Week 4

 My Educational Goals

This week we briefly discussed setting goals. As part of this we were tasked with setting our educational goals.

CSUMB Goals

The goal I am currently working on is completing CS Online at CSUMB. My goal is to graduate from the program in 2027. To accomplish this, I need to complete a few smaller goals during the program.

• I need to complete a foreign language. Currently I am taking Spanish 1 at Sierra College.
• I need to complete an ethnic studies course. I plan to take Intro to Ethnic Studies (ETHN 11) or Ethnic Images in Film (ETHN 50) at Sierra College during the Summer 2025 semester.
  
• I need to complete a physical science course. I plan to take Physical Geology (ESCI 1) or Introduction to Earth Science (ESCI 10) at Sierra College during the Fall 2025 semester.
• I need to complete a computer science elective course at CSUMB. I plan to take Game Engine Programming (CST 306) or a similar class during the Spring 2026 semester.
  

Other Educational Goals

While attending the CS Online program, I also intend to use some of my free time to study video game development. Because I will be balancing work, school, and my personal life, I expect this to be difficult. My goal is to complete at least one video game by the end of the CS Online program.

My Career Goals

 We were also tasked with discussing our career goals.

Outside of Work Goals

After I graduate from CSUMB, I will spend more time developing video games. I have a couple of goals for video game development.

• Develop a few smaller games, or one larger game, in the year after I graduate from CSUMB.
• Have one of those games be a mild success. 
  

Work Goals

After I graduate from CSUMB, I will also spend time looking for a job in game development. I have two primary career goals.

• Obtain a job at a reputable video game studio. 
• Or found or join an independent video game studio.
  

ETS Computer Science Test 

This week we discussed the ETS Computer Science Test. This test is designed from faculty from various universities, and is updated every five years to ensure it remains relevant. We are going to take this test during the last semester of the CS Online program.

I predict that I will get 80%-90% on the test. I feel that I will have a solid grasp on the topics that will be covered by the test, but will have areas to improve in.

 Writing an Argumentative Essay

 This week we read a document called Writing an Argumentative Essay. The document discusses what an argumentative essay is, and how to approach writing one.

The document defines an argument as a position and evidence to support that position. It stresses that being clear, focused, and being logical is key to a good argumentative essay.

The document breaks the making of an argumentative essay into six steps.

1. Analyze the issue. In this step you figure out what the issue is, the stakeholders of the issue, and your stance on it.
   
2. Develop your argument. In this step you figure out what the stakeholders' arguments are, what the greater context of the issue is, and what your argument for your stance is.
   
3. Creating an outline. In this step you construct the blueprints for the essay. You decide where and how the different aspects of the essay are discussed. You will likely also expand on the arguments covered in the essay.
   
4. Writing the introduction. In this step you hook the audience, give them necessary information to understand the issue, and state the thesis of the essay.
   
5. Writing the essay. In this step it's important to make sure that all arguments are developed, and that your discussion of the stakeholders is unbiased.
   
6. Writing the conclusion. In this step you summarize the points discussed in the essay, reflect on information presented in the introduction, provide a possible solution, and make a call to action to the audience.
   

Bias in Argumentation

This week we read an essay called Biased argumentation and critical thinking. This essay discusses some forms of reasoning that contributes to bias.

1. Wishful thinking is a form of reasoning where one believes something is true because they wish it to be true. An example the essay gives is one assuming that advancements against climate change will occur because they want them to occur, therefore others want them to occur to.
   
2. Aversive thinking is a form of reasoning where one believes something is true because they don't want it to be false, or vice versa. An example the essay gives is one ignoring a negative diagnoses and believing that they are fine because they don't want to die.
   
3. Fretful thinking is a form of reasoning where one gains harmful beliefs through self-defeating biases. An example the essay gives is one believing that their significant other is having an affair because they seem distant. 

