In any case, if you're interested in teaching with video game music, or considering gamification of a course you're teaching, I hope this helps you! Let me know if you have questions. The formatting is a little crazy, as I copy and paste here, but the information is all there. Enjoy!
Video Game Music
MusPerf 300
Tuesday/Thursday 4:00-5:00, East Business, 0540
Office hours: by appointment (3057)
Matthew Thompson
In this course you will...
1- listen thoughtfully to game audio, learn to hear it more deeply, and increase your awareness of game music’s function within the broader scope of game audio.2- learn to hear loops, form, structure, and instrumentation in video game music.
3- contemplate game music history, particularly examining the audio consequences of technological evolution.
4- learn about differences in game music across various genres of gaming.
4- learn about game audio workflow, examining the various jobs within the field, and in particular, examine how game audio is implemented in video games
5- become acquainted with game audio professionals, composers, and musicians through Skype conversations with industry experts as well as class readings.
6- undertake a Composition Quest!, composing game music with GarageBand (or another program you know).
7- take active part in an online listening blog community in the Ctools discussion forums, discussing class readings and activities, as well as posting links to and writing comments about video game music.
Required Materials
Karen Collins, Game Sound: an introduction to the history, theory, and practice of video game music and sound design. MIT Press. 2008.You will likely want a USB flash drive when you are working on your GarageBand project. 2 GB should be more than enough space.

Grading
Because the topic of the course is game music, I wanted to try a bit of gamification with the course grading and design. Here’s how it works:Attendance:25,000 XP points
Ctools Forums Participation: 40, 000 XP points
Quizzes: 10,000 XP points
Composition Quest!: 25, 000 XP points
You start the semester with 0 XP points (a Noob!) at Level 1. As you complete assignments, you gain points. Your work in this course is worth 100,000 XP points and a ranking of Level 5. (It is possible, though, to get above 100,000 XP points by earning trophies and to Level 6!)
Thus:
Earned XP points
Letter grade equivalent
100,000+ A+
93,000- 100,000 A
90,000- 93,000 A-
87,000-90,000 B+
83,000- 87,000 B
80,000- 83,000 B-
77,000- 80,000 C+
73,000- 77,000 C
70,000- 73,000 C-
67,000- 70,000 D+
63,000- 67,000 D
60,000- 63,000 D-
< 60,000 GAME OVER!

Levels
You start at Level 1 (Noob!). As you gain XP points, you’ll level up. 20,000 XP points are necessary for each level-up, for a possibility of 5 levels.Note: Ancient legends speak of an elusive 6th level possible for those who really push themselves, do superior work, and earn trophies! When you level up, you’ll receive a ping in the Announcement section of Ctools as well as a ping in class.
Level 1 Noob < 20,000 XP points
Level 2 Audio Intern 20,000 XP points
Level 3 Freelance Audio Implementor 40,000 XP points
Level 4 Rockstar Composer 60,000 XP points
Level 5 Music Supervisor 80,000 XP points
Level 6 Game Audio Grandmaster 100,000+ XP points
Note: The current high score holder in the class (person with the most XP points) will receive a ping as well. This person holds the title of “MusPerf Best Player!” This title may bestow certain privileges, but that is all I will say at this time...
Trophies (Extra Credit)
Trophies carry the possibility of bonus points! These trophies represent a lot of work and are meant to be difficult to achieve. There are announced trophies and hidden trophies.Locutus of Ctools -- posting double the number of words necessary in the Ctools forums -- 1000 bonus points!
Ctools Surveyor -- posting/commenting in every Ctools forum topic-- 500 bonus points!
Four Eyed Bookworm-- reading (and posting on) all of the optional articles as well as all the chapters in Collins Game Sound--1000 bonus points!
Next Jeremy Soule-- composing double the amount of game music for your final project-- 1000 bonus points!
There are also 5 hidden trophies. The achievement necessary to unlock these trophies may or may not be revealed in the course of the class. Below are their names and rewards.
Good Samaritan (1000 points)
Word of Mouth (1000 points)
To Boldly Go (500 points)
Perfectly Present (500 points)
Focused under Pressure (500 points)
A student who earns any of these 9 trophies will be notified via a Ctools announcement as well as receiving a ping in class. It should go without saying that this work must be of a high caliber to earn the trophy. Phoned-in or shoddy work is never acceptable.
Challenges!
• If 10% of the class earns at least 4 trophies, everyone in the class gets 1000 bonus points!• If anyone in the class earns all 9 trophies, everyone in the class gets 1500 bonus points!

