Principles Of Game Design

Monday, December 14, 2015
Principles Of Game Design
By Jaap Bierman ~ For Micah Hrehovcsik
Table of contents:
Challenge 1-1
2
Challenge 1-2
2
Challenge 1-3
3
Challenge 2-1
4
Challenge 2-2
4
Challenge 2-3
5
Read and reflect 2-4
6
Challenge 3-1 and 3-2
8
Read and reflect 3-3
9
Challenge 3-4
10
Challenge 4-1
13
Challenge 4-2
13
Challenge 4-3
13
Challenge 4-4
13
Challenge 4-5
14
Challenge 4-6
14
Challenge 4-7
15
Challenge 4-8
15
Challenge 5-1
16
Challenge 5-2
16
Challenge 5-3
17
Challenge 5-4
18
Challenge 6-1
21
Read and reflect 6-2
22
1
Challenge 1-1
- Name the different development roles needed to make a videogame.
• Game designer
• level designer
• Design researchers
• playtesters
• concept artist
• animators
• asset artist
• Audio artist
• programmer
• sound designers
• producer
Challenge 1-2
- Define Game designer
• A Game designer is a creative mind that comes up with and thinks about ideas for games. A
game designer will take an idea and further iterate on this idea (usually with a team of more
game designers) to flesh out an idea like this. A game designer designs an experience.
- What are the attributes/skills/knowledge of a game designer?
• A game designer needs to be either creative, original, and/or very informed of what his
target audience wants. A game designer needs to be dedicated and passionate about his
work to make a truly great game.
- Name 5 game designers from 5 games you have played
• Masahiro Sakurai: Super Smash Bros. Series
• Shigeru Miyamoto: The Mario and Zelda series (among others)
• Eiji Aonuma: Lead director of the Zelda series
• Satoru Iwata: Earthbound (among many others)
• Ryogo Tsujimoto: The Monster Hunter series
2
Challenge 1-3
1 - Who are credited as the game designers of the following games:
1. Sim City - Will Wright
2. Super Mario Bros. - Shigeru Miyamoto, Takashi Tezuka
3. Populous - Peter Molyneux
4. Dungeons & Dragons - Gary Gygax, Dave Arneson
5. Lord of the Rings (board game) - Reiner Knizia
6. Magic: The Gathering - Richard Garfield
2 - Name (at least 5) sub-disciplines related to the following game development
specializations:
• Game Design
• Level-, Interface-, Technical-, Character-, and Mechanic Design
• Programming
• Menu-, AI-, Sound-, UI-, Control Programmer
• Game Art
• Concept art, Model Art, UI art, Architecture, Animation,
• Game Sound & Music
• BM-, SFX-, Menu music-, Navigation sound design,Voice overs.
• Other
• Narrative design, Playtesting, Market Research, Historic research, Marketing design
3
Challenge 2-1
1. (Define Game) what is a game?
(Class answer) A game is an experience that involves playful elements and a predetermined set
of rules and boundaries.
(Second answer) A game is an interactive experience that is defined by it’s inherent rules,
boundaries (or lack thereof) and goals.
2. What is the holy grail of game design? (I take it you want my opinion?)
To me the holy grail of game design is the right balance between polar opposites like: challenge
and leisure, fun and frustration, empowerment and disablement.
3. Why do we play games? What do games add to our lives?
Games allow us to either enhance or forget about our regular lives. They provide us with an
alternative reality or environment where our choices are impactful inside the game, but won’t
inherently/necessarily affect us outside of the game.
Challenge 2-2
1. What would your sentiment be if one of your players died because they played your
game too long?
I would be impressed by the fact that I made a game that is apparently so entertaining or
captivating that someone could literally play it until they died. However I would make an effort
to improve the game so that it’s easier to put down at times and/or rewards you for taking
breaks.
2. What would your sentiment be if one of your players kills another player (in real life)
over your game?
I wouldn't feel too responsible for this. Mostly because I don’t think it’s possible to create a
game by accident that can make people feel so frustrated or powerless that they kill someone
over it in real life.
3. What would your sentiment be if research showed that the games you were making
were harmful?
