individual "abilities," or some other means of separating them from others. Another example of play could be a variation of a number game, where the actual rank of the cards (4 higher than 2, 8 lower than 10, etc.) can be sued to create a new turn-based card game, like poker, blackjack, crazy eights, etc., with the limitation being that players can only use 1 suit while playing - the specific rules of the game would then be developed by the group.**


 * NOTE: Use of Jokers are optional, though other specialty cards (like the "ranking of hands in poker" card) should not be used, as they can not be guaranteed to be in every deck of cards - the idea is that these games should be playable by anyone who happens to have a deck of cards lying around. **


 * As noted above, every game should support at least 2 players. More than 4 players can be accommodated in the game through various means, including having multiple players on a "team" for each individual suit, or using multiple decks of cards (thus with multiple suits), which each card being visually different enough to prevent confusion (so, if multiple decks are used, the "clubs" from one deck should look different enough from the "clubs" of another deck to prevent confusion when playing). Students are encouraged to be creative when figuring out how to determine players and the cards that the players use.**


 * The purpose of this assignment is to allow students to build simple games within a very specific framework, using existing game-materials (a deck of cards), in order to see what types of rules and game-play elements can be built within this restrictive structure. **


 * Because materials (the deck of cards) and, to an extent, the structure (face cards, numbers cards, suits) are already present, students are free to focus upon the pure development of rules and game-play. **


 * The actual concept and implementation of the game is entirely up to the group. As noted, it can be a war-like game, a number/skill game, or anything else the group can come up with. If any group wishes to incorporate any other game-play element, such as a board, dice, or other game features, they should speak to me first - these elements will likely just add unnecessary complexity to the game, and given the very short development cycle (time allowed to create the game and test it to make sure it works before the due date), additional complexity may not be wise.**


 * __ Groups should NOT just copy an existing card game __. Obviously, games like poker do not fit the requirement, but there are lesser-known card games out there that will meet the requirements set-forth. Make your own idea, with your own game-play. Games should be an original creation, not a copy.**

**__SUBMISSIONS__ - __ STUDENTS WILL EACH BE REQUIRED TO SUBMIT A DESCRIPTION OF THE GAME PROJECT __. There is no set length for this paper, but it must use complete sentences and proper grammar.**

 * This description must list ALL the members of the group and their contributions to the game, and, most importantly, it must explain the game's rules of play and game-play mechanics. These include, among other things, how each individual player will use their suits, how the number/face cards will work, how the number/face cards will behave in-play, how "turns" will work, if applicable, etc. __ REMEMBER, ALL MEMBERS OF A GROUP MUST SUBMIT THEIR OWN DOCUMENT DESCRIBING THE GAME __.**

**__GRADING__ - The grading on this project will be broken down into two parts:**

 * __40% of the grade will be the game itself__ - how it plays, how easily it is able to be understood by others, how many glaring game-play glitches and problems there are (showing lack of proper play-testing), etc.**


 * Students will be evaluated on the creativity of the idea and the quality of the game's implementation. If the idea is solid and can clearly be executed as a card game, with the confines of the rules and game-play set forth by the group (and the project requirements), students will not be marked down for the inability of other students to play their game well. However, if a game is deemed to be unplayable, or extremely difficult to play without confusion, the project grade will be severely marked down. __As noted, the game itself counts as 40% of the total project grade, which is shared among the 2 -3 3 member group__.**


 * __The other 60% of the grade will be based predominantly on the individual game descriptions__ - meaning that the group can not turn in a single description of the game. This is to ensure that everyone is participating in the production of the game; if all of the game descriptions are 100% identical, I will know that everyone wrote the description together. The idea of separate descriptions is to let me know that everyone truly understands their own game and how it works, thus showing that everyone participated.**

**__DUE DATES__ - Completed games are due on __September 21, 2010__.**

 * This is //__over 3 weeks__// from the time in which the assignment is assigned; given the existing playing material and pre-set conditions (established playing cards, suits, face cards, number cards, etc.) and the fact that students will be focusing solely on rules of play, this should be plenty of time. However, students can not wait until the last minute to develop their games.**


 * __The class periods of September 21 ans 23 will be dedicated to playing student games__. Due to the requirements of the rest of the class, however (including discussions of game principles, history lectures, classic game demonstrations, etc.), some playing of games might need to be cut short or potentially scheduled to be demonstrated at other times.**


 * Regardless of whether or not a student group presents their game on September 14, __ ALL GROUPS MUST HAVE THEIR GAME READY ON SEPTEMBER 21 OR THE GROUP WILL RECEIVE A 0 ON THE PROJECT. __**


 * This means that every students must have her or his game-description papers ready on September 21 and every group must be ready to play their games - NO EXCEPTIONS. **


 * Any student description paper turned in after the 10-minute grace period on September 21, 2010 will not be accepted, and the student will receive a 0 for the Group Project 1 grade. Digital forms of the game description document, preferably in Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx) format, may be emailed to the instructor (sweitz@lccc.edu) prior to the due date. All group's games MUST be ready to played on the due date, including having all materials ready, even if the class does not get to a group's specific game on that day. There will be no exceptions! Any game not ready for play at the beginning of class, or any description not turned in at the beginning of class on September 21 will receive a 0. **

__** All questions regarding group project guidelines or grading must be asked prior to the final submission date. **__


 * Good luck! **