Attendance (25,000 points)
Attendance should be considered mandatory. I will take attendance quite regularly, but at unannounced intervals, and at the beginning of the class. Thus, you need to be on time. Punctuality is a skill that will serve you well no matter your field or profession. The amount of points you receive from the maximum 25,000 will be distributed as a percentage of your attendance versus the number of times attendance is taken. This part of your grade should be a freebie!Class will be a mixture of directed listening, discussion, and lecture. This won’t just be my standing and talking while you struggle to stay awake. This will be an interactive experience! Be present! Be focused! There’s no amount of outside reading or studying you can do to make up for the classroom experience because this class is the first of its kind! Let’s make the classroom environment the best on campus! I promise to give you my all when I’m in the classroom; can you make the same pact with me?
I understand the many pressures on students. Put those aside from Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4:10-5 and come participate in a groundbreaking, ear opening, and wonderfully interactive course! Make the choice to be present! That said, if you’re very sick, please don’t come to class. Rest and get well. An appropriately dated doctor’s note will excuse an absence from negatively impacting your grade. Emailing me after class that you “weren’t feeling well” does no good. Save yourself the effort. For family emergencies, be in touch with me.
Note: By “present,” I don’t simply mean “physically in the room.” I mean invested in the tasks, discussions, and current moment in the classroom environment. Don’t show up to type a paper for another class, IM your BFF, or troll Facebook; that’s disrespectful and distracting to those around you. Come to class to learn, grow, and be focused on the present moment.
Ctools Forums (40,000 points)
The majority of the course grade is comprised of your activity and interactivity outside of class in the Ctools forums. There are numerous forums available and-- in the spirit of gaming, where you choose how you proceed through the game-- much of the time, you’re able to choose the forums/discussions you wish to participate in, readings you want to complete, and so forth.Each week, you need to log 200 words in the forums. I will be tabulating these results weekly and awarding points appropriately. Strive for the following ratio: 150 words of your own primary contribution and 50 words in reaction to what others are saying. Don’t worry about this being an exact requirement, simply aim for about 2/3rds of your contribution to the forums to be primary material and about 1/3rd to be in reaction to other comments. A minimum of 200 words is the number you want to get to!

Example Forum Entries:
Primary contribution entries:
“I just finished reading Collins chapter 5 which deals with..... I’d never thought about the fact that game audio was divided into so many different jobs like.... The job that seemed most intriguing to me was..... I did an internet search for that job and found this video where Damian Kastbauer describes his life as an audio implementor: http://...... Super glad I watched that! I think the best part is 5:06-6:10 when he describes.....”
or
“I’ve been thinking a lot about hearing musical performances as a part of gameplay since the class where we discussed that topic. I remember a game I used to play when I was little, Maniac Mansion, where you can play as a singer/songwriter. If you choose this character, you have the chance to record a demo which.... The graphics are pretty crude (no playing motions), but when you select the piano, the music..... Check out the gameplay here: http://......”
NOTE: If you actually finished the sentences in either of these sample entries, just one of them would be an appropriate length entry for one week!
Comments/reaction entries might be like:
“Wow! What a great video! I watched the part you mentioned. He really does do a
good job of breaking down the occupation. Have you seen his website at http://.....?”
or
“I didn’t know who Damian Kastbauer was, so I found his website and am perusing the various games he’s worked on. Here’s a list if you want to check it out: http://......”
or
“I read that chapter too and thought it was the most boring one in the whole book. I don’t care at all about any game audio jobs other than the composers.”
or
“I didn’t know Maniac Mansion at all. I watched some of the gameplay. The era of wall- to-wall music was super annoying! I can’t believe that game music is so famous!”
NOTE: Two entires of this length in a week are all you need to fulfill your commenting requirement!