Studies like this I would definitely take very seriously, however yet again, I don’t think that it’s
very plausible that one would make a game that is actually harmful without the possibility of this
crossing their minds during development. I’d also like to know on what grounds people started
this research, and find out whether it’s bias related. If it is, then I could probably disregard the
criticism.
4
4. How would you feel to be threatened by your game’s players?
People talk lots of shit on the internet and very rarely take actual action. Thus, if I were to be
threatened I wouldn’t fear for my safety, however I would be very curious as to how my game
triggered this aggression in someone, and what predisposition caused them to react this way. If
this predisposition was something common among many people I would strongly consider
tailoring my game to not trigger these kind of actions in players.
Challenge 2-3
1. Are these really issues?
I believe that as soon as a (large) group has a problem with something, it becomes an issue, so
yes, these are real issues. I also believe that no matter what you do, you’re always going to offend
somebody, simply because the role of a victim is a very easy and safe one to assume.
2. Do you believe videogames are this powerful
With the increasing realism of videogames, I do believe that videogames are considerably
powerful. But games don’t even need to be realistic to be powerful, in fact, it’s often the games
that let us escape the furthest from our actual lives that are the most addicting. This is especially
true in cases where the player is dealing with a mental disorder, like depression, aswel.
Find 5 games that you think are controversial (I write the cause in short too)
1. Hatred (PC) - Extremely graphic senseless violence, mass murder is the entirety of the
game.
2. Muslim Massacre (PC) - Need I say more? Extremely relevant these days with
islamophobia at an all time peak.
3. Rapelay (PC) - The premise of the game is to rape a mother and her two daughters,
one of which is underage even.
4. Man Hunt (Wii Version) - Not only a very violent game, but the addition of motion
control has earned it the nickname “Murder simulator”.
5. Pokémon series (Nintendo systems) - Claimed to be satanic by extreme
fundamentalist Christian groups. Also, there was some racial controversy around the
Pokémon Jinx, causing her appearance to be changed in localization.
5
Read and reflect 2-4
Game Design fundamentals:
The Magic Circle - Summary:
We take a look at the boundaries of a game. When does it start? Where does it take place?
When a child is using a (virtual) toy, it is ambiguous whether it is playing with it or not, but when
someone is playing a (video) game, it is very clear that they are doing so; They are acting within
the boundaries of the game, and playing by the rules. Playing a game is like entering a magic
circle, within the circle there is an alternative reality. The circle has no beginning or end, it’s
repeatable. It’s a finite space with infinite possibility. A game takes place in a set environment
(the playing space/board/field). The items within this space only gain their value when they are
part of a game in progress. During play, the players give authority to the rules. A game may be a
separate reality, or a special case of ordinary reality. A game is a system, so all that would enter
this system may become part of the game. However, boundaries are selective. Aspects of reality
we don’t want in our game can be safely left out. The way we look at games changes the kind of
system it is. We can look at games as: Rules, Play, or Culture. Entering a game is somewhat of a
commitment. By leaving the magic circle, one could potentially damage it for the players still
inside, ruining their experience. When entering games we assume the inefficiency of the magic
circle; The rules that limit us from reaching the goal the easiest way, providing challenge. So
playing a game is like signing a social contract, to sign it is to accept the rules and limitations put
on you for achieving your goal. This attitude of accepting your limits to play the game is known
as lusory attitude. The pleasure of playing the game comes from the moment between action and
outcome, that causes people to get excited. Take away the circle, and this excitement no longer
exists, for all you are doing is inefficiently reaching a goal; Thus, the circle must be upheld.
Reflection:
A game designer has great power. Essentially, when designing the experience that is his game, he
is creating an alternative or special reality where he can assign value to certain object(ive)s or
actions through his rules. It is important for the designer to consider this power that they have,
and use it to enhance the player experience. The more decorative and convincing the walls of
the magic circle are, the more immersive the game is. Themes and narratives are great ways to
improve these walls, and keep people from wanting to leave the circle.
