Video game degrees are kidnapping education!

[Praxis]

http://www.gamesarefun.com/news.php?newsid=5863

Are degrees in video game software design and programming destroying American education?

Political science professor Ted Rueter of Depauw university says yes, claiming that such degrees are "kidnapping American education." Despite the over 100 universities that offer courses for video game design and software programming, Rueter complains to a recent piece for College News about such programs being offered in universities such as USC, Georgia Tech, and Carnegie-Mellon. Apparently taking notes from certain other anti-video game crusaders, Rueter audaciously declares such programs "yet another sign of the coming of the apocalypse. Schools of higher learning are simply cashing in on a fad that is destructive to society."

However, Rueter's evidence needs more than a little work. He cites from 12-year-old studies and also references Iowa State University professor Craig Anderson, whose recent conclusions about video game violence in the Safe Games Illinios Act case was dismissed by U.S. District Court Judge Matthew Kennelly just last Friday. Rueter also accuses Nintendo of sexism, saying, "in Nintendo games, women are often depicted as victims. The covers of Nintendo games show males striking a dominant pose. Many games are based upon a scenario in which a woman is kidnapped or has to be rescued." However, he lacks any sort of proof to back this bizarre claim.

The scholar concludes that "offering degrees in video game design is going to kidnap American education. Higher education needs to be rescued from such destructive nonsense." Mr. Rueter is obviously unaware that creators of video games also need knowledge of programming and similar computer science-related studies.

It looks like ignorance truly is bliss in this case.

This must be the most incredibly stupid person to ever carry a degree.

[darthdavid]

On the one hand the flood of cheap ass video game "degrees" from diploma mills really is fucking up education, and flooding the market with morons who don't know a polygon from a pixel from their penis from a hole in the ground. None the less, real universities offering the courses is actually someth I view hopefully. It lends credence to it and should set some standards for what's accecptable and might remove some of the ability of the overpriced diploma mills to sucker idiots.

[Faram]

He is a Political science professor

Talk about a bullshit degree!

[Uraniun235]

...okay, there's understandably some amount of contempt for liberal arts degrees, and I can't help but admit that I would assume a video game degree to be rather frivolous, but did I miss the memo stating that any college degree not concerned with math, science, or engineering is 'bullshit'?

[Praxis]

did I miss the memo stating that any college degree not concerned with math, science, or engineering is 'bullshit'?

Does not video game design include quite a lot of computer science, 3d modelling, etc?

[Crazy_Vasey]

Surely video game programming is little more than computer science with extra graphics, AI, and other such things?

[Bounty]

He is a Political science professor

Talk about a bullshit degree!

Why is Political Science not a proper degree ?

[Mad]

...okay, there's understandably some amount of contempt for liberal arts degrees, and I can't help but admit that I would assume a video game degree to be rather frivolous, but did I miss the memo stating that any college degree not concerned with math, science, or engineering is 'bullshit'?

A video game design degree would cover a number of areas. It'd basically be a combination of Mass Communications (scriptwriting, presentation), Computer Science (programming, and advanced algorithms and optimizations), and art (3d modeling, texturing, 2d art).

Also, video games often push the envelope on computer capabilities. Think about the technological advances used in the Half-Life 2 Source engine. The facial animation, lip-synching, and believeable AI reaction technologies could be used in a pre-rendered movie to help production times by giving a very good starting template for a scene that can be tweaked by the animator. (Instead of the animator doing everything manually.)

All the stuff that students would learn would be useful in other technology fields. They'd end up with a rather broad potential range of experience, though there would be some video game-specific experience as well.

Incidentally, the subject I was given to write my writing exit exam for University was basically "if you were provost, would you approve of a video game design course?" I was in favor.

[Admiral Valdemar]

Stupid humanities degrees are taking away our education, at least videogame design incorporates using computer programming and that's something of a science/maths subject.

[Darth Yoshi]

Rueter also accuses Nintendo of sexism, saying, "in Nintendo games, women are often depicted as victims. The covers of Nintendo games show males striking a dominant pose. Many games are based upon a scenario in which a woman is kidnapped or has to be rescued."

*cough* Metroid *cough*

I love how he links video games to the apocalypse.

[Spanky The Dolphin]

He is a Political science professor

Talk about a bullshit degree!

Why is Political Science not a proper degree ?

Because political science is bullshit.

....

Says the cinema major...

[Praxis]

Rueter also accuses Nintendo of sexism, saying, "in Nintendo games, women are often depicted as victims. The covers of Nintendo games show males striking a dominant pose. Many games are based upon a scenario in which a woman is kidnapped or has to be rescued."

