DMF203 Assignment 3: Reflective Essay

I have wanted to make video games since I was a kid, though there have been many other things--movies, books, acting, writing--that have intrigued me immensely enough to want to be part of them. When I was a kid, I used to come up with all kinds of ideas for games. I wrote down an idea for an alternative sports stunt game with Nintendo characters, Spider Man, and tons of other creations, a couple beat-em-ups with Looney Tunes characters and the old cartoon series Darkwing Duck, and an idea for what could simply be called the longest friggin' RPG ever conceived. (Okay, maybe not, but that was the idea. :) )

As all this should suggest, the most natural fit for me is a position as designer. I love coming up with unusual ideas that haven't been done before. I also believe this would work better because I personally have a great deal of trouble doing programming on computers, and the designers--though I'm sure they need to understand programming to an extent--don't need to program nearly as often as most of the other professions call for. I'm also a very good writer. At least, if those around me are to be believed, and narrative is an essential part of being a designer. In general, being able to create my own ideas for games is something that just makes my mouth water, so yeah, designer is definitely the position I would choose if I could.

That being said, the chance to participate in making a commercial game in almost any fashion is one that I'd happily embrace. Being able to do artwork for a game as an Artist is something I'd enjoy participating in, as is the Level Design and the Sound Design. In fact, as a designer of the game, I'd probably insist on helping in the other departments as well, just because I consider those aspects to be such a necessary part of creating the designer's vision. The only two positions I think I'd be hesitant about--though not hesitant enough to refuse--are the Programmer and Tester. The programmer's job is one that I hear is not very pleasant in the gaming industry, as they tend to be worked to the bone to get code written. Furthermore, the programmer has little to no say in what the actual content of a game is, effectively making him/her a very secondary position to the creation process. Instead, the programmer pretty much just takes orders from the designers and then has to find a way to please them. There is little time for the programmer to "play around." The Tester, meanwhile, might not be quite as difficult or boring a job as the Programmer's, but as before, testers tend to get worked extra hard and they tend to have very little say in the creative process, though they DO at least get to provide input on whether a game is fun to play.

I love entertainment to death, especially gaming, and the chance to create something that will give people the goosebumps, adrenaline rushes, senses of wonder, and joys that I've experienced so many times is one that makes me glad I'm in college taking this course and working towards a degree that will hopefully employ me in the industry some day. I hope I can become a designer, but if I can become ANYTHING in the industry, that will be enough to satisfy me. BOTTOM LINE: I'd love to be a designer, but I'll take any position you're hiring for, sir! :)

DMF203 Assignment 2: Reflective Essay

Shigeru Miyamoto is a legendary game designer. Many other "legendary developers" have cited him as a source of inspiration. That's one of the most significant things I got from the article. What's really interesting, though, is that Miyamoto doesn't really fit the stereotype that most of us have created to describe a gamer or a computer science junkie. And I believe a lot of stuff can be gleaned from his lifestyle and attitudes that could be a big slap in the face to GAMER demands and attitudes.

It's actually ironic and contradictory that gamers get upset when developers don't give them what they ask for, and yet also get upset when corporate bodies use surveys to determine what should be included in certain games. Shigeru Miyamoto flies in the face of the idea that surveys should be used to determine a game's content. He makes games that HE enjoys in the name of recreating childhood experiences he had, not stuff that players ask for. This of course can be a double-edged sword, but I think for Miyamoto it's been more of a good thing then a bad thing. In fact, the only thing he's come up with that I think the hardcore community has almost exclusively gotten upset over is his desire to take Fox McCloud out of the Arwing from Star Fox and make him venture on foot in Star Fox Adventures and Star Fox Assault. (I've actually read an interview with one of the original creators of Star Fox, Dylan Cuthbert. He actually has said that Miyamoto doesn't really care that the core fans want Fox to stay in his vehicle.)

