Game Design

Reading - Week two 

This week we were given a selection of article to read based on game design. The first article I read was based around what a game is. Although a game is a play activity that involves challenge and conflict, there is more more to it. The article talks about the simple rules of Three to fifteen. The amount of players involved, the objectives, progression of play and at last resolution.

Critical Vocabulary is the second thing mentioned in the article. This is the vocabulary that we use when we are talking about games. Each game usually has its on set of vocabulary.

Although it is hard to define what a game is exactly, they listed a variety of definitions from different sources.
These were my favourite:
A game has “ends and means”: an objective, an outcome, and a set of rules to get there.
A game is an activity involving player decisions, seeking objectives within a “limiting context”

Most games have common factors which include activity, goals, decision making, conflict and many more. Games are truly a work of art.

The second article I read was by Greg Costikyan. In this he wrote about the process and struggles of designing a game. I liked how he stated that almost every game involves puzzle solving  and changeless. He talks about how all games are interactive, even monopoly! I like how he refers to all games as a puzzle or a challenge rather than just a game.

When making a game you must ask yourself how the player interacts with the game. Are the interactions meaningful? Will they benefit or enhance the game? Is the process enjoyable or relentless and tedious? These are all important factors I will take into consideration when I am making my game. You must be aware of what goals you want to achieve and the challenges you will face to meet them.

I found the read on how to make your first game very enjoyable and beneficial. After reading this I am looking forward to getting hands on and create my own game. I look forward to learning the skills and getting confident with the software so I can create a simple appealing game. I know from this that it is advised to create a game based off one that you know, and that appearance and story is not as important as accessibility.

Understanding games - Episode one
I found this extremely enjoyable and a great learning process. It was straight forward and easy to use. The first thing that is featured in this is the simple game - Pong. They go through the factors of the game; a score, a playing field, two players, a ball and paddles. They discuss the rules to the game and how a player can be victorious.
I found it enjoyable how I was able to take part in the game of pong (even though I lost).
The appearance of the game was changed to a more realistic game, which was ping pong but still had the same rules and objectives as the original pong.
I learnt that no game can be played without interaction from a player and that an outcome of a game must be uncertain.

Understanding games - Episode two
In the episode I learned what motivates a player instead of frustrating them. I played an interactive game which I found really fun! I discovered that adding a background, music and a competitor added to the players motivation, and from experiencing the stages I found that it really did! There was an option to enhance the difficulty of the game this insures that the game is not to easy or too difficult for the player therefore they continue to play the game.

Understanding games - Episode three
They talked about the importance of reading the instructions in a game and how it makes the game a lot easier. They gave an example by asking the player to take part in a puzzle solving game with no instructions. I found these puzzles quite difficult and struggled to complete them all without instructions. The game that I engaged in in this episode was a lot more difficult than the previous games.

Understanding games - Episode four 
In this episode we seen the simple game tag being demonstrated. Then they talked about appearance and what draws a player to choose a character. This episode also goes through direct and indirect controls within a game. I then interacted in a game of chase and choose a character based on the characters abilities. I learned that different things appeal to different players when gaming.

Over all I found this reading session very enjoyable. I know have a better insight into how games are made, why they are made, objectives and different styles.
I look forward to creating my own game in the future.