New Ctools forums will open as we progress through the semester. Check them out and see what’s possible. There will also be opportunities to suggest topics for forums. Let’s make this into an incredible online community!
Although we will be writing in an online forum, please avoid texting and internet slang: IMHO, TYVM, CUL8R, etc... Instead, opt for complete thoughts and intelligible writing. Also, while short statements like: “Wow!” “Really cool!” “Thanks for posting.” Can be a part of your reactionary comments, notice that all of my examples above also added something worthwhile to the conversation. They were not simply “bumps” to the thread.
Be polite and respectful in your comments. There’s a tendency to write things that one would never say in a face-to-face conversation. Consider that you’re interacting with your classmates, human beings! Be kind, honest, thoughtful. Treat others as you wish to be treated!
In the course of the semester, 200 words per week is the equivalent of a 10 page double spaced paper. This rather light output expectation is in counterbalance to the input time that it takes to write in the forums. Each time you write, you should be reading what others are saying and responding to them. Your writings will also often be reactions to readings you’ve completed. Thus, the heavy weighting of this portion of your grade tries to take into consideration that you need to invest time and attention into these forums. To receive full credit, your writing needs to clearly show that you are making this investment.
Forum Requirements Summary:
14 weeks of class, nothing due the first week. After that, 200 words weekly due each Tuesday before class begins! Late work will not receive credit! Roughly 1/3 as “comments/reactions” to what others have said. 2/3rds “Primary” material that you write on the following topics:1 introductory entry on your favorite video game music
4 entries on chapters from Collins Game Sound -- you choose which chapters!
3 entries on other possible class readings -- you choose readings of interest to you! 4 entries in forums of your choice
1 entry as a course reflection on what you learned
Note: the Composition Quest! Ctools forum entries are graded as part of the Composition Quest! project. While you’ll be posting in Ctools forums for that project, which will be quite similar to this work, notice those entries do not count toward these 13 forum entry requirements!

Quizzes (10,000 points)
There are two quizzes in class on the dates listed in the course schedule. These quizzes are not to trick you! They are to help me gauge how your listening is developing and what knowledge you’re retaining. Nearly every class period, we’ll be practicing for these quizzes through directed listening and discussion. The only difference between the class discussions and these quizzes is that you’ll be working alone and submitting work for a grade. Do not stress about them! These quizzes will be short, quick, and-- if you’ve been coming to class and paying attention-- easy chances to show off what you’ve learned!Composition Quest! (25,000 points)
This is your chance to compose some music with the aid of a computer! Your musical skill/knowledge don’t matter. While superior musical projects may receive more points, the vast majority of points will be awarded for projects that show effort and connection between the intended use of the music and the aural result. In other words, don’t submit a dance-hip-hop sounding MP3 for a horror/gothic game scene.Notice on the schedule that I’ll conduct a GarageBand tutorial during one class period. For most of you, this (and perhaps online tutorials) will be all you need to compose your piece(s). Additionally, I’ll also poll the class on Ctools, and if there’s interest, I’ll give a two hour GarageBand tutorial session in the “Fish Bowl.” This is a great time to get added input from me or to get more help with GarageBand if you have any trouble.
1- Using GarageBand (or another audio program you’re familiar with), compose 90 seconds to 2 minutes of game audio.
2- Post in the appropriate Ctools forum a description of your composition process, what your inspiration was, the overall mood and effect of your music, and any other information you wish to include about your piece (title, video you synced to, artwork you took inspiration from, etc). 200 words. 5,000 points
3- Submit your recording as an MP3 (no other file types will be accepted!) to your Ctools dropbox no later than the beginning of the last day of class (Dec 10th at 4 pm).
Your MP3 MUST be titled in the following format: YourFirstandLastName_MusPerf300_CompProj_F13. 10,000 points
4- I will post the recordings in iTunesU during the study day.
5- Choose three of the recordings, listen to them, read their associated forum entry and comment on them in reply to the original post. Use techniques we’ve built all semester to comment on the music. What do you like? What works well? Are there things that are not convincing? This final step is due by the conclusion of the final exam period. 150 words (approximately 50 per reply). 10,000 points

