“Demons, dragons, heroes and villains”: Explore the fantasy game world that’s transforming the way we teach game design in Victoria

Damian Scott, a Swinburne teacher and freelance game designer, has shattered conventional teaching norms with a groundbreaking approach to game design education. Scott created a fantasy game world named Gond, and unlike traditional teaching materials, Gond is in the public domain.

This revolutionary approach gives Diploma of Information Technology (Game Art & Design, Game Programming) students unprecedented access to the tools they need to succeed and is already helping spawn home-grown gaming hits.

One student group has already published a game called Dreamslayer on the major digital game store Steam, using the fantasy world Gond for the base of their own game.

In an industry where even Bachelor students struggle to produce games of publishable quality, Scott’s teaching concept has fast-tracked VET diploma students’ success.

Another student group is following in the footsteps of Dreamslayer and is expected to have their game Of Dead Earth published on Steam this year.

Scott, from Swinburne’s Information Communication Technology VET (Vocational Education and Training) department, says that by providing a rich fantasy world as a foundation, he could foster creativity and contextual understanding among his students.

“Gond is an original fantasy world resplendent in epic troupes of demons, dragons, heroes, and villains, all thrown together by a catastrophic event. I made the work Public Domain, to give students ownership and agency within the world.”

“At the heart of our teaching philosophy is the idea that we should seek to fail often with our work - so we build upon our successes and turn our failures into actionable lessons. Gond is proving to be a success.”

Game Art & Design student Oliver Moloney was a co-creator of the game Dreamslayer. He credits Scott’s inventive teaching tool for his success.

“Using a game project as a medium for learning helped everyone develop their skills in ways that would not be possible otherwise and the use of Gond is a great example of how a course like this can be done correctly,” says Moloney.

Reflecting on his experience, Moloney expresses gratitude for Scott's guidance.

"Working on Dreamslayer was one of the most enjoyable experiences I've ever had," he shares.

"Throughout the course last year, I found myself saying 'doing this diploma is probably one of, if not the, best decisions I ever made' and it would never have been possible without Damian.”

Scott confirms two new diploma groups are currently working on new games in Gond which are set to be released on Steam in December.

Following Scott's teaching success, Swinburne's Diploma of Information Technology (Game Art & Design, Game Programming) has recently gained accreditation from Epic Games, an American video game and software developer.

The accreditation recognises university programs that have committed to providing ongoing, high quality educational opportunities with an experienced faculty, proven curricula and sufficient facilities and resources to create positive outcomes for students with a variety of personal growth and career objectives.