Reflective Journal - Developing Contextual Awareness
On 31/10/2023 we were introduced to developing and understanding how 2D games have developed through the application of critical analysis.
We schemed through the topics on what verbs and versatile verbs mean in game design terms and different genres of games.
Game Genres - A game genre to a form of classification assigned to a video game based on gameplay.
Examples of different game genres include:
Shooter
A video game genre that essentially focuses on defeating enemies using available weapons. This can either fall into First Player Shooter (FPS) and Third Player Shooter (TPS).
Examples of popular Shooter games include:
Half-Life 2
Call of Duty Franchise
Counter-Strike 2
Rhythm
A music-themed rhythm-themed game that challenges a player's sense of rhythm.
Examples of popular Rhythm games include:
Taiko no Tatsujin
Guitar Hero Franchise
osu!
Role Playing Game (RPG)
A game in which a player takes the position of a character in a fictional setting.
Examples of popular RPG games include:
Yakuza Franchise
Diablo IV
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Game Sub Genre - When the core gameplay and other game elements blend together creating a more specific classification.
Examples of subgenres include:
Action-Platformer
Horror-Visual Novel
Sandbox-Rpg
We watched two GMK videos explaining invisible tutorials and verbs relating to our unit.
Verbs - Verbs are essentially actions that a player can perform in a game.
This can be things such as a left mouse click to open or the right button to run right.
Versatile Verbs - When a single action can have multiple uses, depending on how we perform it.
With versatile verbs rather than performing a normal jump holding the button longer allows for a longer jump.
Typical tutorials in a video game include an NPC explaining something, pop-ups with information, videos, trial and error or a safe space/training ground.
Invisible Tutorial - An invisible tutorial is a tutorial where the gameplay itself teaches you how to play rather than a video, NPC or text.
02/11/2023
In an effective invisible tutorial, a player might grab or trip on an intentionally placed item which leads to an NPC dying or might cause something new to happen leading the player to it. It could also be an open space provided at the beginning of the game to allow the player to have time to try the basic movements and in the 1985 version of Super Mario Bros. there is a Goomba deliberately placed as an obstacle to the new player where if they die they will learn that it is an enemy and will learn to either kill it by jumping on its head or avoid it.
The Secret of Mario’s Jump (and Other Versatile Verbs). www.youtube.com,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7daTGyVZ60I. Accessed 14 Nov. 2023.
Half-Life 2’s Invisible Tutorial. www.youtube.com, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMggqenxuZc. Accessed 14 Nov. 2023.
Super Mario Bros. 30th Anniversary Special Interview Ft. Shigeru Miyamoto & Takashi Tezuka. www.youtube.com, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLoRd6_a1CI. Accessed 13 Nov. 2023.
Platformer Analysis - Sonic the Hedgehog
Game - Sonic the Hedgehog
Developer - Sonic Team
Publisher - Sega
Year of release - 1991
Genre or subgenre - Platformer
Sonic the Hedgehog, developed by Sonic Team, is a platformer game that was the first Sonic game released by Sega in 1991 on the Sega Megadrive. The main verbs present in the gameplay are by pressing the right/left buttons you run and by holding the A/B/C buttons you jump and there is also holding the down button to crouch. The A/B/C verb would be considered a versatile verb because pressing the bottom allows for a jump and holding the button allows for an even higher jump.
Sonic Crouching
Sonic Jumping
At the beginning of the game, the player is introduced to an open safe space where the character can try out different controls. To teach the player how to use these mechanics, Sonic the Hedgehog uses blockers and a platform that is convenient to jump on. The first level is efficiently set up to teach you the basics of running and jumping.
The rings at the start of the level are placed in the air on purpose. This is to encourage the character to try to jump to collect them, thus teaching the player how to jump in the game. With this information, the player is met with the first blocker (enemy) and they can use the same jump that they learnt earlier to get on top of the platform or get rid of the enemy by jumping on top of them. This all falls into an invisible tutorial in the game.
Having played through the first level of the game I'd say that the beginning of the level does a good job of teaching you the basic attacks. The main strength is that the level is beginner-friendly and easy to pick up on.
