Introduction
In the Computer Writing and Research Lab (CWRL) at the University of Texas at Austin (UT), a graduate student workgroup has been developing Rhetorical Peaks (RP), an interactive video game for use in introductory rhetoric and writing courses. During the 2006-07 academic year, the workgroup produced a white paper outlining a vision for a prototype of the game and subsequently built the prototype as a module for the Atari/Bioware medieval role-playing game Neverwinter Nights (NWN) using the Aurora Toolset. Anthony Matteo, lead developer of the video game workgroup during its first year, described the prototype and its theoretical motivations in “Rhetorical Peaks, a Video Game for First-Year Writing.” This paper will serve as an extension of Matteo’s SIGDOC article, outlining the game’s developments during the 2007-08 academic year (my tenure as head developer of the workgroup) and the plans for the next phases of development, and offering further reflection on the theoretical motivations guiding these developments.