P2
All games share the same basic elements:
- Actions: The activities players carry out in pursuit of the game's goals
Actions are the things players get to do while playing a game.
- Rules: The instructions for how the game works
Rules define what players are able to do and just as importantly, what players cannot do.
- Goals: The outcomes players try to achieve through their play, whether they be measurable or purely experiential
The actions and rules of a game make more sense when we know the game's goal.
- Objects: The things players use to achieve the game's goals
Objects are the things that players interact with during play as defined by the rules.
- Playspace: The space, as defined by the rules, on which the game is played
The playspace creates physical and conceptual relationships between objects
- Players: The operators of the game
Players put the game into motion through their pursuit of the goals using actions and objects within the playspace, all governed by the game's rules.
Stuck in the mud
Actions - The players are running away from the person who's 'it', who chases people, and have to touch their friends who have been caught by the people who are 'it'. The tagged people can't move.
Rules - All the people who aren't 'it' have to put their hands in the middle and wait for a countdown of 1, 2, 3. If the players go before the countdown, then everyone has to put their hands back in the middle and wait. The players have safe zones at which they can't be tagged, however, they can only be there for 5 seconds. The playspace is restricted to a small area; you aren't allowed to leave the playspace. There's a time limit.
Goals - The goal for the person that's 'it' is to tag everyone who's being chased. The goal for the players running away is to not be tagged, and save their friends who are stuck in the mud.
Objects - The players had benches to use which was their safe space. Other people.
Playspace - The zone you're allowed to play in is restricted, in our case, a small square with the benches being the edge of the playspace.
Players - There are two or more people who are 'it' and you can have as many players as you want to run away.
Core Mechanic Diagram
Canabalt
Core - Jump
Secondary - Avoid obstacles
Progression - The score in metres
Narrative - Run away from a robot invasion
Genre:
Canabalt
is an endless runner.
Narrative/Storyline:
The
narrative is to outrun the alien robots who are destroying the city. The
storyline is to make it as far as possible running away, without dying from the
enemy ships firing at you, with a 'outrun the carnage' type of game. It's a
sci-fi game.
Production process:
Canabalt
was produced in just five days as part of the monthly themed Experimental
Gameplay Project. Their main goal making Canabalt was to make a something very
pure and difficult. Sound was very important to the creator Adam Saltsman,
because he wanted a game with a movie soundtrack that added more action and
overall giving a better playing experience. The game was made in flash. Two
people were involved in making the game, one was programming and art, and one
was the sound designer. The initial prototype was made to test the mechanics,
then when that worked, they went on to make the full art version.
Characters:
There
is only one main character - 'the runner', who's main goal is to run away from
the devastation behind him, will collapsing buildings and alien robots trying
to kill him. He's a mysterious character with no name, appears to be an office
worker, because he starts in the office chair and jumps out of the window.
Gameplay:
The
games concept is very simple, with one button to press to jump over the
obstacles. You cannot control your movement, you automatically run from left to
right, which speeds up as your score increases. Of course, this results in a
much more difficult gameplay experience, having to react faster than before.
The game is very addicting, due to its very simple system that you can learn
easily. The sound during the gameplay makes the player feel like they're in the
action, due to its cinematic style. The obstacles are very clear and obvious to
the player, and you have to judge how far you can jump, otherwise you will fall
to your death. When you fall to your death, you are presented with 'game over'
and your score is shown, along with ways to share it on social media. From
here, you can easily restart and play again.
Target Audience:
Adam
Saltsman mentions, "The main thing I'm hoping children take away from this
is that making games is fun; that the process of seeing ideas jump from
sketchbook to screen is the best thing ever. Also that they grasp, on a
fundamental or even subconscious level, that games are something you can build
on your own - you don't need funding or a team or a vision statement or even
months of free time - you just need yourself and a weird idea and an
afternoon.". The game in general is for all ages, due it being a casual
game, with a broad appeal and simple mechanics. Because we don't know anything
about the character, it's very easy to identify with that character. The app is
going to have an age rating on it.
Platforms:
Canabalt
is available on the app store, android, iOS, Adobe Flash Player, Microsoft
Windows, all web browsers, PlayStation 3, Playstation Portable, PlayStation
Vita, Commodore 64 and Ouya. Canabalt was released on the app store for $2.99.
