VIIX design document... Finished!

The design document is finished, all the information in there. Here is the front cover in all its glory.

I am very happy with how my project went, with my idea developing more and more every time I drew a new sketch and I really enjoyed seeing my ideas develop into a solid project. When first given the brief I had initial problems coming up with a good idea. After working with a group previously and having other peoples input, the start of this project was very daunting. After ruling out my initial thoughts of a horse racing game, this Idea suddenly came to me, while looking at apps. Why aren’t there any good narrative driven RPGs? After this my idea took off, and I did lots of sketches to help me picture the final product. If I did this again, and had more time I would have gone into much more detail with the story and art, as well as try some 3D character renders.

Art for design Document

This is some of the art being used for the design document. They are the rough concepts of characters and events, which will show roughly how the characters and scenes would look in the game.

This is the original concept for the front cover of the design document. I will attempt at colouring it, but I may leave it black and white, but create a strong lighting effect in it.

This is the concept for Jeremy's horse and cart used in the first quest.

First draft of 1000 word report

Could Games replace books as the conventional form of storytelling?

In modern society, games are now viewed as much more than merely time-killing entertainment, as with the advance in technology, narrative driven gameplay has risen. Modern games now have beautiful and entrancing stories that make games a much more powerful and immersive experience. Games such as this include the 'Fable' series, the 'Elder scrolls' series and even games such as 'Angry Birds' have an underlying narrative driving the gameplay along. As games are so interactive with their storytelling, there is an argument that there is a possibility that they could replace books as the conventional form of storytelling.

An argument for this statement is driven by the fact that games are a much more immersive experience than books. This new type of storytelling gives the player the opportunity to create their own story through the choices they make. This makes the narrative feel more individual, whereas with books the ending and story are fixed, and the same every time you read it. Also, with the emergence of open world games such as 'Fallout', the player can create a whole new story individual to them, and find new quests and places to explore. With open world games, the possibilities are endless, with the player always finding something new to experience. The is also more opportunity for the player to bond with fictional characters in games, as with books the people are basically given to you on a plate; interpret them as you will. But with games, players can interact with lots of different people throughout a long span of time, getting to know the person virtually and becoming attached. These attachments players make to virtual characters is very prevalent in society, with fan groups and cosplayers obsessing over characters and even crying at their death! This attachment is one that is very rare to make with characters from a book, as a book is someone else’s view of that character dictated to you, whereas in a game that character is given to you, and you create your view of them from the events in the game.

The argument for this could also be linked to the use of books and games in schools and in learning. Games could be used as a unique tool for learning, as a child would rather sit and play a game rather than read a book. Children will go out of their way to complete games and challenge themselves, and with books this is the opposite. A child would be inclined to virtually talk to a historic figure and find things out about them, rather than read about it in a book, and this is another reason why games could challenge the book in terms of learning. An article by Andrew Eisen claimed that 'trial runs at high schools and college universities have yielded positive results', which is expected from children and teenagers being brought up with games, however it also claimed that 'parents and teachers have been very receptive to the idea of educational game technology', which is surprising from a generation who seem to be against the benefits of game playing. (Eisen, 2006, Will Games replace text books?) However, the cognitive values of reading a book are far too valued in society in comparison to playing games, which is why children are encouraged to read from an early age. This is why, although games can and most likely will be used as an educational tool, the use of books in schools will never be replaced due to the cognitive skills they encourage and advance.

Steven Johnsons' book, 'Everything Bad is Good for You', explores narratives in games in comparison to books, and makes the argument that 'games are not novels, and the ways in which they harbour novelistic aspirations are invariably the least interesting thing about them.' (Johnson, 2005, pg 21) This argument is true, in some cases the story in a game is the least important part of it. This also sparks the debate as to whether the narrative of a game influences people to buy it, or whether it is purely the gameplay and content. It can be said that popular RPG's such as 'Mass Effect' rely heavily on their storyline to sell games, and this is why they bring out more to continue the story, as it was popular in the first game. However, games such as 'Call of Duty' do not really have strong narratives, and players mainly buy them for their gameplay and the experience.

Steven Johnson also makes the point that reading in itself has great virtues, such as the 'mental work you have to do to process and store that information', as well invoking 'the power of imagination; reading forces you to concoct entire worlds in your head'. (Johnson, 2005, pg 22) In comparison to playing games, these virtues are unique to books, as the worlds in games are given to you, whereas in books they really completely on the imagination of the individual reading.