Platformer Analysis - Sonic the Hedgehog 3
Game - Sonic the Hedgehog 3
Developer - Sega Technical Institute
Publisher - Sega
Year of release - 1994
Genre or subgenre - Platformer
Sonic the Hedgehog 3, developed by Sega Technical Institute, is a sequel to Sonic the Hedgehog 2, it was released by Sega in 1994 on the Sega Megadrive. Different from Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 has an implemented cutscene at the beginning of the game and a save menu.
The main verbs present in the gameplay are by pressing the right/left buttons to run and holding the A/B/C buttons to jump and down to crouch. Unlike the 1991 game Sonic The Hedgehog, this version of the game has a spin dash attack which is performed by pressing the down and jump buttons.
After the cutscene, the player is met with rings just as in the first Sonic The Hedgehog game, but this time rather than them being in the air they are up on a hill. After the player figures out that the objective is to collect them, the next thing they are met with is a blocker. In an attempt to avoid the blocker, they might move backwards but in doing so the player notices that they move slower when going up a hill. Therefore introducing the player to some of the physics of the game.
A verb I would consider versatile is the fact that when holding the left or right button can be used for running to sprinting and can also be used to break objects in the game such as rocks.
Compared to the previous releases of the games from the Sonic franchise this first level is more complicated. This is most likely done as this is the third release of the game where most likely the people who own the is version probably own the previous versions too. However, when giving this game to someone inexperienced in playing video games it is most likely going to be harder for them to pick it up. If I were to change something at this level I'd make it simpler as it might be a completely new experience for some people in 1994. In order to make the level simpler I would still keep out the same layout of the game itself however I would make it clearer for the player to understand where they are going, the level is set in a type of jungle, making things look cluttered and hard to read. Possibly removing a few of the jungle elements such as the huge amount of vines visually the level look more perspicuous and therefore easier for unfamiliar players to play. Rather than change the level layout itself I would change the visual elements.
Platformer Analysis - Sonic Generations
Game - Sonic Generations
Developer - Sonic Team, Devil's Details
Publisher - Sega
Year of release - 2011
Genre or subgenre - Platformer
Sonic Generations, developed by Sonic Team and Devil's Details, was published by Sega in 2011 for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 350, Nintendo 3DS and Microsoft Windows. The game is introduced with an all-new mix of 2D and 3D graphics hence 2.5D including new viewing angles.
When starting up the game for the first time, after the cutscene, there are brightness and hint settings. The player has a choice in either if they wish to have hints displayed or not.
After that has been set up the player is introduced with the first sense of tutorial. They are met with a loading screen however, unlike the previous loading screens from the older Sonic games, this time they provide a hint or information which may be new to the player.
Another way the game teaches the player to play is by the insertion of Omochao! Omochao is an NPC that would blast the player with advice and would also show on-screen prompts to perform certain actions!
Sonic Generations is a combination of the modern and classic Sonic. This is why we are presented with a remastered version of the very first stage, Green Hill Zone. Similarly, this wide open space is great for a player to experiment with different movement controls and mechanics.
Verbs wise Sonic Generations has all the same directional movements such as running left and right or crouching using the left stick or d-pad on the controller. By holding down the stick in the direction you want to move Sonic steadily moves faster. To make Sonic jump you would use X/A and this mechanic can be combined with when modern Sonic is in mid-air to perform an air dash. Similarly to Sonic The Hedgehog 3, the spin dash attack can still be found in Sonic Generations and can be carried out by holding down the square on PlayStation or X on Xbox to charge it up and then abruptly letting go in order to release it.
I quite like the stylistic choice of Sonic Generations 3 the visual appeal of the game is quite pleasing, especially the different changes of angles and perspectives compared to Sonic the Hedgehog 1 and 3. A great thing about this game is the number of helpful ways it can teach the play how to play. It can definitely pass as a great game to play in today's day and age. One downside about it would probably be the fact that both Classic and Modern Sonic have different controls which may get the player a bit confused between the two.