The game was initially developed on the web, then it was quickly imported after
it became successful onto iOS and Android, and many other platforms.
Donkey Kong
a) Genre
Donkey Kong is a platform game. It involves guiding a player character or avatar to jump between suspended platforms and/or over obstacles to
traverse their environment. The player controls the jumps to avoid letting
their character fall to their death or miss necessary jumps.
b) Narrative/Storyline
The aim is to save Pauline, who has been
Kidnapped by Donkey Kong. Mario, the hero, has to go up a variety of ladders
and platforms to reach the top and save the damsel in distress. However, Donkey
Kong throws barrels down the platforms, which Mario has to jump over. If Mario
is hit by a barrel, he loses a life and is reset back to the start.
c) Production Process
Shigeru Miyamoto, a 29-year-old staff
artist, first came to Nintendo (The creator of Donkey Kong), in 1977. Nintendo
was a growing toy manufacturer at the time. However, Nintendo was starting to
explore a new medium; coin-operated games. Nintendo's president, Hiroshi
Yamauchi, assigned Miyamoto to create the promotional arts for its new games
being Radar Scope, Sheriff and Space Firebird. 1979's Radar Scope was a big hit
for Nintendo. Unlike Nintendo's previous arcade machines, largely electromechanical
amusements, these arcade machines were programmable video games with relatively
cutting-edge hardware, a major step toward competing with the likes of Taito,
which had changed the face of arcades with the release of Space Invaders. However,
Radar Scope became a failed product within the US market, resulting in being
left with 2000 arcade machines and other expensive hardware sitting in
Nintendo's warehouse. Because of this, Nintendo decided to develop a new game
with the kit they had. Hiroshi Yamauchi urged Shigeru Miyamoto to be in charge
of the project - even though he had never designed a game before. However,
Yamauchi assured him that his lack of technical skills wasn't an issue. All
Miyamoto had to do was simply give direction to the team at Ikegami Tsushinki
(engineer and hardware manufacturer). Miyamoto didn't approach the game design
the way others did. Instead, he focused on the comic strip approach, just like
Sonic the Hedgehogs designer, Hirokazu Yasuhara, who would draw out scenarios
on paper. He did this because he wanted to see how the game felt, resulting in
envisioning a character that had to avoid hazards, move to different platforms
and across gaps in a way that had never been done before. As for the games
title, Miyamoto looked to Japan and America's shared history of gigantic movie
monsters, with King Kong being the biggest ape around. However, Miyamoto didn't
want a king, but more of a character like Bluto, a bit of a donkey. Donkey Kong
now had a name. However, they still needed names for the other two characters,
'Lady' would be named Pauline, thanks to their kind warehouse manager, Don
James, whose wife's name was Pauly. The games hero was named after the
warehouses owner, Mario Segale. After this, they set to work to convert the
Radar Scope units, into Donkey Kong machines. The machines were set off around
some small bars, and launched like no other game they had made before. The game
earned more than $30 a day, prompting Nintendo to install more machines. Sure
enough, each cabinet made Nintendo $200 a week, and they continued to
manufacture the rest of their 2000 machines, to keep up with the growing
demand. Soon enough, there were 60,000 Donkey Kong machines in operation
throughout North America that year.
d) Character
The characters within the game are
Donkey Kong, Mario and Pauline. Miyamoto wanted a popular character involved to
increase sales. Popeye was a new Hollywood movie at the time, so all Miyamoto
did was tweak the characters a bit. Olive Oyl, was made into 'Lady' (Pauline),
Bluto was made into an ape (Donkey Kong) and Popeye would become a carpenter
(Mario). That love triangle in Popeye, informed these new characters, and set
players off on a quest to rescue the damsel in distress.
e) Gameplay
Players have to direct the in-game
avatar (Mario or Jump-man), safely up a construction site to rescue the
kidnapped lady (Pauline). Players move with a joystick that directs Mario left
or right, with a jump button. Players can climb the ladders by pointing the
joystick up, and Mario will start to climb. Mario has to jump over barrels
being thrown by Donkey Kong, and if hit, Mario is reset back to the start of
the level, and loses a life. Mario can obtain hammers scattered around to clear
away the threats.
f) Target Audience
The main audience at the time of
creation was American arcade gamers. This was due to the fact that even though
Nintendo found success in distributing their previous games within Japan, they
were unable to re-create a similar success overseas in the US market.
