More
than games planned for Panola College
Longview News Journal
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Panola College professor Bob Wilkins was sure of two things after attending a series of game development conferences in Austin between 2006 and 2007.
He knew the college needed a dedicated space for game developers to work together on projects that required personal interaction, he said. He also knew the college needed a lab to house the games and secure the equipment.
As a result, the business and computer science professor proposed the creation of a video game development lab on the campus. The proposal has been approved by Lillian Cook, the college's vice president of instruction.
"One of the wonderful things about game development is that it brings together students from multiple disciplines to work on a common project," Wilkins said.
Game companies added $395 million to the state economy in 2006, according to a report by the Texas governor's office.
Panola College does not provide a game development degree program but offers three core game programming classes: Game Development, Fundamentals of Programming and Fundamentals of Programming II.
"The plan is to try increasing enrollment in those first three game courses and then add more courses later," Wilkins said.
Few colleges in the area offer game development programs. Kilgore College, the University of Texas at Tyler and Northeast Texas Community College do not offer courses or programs, according to a representatives of each school. LeTourneau University provides students with a general computer science degree with the option of a concentration in game development that is designed to make students more attractive in the business world, said Brent Baas, computer science department chairman.
Wilkins said the skills students learn in these courses, such as learning programming language, would help them in other fields and could be applied toward the development of other programs beyond the gaming industry.
"Game development is almost like making a movie," Wilkins said. "There's a production staff, music and art, but the programmer has to come in and make the game come together."
The lab will be set up during January in the Gullette Technology Building on the campus. It will contain furniture, game computers, an Xbox 360, a PlayStation 2, widescreen flat panel LCD monitors and game development software, along with several popular video games suggested by students.
One proposed project for the new lab is a new video game that will allow game players to explore the "virtual" campus of the college.
"We are hoping that students coming by to play the games will become interested in developing games as well," Wilkins said.
The lab also will include software and equipment for composing and recording music and creating original art, and an area for writers to work on plots and scripts.
"This will create an environment in which programmers, artists, writers and musicians become familiar with academic fields they might not have come in contact with otherwise," Wilkins said.
Wilkins said the estimated cost for the lab and facilities is less than $3,000 since the computer science department already has much of the equipment. Wilkins said money for the lab will be taken from the computer science budget for the year, and Randy Graves, student services counselor, has offered to use some of student activities budget on some of the games and consoles.
During the fall semester, Wilkins started a club for students interested in game development. The club had about 20 members.
The club threw a Local Area Network party during the semester, during which students gathered in a classroom and played an interactive video game on multiple computers.
"I'm excited about the next semester and getting the lab going," Wilkins said.
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