DDS5 - Playtesting The Valve Way
02/11/2023
Platformer Analysis - Rayman
Game - Rayman
Developer - Ubisoft
Publisher - Ubisoft
Year of release - 1995
Genre or subgenre - Platformer
Rayman, developed by Ubisoft, is a platformer game that was the first Rayman game released by Ubisoft in 1995 on the PlayStation (PS1). The main verbs present in the gameplay are movement to the left and right and coaching with the addition of two versatile verbs including the different jump levels and punch.
The game starts with an invisible tutorial as the character starts on the left side of the screen leaving space to indicate the player should move to the right. There is a platform and some orbs at the beginning which allows the player to go and collect them.
The first instance of a versatile verb is when there are two platforms and different levels, this shows that there are different jump heights; by pressing the jump button once the character does a normal jump, and when holding the button the player jumps higher.
There is a platform plant and some orbs indicating a path and water under it. When the character jumps on the plant the plant leans to the right following the path of the orbs. This shows that the water should be avoided and it is probably dangerous. The first time it designates that you can drown it tells you it in a safer way and using that later on there are a few holes filled in water that have to be jumped over.
Nearing the end of the level the camera stops moving forward with the character and there is a platform. Using the knowledge from earlier that you can jump on the platform the player would make their way upwards.
At the first instance of an enemy being shown the player may try to jump on the enemy to kill them just as in other generic platform games, however, they will miserably fail and either die or take damage, this teaches the player to avoid the enemy.
There is a vine that the player can grab onto and an enemy under it that jumps up and down trying to bite the player this teaches that the blockers can move not only left and right but jump and down.
Climbing can not only be used to avoid enemies but also to get to new ground. Further on there are jumps again but this time they are smaller, showing an increase in difficulty. there is a path of vines which you have to jump to one after another. Between each vine indicating you have to jump on the right timing.
Later on, the character gets introduced to a new versatile verb by a fairy with some text telling the character that they can now do a punch that is regular and by holding it the hand disconnects hitting enemies further. Compared to other platforms this game is fairly simple as there are only 5 different actions the player can perform so far. Jump, crouch, move left and right, and punch. After telling the character they can now punch there is a bit of an open space where the player can test out the new move. The game doesn't let you move on until you master using the move.
There is a giant grape that the player needs to interact with in order to move forward. The player may realise that they can jump on the giant bouncing grape and use it as a platform. Forward in the game, there is another grape that the player would punch and it will drop in the water forward. Since the player learned they can use it as a platform by jumping on the grape in the water and not drowning. There is a big jump in level difficulty from level one to two.
Narrowing it down to my opinion it's a great game. When first looking at it, it didn't seem like something I would enjoy playing style-wise, however, I was proven wrong when I observed some gameplay and played it myself. I'd say it's a game that's a bit hard to get to at first. Personally, I didn't know exactly what to do when I first saw the grape. But after doing some trial and error I finally got the hang of it and managed to progress through a couple of levels. Maybe by adding a couple of on-screen prompts, it would be easier to get tips over to the player and how to exactly play.
Platformer Analysis - Rayman Legends
Game - Rayman Legends
Developer - Ubisoft
Publisher - Ubisoft
Year of release - 2013
Genre or subgenre - Platformer, Action Platformer
Rayman Legends, developed by Ubisoft, is a platformer game that was released by Ubisoft in 2013 for the PS3, PS4, PlayStation Vita, Nintendo Switch, Windows and most notably the Nintendo Wii U.
When entering the game for the first time it starts with a cut scene. The graphics quality is way better than the 1995 game showing at 2.5D. Unlike the 1995 version, tutorial wise there are now on-screen prompts with one of the first telling the player that they need to press B to jump. There is a cage around the platform and by combining the punch and jump that the player learnt they can break the cage that is set for them. The same mechanics as the original Ryaman are kept here including the punch that is introduced in the beginning rather than later in the game compared to the original Rayman however, this time by punching a few times in a row the character gets combo. The character can punch in different directions which is less confined than the original Rayman.
This Rayman game also implements the use of the Wii U gamepad which is used to move certain platforms in order to progress by warping the environment. The environment can be warped by moving platforms and turning the gamepad to turn circular platforms with the use of Murphy who can be used by pressing Y.
