The Emerging Technology Institute (ETI) is preparing local students for careers in the video game industry, as well as nurturing their creativity and their gaming hobbies with an upcoming month-long after-school program.
The goal of the program is to get students familiar with open-source game development software, as well as teach them how to find their own gaming assets that they can re-use without copyright infringement concerns, according to Jason Robinson, a software engineer at ETI.

“By the end of all the classes, they should have the knowledge to create characters and to create maps,” Robinson said. “To narrow that focus a little bit, they’ll be able to create a character that can move around in a world and have it do different things. That fundamentally is what I’m aiming for, because by the end of the class, we want to get the students to go around and share their games with each other and play around.”

ETI, a U.S. Department of Defense contractor located at 16824 State Route 211 in Red Springs, will host these sessions after school in October at the University of North Carolina Pembroke’s Thomas Entrepreneurship Hub. The organization has a collaborative work space in Red Springs, and is engaged in efforts to develop the state’s youth along career paths in different tech industries. The after-school program is part of ETI’s X8 Lab located in the Thomas Entrepreneurship Hub in Pembroke, N.C.
“The X8 Lab was specifically built to teach kids how to build things, create their own things and maybe help them if they decide to get into those fields,” said Antonio Ball, ETI’s director of software development.

The first part of the program entails how to source images, music and other video game assets legally.
“We teach them about four different licensings that they can use that are free,” Robinson said. “And then we get into learning about the basics of game engines.”
Rather than going for the more complex video game engine options that serve as the foundation for the world’s biggest games, the ETI crew will introduce students to the Godot game engine.
“That is completely free and opensource, and it runs on pretty much everything,” Robinson said. “That way you can develop games on your phone, on your computer and even on your television if you have the willpower to do that.”
Students will then import the art and music and other game assets that they legally sourced into the engine to start making their own game.
“And I’m hoping that they can use the knowledge of that and make their own games at home,” Robinson said.
The program will serve eight middle school students and eight elementary school students. The lessons from the after-school program will also be posted on YouTube for students to follow along.
“And for those that do come in already knowing about game development, during the free walking period, we can try to teach them more advanced topics,” Ball said. “We’re going to have multiple instructors on site.”

Ball said that he hopes students will also learn skills that go beyond gaming.
“We want them to learn programming and also other skills, like talking to each other,” Ball noted.
He added that students will also learn about the different career opportunities that a game design skillset can open up.

“Video game design isn’t just Fortnite and Minecraft,” Ball said, referencing some of the most popular video games in the industry’s history. “Video game design is actually used by the military to make their training simulations too, and most people don’t think about that fact.”
Ball also said the ETI team plans to continue its after-school offerings beyond October.

“We’re going to be switching topics every month,” he added. “October is going to be game development, but then the month after maybe we’re making our own drones, and after that making our own electronics.”
Students, Ball said, should prepare by just bringing in their disposition and willingness to learn.
“Be willing to come in and be willing to be creative, that’s our whole thing,” he noted. “You only need to come prepared with that because we’re going to provide all the materials and everything for them to use. You have to come with an open mind to learn and a creativity to build your own stuff.”