The Primary Schemas: RULES, PLAY, CULTURE - Summary There are three main ways of analyzing games with schemas:
Rules is a Formal schema that focusses on the mathematical structures of games
Play is an Experimental schema that focusses on players interaction with the game
Culture is a Contextual schema that focusses on the context in which a game is embedded
Within these schemas of rules, play , and culture are schemas that are more specific. The main reason we use schema’s to analyze games is because they contain knowledge rather
than definitions, but we also use them because they can embed within other schemas, they can
show many levels of abstraction and they can integrate new information.
Reflection;
I like using schema’s for the very reasons the text describes. I can vary them if I change my mind
about something, I can write schemas around schemas, and I appreciate how graphical they are.
6
Half Real - Summary:
Games do exist on a single medium, but are rather transmedial. This is because a game is not
defined by the medium, but rather by the experience it is. All games are:
- a rule-based formal system;
- with variable and quantifiable outcomes;
- where different outcomes are assigned different values;
- where the player exerts an effort in order to influence the outcome;
the player feels emotionally attached to the outcome;
- and the consequences of the activity are optional or negotiable.
Anything fulfills these 6 criteria is a game. Games are not limited by their medium, and don’t
have a common material support, but rather an immaterial support specific to the type of game.
Computer games allow simulation of real world limitations such as physics or a playing board to
keep track of the game state, but also allow their systems to be translated into physical form.
Reflection:
Man, Play and Games - Summary:
The author sorts games into a couple of categories and explains why he does so, why he
chooses what name, and what kind of games the categories entail. The categories are:
Agôn: Competition with rules and challenges, the pleasure comes from Alea: Chance games where the players try to guess, and find pleasure in the anticipation of, the
outcome
Ilinx: Games of movement, where the pleasure come from physical exhilaration, or the mental
aspect of doing something risky or dangerous.
Mimicry: Playful simulation that assign the players a certain role, usually parallel to something in
the real world.
The following categories are overarching and are compatible with the aforementioned
categories but not with each other. A game will defined by the categories above, will be either
Paida or Ludus to some extent.
Paidia: Childlike play, chaotic and without rules. The way animals and children play.
Ludus: Play with oneself, not competing against others, but against an object or puzzle. Usually a
rather passive experience, undertaken to kill time, that leaves one waiting for an outcome.
Reflection:
I found the text to be a rather pretentious puzzle of confusing sentence structure and
terminology, that I had a lot of trouble placing into clear cut context. That is, until I found the
schema at the end, which makes it all a lot clearer. An interesting way of looking at games, but
perhaps no longer the most useful or relevant in this day and age.
7
Challenge 3-1 and 3-2
Write out a simple Aim & Shoot game, just the mechanics! Add NO fictional aspects at
all. First, write it out in words. Then, make the mechanics into a flowchart. Add ability
loss to this game (marked in red).
Shooting system: When using a bow there’s two ways of shooting
Free aim puts you in a puts you in a first person perspective with a reticle that shows where
you’ll shoot. It also shows the path that your arrow will travel if released at that moment.
Holding the charge longer increases focus, causing your reticle to shrink (increasing accuracy),
and arrow speed and damage to increase. Releasing when the focus is max releases a critical
shot (larger window than focus aim).
Focus aim locks your camera on the enemy, showing your character from the side. A reticle
pops up on the enemy, locked in place on a specific body part. Holding the charge causes an
outer ring to appear around your reticle, slowly shrinking to a dot, to indicate the accuracy of
your shot (called focus). Arrow speed and damage also increase by holding the charge, this is
indicated by a circle being drawn clockwise around your reticle (this is the power of the shot).
Using the camera controls the player can switch between body parts of the enemy. This causes
the focus of your shot to drop a little and the aim to stick to a different body part. When
switching targets, your power remains charged. Releasing right when your focus is max
releases a critical shot.
The aim type can be switched mid action, keeping your power but losing focus.
Walking slows down your charge speed by half.
Evading cancels the action completely, losing all power and focus.
Arrows are limited in supply. Arrows can be picked up from the ground or pulled out of
enemies (dealing bonus damage)
Draw bow and
enter last used
aim mode
Free
Reticle appears
Focus
increases
Focus at
maximum
Focus
Reticle locks
on enemy part
Release
Charge for
too long
Pick target
location
Switching or cancelling is always possible
8
Focus at
maximum
Release critical shot
Read and reflect 3-3
Game Development Essentials: Gameplay Mechanics - Summary:
It is virtually impossible for a game designer to do everything right. However, if you focus on the
most important things and do those right, it is quite possible your players will excuse your
games’ shortcomings. The most important part of your game is probably your game mechanics.