g) Platforms
TowerFall
a) Genre
TowerFall is an action indie video game created by Matt Thorson
through his company Matt Makes Games.
b) Narrative/Storyline
TowerFall is an archery combat arena game, where players kill each
other with arrows and head-stomps until only one player remains. The world of
TowerFall is a setting rich with history and lore ranging from centuries in the
past to a future that occurs after the events seen in the game. TowerFall uses
the idea that everyone lives their lives under the rule of the Kings.
c) Production Process
TowerFall originated as a design created by Matt Thorson alongside
Alec Holowka during the Vancouver Full Indie Game Jam in June 2012. Matt
Thorson is known for previously making Planet Punch and other browser games.
The game was inspired by 'Legend of Zelda', because the game followed an all
weapon combat structure. Archery became the focus of the gameplay and was
designed to afford a sense of mastery to both experienced and inexperienced
players. Medieval towers and castles were chosen as the setting for the game, inspired
in part by the Game of Thrones book series. Thorson had intended to send the
game to Adult Swim to publish but chose to continue developing the game,
expanding upon the version created during the game jam. Halowka credits the
multiplayer party gam feel to many hours of local multiplayer testing it
received in Thorton's homes in Vancouver. Thorson lived with a developer he met
through Game Maker's community and the two eventually moved in with Holowaka in
"Indie House". However, Holowka dropped back from the project shortly
after the game jam, leaving the project to Thorson. Thorson continued the
project, and said that the game started to come together about six months into
its development. During these six months, the game received many hours of multiplayer
testing and the competitive multiplayer aspect became the focus of the design.
Thorson credits Super Smash Bros. and Bushido Blade as inspirations for the
game's competitive nature. The game was exhibited at both PAX East and the Game
Developers Conference in March, 2013 where it received its first public
exposure. After the increased exposure at PAX and GDC, Thorson entered into a
exclusivity agreement with Ouya to release the game on the fledging console. He
felt that the Ouya was a good home for TowerFall because of the consoles
emphasis on the local multiplayer experience and it allowed him to continue
development without the added pressure of releasing on a major console.
TowerFall was first released on June 25, 2013 as an Ouya exclusive. It saw moderate
success despite the console's relatively low install base. TowerFall Ascension
was released on Ouya on August 28th, 2014. It was available as a free update
for those who bought the previous version.
d) Characters
TowerFall Ascension
starts with four selectable characters: The Vigilante Thief (Green), The
Turncloak Soldier (Orange), Last of the Order (Blue) and Assassin Prince
(Pink). However, another four characters can be unlocked if certain conditions
are met. These are Ancient Exile (White), Vicious Vessel (Purple), Prancing
Puppet (Cyan) and Forgotten Master (Yellow).
e) Gameplay
TowerFall is an arena game, where each player has a bow and arrow,
and their aim is to kill each other with arrows and head-stomps until only one
player remains. In multiplayer, up to four players fight in a battle royale
using a limited supply of arrows. Players can replenish their arrows by picking
them back up, by walking over them. You can steal other players arrows too.
There are "Treasure power-ups" scattered around the arena, which
gives players shields, more arrows, increased power and wings. The games rules
can be customised in the the menu, which is good for local multiplayer, which
is what we did as a group. The controls are very simple, for example (On Xbox),
'A' is to jump, and 'X' is to shoot. You move the analog stick left and right
to move around the arena, and you aim your arrows by pointing the analog
stick.
f) Target Audience
TowerFall has a 7+ rating. Both male and females enjoy the game,
with a wide variety of customisable options that apply to both genders such as
having male and female main characters. The game is best played competitively
with friends or in a group. Matt Thorson mentions that "When I was a kid I
made small indie games in Game Maker and Flash" which suggests he knows
exactly what a younger audience find exciting in a video game.
g) Platforms
TowerFall is available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo
Switch, PlayStation Vita, Microsoft Windows, Steam, Android, Ouya, Linux, Mac
and PlayStation Portable.