Interview with Remy Siu

This week I had the pleasure of interviewing Remy Siu, the founder, CEO, and creative director of sunset visitor 斜陽過客. Sunset visitor 斜陽過客 is an independent video game studio located in Vancouver, Canada. The studio released its debut title 1000xRESIST on May 9, 2024. The game’s setting is post-apocalyptic. After humanity was wiped out due to an alien virus, clones of the last remaining human continue to survive in a hidden bunker. The game is narrative focused, and features light exploration and puzzle solving in its gameplay. 1000xRESIST has seen critical success since its release, having received overwhelmingly positive ratings and having won multiple awards at independent games awards shows.

Mr. Siu is relatively new to video game development. He founded sunset visitor 斜陽過客 in 2020, during the midst of the pandemic. Before founding the studio he spent less than a year learning tools such as the Unity Engine. As the CEO and creative director of the studio, Mr. Siu was involved in almost every aspect of development, from acquiring funds, facilitating communication, coding, writing, and more. As someone who has recently entered the industry, founded a studio, and released a title with said studio, Mr. Siu has valuable insight into the video game industry and how one should approach entering it.

Developing video games is difficult. There are many factors that go into a game, such as design, programming, art, and marketing. According to Mr. Siu, one essential skill is knowing what to prioritize during the development of a game. Resources, such as time and money, are limited, especially for solo developers and independent studios. Focusing too much on unimportant details, such as trying to make the code perfect while prototyping, can waste valuable resources. Correctly prioritizing where to apply one’s resources will make development more efficient, and thus allow those resources to have a greater impact.

The video game industry is chaotic. New games are constantly releasing and trends are continuously emerging and changing. Mr. Siu stresses that paying attention to and analyzing as much context of the video game industry as possible is vital. This includes everything from what is popular, knowing how long other games take to make, to knowing your limits and what you are capable of. Mr. Siu emphasizes these last two points. When working on a particular type of game, it is important to analyze how long similar games took to make, and under what conditions they were made. This can help inform you of what you will be capable of when making a particular type of game, and how to best prioritize your resources.

There are primary ways to play video games, on a personal computer (PC), on mobile devices, or on video game consoles, such as the Xbox, Playstation, or Switch. 1000xRESIST was released on both PC and the Switch. 1000xRESIST was largely made for PC initially, and was ported to the Switch mostly later during development. To Mr. Siu, one of the hardest aspects of development was porting the game to the Switch. This is because the hardware of the Switch is less powerful than the hardware of PCs. Porting the game to the Switch required drastically altering the game to allow it to run on the Switch’s limited hardware. According to Mr. Siu, it is vital to keep in mind the limitations of all of the hardware a game is planned to release on. It is important to keep this in mind as early as possible, as this can help one prioritize development so that a game stays within the limits of its intended hardware.

Video games are expensive to make. It can often be difficult even for larger studios to fund the development of a game. For solo or independent developers, this task often feels impossible. For Mr. Siu, acquiring funds was an incredibly challenging aspect of development. He routinely had to search for more funds for development, which typically put development on hold until funds were acquired. Funds are one of the most important resources for video game development, as without them many games cannot be developed. According to Mr. Siu, one should not be afraid to try to find funding any way one possibly can. For him, a good source of funding was through public grants.

As someone interested in video game development, I had some awareness of some of these points. I knew that video games are expensive to make, and I knew that keeping the capabilities of hardware in mind was important. Speaking with Mr. Siu made me realize just how complicated and difficult video game development really is. I don’t think I completely realized how much money is required, or how difficult it is to develop a game for more limited hardware, until speaking with him. Hearing how one should be constantly analyzing the video game industry, and how one should be very intentional with what they prioritize during development, was very insightful. In particular, this made me realize how difficult developing games is for solo and independent developers.

One takeaway that is immediately relevant is learning how to prioritize. When I develop games in the future, even if it is only for myself, I will make sure to focus on what is most essential, then branch out from there. This will help me spend my resources efficiently. When I begin to develop games more seriously, I will spend time analyzing the video game industry. This will help me make games that are more unique, and will help me keep realistic expectations. When I begin to design games for multiple platforms, I will be mindful of the capabilities of each platform, and research how to develop and port games to each platform. This will help prevent having to scale the game down during development. When I develop games at a larger scale, such as with a studio or freelancers, I will be careful with how to spend funding, and will be willing to go out of my way to secure it.