In this platformer game, you would move using the directional pad and run with the right trigger. The player has the ability to attack while walking or running with the X button. The player would jump with A, and perform mid-air attacks by pressing X. Just like Rayman, by holding the X button you can charge up a punch to use against enemies.
This game also has many other mechanics such as a wall run that can be done by holding the left stick and ZR on the gamepad.
Another cool thing that Rayman Legends provided that the original Rayman game doesn't is Multiplayer! There are many different versatile moves which allows everyone to play in their own way which adds to the experience for players at many different levels to play it.
In my opinion, I'd say Rayman Legends is on the challenging spectrum of platformer games compared to its competitors such as any of the Mario games. It's easy to get started with, due to all its tutorials, but it gets quite confusing as a result of the amount of things going on at the same time. From what I can tell the game focuses on the multiplayer side which can make it a bit boring for a single-player to rejoice in.
Platformer Analysis- Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee
Game - Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee
Developer - Oddworlds inhabitants (PlayStation 1)
Publisher - GT Interactive Software
Year of release - 1997
Genre or subgenre - Platformer, Puzzle
Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee was developed by Oddworld Inhabitants and Published by GT Interactive Software in 1997 for the PlayStation (PS1). Compared to other platform games that we were introduced to Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee follows a more dark theme and has a much higher quality than other platformers around this time. It also seems to have a more involved story which felt a bit like watching the intro to a movie.
When the player is put into the level on a safe space, at the top of the screen, there seems to be sliding text which is an onscreen prompt that indicates how the player is supposed to move.
In this game, the primary verbs centre around movement. You navigate left/right with the d-pad, activate running by holding R1 while walking, and are able to roll when crouching and moving simultaneously.
Hoisting onto ledges is achieved by jumping up to a platform by moving the d-pad upwards. Doorways are entered using the same upward d-pad action, Jumping, assigned to the triangle button, enables traversal between platforms, and combining it with the running mechanic allows you to leap across larger gaps.
When first taught how to hoist onto ledges, as soon as the player latches on it an NPC swiftly appeared out of nowhere and started shooting. This gives the player a sense of urgency and first gets introduced to who the enemies are and how they are likely to kill you. However, when I finally stood on top of the platform rather than hanging from it, it appeared that the enemy could not see me anymore meaning that they had a blindspot. It tells the player that in this game actions have consequences so you would need to think before you act as anything can happen.
Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee has some interesting verbs unique to other platformers including
mastering stealth which involves holding R2 while walking, granting the ability to discreetly navigate past guards and access restricted areas. Communication, executed through L1, enables Abe to attract attention by pressing the triangle, follow which is done by pressing the square and X which commands the manipulated NPC to stay in one place.
Chanting is activated with L2, and includes whistling with Triangle/X and taunting with Square/Circle to direct birds. By combining L1 and L2 it initiates channelling, transforming birds into portals for employee safety and providing control over guards' minds for precise actions.
I enjoy the puzzle genre quite a lot and this game I like no other. Its unique mechanics and gameplay is definitely likeable and whilst there are quite a lot of controls after getting the hang of them it is quite fun to mess about with them. Some levels do take some time to complete because one wrong decision and it can cost the employes death that you are supposed to save. I think that the dark artstyle is very cool even though it makes the puzzle a bit well to blended in making it a bit harder.
DDS6 - Exploring Consoles And Hardware
Platformer Level Design Workshop
On 13/11/2023 we implemented all the knowledge that we acquired in our previous lessons to create our own Mario platformer level in Super Mario Maker on the Wii U. Those include verbs, versatile verbs, and invisible tutorial.
We watched a video on the 30th-anniversary special for super mario bros. where they talked about previous level designs and ideas they had before creating the levels. We also looked at the different steps it took to create the Super Mario Bros levels. The main method they designed level is with the use of graph paper, it is also an accurate way to construct an accurate representation of a level layout due to the specific measurements in the already created boxes on the graph paper. For example, the protagonist of Super Mario Bros. measures at about 2 squares on the graph paper.
Using that knowledge we began planning out our level on graph paper and later using Super Mario Maker to make our ideas work.