A game mechanic is a rule or feature that influences or dictates how the game is played.
Gameplay mechanics work together to define the gameplay experience. By combining gameplay
mechanics a designer can create emergent mechanic. This may be programmed deliberately or
just happen to emerge from two mechanics working in unison. The most important part of
designing a game, is making it fun, but because fun is not a universal indicator that everyone
agrees upon, one must aim to make their game fun for a specific audience. Ways to make a game
fun:
- Add variety to systems in order to keep them from becoming repetitive
- Use emergence to allow systems to be combined in interesting ways
- Create interesting systems that hook players quickly
- Build addictive systems that will keep players engaged for a long time
- Advance the game’s systems so that the game difficulty and the player interest stay in balance
Reflection:
This text is light and easy to read and doesn’t obscure what it’s trying to tell you: “Make your
games fun with fun game mechanics.” Although it doesn't feel likeI learned a lot of new things
from this text, it definitely serves as a good cheat sheet for when you’re not sure how to
advance with your game concept. The points about emergence are very interesting as well.
Introduction to Game Development - Summary:
The pieces of a game are objects. Objects are defined by their attributes(what they are) and
their behaviors(what they do).Additionally their relationships dictate in what way objects
interact with the world. If you look at your game objectives as requirements, you can list the
objects that will make up your game system. A class is basic type of object, that objects can be
sorted into. By gradually defining objects and their relations more and more you’ll system will
start to gain depth and strengths and weaknesses become more clear. Once you have your
objects fleshed out, it’s time to iterate.
When describing system dynamics we look at two aspects: Levels and rates. A level is an
accumulation of something, and a rate is a change in the quantity of accumulation. By playing
around with these the behavior of your system changes drastically. Two typical ways of your
system behaving to reach its goal are oscillating and taking on an S-shape behavior.
Reflection:
The text does a good job at explaining how one defines objects and integrates them into a
system. Immediately explaining relevant terms is a good way in which the text makes you
comfortable with the system. The schemas it entails are also very good at illustrating the
relations between objects and the world they exist in. The jump to systems in the text is a little
quirky but, but the explanation gives good insight in how to create an interesting system for
increasing an object’s amount in a game or elsewhere.
9
Challenge 3-4
Analyse the following games:
Digital
Game: Sim City 2000
• What are the core mechanics?: Building and designing city infrastructure
• What are the progressive mechanics?: Making money and improving technology
• Is there more than one game embedded in the game? Explain: Yes, the budget system
requires you to set tax rates for specific regions, regulate and enable trade with other cities,
and enact city ordinances.
• Do the game mechanics govern social behavior between players? How?: No, there is no
multiplayer.
Game: Skyrim
• What are the core mechanics?: Leveling and Exploring
• What are the progressive mechanics?: Unlocking new locations and skills
• Is there more than one game embedded in the game? Explain: Yes, there’s minigames such
as lock picking.
• Do the game mechanics govern social behavior between players? How?: No, there’s no
multiplayer.
Game: Total War: Shogun 2
• What are the core mechanics?: Fighting battles, Resource management, Politics
• What are the progressive mechanics?: Conquering and improved units
• Is there more than one game embedded in the game? Explain: Yes, to conquer you play a
real time strategy battle
• Do the game mechanics govern social behavior between players? How?: Yes, there’s a
political system that lets you cooperate or compete
10
Analog
Game: Monopoly
• What are the core mechanics?: Purchasing property and rolling dice
• What are the progressive mechanics?: Obtaining money, building houses
• Is there more than one game embedded in the game? Explain: Yes, When in jail you must
throw 6 to escape
• Do the game mechanics govern social behavior between players? How?: Yes, The game
must be played with multiple people and there is only one winner. Players can cooperate by
trading.
