Game Elements Reading

Game Elements Readings

I read this article on Gamasutra.com. The part on page 3 of the article discussing Mario 64 I found very interesting as it discusses how the games simple and easy to grasp controls allow the player to interact with the game and to have god control over how they do things and the way in which they do them without making mistakes and feeling like it was the games fault.

I also enjoyed this section page 5 of the article detailing how the narrative/story of the game is often times what drives the player to complete the game as the player will become invested in the story and will want to see how it ends. I found this interesting as i'm sure some people may feel that engaging gameplay is what keeps the player invested in the game. In some instances it can be the narrative of the game can be what keeps the player invested especially if the gameplay isn't anything special or unique.

I also enjoyed reading this part of the article on Page 7 detailing how the gameplay of a game can lead to the creation of player created stories the example given was how in a fighting game the experience the player has often times becomes a story on its own. This is relatable to me as often times playing an online game can led to player driven stories and events being created that aren't planned by the game designers. Having game mechanics that lead to gameplay storytelling is very important in my opinion.

The Elements of Game Design
Source: Knowledgeguru.com

Game Idea Research

Three Possible Game Mechanics 

1. Dynamic Adaptive Environment: This idea involves the world that the game takes place in having the ability to change based on the decisions made by the player. For example if the player makes a certain choice a location will appear completely different from a player who didn't make that choice.

2. Procedurally Generated Elements: I would like the game to have randomised elements that are different every time the game is played. This adds replay value to the game as the game is different in some way for each person that plays it. Examples of things that could be procedurally generated are the spawn locations of items and enemies. Buildings and building interiors could also be procedurally generated. Example of procedural generation in games, Engadget.com

3. Weather that affects how the game is played: I would like to feature a weather system in the game that has an effect on gameplay for example, if there is rain it will make it more difficult to traverse the environment as it will be slippery. Another example would be if there is snow you will need to stay indoors as there is a risk of freezing to death or receiving damage from the cold.

Minecraft uses procedural generation to create a unique world for each player
Source: Source: Flickr.com

Game Design Readings

My Thoughts on the Game Design Readings

"The Art of Computer Game Design" by Chris Crawford

Source: Wikipedia Commons

After I spent time reading three of the supplied articles. I felt that I learned a lot about the process of game design. The first article I read was The Essence of Euro-Style Games. This article was very interesting. I learned about what exactly a "Euro Game" is as I have never heard of this term before. Factors that make a Euro Game unique include Simple rules, can be played in under an hour and no player elimination featured. I found learning about these features fascinating as I was completely unaware of the concepts behind a Euro Game.

The second article I read was So You're Going to Make a Video Game For The First Time?. This article was very interesting as it features a lot of useful tips for aspiring game designers. Advice that I personally found helpful included always putting gameplay first over the appearance or story of your game. I feel this is important as fun gameplay will always be what keeps a player coming back to your game. Another piece of advice I thought is helpful was to thoroughly play your game before to showcasing it to anyone else this is to ensure you are satisfied with the quality of the game yourself before receiving feedback or criticism.

The third article I read was What Computer Game Designers Can Learn From Non-Electronic Games. This article was interesting as it detailed the origin of the medium of games. Many may think of games such as Pong where the first video game but they weren't. Games existed much earlier and were often used as a form of training exercise during wars. This was new to me but is completely understandable. I also learned about the growth of board games as an entertainment medium post World War II and how this eventually led to the creation of the first video games from designers influenced by the past.

Overall the three articles I read were quite informative and entertaining in my opinion.

Technology Tools and Landscape

My Thoughts on Multimedia Tech/Tools we will be Using

The wide variety of Multimedia Tools available to students
Source: Pixabay

From reading the submission regarding the tech we will be using during our time on this module everything seems grand. I am familiar with all of different tools apart from Unity3D which I have some knowledge of but not a whole lot. However from my time spent in CDM Year 1 as well as my own free time I am pretty experienced with the rest of the tools we are required to use. The online element of the module is somewhat new to me but I really like it so far as it allows me to access all the important documentation/information for this module. 

I feel updating the blog will also work very well as a means of reflection and idea generation regarding the work and projects we will be developing over the semester. The skills I would like to develop over the duration of this module is definitely Unity3D development. Game development is a field I am very interested in and I feel it will be both challenging but rewarding for me. I hope it could potentially be something I use in my career in the future.

The "Class Announcements Blog" I also feel is very helpful as it allows all members of the course to keep on top of things in regards to this module if they need it. For instance if they are absent from a lab or lecture and miss something important it will also be available on the blog for them to catch up on.

Time Strategies

A resource that must be managed well in life

Source: Wikipedia Commons

My thoughts on Time Management

As any student knows whether it be Secondary School or College, Time Management is one of the most important skills you could ever have. Ensuring you have enough time to allocate to the tasks you need to complete is integral to success especially in a course such as CDM which is mostly reliant on CA which involves the completion of multiple work/submissions per week to make up your grade for each of the modules you do each semester. Without effective Time Management it is very easy to become overwhelmed and lose not only important points towards your grade but also your knowledge of the course will suffer as you scramble to finish all of your work at once which I know from past experience can be both disorienting and disheartening for your own head space. If you can manage your time well and complete tasks as you receive them instead of putting them at the back of your mind to "be finished later" you will be much more successful in the course and in the future in areas such as the job sector as it is a respected and desired quality in an employee.

