by Annie | Nov 22, 2010 | Game Design
Okay, so maybe game design doesn’t have trenches per se, at least not the same as in teaching, but as students, we’re definitely on the frontlines. Just ask any of the guys in my class who have pulled all nighters at school, alternating between Red Bulls and naps on the floor, eager to add in that extra feature or refine the core mechanic just a bit more. On second thought, I think this counts as trenches. After hundreds of hours spent designing, scripting, and testing levels, I can safely say that I know a bit more about level design than I did when I arrived in Vancouver 6 months ago. Here are a few lessons for the road: 1. Put railings on things. As it turns out, players don’t particularly like to fall off the edge of your level into the abyss of nothingness for no apparent reason. Just like in real life, virtual navigation requires railings, gates, and appropriately sized stairs. Now you know. 2. Think before you script. It’s easy to get lost in a sea of code, coming up with “creative” and often unelegant solutions to simple problems. Always script with a plan. Break down your goal into the base components, then link them together in logical ways. Use your brain. 3. Save often. Save progressively. Save progressively often. For my last level, I made well over 100 progressive saves over the course of five weeks. Not too bad, but I’m already on version 22 just 2 days into my current level. Why? Because you never know. Undos are not always as reliable as you think,...
by Annie | Nov 12, 2010 | Game Design
3am the night before our latest UDK level was due, half the class was still in the classroom. Most would stay overnight, camping out at school from 9am Monday through midnight the next night. Five weeks may sound like a long time to complete a 5-10 minute single player experience, but when you have to create everything from the concept and layout to mechanics and scripting from scratch, even ten weeks sounds like a tight squeeze. My Factory Frenzy level has certainly come a long way, from the original puzzle idea when I was first learning kismet, to the tentative cell diagram, and finally, to the finished level, complete with cinematics, sound effects, enemies, and a boss puzzle. You start the level by taking a helicopter ride from an island to a nearby factory. You’re prompted to shoot the colored panels to get through the factory. You soon encounter enemies, lit up with red lights. As you shoot them, you neutralize them, turning them green. Eventually, you make your way to the main assembly line area, where you start in on the first puzzle. You must stand on the moving platforms of the conveyor belts to shoot the panels of the same color, all while dodging enemy fire. Be careful though – the enemies in this area don’t stay permanently neutralized; after a certain period, their green lights blink, and then they reactivate and turn red again. After shooting all the colored panels in the required sequence, you progress to the boss puzzle, a Simon Says game of sorts. You must remember the codes you’re given in order to...
by Annie | Nov 8, 2010 | Game Design
Very few great games are created by single individuals, so even the most genius game designers must learn to work in a team. Just like public speaking, teamwork is a skill that must be practiced. In our team management class last week, we worked in teams to create level mockups using Legos, but with a few stipulations. Lego Starcraft Level – 10 minutes – No talking – Only 1 person could gather Legos – If more than 1 Lego block fell on the floor, the team would be disqualified – Additional stipulation halfway through: no blue pieces could be used Lego God of War Level – Everyone could talk – Every team had one leader, who could order everyone else around. – All other team members could only say “Yes, sir!” and do only what the leader commanded. Many laughs later, we definitely got the message that communication and shared vision are key to successful...
by Annie | Nov 5, 2010 | Game Design
How does virtuality differ from reality? In reality, we may or may not remember everything that happens. In the virtual world, we can track, record, and measure every single action, choice, and event and thus reward players appropriately to effectively manipulate future actions, choices, and events. In his TED talk, Tom Chatfield outlines 7 ways games engage the brain, which can be applied to every field from education to the business world. Take a...
by Annie | Nov 4, 2010 | Game Design
The first time I heard of a game designer working on enemy AI, I thought, pfft, how hard could it be? Throw some enemies in, make them go places, and have them shoot things. However, in reality, the process is turning out to be much more complex than I’d originally anticipated. It turns out that enemies are pretty dumb. Essentially, they’re pieces of furniture in a game that can move around and do stuff. Only, they don’t inherently know how to do anything. Without a brain, they need every action, every behavior, every simulated choice to be explicitly programmed into them. Want an enemy to move around? Well, where should they start? Where exactly should they go? How fast should they move? What if they run into something or someone along the way? Should they continue running in the same loop, or should some action cause them to change their movement? The more questions that are asked and answered about an enemy, the more seemingly sophisticated he’ll be. Here are some of the enemy AI components I’ve been fiddling around with in my latest level: Movement This involves placing specific path nodes to tell each enemy exactly where to go, when to go there, how quickly to get there, in what order to move to the path nodes, and how long to continue in this pattern. Basically, path nodes serve as enemy bait, meaning each enemy needs several path nodes to keep them busy and make them appear like they have half a brain. Firing patterns Each enemy needs a weapon and specific directions on how to use it....
by Annie | Nov 3, 2010 | Game Design
The Entertainment Software Association of Canada recently released a report of trends in the Canadian game industry and habits of Canadian gamers in 2010. Here are some facts worth noting: Over 95% of Canadian households own a computer, and nearly half of all Canadian households own at least one video game console. This makes for quite a large market of people eager for fun and innovative game experiences, opening up opportunities for both large companies and small startups. The split between male and female gamers is roughly 60:40, about the same as in the U.S. The report shows that female gamers enjoy puzzle, arcade, and word games and play games primarily using computers. With my 2+ decades of experience as a female and a gamer, I mostly agree, though more research needs to be done to tap into the specific gaming habits of the growing female gaming population. The number of gamers who use a mobile device most often to play games has almost doubled since 2009. As someone who has my iPhone on my person at all times, I definitely count myself in this category and predict that this number will continue to grow rampantly in the coming years. After all, who needs a video game console when you can carry dozens of games in your pocket? Canada is the third most successful video game industry in the world and grew by 30% in 2009. The gaming industry contributes billions of dollars annually to the Canadian economy, meaning games are serious business here, so it seems that I’m in the right place. Take a look at the report...
