New classes, events, and scheduled talks are updated here, along with links for sign-up/registration if that’s required to attend the session. Whether shared on the blog or sent out as an update to folks who have subscribed for email updates, this future-looking calendar will always be current and available here.

Previously taught classes with descriptions and institution information can be found on the Teaching page.

UC SANTA CRUZ

My full-time job is teaching game design and development classes in both game programs at UC Santa Cruz. I teach a mix of undergraduate survey courses, focused upper-division courses and senior collaborative capstone courses. I work closely with, and advise graduate students, who work as my teaching assistants for large classes.

FaLL 2025

CMPM 176: Game Systems	Presents game design as the interplay of multiple interacting game systems. Surveys various game systems: movement, combat, reward, economic, logistics, quest, information visibility, narrative. Students explore systems via study, design, and play of board, card, and computer games.
CMPM 170: Rapid Prototyping	Working in multiple small teams, students practice multiple cycles of the interactive media design process. Cycles involve ideation, research, prototyping, release, and reflection. Students will understand how to follow the design process as a way to build knowledge, understanding, and empathy for a system’s users rather than just as a means to produce those systems. The course draws on design philosophies from inside and outside of the computer games industry.
ARTG 170B Design Studio I: Individual Track	Course focuses on individual projects, supported by collaboration within a general working-group. Students create novel, interesting game concepts, and outline and refine game proposals for longer-term projects. Studio projects cover a range of creative practices, including concept ideation and storyboarding, prototyping, and presenting and/or exhibiting the game idea in a more finalized form. Can be taken as a single course or as part one of the art and design: games and playable media capstone requirement. Continuing with the capstone series via ARTG 171 will require team collaboration.

WINTER 2026

CMPM/ARTG 179: Game Design Practicum – Adventure Design	Students work together in small groups to research, prototype, playtest and develop a multi-session tabletop roleplaying adventure. Adventures will share a common setting, theme, tone and ruleset. Topics explored in the course include, but are not limited to: narrative structure, encounter design, creature design, non-player characters, mapping, level design, environmental storytelling, narrative and instructional writing.
CMPM 110: Writing for Game Technologies	Game writers create worlds, characters, and stories—and also craft computational systems so players can experience these fictions interactively. This course covers the fundamentals of authoring fictions and systems that work together toward powerful player experiences. All offerings support students with required synchronous section meetings.
ARTG 129 Special Topics in Game Design – Topic TBD	Allows students to explore game designs related to their ongoing work within their major in either digital or non-digital formats. Students choose a topic and develop game projects that engage players.

SPRING 2026

CMPM 172: Game Production Studio

Students work in teams to produce fully functional games based on previously developed game subsets. Focus on production including scaling, long-term player experience, teaching mechanics through interaction, developing multi-stage narratives/scenarios, and varying gameplay as players develop new understandings and abilities. Prerequisite(s): CMPM 171, or by instructor permission. Enrollment is by permission of the instructor. Formerly offered as Game Design Studio III.

CABRILLO COLLEGE EXTENSION

Starting in Summer of 2025, I began teaching extention classes at our local community college as a way to reach students from my community outside of an expensive, formal university structure.

Fall 2025

Enter the Dungeon – Demystifying Tabletop Roleplaying Games 2 Saturday Sessions: October 19th & 26th

Whether you are new to tabletop role playing games, or you’ve played once or twice; whether you are 19 or 99; or whether you haven’t played for a long time and want to come back to the hobby, this will give you the chance to learn and play in this creative environment with a group of like minded folks. You will learn the basic concepts of role playing games and having shared adventures, both as a player and as a Game Master.