Developing a New Major

we’re not using this book in class this semester but some of the chapters will make good extra info

gameplay  mechanic = rule/feature that influences how the game is played, anything a player can do in the game like fight/ drive/jump/shoot, big mechanics like fighting made up of smaller mechanics like punch, kick, slice, stab, throw that work together,  games have one mechanic or several that work together to create something new or several that work independently

more mechanics = more complicated game

designers job isn’t just to pile on more mechanics, but to simplify mechanics so easier for player to use

emergent gameplay mechanic when player can combine 2 planned for mechanics to create something new and unplanned, chess has emergent gameplay because there are a few simple fules and the player can combine them to create lots of different move combos

gameplay designer’s job = make a game fun; fun is subjective; how do we design fun - takes luck and skill, probably not going to create a game that’s fun for everyone, and it has to be more than making game that’s fun for you. Define your audience and what they’re looking for in a game, some playing for hte gameplay, others for the story, the experience, the challenge. “Figuring out who your audience is, what they think they want, and what htey really want will help you understand what htey  might find fun.” (p. 6)

ch1 has info on board/card games, classic gameplay

classic games = strategy and complex interactions like chess, easy to teach but hard to master

board games also require puzzle solving, strategy, good to study because they show designers how to combo mechanics, board games have abstract pieces while videogames are getting more realistic

pen & paper RPG games like D&D, also GURPS. Shadowrun, Rifts, videogame rpgs draw heavily on the paper and pencil version - levels, character stats, inventories, hit points, turns, you can mock up using pencila nd paper a lot of your videogame rpg mechanics to save time and money

p. 11 has a chart of all the game systems since 1976 (has projected for ps3 and 360

early consoles (1st and 2nd gen)- just a few simple gameplay mechanics - pattern memorization, timing, repetition, games did one thing, 2d so easier to control than 3d, side scrollers, gotta learn to time moves, solve puzzles, move side to side, move up and down, random attacks from enemies, no FPS or RTS or sandbox games

3rd gen (8bit) - designers learned from 1st bunch of games what kinds of things players liked, more powerful consoles meant more powerful games, alos more complicated input devices with more buttons and knobs, game play mechanics evolved greatly from 1st & 2nd gen - super mario brothers had smooth scrolling levels (a first) - it basically defined the platformer genre, lots of new mechanics and ways for players to combo them - a variety of ways to kill enemeies - had bosses, coin collection, power-ups; prince of persia added better animations, lifelike acrobatics to the side scroller, there was swordplay combat, level design and a good story, used time limits, risk to taking big leaps and falls - health points took a hit, some games from the period: super mario brothers, prince of persiam metroid, legend of zelda, tetris

4th gen (16 bit) - hardware improvments pushes industry forward, SNES and SEGA Genesis era, increased storage, way better graphics, improved controllers, some games from teh period - earthworm jim, final fantasy, lemmings, madden, mortal kombat, sonic - super metroid had a huge world that could be explored in any order with hidden areas, powerups to defeat final boss, FInal Fantasy intro’d mechanics for the RPG genre, had an active time battle system that became the default

5th gen (32 bit) - 3d games (looked primitive, ran slow, hard to control), super mario 64 was first really successful 3d - sold 12million copies - nintendo focused a lot of time on control and basic movement - not hte first 3d paltformer but so good it’s generally considered the standard because it had lots of gameplay mechancis and the ability for players to combo them in new and different ways - variety of attacks, variety of ways to move, powerup, lots of puzzles and secrets, interesting enemies, Leend of Zelda Ocarina of Time considered by many to be the best videogame ever - sold 7.5 million units, all the parts work together game looks polished, lots of weapons  items & potions & a mini-map to help navigation thru the world; Metal Gear Solid sold 6 million copies and pretty uch invented the steealth action subgenre of action games - amazing graphics, a very cinematic look, fun gameplay & strong story & movie like cinematography, had a detectio system using both visual and audio cuessome games from this era - rayman, resident evil, super mario 64, tomb raider, goldeneye metal gear solid, banjo kazooie, crash bandicoot

6th gen - PS2 and XBOx, focus on integrating mechanics smoothly into game experience, more cinematic or thematic experience surrounding the gameplay mechanics, successful games of this gen created captivating game expeirence with many mechanics integrated, god of way ad cool combat system adn mini-games and bosses all nicely integrated, Halo had highly polished basic features (none of which were new but well executed), GTA was first really successful sandbox game that felt very open  and huge and had player make choice sthat made sense int eh game context - steal cars, blos stuff up and evade the police - important to have cool mechanics but more important to have many different mechanics that interact with the game in many ways to support emergent gameplay, more mature content during this gensome sample games: God of War, GTA, resident evil iv, shadow of hte colossus, Black, Fable, Halo, ICO, Spliner Cell, okami

7th gen (next gen consoles - wii, 360, ps3), PS3 adn 360 have better graphics than in past but not a lot of new gameplay mechanics

p. 37 has pictures of many stages of zelda

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boardgame, Game designer, Game mechanic