Game: Go
• What are the core mechanics?: placing pieces, trapping the opponent
• What are the progressive mechanics?: turns, scoring points
• Is there more than one game embedded in the game? Explain: Yes, In a way closing in the
pieces is a minigame
• Do the game mechanics govern social behavior between players? How?: Not really, they
just make you try and beat the other
Game: Battlestar Galactica
• What are the core mechanics?: Movement, Combat, and Cards
• What are the progressive mechanics?: Destiny cards, Cylons try to kill humans, humans try
to reach home planet
• Is there more than one game embedded in the game? Explain: Yes, the combat is a dice
minigame
• Do the game mechanics govern social behavior between players? How?: Yes, the Cylons
have to try and not be noticed as undercover humans. The humans must communicate to
figure out who the Cylon is
11
Sport
Game: Volley Ball
• What are the core mechanics?: Receiving and passing the ball
• What are the progressive mechanics?: Scoring points, position rotation
• Is there more than one game embedded in the game? Explain: Yes, serving the ball is like
a minigame to dictate how the game starts
• Do the game mechanics govern social behavior between players? How?: Yes, The players
need to let each other know who the ball should go to
Game: Curling
• What are the core mechanics?: Sliding, Brushing
• What are the progressive mechanics?: Scoring Points
• Is there more than one game embedded in the game? Explain: Yes, brushing in front of
the Bowl to speed it up or slow it down
• Do the game mechanics govern social behavior between players? How?: Yes, It’s
important for the brusher to know how the bowler is going to bowl.
Game: Golf
• What are the core mechanics?: Hitting the ball, setting yourself up
• What are the progressive mechanics?: Scoring points, advancing holes
• Is there more than one game embedded in the game? Explain: Yes, Putting is quite a
different game, also choosing your club
• Do the game mechanics govern social behavior between players? How?: No, It’s basically
a solo sport
12
Challenge 4-1
What are the controls for the original Super Mario Bros?
D-up
» Look up, enter door, enter pipe above you
D-down
» Duck, enter pipe below you
D-right
» Go right, enter pipe to the right of you
D-left
» Go left
A
» Jump (hold to go higher)
B
» (Hold) Run, Shoot fireball
Challenge 4-2
Map out choices, goals, and actions for:
Space Invaders
Choice
Goal
Action
Quality
Moderate
High
Moderate
Frequency
High
Low
High
Clarity
High
High
High
Asteroids
Choice
Goal
Action
Quality
Moderate
Moderate
Moderate/High
Frequency
High
Low
High
Clarity
Moderate
High
High
God of War
Choice
Goal
Action
Quality
Moderate
Moderate
Moderate
Frequency
Moderate
Moderate
High
Clarity
Moderate
Moderate
Moderate/High
Challenge 4-3
Challenge 4-4
13
Challenge 4-5
Map out the controls for the original Super Mario Bros for the Xbox Kinect
Challenge 4-6
Map out the controls for Space Invaders for the WiiMote
14
Challenge 4-7
Map out the controls for Space Invaders for a smartphone
Challenge 4-8
Make a questionnaire for play-testing.
Questions:
1. Did you feel like you had to make a lot of decisions?
2. Did you feel like these decisions were impactful?
3. Was it clear to you what would be the result of your decisions?
4. What did you feel was your main goal?
5. Did it feel like you often completed a goal?
6. How did you feel when you reached your goal?
7. How did the in game actions feel? Simple? Elaborate?
8. Were you happy with the amount of actions you had to take?
9. Was it clear what impact your actions had in game?
10. Would you play this game again? Why?
15
Challenge 5-1
1. What is the first game you remember playing? Tag
2. What was you favorite game as a child (6-12)? Super Smash Brothers Melee
3. What was your favorite game as a teenager (13-19)? League of Legends
4. What is your favorite game now? What kinds of words would you use to describe
your gameplay experience?
Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate: Challenging, Rewarding, Improving own skill, Complicated.
5. What do you think is everyone’s favorite game genre? Action (Adventure) RPG
Challenge 5-2
1. What abilities are challenged in the following activities?
• Chess Memory,Visualization
• Poker Memory, Sense of vision
• Dungeon’s & Dragons Memory, Imagination,
• Football Gross motor skills, Sense of Vision
• Reading a book Memory, Imagination, (Sense of vision or touch or hearing)
• Watching a movie Memory, Sense of vision (Sense of Hearing)
What abilities are absolutely necessary to be able to practice these activities.Think very basic.