It's also interesting that most of Miyamoto's inspiration for gaming doesn't come from other games; it comes from childhood experiences outdoors, particularly the trips he took through a cave with a lantern that inspired The Legend of Zelda. Since gaming wasn't even AROUND when he was a kid, his status as one of the world's top game developers is potentially all the more puzzling (to hardcore gamers who think you've got to be obsessed with the industry to make it) and significant. The fact that he doesn't even have TIME to play games anymore yet continues to be a powerhouse in the industry is also very significant.

My upbringing was actually kind of similar, though I don't mean to suggest I could ever become as great as Miyamoto, or that I'll ever even make it in the industry as I hope to. I spent a good portion of my youth doing things that ordinary kids do: going outside, playing with miniature cars and toys, and hanging with friends. When I got older--into 6th grade during the launch of the N64 to be precise--I started to skip out on many other things in favor of being indoors and gaming constantly. This served as both a help and hindrance for me in retrospect, not only in the ideas I have for gaming, but also in terms of my mental and physical well-being. Many of my best ideas are ones that are derived--to one degree or another--from other games I've played. While that may be true of all created things, it's something that could potentially render many of my ideas too generic.

What I believe we can learn from Miyamoto's example is that being a shut in with one specific hobby (gaming) that occupies most of your time is not going to serve you well in being creative in the gaming industry. You need to have experienced life as well. Even Miyamoto has made sure his little girls can't spend all their time gaming by requiring them to go outside on the weekends. What we can learn is that good gaming is about taking real life experiences that brought joy and finding ways to provide those same feelings in a digital form. It's not strictly--or perhaps even as much--about creating something that truly hasn't been experienced before as it is about RE-creating what brings us joy in real life.

DMF203 Assignment 2: Collages

My proposed title screen with the option to choose the three game variations

A screen of the Inorganic Chemistry game (also called the "General" game)

A screen of the Organic Chemistry game

A screen of the Biological Chemistry game

A representation of the periodic table with my symbols

DMF203 Assignment 1: Reflective Essay

Darn. These aren't easy questions to answer, not only because my primary method of playing games is VIDEO games, but because they require deep thought on the subject.

Well, I've got to say late night Hide and Seek is one of my all time favorites. Plus, I'd like to include a couple similar games under the same heading that don't exactly have "names." One is a game I liked playing where I'd hide specific objects for others to find. (Would that be called an "Easter Egg Hunt"?) The other was similar except that each player had a weapon and if you were "hit", you had to give a hint as to where a specific hidden object was located. What I guess I loved so much was the chance to be creative in coming up with my hints or the places I could hide. Successfully deciphering the puzzle aspects of the games was always quite rewarding for me too.

In these particular games, there were strong visual components, not only in simply being able to find things that were hidden, but also--and this was something I really loved--in being able to find things that were sometimes sitting right out in the open. I fondly recall placing something that was red right on top of something decorative that was ALSO red and watching my friend search endlessly for it while it was right under her nose.

I think it's easy to see how this could be used in my design. At least, in terms of puzzle games like the ones I'm interested in making for this particular class. Hiding things that are right in front of the player is something designers in that genre are generally very good at. However, when it comes to simpler fare like platformers and action games where the focus is on movement with minimal thought, I don't think these ideas have quite as much use to them. They are inherently ideas that require conscious thought as opposed to subconsciously putting yourself into someone else's shoes, so they don't work as well outside of puzzle games. Either way, though, these ideas are VERY useful.