For this module I feel out of all the skills you should have and develop time management is the one that will result in you getting a good grade at the end of the year. If you can make a reasonable attempt at each of the tasks required each week to the best of your ability, even if you struggle with some areas the effort and skill you used ensuring you had enough time to have a crack at each of them will result in you having a stockpile of points which contribute toward your final grade.

The two supplied articles I read where "3 Steps to Recapture Time" and "Four Questions to Help Overcome Procrastination" I felt that the advice provided in these articles is very practical and can easily be applied by any individual such as student to ensure they can have enough time to get important, necessary tasks done while also avoiding dreaded procrastination while trying to complete these tasks. For me procrastination is one of my biggest faults when it comes to completing tasks. It's like I will always find some benign task to do instead of dedicating my time to the important task at hand. These two articles I felt were important in combating two faults I see in myself "Not having enough time to do what I want to do" and "Falling into the trap of procrastinating"

A simple tactic I have for managing workload is to just start. Once you start working you tend to get into a groove while you do it until you complete it. Even if you would rather do anything else simply starting to work can change your mind. It's true what they say: 

"The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step" - Viktor Reznov

My Thoughts on Class Assignments

Typical Components used in a Multimedia Development Workspace Set-up
Source: Pixnio

Based on what I have read from the post regarding Class Assignments for Multimedia, I am really looking forward to working on this module's projects in the future. The assignments seem straightforward enough in what is expected from each of them. This is something I appreciate as I like knowing what is to be expected of me instead of jumping in blind in regards to new things as I can adapt/prepare for them.

I am really looking forward to the 3DUnity work as I am a big fan of video games and have always being fascinated by the developer tools that studios used to create their games popular engines such as the Unreal Engine, Dumia, Frostbite, Snowdrop, Creation Engine, ID Tech, and of course Unity are some of the AAA game engines I am familiar with from the games that I play. Although I myself have never developed a game in Unity I am fairly knowledgeable of the popularity of the engine especially among indie developers who do not have the funds to license the more popular AAA game engines from big studios such as Epic Games or ID. I hope that I can use skills from my time spent in Unity3D to my advantage and personal enjoyment following this completing of the multimedia Module.

The task that I am perhaps the most worried about in regards to the module is the commenting/project feedback tasks. I can often be quite critical of my own work so having to share my work with others from CDM will be quite daunting for me at least at first, especially if they do not like my work or point out things that I myself would have changed myself if I could. I also hope that I won't be too overly critical of other peoples work as I always try to see the best qualities/aspects of work that I am reviewing. I find constructive criticism difficult to give without coming across as nit-picky or mean.

The Extra Credit opportunities I feel are a great addition. They all appear interesting in their own way and all I feel serve a process as they will help me learn and reflect on new things while also providing an opportunity to earn extra points when necessary. For example if I know I will be very busy or absent during the week I can complete extra credit tasks to make up for any potential lost points which is fantastic. Thank you Shaun from all of CDM Year 2 for that.

Growth Mindset

My thoughts on the Growth Mindset

Carol S. Dweck, Host of the Growth Mindset Ted Talk.
Source: Wikipedia Commons

I have personally not heard of Carol S. Dweck or the Growth Mindset before taking part in this exercise. However I have watched quite a few Ted/TedX talks on various different topics as they related to modules in year 1 of CDM or during my time in secondary school Religion class. I have always found them to be insightful, interesting, and sometimes comedic depending on either the subject matter or the presenter themselves bringing humour into their Ted Talk. How I came to learn about the Growth Mindset was due to the supplied videos for this exercise combined with some independent research of my own.

I believe strongly in the concept behind the Growth Mindset as I found that in almost all areas of learning doing is the best way to improve or develop your skills. For instance an artist doesn't start off being naturally fantastic they must develop their skills through repetition and dedication. The basis of the Growth Mindset. The closest i've come to hearing about the Growth Mindset was through a former teacher of mine in Secondary School who informed us of the idea that it takes a combined 10,000 hours of work to become a master that no one is naturally gifted with the ability to pick up the skills instantly everyone must work to improve.

As for where I fit on the growth Mindset spectrum I believe that I fit somewhere in between the fixed and growth mindset. I feel that personal self doubt can often be responsible for individuals including myself leaning on more of the Fixed Mindset instead of the much more optimistic, productive Growth Mindset. I feel I should aspire to adapt the Growth Mindset in all aspects of my life as I feel I would greatly improve as an individual.

I would really enjoy learning more about the Growth Mindset over the year(s). I feel that it is important for students such as myself to be exposed to this as I feel there are a lot of students who are stuck within the Fixed Mindset without understanding the negative consequences this can have on their own happiness and their productivity in College, Work or School.

The biggest challenges I face when tackling new things I find that if I am unfamiliar with the process or the subject matter I tend to experience a lot of self doubt/apprehension before even getting stuck in. However on the positive side these worries tend to disappear once I get going and realise that often times, things can be easier to accomplish than they appear. Despite this the self doubt never really seems to stop appearing which is something I know and hope that I can work on over the time I spend in this course/my own personal life.

Comparison of the Growth Vs. Fixed Mindset
Source: Medium.com