Reading books requires knowledge and experience, as well as a vivid imagination for a person to become engaged totally in the story, but once a person is successfully immersed in a book, they become immersed in that world completely. In comparison to a game where in some cases while playing, people switch off, as if it is second nature, and this is most prevalent in first person shooters such as war games and zombie games. Games however, have their own individual intellectual and physical advantages, which cannot be compared to books. Games 'have intellectual or cognitive virtues of their own right- different from, but comparable to, the rewards of reading.' (Johnson, 2005, pg 22) This sums up the conclusion of the question, that games have the ability to tell stories well, or in some cases better than books, but the intellectual advantages of physically reading a book are too great to ever be replaced by games.

References:

Johnson, S (2005). Everything bad is good for you. London: Penguin Group. 21-22.

Eisen, A. (2006). Will games replace text books?. Available: http://gamepolitics.livejournal.com/210133.html. Last accessed 17^th

Word Count: 994

Sophie Woollard

More concepts for VIIX

This is a rough concept for the combat in VIIX. The player swipes their finger to move each hand against the enemy, either high and low. The players health is conveyed through blood on the screen, and when the players health is very low the screen blurs and moves from side to side.

This is a concept of how the speech side of the game would look. The player can choose which option they want to reply with. This choice dictates how the person replies to them in future, and how their reputation is in the town.

These are the title concepts for VIIX. I decided to go for the top one as it is much more bold than the other one and also looks vintage.










This is the final concept for the title, which I will use for the background of my design document.

The Final bits for the board game

These are the final printed cards, printed on two pieces of thin card and stuck together. I also wrote the background story for the manual.

1867
The War of Totems and Towers

As the sun rose over the hills of Texas, a war was raging on. A war between Cowboys and Indians, an ancient tale of pride and brawn. In the midst of this great war were four brave soldiers, two Cowboys and two Indians who sought an end to this fight. Both brave groups had the same brilliant idea, to capture a member of the others group. The two brave Indians captured the Sheriff from the Cowboys, securing him in their land. The two brave Cowboys captured the chief of the Indian tribe, and secured him in their land. Thus beginning the final chapter of this epic battle. The Cowboys and Indians both began building their defences, in an attempt to defend their land against the opposing group. The Cowboys began building guard towers, to foresee attacking Indians. The Indians began building Totem poles, a symbol of peace and security to ask the Gods for help and strength. The four brave warriors who captured the enemies leader, all ventured out to save their group member, while sending back pieces for the defence. As the epic battle wages on, who will build up their defences first and save their groups captive?

Example of how it will look

This is my first mock up of how my game will look on the Ipad. This is the character customizing screen, and this is the initial sketch.












And this is the mock up for how it will look on the Ipad. I went for quite a dark look to it, as it is a dark game, and this is the preset female character.

1000 word report

Introduction to Games studies

1000 word report

Possible questions

• Could games replace books as the conventional form of storytelling?

-Modern games as stories

• strong narratives
• narrative driven gameplay
• the opportunity to choose where the story goes

-New type of storytelling

• Different options and endings
• A chance to stray from the story and create a new one (Open worlds)
• Engaging and immersive way of bonding with fictional characters

-Stronger way of telling stories?

• A lot more immersive than a book, and much more individual. You make the choices.
• Has no set ending like books, players can diverge and create new and exciting ends.
• New media making books less prevalent?

-Look at Steven Johnson's, 'Everything bad is good for you' book.

-Discuss the use of games as stories, and how much the narrative influences people to buy specific games (eg. Fable, Mass Effect, The Elder Scrolls) or whether it is purely the gameplay (eg. COD)

Sketchbook Concepts

These are concepts I have been working on in my sketchbook.

This first page was just a brainstorm of objects stereo-typically associated with pirates. This gave me a feel for the art style I wanted to use, as well as helped me decide on the overall look of the game.

This is my concept of the first city, it is in snowy mountains. The working title is 'Silverline'. I decided to try some drawing over an image I took in Spain, and then editing this on Photoshop.
There is also some quick concepts of how I want the ships to look.

After my first environment drawing on Photoshop, I decided to concept things in the room, as well as the players hand and ring. The number VIIX, will be explained in the story.

This is the first character concept, and this is of the ships Captain; the players captor. He also has a number, as well as robotic limbs.

This is the storyboard for the first cut scene, where the player awakens in the cell, as their faithful companion comes to their rescue. This is when the first puzzle begins.

This is the first concept for the lock pick puzzle. This idea is where the player must move the Ipad up and down to move the pick in the lock, and when the screen shakes and a noise of a click is heard, they must press the button on the side. They must repeat this four times to successfully pick the lock. There is also a time limit of 30 seconds, put in place as the threat of the pirates coming down and finding out.