Depression Quest
The purpose of depression
quest is to raise the awareness of depression to people who don't understand
what it's like to be depressed. It goes through the life of a depressed person,
making decisions that resemble the thoughts that a depressed person would have
in that situation. Like depression, depression quest doesn't have an ending,
but rather trying to show how people with depression just keep moving forward -
there is no ending. I think it was a successful game because of the deep
meaning behind the game, which makes people think, not only about yourself but
for other people too. The games goal was to raise the awareness to others who
don't realise the seriousness of depression, which the game succeeds in doing.
a) Genre
Depression
Quest is a 2013 interactive fiction game dealing with the subject of
depression.
b) Narrative/Storyline
Depression
Quest is about a young adult suffering from depression. The story is told
through snippets of text, bookended with ostensibly straightforward decisions
for the player. Will you work you work at your desk or retreat to bed? Will you
attend the party or remain at home? The choices appear mundane, but the
protagonist, slowed by their depression, finds each one to be tremendously burdensome.
For example, some options such as choosing to "enthusiastically
socialize" at a party, are crossed out, forcing the player's hand. The
male has a relationship with their girlfriend, with decisions regarding
relationship issues and keeping his depression a secret. The story also
features various treatments for depression, such as medication or therapy. As
for forcing the players hand, this mechanism that Depression Quest uses
portrays the character's mental state and how logical decisions may not be available
to them.
c) Production Process
Zoë
Quinn is the creator of Depression Quest. Quinn, who grew up in small town in
the Adirondack Mountains, has suffered from depression since she was a
teenager. At the age of twelve, she attempted to commit suicide. This was due
to Quinn not being able to afford therapy at the time, and after this event,
she was sent to meet school-district officials who were less than understanding
about teens with depression and suicide issues. "I was diagnosed with
depression at fourteen, but I couldn't find any medication that did anything
for me other than making things worse.", Quinn says. Video games became
Quinn's refuge when her father, a motorbike mechanic, was given a computer by
one of his customers as payment. A particular favourite was Commander Keen, a
game that features an eight-year old boy who builds a spaceship from household
objects and tours the galaxy as Earth's defender. After a breakup at the age of
twenty-four, Quinn moved to Canada. Unfortunately, Quinn says that "My
social anxiety was as bad as it had ever been, and now I was in a new country
on my own". For Quinn, who also suffers from A.D.H.D., a video game
was an ideal way to create an experience that built an understanding between
sufferers and non-sufferers. “Externalizing that into a game and asking people
to take some time out to see what ‘rules’ other people have to live with, I
think, is a powerful use of the medium,” she said. Depression Quest eschews the
usual characteristics of most video games: there is no victorious ending and,
as the developers warn in the preamble text, the game “is not meant to be a fun
or light-hearted experience.” It is, instead, one of a growing number of video
games that hopes to broaden the medium’s subject matter with depictions of
life’s darker aspects. Depression Quest was first released online
as a web browser game on February 14,
2013. Quinn also submitted the game through Steam's Greenlight program and consequently received disparaging
comments and hate mail, causing her
to withdraw the game from the service. After receiving positive feedback
from players who had played the game and receiving an invitation to Indiecade, she tried Greenlight again. She received further
harassment, but felt that she could deal with the stress. "I thought,
honestly, I could take the hate if it meant the game could reach somebody who
would get something out of it, feel less alone," Quinn stated. The
game was accepted by Greenlight in January 2014, and was released on Steam in
August that year. The day it was due to
go live, news broke that actor Robin Williams had died from a
suspected suicide. Quinn considered delaying the Steam release, as she did not
want to be seen as taking advantage of Williams' death. She eventually decided
to keep to the original release schedule, as she thought that making the game
available to those struggling with their own problems was more important than
any negative publicity she might receive, writing, "I can’t in good
conscience hold back offering someone something that could help them start
making real changes in their life for the sake of reducing the risk of
offending people or hurting my own reputation.". The game uses a pay-what-you-want pricing
model: it is free to play, but players can pay any amount they think is
appropriate. Part of the proceeds from the game are sent to a charity –
initially iFred, but this was later changed to the National Suicide
Prevention Lifeline after the game was released on Steam.
d)
Characters
In the game, players assume the role of a person suffering
through depression. You are also introduced to the character's girlfriend
(Alex), the character's mother and brother- alongside other minor people along
the way.
e) Gameplay
The gameplay involves the player assuming the role of a
person suffering through depression. You are presented certain scenarios and
given a bullet pointed list of choices that you can choose to take as a
response to the situation in order to progress through to the next narrative.