2. List the emotions you have experienced playing videogames and the games that
caused these emotions.
Happiness: The colorfulness of Super Mario games always makes me Happy.
Frustration: Not being able to beat the “Barroth" in Monster Hunter Tri after many tries.
Melancholy: Abandoned area’s in many different games leave me with this feeling.
Achievement: Finally beating a monster in Monster Hunter, Or doing something tricky in one
go.
Sympathy: The characters in the Fire Emblem games have quite compelling stories.
Sadness: The cutscene in the final boss fight in Okami almost had me in tears.
Competitivity: Beating or not beating my friend in an intense match of Smash Bros.
Excitement: Fighting Large monsters and exploring intricate areas in games.
16
Challenge 5-3
Choose a game you played for many hours. What did the game have?
Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate
• Anticipation: The game makes you encounter the flagship monster early in the game only to
repel it. It really hypes up when you actually get to kill it.
• Surprise: “Oh, just a simple gathering mission. OH SHIT, What is that thing?! RUN!”
• Pleasure: “Yes! I finally got the rare drop! This sick armor set is definitely worth the grind.”
• Understanding: The skill system has a lot of depth.You get points from armor pieces and…
well I could try to explain but it’ll take a while.
• Mastery: No arbitrary values for strength and such. If you want to “git gud”, you better learn
how this monster fights.
• Composure: After enough fights versus a monster, it becomes somewhat of a rehearsed dance
with the monster.
• Empowerment: “Here, Take this massive cannon set up as a last line of defense for the city, and
drop a huge dragon destroying load on the elder dragon threat.”
Choose a game you stopped playing after a short while. What did the game miss?
Luigi’s Mansion 2: Dark Moon
• Anticipation: When you’ve cleared this ghost house, there’s another haunted house, and
another and… you get the Idea
• Surprise: Not missing
• Pleasure: Beating levels wasn’t satisfying enough.
• Understanding:Very easy to understand, just not very compelling. Puzzles were pretty easy.
• Mastery: Sucking up ghosts just gets a little more tedious.
• Composure: Perhaps a little too much, as a completionist, the game just wasn’t fun enough to
te plow through every nook and cranny.
• Empowerment: not compelling enough to get excited.
17
Challenge 5-4
Think up a game concept that will be your classmates’ next favourite game. Tell us about the following:
What is the core?
LOOT’S QUEST
The game is an Action Adventure RPG with survival elements.You play one of four characters
that leave their lake island city, the last known to have survived the rise of the monsters, seeking
to scout out the wilds, defeat monsters and collect loot. Out in the wild You’ll encounter some
friendly creatures that join you, teach you skills, and help you out in battle.You can craft your
own weapons from monster parts and need to use scrap and such you find to build shelter, and
then leave it behind as you travel on.
2. What is the progression?
Early in the game you will encounter a helpful creature after every monster beaten, that teaches
you new skills and joins you in battle. Each creature has a trigger region where they will appear
in a certain order, making exploring tactical, but not necessary.
Apart from the very first monster and the final boss encounters, the monsters can be fought
in almost any order. Rarely a monster will require you to have beaten another specific
monster (that will never have a requirement). Every time you defeat a monster, all other
monsters level up and gain more different attacks. At first monsters have little to no breath
or ranged attacks. Monsters rarely gain base health, thus, upgrading your weapons is mostly
important for elements, play style, and ability/skill points.
After every couple of monsters you defeat you will have encounter the end game boss. When
you succeed in beating him, monsters gain some base health and start dealing more damage, but
you also gain access to better metals and materials. Fights only get slightly longer as the game
goes on if you prepare properly and your skill is on par. If not, you’ll be biting the dust.
3. What is the gameplay experience?
The core gameplay experience is exploring, preparing, and overcoming. The game is all about
making impactful choices that will heavily affect you for the upcoming battle, but can be
reconsidered later. Experimenting, rebuilding, and reiterating are very important for your succes.
All monster parts can be infinitely recycled and perk trees can be redone, simply gaining more
points to put in as you level up.