Course Schedule
This schedule is subject to change and adjustment. Guest speaker availability and the needs and desires of the class will ultimately determine daily activities.I have suggested course readings that follow the topics of the class. As long as you read and write in Ctools about at least 4 Collins Game Sound chapters and 3 of the other possible readings, you’ll receive full credit for the course readings.
September 3
Welcome, Introduction, A survey of game musicSeptember 5
Beginnings of Game AudioSeptember 10
Rise of Arcades, First home consoles, Early PC Games200 words due in Ctools forums: Your Favorite Game Music and Why
September 12
Fall of arcades, 8-bit home consolesHearing loops vs 1 shot music
September 17
8- bit consoles Hearing form End game music200 more words due in Ctools forums: Novak History of Game Audio Development
September 19
The SNES and Genesis 16 bit consolesFunctions of Game Audio
September 24
Skype with Brian Schmidt200 more words due in Ctools forums: Collins 2, 3, or 4
September 26
More SNES and Genesis and PC gamesBoss, Menu, Battle Music
Quiz 1
October 1
PS and Xbox Games Hearing instrumentation200 more words due in Ctools forums: Forum Topic/Reading of your choice

October 3
PS, Xbox, and PCGamesOctober 8
Current generation games Interactive Audio Realized Functions of Game Audio200 more words due in Ctools forums: Collins- Chapter 7 or Novak- Functions of Game Music
October 10
Skype with Karen CollinsOctober 17
Current generation games, Interactive AudioOctober 22
Nostalgia in game music music /Remakes200 more words due in Ctools forums: Reading/ Topic of your choice
October 24
Music making in gamesOctober 29
Music games/ CRLT evaluation200 more words due in Ctools forums: Jorgensen- Playing with the Sound Off or Shultz- Music Theory in Music Games
October 31
Game music outside of Video GamesNovember 5
GarageBand Composition Techniques200 more words due in Ctools forums Collins- Chapter 6 or Karja- Marketing Music Through Computer Games
November 7
Skype with George Sanger, compositional processNovember 12
Game composers, Compositional process200 more words due in Ctools forums: Collins Chapter 8 or Marks- Creating Music for Games or The Fat Man- Methods of Efficient Audio Production

November 14
Skype with Damian Kastbauer Game audio implementationNovember 19
Game audio process, sound effects, foley, implementation200 more words due in Ctools forums: Stevenson- The Game Audio Tutorial Chapter 4, “Music” or Brandon- Adaptive Audio
November 21
Synergy between game music and other industriesQUIZ 2
November 26
Mobile Game Audio/ Social Media Game Audio200 more words due in Ctools forums: Topic/ Reading of your choice
December 3
Topics of class choice200 more words due in Ctools forums: Topic/ Reading of your choice
December 5
Games/Topics of class choiceDecember 10
Course wrap up, gaming in class1- Game music MP3s submitted to your Ctools Dropbox,
2- Ctools Forum description of your work complete
3- 200 more words due in Ctools forums: A Course Reflection
December 18
work due by end of Final Exam period (10 AM)Your comments/replies to three of the game music tracks in iTunesU

On reserve in the Music Library:
Here are some of the books I’ve read about game audio. These are the vast majority of books that consider game music in their discussion. The first is the textbook for the class (there’s only one copy available in the library). The others have articles/chapters that may be one of your optional readings. There’s no requirement to use these, but if you’re interested in game audio/music, these books provide a wealth of information and are a good place to learn more.Karen Collins: Game Sound
Karen Collins: Playing with Sound
Karen Collins, ed: From Pac-Man to Pop Music
Stevens/Raybould: The Game Audio Tutorial
Kiri Miller: Playing Along
Kristine Jorgensen: A Comprehensive Study of Sound in Computer Games
Alexander Brandon: Audio for Games
George Sanger: The Fat Man on Game Audio
Aaron Marks: The Complete Guide to Game Audio
Marks/ Novak: Game Development Essentials: Game Audio
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