As the player, you simply have to just click with your mouse the options
presented in-front of you. You don't type anything with your keyboard.
f) Target Audience
The
main target audience are people who don't understand depression, and want to
know what it's like to suffer from it. The game's main goal is to raise the
awareness for depression, trying to get as many people to understand the
illness as possible. People suffering from depression will also play it, and
maybe some who play won't realize that they have it. There are many links at
the end to help those who feel like the main character.
g) Platforms
The game itself is available on Steam, browsers, Windows, OS
X and Linux.
Proteus
a) Genre
Proteus is a 2013
exploration video game created and designed by Ed Key and David Kanaga.
b) Narrative/Storyline
Proteus is all about
exploration, with an unknown main character, who appears to be stranded on this
mysterious island. This procedurally-generated environment is full of surprises,
where you don't have a predetermined goal. The world is full of strange
animals, which you can move by approaching them, but you can't interact with
them. The game has unique musical signatures, combinations of which cause
dynamic shifts in audio, based on player's surroundings. As you hop from
different season to another, as a player, you attempt to find a goal, but
realise that there is none. The player starts to think that they're being told
to go somewhere in the world, however, it's all in their imagination.
c) Production Process
The game began
development in 2008, under game designer Ed Key, who joined by audio designer
and composer David Kanaga in 2010. Key first saw Proteus as an open-ended
role-playing game akin to 'The Elder Scrolls', but because of the work required
for such a project, the team changed their mind and to make a 'nontraditional
and nonviolent' game. The PlayStation 3 and Vita versions of Proteus were
developed by Curve Studios, whose team added in some extra features to the Vita
edition. Proteus won the prize for 'Best Audio' at the 2011 Indiecade awards,
and it was a finalist for the 2012 Independent Games Festival's Nuovo Award.
Its original and PlayStation releases were well received by critics, mentioning
how good the audio is. However, the game has some criticism regarding whether
it is to be seen as a game, due to its brevity and limited replayability. Key
developed the game using a game engine he had written in the C# programming language. During and after
development the developers introduce mods into the game, meaning the community
could produce modified versions of the game. After David Kanaga joined the
development team as audio composer, the audio mechanics were refined through
some testing of many unique ideas, such as allowing players to create their own
music within the game. However, this idea was cut because the two developers
felt it would detract from the exploratory emphasis of the game and turn it
into more of a creative tool. Proteus was released on 30th January, 2013, for
Windows and OS X, and on April 8 of the same year for Linux. They also released
an Artifact Edition, after pre-orders opened in 2012. This version included a
boxed version of the game with artwork, the soundtrack, and notes on the game's
development. Key released the Artifact Edition on July, 2016. Curve Studios
approached the game around the time of it's release, and as I mentioned, later
worked the developers to port the game for release on PlayStation 3 and Vita.
The PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita versions were released on 29th October,
2013.
d) Characters
The main character has
no identity, you don't know their gender or age. You are a player, stranded on
a mysterious island. As it's single player, and that there are no reflections
in the game, you don't know what you look like.
e) Gameplay
In Proteus, players
explore an island from a first-person perspective. The focus of the game is on
exploration rather than interaction - you cannot interact with what's happening
around you. There is no narrative and the player is given no instructions on
how to proceed. The island is drawn in a pixel art style and contains hills,
trees, structures, and animals such as frogs and rabbits, though the layout is
different each time the game is played. The soundtrack changes depending on the
player's movement and location - it may fall silent when the player is at the
top of the hill and sonically dense as they travel down it. These subtle
features make this game so unique when it comes to sound design. The soundtrack
includes additional sounds and notes when the player nears objects or animals.
When the game begins, players are situated away from the island and must move
across an ocean of water to reach it. Upon arrival, players are free to explore
what they want, this can be the whole island if the player chooses to. However,
during nighttime, players can enter a cluster of lights to advance time to the
next season; going through each season until the end of winter, after which the
game ends. The landscape changes with the season, such as trees shedding their
leaves in autumn. In addition to this - the PlayStation Vita version lets the
player directly affect the environment with the console's rear touch panel and
generate islands based on the current date and location in the real world.
f) Target Audience
The target audience is
difficult to know - but by assumption, as the age rating is 3+, all ages can
play due to its simplicity and child friendly environment.
g) Platforms
Proteus is available on
Microsoft Windows, Linux, Mac OS, PlayStation 3 and PlayStaton Vita.
Video Game Production Pipeline
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