This is the concept of the companion. Half robot, half dog, with a cute head scarf round his neck. This dog is nameable by the player, and commandable .

Board Game Project Conclusion

After all the group effort, the project is finally complete, and in my opinion it has been a great success. We successfully found a niche in the market, and utilised each persons skills to create a beautiful and engaging game for our target audience. I was given the job of firstly testing the board game on my two cousins aged 7 and 10, to see how they reacted to it. From this I knew we were successful with our idea, because they loved it and wanted to play again. After this test, and really pushing our idea through criticism, we were each given our individual jobs. I relished in drawing the different animals for the enemy spaces, and did lots of different designs to get them perfect, which I also did for the reward card designs. I found my enemy squares designed themselves after I had the animal drawn, and I feel they came out perfectly, finding the balance between making them look ferocious but also child friendly. The reward cards also came out very well, with the R on the cards looking really good and I am really pleased with how they look. Altogether I feel that this project has progressed really well, and our finished product is something different and original that we can all be proud of.

More concepts...

Here is a concept I drew for the Ships Captain, the first NPC the player will meet. 

I decided to have parts of him robotic to give a futuristic feel, as well as instead of giving him a parrot, giving him a Crow. Crows tend to symbolize evil and darkness, which makes this man look evil. The number on his head also connotes that he is owned by someone, as is not incredibly important in the world as he is number 21. The numbers will be revealed in the story line, as well as the robotics.

First concept for Game

After some much need deliberation, and a tutorial with Kim, I decided some things about my idea. First of all, Kim recommended I have a look at 'The Count Of Monte Cristo' for a look at a dark storyline. She also said it would be best for me to develop my story first and foremost as it is the most important thing on a narrative driven game. I also had some new ideas, like the player will have some sort of companion, and that they will be able to manipulate objects around you. The players character has a unique power which makes them valuable in the story (which is why they have been captured) and this power gives them the opportunity to manipulate objects, such as locks and doors as well as other objects to aid you. The game will also be choice based, where the story unfolds differently in accordance to your choices. These choices will be through speech with NPCs or actions. I also decided to mix the story up a bit, and have pirates but in an unusual way. This will be revealed shortly, when I have some more artwork together. Here is the type of art style I will be using, and this is also my first concept for the beginning cutscene where the player awakens in a cell. This is the development:

Contextual Studies - Greg Costikyan Blog Task

Contextual Studies Blog task - I Have No Words & I Must Design


After having a thorough read of Greg Costikyans' ' Have No Words & I Must Design', I found some very interesting points. The first was his idea that 'saying “it has good gameplay” is about a good as saying “that's a good book”. Calling something “good” doesn't help is understand what's good about it, what pleasures it provides, and how to go about doing something else good.' (Page 9, line 9) This is one of the main reasons why I got into Media studies at A levels, as I wanted to go much deeper into a media text than just that it is good. If you are out to create a game or film or even an art piece a lot more is needed from feedback to really understand why the piece was created and how it makes the viewer feel. When creating a game, you need to know how the player is feeling while they are playing it as to gather whether your game is creating the reaction you wanted it to, and to also find out what was right about the game. This is why I enjoy the analysis of media texts as well as artwork as you can really get behind the thoughts and emotions of each piece and also analyse what makes it successful and why.

The second idea I found interesting was his discussion on SimCity and online MUDS and RPGS such as Ultima Online and Everquest. He notes that 'in both types of games, character improvement is a key concept; through play, your character can become more powerful, gaining hit points, skills, spells, equipment, whatever'. (Page 13, Line 24)This is one type of game structure that I find can be the most immersive. The idea of self improvement is one that we strive to do in our real lives, we try to be better than our friends at certain things, and life is a competition. Taking this into a game gives the game competition, keeping the player playing the game and even putting money into it to improve the virtual version of themselves. It also gives the player an opportunity to get completely lost in this virtual world, because as the character is another version of themselves, they feel connected to the game and the story and therefore continue to play. This is one concept which some games could have used to better their gameplay experiences, as games such as 'RAGE', do not give you the option for character customisation, and so you feel completely detached from the story.

