{"id":12145,"date":"2025-01-23T16:49:40","date_gmt":"2025-01-23T16:49:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.golive.clarku.edu\/news\/2025\/01\/23\/it-was-my-creative-outlet\/"},"modified":"2025-09-22T12:03:48","modified_gmt":"2025-09-22T16:03:48","slug":"it-was-my-creative-outlet","status":"publish","type":"story","link":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/news\/2025\/01\/23\/it-was-my-creative-outlet\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018It was my creative outlet\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n

Summer Game Studio program gives high schoolers crash course in game-making<\/p>\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n

Cats wearing lemons and limes as helmets, pitted against one another on a quest for collectibles. It\u2019s a goofy idea, but one that makes for a fun game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This silly concept is what Skyler Barron \u201922, MFA \u201923, a current Becker School of Design & Technology<\/a> professor, made into a video game back in 2017 when she was a high school student participating in the Summer Game Studio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe decided we wanted to work on something ridiculous,\u201d Barron recalls. \u201cMy team and I saw pictures of cats with lemon and lime hats on, so we made a game where the \u2018lime cats\u2019 and \u2018lemon cats\u2019 are on different teams trying to gather collectibles.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Summer Game Studio<\/a> is a two-week game design program that immerses students in the Becker School of Design & Technology. This pre-college program teaches all aspects of game design and development \u2014 from concept art to coding; from sound design to playtesting \u2014 and empowers students with the skills to create their own video games from scratch. Students learn from the same faculty who have made the BSDT\u2019s undergraduate program earn the No. 3 ranking in the world by The Princeton Review<\/em>. During her time at Summer Game Studio, Barron and her peers conceptualized, built, and launched \u201cLemon Cat.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"screen
A screenshot from Skyler Barron’s “Lemon Cat” game.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Players, operating as the lemon cat, must navigate around the lime cats in search of the collectibles. Everything from brainstorming the lighthearted concept to animation to programming was an enjoyable team effort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m passionate about art, and I got to let that shine while working on our project,\u201d says Barron, who studied interactive media<\/a> at Clark. \u201cIt was so much fun to work with people with similar interests.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Participating in Summer Game Studio made Barron decide to enroll in the BSDT program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAt the end of high school, I wasn\u2019t sure if game design was going to be my major and didn\u2019t feel confident about where I would go if it was my major,\u201d she says. \u201cSummer Game Studio let me see that I love game design and helped me make that big decision.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Robert Matzkin \u201926, a computer science<\/a> major and interactive media minor, participated in Summer Game Studio in 2022, just weeks before starting his first semester at Clark. He recalls learning about programming with the guidance of BSDT Professor Nevin Flanagan<\/a> as he made his video game \u201cRot,\u201d an infinite runner game that required players to exterminate vicious plants that had overrun a kingdom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\n
\"professor
Professor Nevin Flanagan guides a student.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"students
Participants of SGS 2023 eat lunch at a Clark dining hall.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was a lot of debugging, a lot of back-and-forth,\u201d Matzkin recalls. \u201cIt sounds like tedious work, but it was my creative outlet. I felt inspired every day to wake up, go to class, and code into the night.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Distributing and delegating tasks to make a game gave the students a real sense of professional teamwork, Matzkin says. \u201cGetting a taste of game design before actually starting my education here gave me the confidence that I picked the right school.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The program is a crash course in what it\u2019s like to be a college student. Participants live in a Clark residence hall and dine on campus as part of the full experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSummer Game Studio prepared me to live in a social environment with lots of people and gave me a good idea of how a college class would feel,\u201d says Autumn Powers \u201927, an interactive media major and participant in Summer Game Studio 2022, who worked on Rot with Matzkin. The program was also invaluable in helping Powers hone a love of 3D art.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was a whole lot of information, but it was fun and digestible,\u201d Powers says. \u201cI created art for my game with a lot of tools and learned how to be efficient with what I made.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fast pace of Summer Game Studio teaches students to analyze problems and find quick solutions. It\u2019s a process Barron experienced herself as a student and now oversees as a professor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAny struggles you face making a game, you need to overcome within two weeks,\u201d Barron says. \u201cStudents pull themselves together and focus on what they need to do to complete their task. You see them end up really proud of their project.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Summer Game Studio 2025 registration is open<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Kickstart your design journey, learn new skills, and make your own game. There are two Summer Game Studio sessions in 2025 \u2014 attend one or both.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Game Studio: July 6 \u2013 19<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Geared toward any high school student or recent grad who wants to build on their experience and become a game-maker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Game Studio, Next Level: July 20 \u2013 August 2<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Designed for motivated students who have completed a session of the BSDT Game Studio or those with foundational game design knowledge who want to take their skills to the next level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Complete your registration by March 1 and take advantage of preferred pricing, with a $500 discount off full tuition. Use discount code SPEEDRUN at checkout.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Register now<\/strong><\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n

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