Interesting Games

Tetris  Alexy Pajitnov  Not nomal puzzle  Normal puzzle Static Never change solution Never react to player action  +action element Each time is different

Tetris excitement  Accumulated threat From at low-position and slow speed to high position and faster speed Constant, although at first slow, threat Player feels good when he/she gets out of bad situation Higher scores for better skill  But higher scores means more risks

Tetris as classic arcade game (1)  Single screen No hidden surprise Player won’t blame or hate the game if he/she does badly  Infinite play Player can get better as he/she keeps playing, thus pulled by Tetris

Tetris as classic arcade game (2)  Speed, slow to fast, gradually Allows players to learn the game and improves While still challenge  High score  Easy to pick up  No story

Tetris Technology  Low tech  Any new addition, such as 3D Welltris More complex gameplay But not much more fun – so people turn back to Tetris  Designed for computer Tetris can’t be a board game It can exist only on computer

Tetris AI  Random number generator Pick the next piece  AI only needs to be as smart as the game mechanics need  The point is -> we need AI to challenge player. As long as the player is kept challenged, simple AI is OK  Still competitive, even though 2 players play a different games due to randomness 2 players can compare scores, because time and spaces allow the blocks to even out in numbers (only 7 types of blocks anyway)

Simplicity and Symmetry  What about using 5 squares? Too many pieces to manipulate Does not go well with the time a block falls Too complex  There is always a piece for every type of gap  Each type corresponds to one permutation of 4 squares

Loom  Brian Moriarty  Adventure  Includes only challenges that are critical to the story  The game focuses on story, no easy game over

Loom Game mechanics  Using SCUMM story system Used in Secret of Monkey Island Inventories  No Branching dialog tree Select the sentence that we want to speak in Loom, we can’t control the talks, but all talks are in cut scenes

Loom user interface  Mouse and 1 button Easy to learn  Click on the location we want our character to move to  Allow only useful actions a player can do to object. This is the origin of examine button

Drafts System  When touch an object Tune displayed on screen, on the staff Remember it and play the same tune on the staff to use magic The tune always changes for every adventure Music is an integral part

Difficulty  Normal adventure Killed + stuck  None of that in Loom  Very easy for beginner

Story  For children but adult can enjoy  No story that is just made for gameplay  Not too much detail in text So player can use their imagination  Hero is inside cloak Players can imagine themselves in the cloak Hero personality is important to player’s interest (should not have too strong personality) He never says things that annoy players Cloud, Squall and Zidane

Myth: The Fallen Lords  Jason Jones 1997  Strategy (Warcraft, Command & Conquer)  Myth made it 3D with 3D engine Terrain height adds a lot to strategy Gravity, physics engine Bomb can change landscapes See battlefield wider, rotate camera, zoom in and out

 Characters are sprites More units on screen than with real 3D Can’t zoom out much because frame rate will drop Camera rotation means we can get lost

Myth: Game focus  Normal RTS -> build resource and combat  Myth -> only combat  We are given a quantity of units, fixed number  Combat ->more detail than other games at the time  Make players care for units and life

Storytelling  Cut-scenes  Mission briefings  The level matches the briefings  Your troops and people in town can talk and drives the story during game time. This is very good

Hard-Core gaming  Made for expert RTS player only  Because the makers are the expert  The control takes a lot to learn, but hard-core gamers are willing  Game is hard too  To conclude, make the game that you know you’ll like

Multi-player  Core engine  Network, play with each other until they are fun (not yet worked on single player)  Deck trading, team play  Once we know what’s fun, single player is easier to do

Special touch  Survived units get stronger  Footprints, tracking down enemies

The Sims (2000)  Will Wright  Players create characters with personality attributes  Keeps character happy by filling need indicators (hunger, energy, comfort, fun and social)

Strong points (1)  Players tell their own story  There is no goal given by the designer (sort of like Tetris)  Players know about houses, etc so they can get started right away, and feel good because they can achieve something immediately  Bad point about realistic things -> everything must be realistic

Strong points (2)  Safe experimentation with life  Lots of choices to do for continuity This is essential for Tell-your-own-story type of game So the player can keep experimenting E.g. no 2 houses are the same, or expanding career  Focus at the right scope (home life only)

Sim City vs The Sims  Human better than object  Emotional bond with the simulated person  If things are a little like human, although imperfect, people will humanize them  But if things are a lot like human, we will find the flaw and reject those things

Interface (1)  Player picks up right away  This must be due to lots of testing  Helps are embedded throughout  Functions like Windows (user already knows Windows, so learning is easy)  But looks different. This is important in order to prevent player thinking of working on Windows

Interface (2)  Easy pop-up head menu  But looks very different  Human head means closer relationship with the sim

Controlled & Autonomous  Sims can do things by themselves  Can praise or complain about new house items to let us know the happiness degree  Because the sim is not completely controlled, it is interesting to watch  And it frees player of worry