What Is STEAM A game designer helps a development team create the story and rules for a new video game A game programmer writes computer code to create a virtual environment An audio engineer records and mixes sound effects and dialogue to make the game more realistic What do all these people have in common It’s not just video games All of their jobs require a STEAM education What does STEAM stand for Science Technology Engineering Art Math 4
Some of the most exciting careers are in STEAM fields A strong STEAM education will allow you to research test and build new things The problem-solving skills learned through STEAM can take you to the next level in just about any career field Audio engineers record and edit music and sound effects Game programmers write code to build virtual characters and environments 5
Game Design Video games have images and sounds just like movies but video games are different because they are also interactive They require input from players who use a controller to tell the game what to do next Video games are entertaining because they challenge players by giving them fun abilities to master like jumping and shooting and goals that test whether the player has mastered them Many video games also tell a story that adds meaning to the goals like jumping to rescue a princess or shooting to defend Earth from alien invaders Game design is the process of creating those challenges and stories Video games are designed to require focus and skill 6
Game designers create mechanics systems of abilities rules goals and feedback that define how the player interacts with the game After thinking of fun mechanics the designer writes a story that fits the challenges of the game and the order in which the player will complete them Because video games are both stories and challenges a game designer can begin their work with an idea for either the mechanics or the story STEAM Fast Fact Nintendo’s 1981 arcade game Donkey Kong is considered to be the first game to feature jumping over objects as a mechanic It was also one of the first games to have a story shown on the screen instead of in an instruction manual 7
