Study Overseas in Asia with Raffles Education!

Even though he had a degree in IT from Indonesia and was qualified for jobs, our graduate, Rendy Gunardi, decided to study design overseas. He signed up for a course in Multimedia Design at Raffles Design Institute, Singapore to follow his passion in design.

At Raffles, Multimedia Design students can select their specializations after their two-year advanced diploma program. Students can choose to major in:

1) Multimedia Design

2) Animation

3) Games Design

After his two-year program, Rendy opted to study Games Design. On his third year, he graduated with a Bachelor of Art (Visual Communication) majoring in Games Design in December 2011. He also achieved an Award for Academic Excellence.

His good grades did not come easy, though. For his Final Year Project, he created an RPG (Role-Playing Game) prototype titled after his original character – Regunza. When asked about his favorite feature of the game he created, he smiled the way an impartial parent would when asked to point out his favorite child. After some thought, he said: “Everything. I did my best for three months to create what I have of this game.”

We talked to Rendy about his studies at Raffles and about his game. Here are the highlights from our chat:

1: Why did you choose to study in Singapore? What does Singapore offer that you can’t find back in Indonesia?

I decided to study in Singapore to gain more experience. There aren’t courses in animation or games design in Indonesia that I knew of when I signed up for my course at Raffles. There were only IT courses in my hometown.

I couldn’t find a suitable design school in Indonesia. That’s why I decided to try overseas. After searching for a few schools, I chose Singapore because it’s near Indonesia!

So when I came here, I had two options: LASALLE and Raffles. And I chose Raffles because I heard that it was stronger in digital media. I think LASALLE is probably for someone looking for a fine arts school.

2: Can you tell us what you did as a multimedia and games design student at Raffles?

Well actually, I did a lot of things like making websites, designing posters, drawings and a movie, but near the end of my course, I made games!

3: Why did you decide to create Regunza as your final project?

Basically, I wanted to make an RPG game. And then I mapped out the gameplay in a Game Design Document (GDD). The document has many other elements like how the game unfolds, how the map looks like, and research on a lot of other stuff – even the marketing. After I was done planning the gameplay, I started creating the character. And that’s how I got Regunza.

I originally wanted to make an online game, but it seems impossible to make one alone in three months. So I cut it down to make an RPG game. But an RPG game can get really big, so Regunza is still work-in-progress. But its first level is playable!

4: What is gameplay?

Gameplay is the way the game moves on. The game should be interesting enough to have an addictive quality.

From my experience, I think my game needs improvement on gameplay. I keep thinking in terms of graphics and art. So I didn’t focus much on gameplay factors when creating Regunza.

7: What other options did you have other than making an RPG for your final year project?

Actually, I have thought of making an FPS (First Person Shooter) and a small game. But I already did a casual game in my diploma. So I decided to take a bigger step to make an RPG – it’s more interesting.

8: Did your lecturer give you support while making this game?

Yes, of course! While researching, my lecturer gave me a lot of suggestions on how the game could look like… And some advice about levels and about adding more props into the games.

9: What do you feel is the most challenging part of making Regunza?

To be honest, everything was challenging! For example, it took a lot of time to sculpt and detail for character design. Other than that, there were also maps and levels to design. The last part was the programming itself. Maybe the most challenging part was the programming. Because without the programming, the game wouldn’t work.

Programming makes every element become the game.

12: What advice will you give to aspiring game designers?

Don’t miss out on planning for gameplay. No gameplay no games. Good graphics are important too.

More of Rendy’s works can be found on his website at rendygunardi.com. His website highlights his freelancing services that include creating or redesigning websites.

Want to find out more about studying Games Design at Raffles Design Institute, Singapore? Send us an enquiry!

Everyone’s case is unique and we want to give the best advice that works for you. To ensure quality education every semester, there are limited seats in Raffles. And they are filling up fast! Need more information? Fill up an enquiry form and an experienced Education Consultant will provide you with a free consultation.