Here is our level planned on graph paper!:
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Reflection on our Level
After playtesting the level that we made in Super Mario Maker we received feedback regarding the level designs. Essentially our level had to include an invisible tutorial to teach the player techniques and mechanics that they will implement later on in the level. Our level included the following aspects teaching the player how to jump, wall jump, and defeat blockers.
I'm quite happy with our initial idea however, having it all laid out in the actual game we posed some flaws. Some of the flaws we faced were the blockers falling off the individual platforms, rather than the blockers going back and forth on the platforms they fall off before the player can get to them to kill them. Another issue we faced was that in the underground section, there was a bit of an issue with the spacing and placement of the platforms. Something that we could have implemented in our level is adding an item block in the safe area to make the player figure out exactly what to do.
Super Mario Bros. 30th Anniversary Special Interview Ft. Shigeru Miyamoto & Takashi Tezuka. www.youtube.com, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLoRd6_a1CI. Accessed 10 Dec. 2023.
Applying Lessons of Psychology to Game Design
On 16/11/23 our lesson objectives were to show an understanding of psychology maps and their use in game design research along with being able to conduct player-acting with the aim of developing accurate empathy that will inform our design.
Psychology - A scientific study of the human brain and behaviour.
Psychology in games - Researchers have studied different personalities and what motivates people for years by developing distinct psychological maps such as the Burtle Types and The Big 5.
Jason Vanderberghe has worked in the game industry, in being a creative director, designer, writer, and researcher. He has been conducting research and developing theories on game design for years. Vandenberghe proposes that we play games to satisfy the same motivations that we feel in real life, and this is particularly true if we are unable to satisfy them in real life. Different people have different tastes in games they play, when creating a game it should help to cater to a specific wide audience rather than yourself only.
Developing accurate player empathy is understanding what exactly it is that different types of players enjoy about a game, which is done by overcoming personal bias.
Psychology Maps
The Bartle types (Richard Bartle)
Richard Bartle speculates that everyone falls into one of the four following categories
Explorers
Players who love to explore all aspects of a game, from how it works to its mechanics and different story elements, they want to know everything they can do before moving on to playing another game.
Achievers
Players play games to complete tasks, trophies, and quests and complete all available missions in order to earn rewards and tools in a game. The commitments of achievers are also due to their interest in competition and desire to achieve goals.
Socialisers
Players who prefer to interact with others enjoy a community experience where they can support each other when they are struggling.
Killers
Players who are usually competitive and like to win at all costs, will therefore seek to compete with other players to defeat them thanks to their skill or abilities to use the tools provided by the game to their advantage.
The Big 5 (Ocean)
A psychological map system of human motivation that has come to dominate modern motivation psychology over the past twenty years.
"Learning it has had a profound effect on how I view players and design games to target certain kinds of players".
The big 5 falls on the following domains:
Openness to experienceConscientiousnessExtroversionAgreeablenessNeuroticism
With the psychology described, we can go looking for game elements that will satisfy the following motivations:
Openness to experience --- > NoveltyConscientiousness --- > ChallengeExtroversion ---- > StimulationAgreeableness ---- > Harmony
In order to develop accurate player empathy we would need to understand how players think and feel about games and what type of aspects they enjoy about the game. We were to identify our empathy blindspots by taking the Big 5 test.
‘The Big Five Personality Test’. Truity, 27 June 2023, https://www.truity.com/test/big-five-personality-test.
Here are my results from 100:
Openness to Experience = 71Conscientiousness = 46Extraversion = 60Agreeableness = 54
Using these results in order to find the empathy blind spots we would need to take the numbers away from 100 leaving us with the following results:
Openness to Experience = 29Conscientiousness = 54Extraversion = 40Agreeableness = 46
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I'm quite surprised by the way results showed up, especially on the openness to experience as I thought that my empathy blind spot would be bigger.
Using OCEAN we created our own 4 charts and filled them with games that correlate to those categories, and the player types that would enjoy them.
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Lastly, player acting is to play games that fall in our empathy blind spots as though you are someone else, to develop accurate player empathy. We were assigned a game to play-act for a minimum of 90 minutes. The game I got given is called Gravity Rush.
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