Battle inventory space is very limited (there’s a bit of a puzzle packing system) and even the
placement in your pack affects access speed. Even during battles there are a lot of trade offs to
consider, such as moving while drinking your very limited supply of potions (Spilling some) or
standing still (More healing and vulnerability). There’s no need to be stingy in the long run. And
there’s no grinding involved! The entire game can be played Co-op with up to 4 players,
provided you play different characters.
Inspirations: Monster hunter, Dark souls, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (style)
18
Pitch your game concept to 3 other students. Report on the feedback you received
(include their names).
Abel Németh
1. Would it be their next favourite game?
It could very well be my next favorite game. Co-op with hard objectives and nice progression
with equipment? NICE. I love this concept. The monster hunter-esque idea of massive bosses
combined with more meaningful actions makes for a really awesome concept.
2. Why would they play your game? Or why would they not play your game?
I would definitely play this game. RPG and upgrading elements, as well as co-op options, are
almost always must-buys for me, especially with a game that sounds as multi-faceted as this one.
I love the planning of your inventory, and the trade-offs you always have to make whilst fighting.
3. What aspect of the concept do they like (i.e. core, progression, gameplay
experience)?
I like almost every aspect of this game. The only thing I might dislike is the replayability; all boss
monsters are only encountered once, so will there be enough to keep up with demand? Can I
sink hundreds of hours of gameplay into this game or do I have to make a new character every
time I defeat every boss in order to get the sense of achievement and progression back? I hate
having to start over in a game that could offer so very much in terms of replay value.
Michelle Avis
1. Would it be their next favourite game?
Yes, it is a very interesting concept.
2. Why would they play your game? Or why would they not play your game?
I would play your game because it combines digital pet game with action-adventure RPG, which
are both one of my favorite game genres. And I would love to fight alongside my monsters.
3. What aspect of the concept do they like (i.e. core, progression, gameplay
experience)?
I like the gameplay experience the most. It kind of reminded me of Kingdom Hearts: DDD and
Final Fantasy 13-2. In both games you fight alongside a monster as well, but it wasn't important
for the progress. That's what would make this game a whole new gameplay experience that I
would love to try out.
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Stijn van Wakeren
1. Would it be their next favourite game?
I would probably not be my next favorite game, but I could get obsessed with it for a few days,
during those days I would consider it my favorite game.
2. Why would they play your game? Or why would they not play your game?
I would start playing the game probably because it would look very varied and colorful. I would
keep playing to see my character and the world develop and to spend time with friends.
3. What aspect of the concept do they like (i.e. core, progression, gameplay
experience)?
I like the progression, how the world develops. It keeps you curious.
Final Boss
The Creatures
First Monster
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Challenge 6-1
What is your game design process? Draw a diagram.
Entire Concept
Piece of Concept
1. Are there phases? Is it a cycle?
Yes there’s phases, and it cycles through the phases.
2. How do you begin? When does it end?
It begins with an idea, and it goes on until you feel the idea is complete and good enough.
Are there different kinds of game design processes? How do they differ?
Yes, some designers start prototyping right away, whereas others might try and wait until they
feel the concept is complete before they do so.
Is there a difference between the game design process and the game development
process? And how are they different?
Yes, the game design process is about coming up with ideas and concepts, and goes on until the
late stages of development. Development usually doesn’t start until the concept is elaborate
enough to be sure you want to start developing it. However, both processes, that of design and
development, are based upon iteration and testing. 21
Read and reflect 6-2
Gamasutra: The Cabal: Valve's Design Process For Creating Half-Life - Summary:
The first version of half life had good aspects but was ultimately unplayable and no fun. The
designers decided to start over despite the deadline. They took everything that was good and
put it in one level, then started meticulously iterating that level. When they were happy with it,
they set out to create many more of those fun levels with their newfound formula. they
analyzed what made the game fun and cam up with three theories: Experiential density, player
acknowledgment, and self-blame in case of failure. A group was formed (named the Cabal) to
take the place of a game designer, making all the design decisions. This was avery successful idea.
The Cabal ended up with a huge design document to which a lot of rotating Cabal members
had contributed. Play testing was done with one Cabal member of each discipline being tested
watching the player. Once all the major elements were in place, instrumentation was added to
analyze where the game needed difficulty and action frequency adjustments. Through an
automatic save state system debugging was made easy for the team without resetting progress.