*cough* Metroid *cough*

I love how he links video games to the apocalypse.

Well, you'll notice that all the studies he references are over 12 or more years old...so he's just woefully uninformed.
But yeah. Metroid.

What about Advance Wars? The female characters are just as powerful as the males.

Pokemon, Fire Emblem, Star Fox, etc.

Well, I'm not sure about Star Fox, because nobody knows what Slippy is.

[Praxis]

Oh yeah, here's his picture.

And the full article he wrote.
http://www.collegenews.org/x5107.xml


Some quotes I love.

Video game design as a college major? It's yet another sign of the coming of the apocalypse. Schools of higher learning are simply cashing in on a fad that is destructive to society.

Electronic Arts, the nation's largest game maker, has led the way in encouraging ivy-stained institutions to teach the design of such games as Grand Theft Auto, World of Warcraft, Doom, Wolfenstein 3D, and Mortal Kombat. Last year, the company contributed millions of dollars to establish a three-year master of fine arts program in "interactive entertainment" at USC.

Please, explain to me what EA has to do with ANY of those games. And why isn't he mentioning EA's sports and racing games, what they are famous for?

The central problem with video games is their violence. The National Coalition on Television Violence (NCTV) has developed a ratings system to evaluate the violent content of video games, ranging from XUnfit, XV, and RV (highly violent) to PG and G. NCTV surveyed 176 Nintendo video games. They gave the XUnfit rating to 11 percent of games. Forty-three percent received an XV and 15 percent earned an RV. A different survey found that 40 of the 47 top-rated Nintendo video games had violence as a theme.

40 out of 47 Nintendo games are violent, as found by a 12 year old survey. Oh, and the NCTV appears to be long gone. They don't even have a website anymore.

[Shogoki]

Because political science is bullshit.

....

Says the cinema major...

Isn't "Political Science" almost an oxymoron?

[Admiral Valdemar]

At the risk of being beaten by Red, it is in a way. Politics is anything but science. It's like at my uni they had "business science" courses. See, add "science" to a title, and you get respect. It's the same with "-ology" where psychology and sociology are such soft sciences or hounded by so much bullshit that they can't compare to the Big 3.

[NeoGoomba]

As an English (aka useless) Major, I can detect worthless degrees a mile away. Political Science is close, ranking just below Philosophy and JUST above Cinema. Of course, all three are vital life functions compared to English, so I suppose I MUST do what the PolySci guy says!

DESTROY ALL VIDEOGAME DESIGNERS! THE APOCALYPSE IS UPON IS

[felineki]

Oh yeah, here's his picture.

Geez. He can probably see the far side of the moon with those specs.

[Spanky The Dolphin]

Rueter also accuses Nintendo of sexism, saying, "in Nintendo games, women are often depicted as victims. The covers of Nintendo games show males striking a dominant pose. Many games are based upon a scenario in which a woman is kidnapped or has to be rescued."

*cough* Metroid *cough*

Not to mention that new Super Princess Peach game for the DS, where you play as Peach and rescue Mario and Luigi.

[Dooey Jo]

did I miss the memo stating that any college degree not concerned with math, science, or engineering is 'bullshit'?

Does not video game design include quite a lot of computer science, 3d modelling, etc?

Lesse, three-year curriculum for Computer Game Development - Design, from the University of Skövde (that's in Sweden):
Year 1:
Programming (OO C++)
Computer Game Analysis I
Computer Graphics
Game Design (introduction)
- - -
Model contruction for interactive media/games
Game design project I
Animation techniques (introduction)

Year 2:
Cognitive Science - cognitive abilities
Dramaturgy
Experimental Game Mechanics
Applied Human-computer interaction
- - -
Computer Game Analysis II
Game Design project II

Year 3:
Choose own courses
- - -
Earn Master's degree in Medias


The programmers do more math and less analyses and other stuff. Computer Game Graphics students does more graphics, obviously...


It's too bad it's going to cause the Apocalypse, because I think it's rather fun (the three hours long bus rides aren't that fun, though). Of course, most of the stuff is pretty basic, but hey, in Sweden you get payed for attending school. It's great

[Praxis]

The fact is, you can take almost anything as sexist.

Male on the cover? It's a dominant male trying to rescue a female.

Female on the cover? They're using women as an object to attract male gamers.

As an English (aka useless) Major
...
THE APOCALYPSE IS UPON IS

ROFL...that just made me laugh

[DPDarkPrimus]

Thanks, Mr. Gloom N' Doom, I'll be sure to take your advice about the Second Coming seriously as I slaughter these sand demons in Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones instead of writing my documentary film pitch.