DMF203 Assignment 1: 30 Symbols

Okay. I know this wasn't a part of the assignment, but I feel a need to clarify these symbols to those who might not know much about Chemistry, and while I'm at it, clarify my game idea.
So I'm envisioning a puzzle game that I've had the idea for since my Chemistry classes at RCC. The way the Periodic Table of Elements is set up is very deliberate in demonstrating what elements can bond with other elements. See, it is the nature of molecules to try and fill their orbitals with the maximum number of possible electrons (which is 8). As you move left to right on the table, the number of electrons in the orbitals of the atoms of the specified element increases. For instance, Hydrogen has 1 electron, Helium has 2, Carbon has 4, and Oxygen has 6. The way compounds are created is by elements coming together and sharing electrons to create full orbitals that equal a total count of electrons that is a multiple of 8. This is why water is sometimes referred to as H20: it's one oxygen atom with 6 electrons combined with two hydrogen atoms that each have 1 electron apiece for a total of (Surprise!) 8 electrons. The elements farthest on the right are called "Noble Gases." They have full orbitals totaling 8 electrons and cannot make bonds at all. The elements in the middle of the table have the ability to create the most bonds (Carbon is an example) because electrons must "pair up" in order to bond atoms. Those to the left of center can make fewer because they don't have enough electrons to pair, and those right of center can make fewer because their orbitals are already close to being filled. Therefore, from left to right on the table, the first elements can form 1 bond, the second can form 2, the third can form 3, the fourth can form 4, the fifth can form 3, the sixth can form 2, the seventh can form 1, and the eighth (the Noble Gases) cannot form any.
I explain all this because my idea is one similar to Tetris where various elements fall from the top of the screen. However, the catch is that you don't pair up similar colors or make complete lines; instead, you form molecules based on these principles of Chemistry to score points. This is why the first 20 symbols I created are all representations of the first 20 elements in the Periodic Table. Pair up a carbon atom with two oxygens and bingo, you've made carbon-dioxide gas for 1,000 points! Pair up sodium (Na) with chlorine (Cl) and bingo, you've made table salt for 200 points! The Noble Gases Helium (He), Neon (Ne), and Argon (Ar)--which I just explained cannot make any bonds--are the bonus blocks that give you automatic points or--perhaps--blow other extraneous elements out of the grid.
So what are the other symbols for? Well, the thing is, I'm envisioning a game with multiple play modes. Three to be exact, which is what the three test tube symbols are for. What I just described is General (also called Inorganic) Chemistry. There are two other types of Chemistry I'm familiar with. One is Biochemistry, and in that "mode of play," I'm envisioning something similar except the goal is to pair up the bases to create DNA molecules. As explained in the previous post, Adenine pairs up with Thymine and Cytosine pairs up with Guanine. (I totally spaced doing a Uracil symbol.) The other symbols relate to Organic Chemistry and are essentially filler to complete the assignment, though I can see ways to turn those into game elements too. Organic chemistry deals primarily with molecules that include Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen, and sometimes Nitrogen. It has more to do with identifying groups, so I created some symbols relating a few of the most basic organic molecules. (Essentially, they're all just carbon atoms surrounded by hydrogen atoms, and their names derive from the number of carbon atoms in the molecule. You might notice that they're all a type of gas.)
So that's my idea and my explanation. Hope it clears up what I decided to make for this assignment. :)

DMF203 Assignment 1: Internet Pics

I came into this assignment with an idea already in mind for a game. Whether it will become the first or last one I make this term will be determined later. For now, here are some pictures I found to reference a little while I made my symbols.
My topic is "CHEMISTRY."

This is a fancy model of an Oxygen atom.

Same as above, except it's a model of Nitrogen.

This is a different style model for a Calcium atom.

This is a Hydrogen atom, the smallest model and yet also the best looking in this instance. :)

A group of Magnesium bars. Not entirely relevant, but close enough

A model of the double helix of DNA strands. (Part of Biochemistry)

The process of DNA replication. The helix is split apart and RNA is used to match up the base pairs.

This is the chemical formula for Adenine, one of the four base pairs that make up DNA.

This is Thymine, the second of the four bases. It is always paired with Adenine.

This is Cytosine, the third of the four bases.

This is Guanine, the fourth base. It is always paired with Cytosine.

This is Uracil. It is a base that replaces Thymine in RNA molecules.

All of these were helpful in me determining what symbols I would create. If they seem a little puzzling, I apologize. I will give a brief explanation for my 30 symbols that should clear these up better.