Levels were worked on by many level designers causing the process to flow very well. This
development process spread to almost all other areas of development. By bypassing a
hierarchical system there was never a lot of rebellion from developers when things were
changed or removed, because decisions were almost exclusively mad by the Cabal or the player.
Bonus tips: only plan using technology you know you have acces to, and avoid investing time in
technical elements that will only be used once or twice.
Game Design Workshop: Designing, Prototyping, and Playtesting Games - Summary:
Keys to a successful design process: Involve the player in your design process / Start prototyping
as soon as possible / Don’t try and satisfy your producer if you cant satisfy your player / Iterate
until you(r players) are satisfied / Think of how to present your game (even if you’re not going
to before it’s done) / Make cheap and basic early prototypes that no-one has trouble throwing
out / Document everything you learn during iteration (especially what you want to keep for the
final product) / When your product reaches a quality playable state, start play testing for
usability / Make up your mind on design early, to not disgruntle your developers and artists /
Experiment early / Observe your players and their emotions / Let players make suggestions /
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Evolutionary Design: A practical process for creating great game designs (Lost Garden)
Summary:
Steps to follow for designing any kind of game: Make it simple, make it fun / Don’t design in one
go, Iterate / Let go of your ‘vision’, let the game develop the way it needs to / Be wary of
emergent mechanics that you didn’t count on / Immediately test a set of changes to avoid
unexpected disruptions to the system / Make sure you’re aware of what you want your players
to be doing most of the time / Provide a solid foundation for additional rules / Both play with
your players and watch them play / Let players know you’re listening to them / Ask for examples
/ Write down what you think of players feelings and suggestions / Write down things as soon as
they occur / Combine intuition and analysis / Observe reaction to resources and balance
accordingly / If you want a player to do something specific, make that thing alluring / Observe
dependencies / Reward players with tokens (items etc.) or new abilities / Make sure the
economy is balanced / Reward player’s time and trouble investment / Combine reward
schedules / Make sure the player has to make interesting decisions / Make clear what impact a
decision will have / Remove mechanics that add nothing but time it takes to make a decision /
Determine how players feel (psychologically) about certain actions / Make it so that your setting
tells the player a lot about your game subconsciously / Don’t overdo your plot, it might create
fans player expectations / Make sure the game’s outcome isn’t decided long before it’s over /
Make sure that if the game is decided quickly it can end quickly / Bring in new rules or remove
rules to fix problem areas / Take risks with rules / Be willing to remove existing rules / Focus in
incremental changes to existing rules / avoid changes that add unnecessary complexity /
Changes should be related to identified issues /
Game Design and Development: Fundamentals of Game Design - Summary:
Game development consists of three major stages:
1). The concept stage - The results of which do not change;
2). The elaboration stage - Where you add and refine details through prototyping and testing;
3). The tuning stage - where no new features are added but only small adjustments are made.
In the concept stage you’re picking the basic shape of your game. A step by step process of the
concept phase would look a lot like this: Getting a concept, defining an audience, determining
the player’s role, and fulfilling dreams that players come to expect from said role. In the elaboration stage you start really defining your game and chiseling out the basic parts,
curves, and edges. A step by step breakdown would be: Defining the the primary gameplay
mode, designing the protagonist(s), defining the game world, designing the core mechanics,
creating additional modes and defining how the game switches between modes, level design,
writing the story, Building (quickly), testing it, and iterating it(throwing out the old and starting
anew) at four or so times.
In the tuning stage you lock in your design and leave the shape the way it is, now only
sandpapering and polishing remain. Nothing more should be added. This stage is entered when
the designers are happy or the schedule demands it. Things should only be tweaked, or ill things
removed. This is where you transform your game from good, to great, maybe even to perfection.
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Reflection:
Reading these texts kept bringing my mind to my own game design concept that I have in the
works and helps a great deal in showing me where to go next and what to do there. When
reading this I couldn’t help but get excited about executing this stages for my own game. It’s this
gut feeling that really confirms what I’ve always thought to be true: I am a game designer.
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