Costikyan also claims that 'every so often, the politically correct attack games as being “competitive” and therefore bad. They have winners. They have losers. This is bad; we're supposed to nurture and support others. Why can't we have cooperative games?' (Page 14, Line 37) I completely agree with his argument against this; that games need struggle and competition, otherwise they aren't as enjoyable. The reason why we play games is to challenge ourselves and try to push our skills. Games without this struggle are much less popular, and tend to be very young children's games to encourage working together. However, life is a competition, and having games which encourage cooperation instead of trying to better yourself over others isn't teaching children what life is like, and how to succeed in life and work you have to be better than the competition. Some games do encourage cooperation, but still have elements of competition such as RPGs, where everyone is working towards the same goal, and therefore work together, although the competition of being better than others is still prevalent.

This idea of struggle is also one that is difficult for games designers to get right, as the player wants a challenge, but 'that isn't to say we want them too tough, either. We feel frustrated if, despite our best efforts, we wind up being slogged again and again'. (Page 17, Line 15) This is something I have experienced in games, and this can be the downfall of them in popularity. I found that the 'Final Fantasy' series, VII and XIII in particular, I never completed, as they were far too difficult. You could get totally engrossed in the story and continue playing but because of the turn based combat system, I found that if I couldn't defeat a boss, I would never defeat it. This made such a good game be left in the shelf forever more, just because I was stuck on a certain boss battle. This happened especially with 'Final Fantasy XIII', as the game was beautiful, and the story was engrossing, but once I got stuck on a boss I never completed the game and ended up trading it in. This made such a good game go down in my opinion of it, just because it didn't have different difficulty settings.

Costikyan also quotes Eric Zimmerman, that 'Games are structures of desire'. (Page 17, Line 29) I think this is quite a good way of describing games, as we play games to fill a desire. We play them to escape into another reality, and we have the desire to complete the game and all the goals set for us. But is desire the right word to use? Desire is quite a strong word, and has strong meaning. Desire connotes passion and lust, and as Costikyan explains 'it makes games sound like a whorehouse'. However, we do desire to play and complete games, and the goal becomes important to us, so technically desire could be said to describe the emotion behind games correctly.

One point that Costikyan makes which I have experienced, is that 'a small change in structure breeds a big change in player behaviour'.(Page 20, Line 19) He compares 'Ultima online' to 'Everquest', where in Ultima online you can kill and loot other players, and in Everquest you can't, and players are more likely to work together. He found that in Ultima online, everyone was against each other, whereas in Everquest, 'players frequently stop to help each other out, strike up conversations with random passers-by and in general behave with a degree of social solidarity'. This is something I have experienced in the 'Red Dead Redemption' multiplayer. In the normal mode, after respawn you would immediately be shot at again, and you were constantly on the run from posses of ruthless idiots. Whereas in the friendly mode, players are much more helpful to one another and posses would leave each other alone and do their own thing.

'Games are fantasy.' (Page 23, Line 35) This section also drew my eye, as I was once asked whether games should look totally realistic. But as Costikyan states, games aren't real, 'and the fact that they aren't real is part of the point.' People want realism, but not to the point that it no longer becomes fantasy. If a game is too real, the fantasy of it all is lost and we cannot lose ourselves in something that is too much like reality as it is boring. However there is an extent to how much this is right, as games such as 'The Sims' are made to mimic real life, but the opportunity is there is change things and have fun with it.

Another quote that I strongly agree with is that 'you can learn more about the Roman Military, its changes over the course of the Late Republic and the Empire, and the nature of internal conflict in the Empire, by studying Nofi's game (Imperium Romanum II) than from any six books on the subject'. (Page 24, Line 19) This is something that I have experienced, with games such as Assassins Creed. I managed to learn some Italian from just playing it, and I also learned about how Rome and other places at this time looked and worked. I find this can be a very good way to learn history, as you can really experience things and lose yourself in another time in history and become totally engrossed in it.

'Good visuals provide one form of sensory pleasure; we like pretty games. Audio is important'. (Page 26, Line 30) This quote is also something I feel is an important part of games. I find the visuals have to be good, otherwise there is no possibility of getting engrossed entirely in it. The game has to be nice to look at, otherwise people won't want to look at it, and they won't play it. I also strongly agree that audio is very important in games as to set the mood of the story. 'Alan Wake', uses its music perfectly to create tension in the player, and this makes us feel like we are a character in a film, and the tension is building to something bad that is going to happen. Without good audio, the atmosphere that the game designers want to create is lost.

The final quote that interested me was 'the question of whether or not games are, or should be, or should not be story telling engines is a contentious one - there are those who maintain that every game requires a story, and those that claim that game and story are in direct opposition, and those who say that story is a useful element in some, but not all games.' (Page 27, Line 38) In my opinion, all games have some sort of story, whether it is one that is given to you, or it is one that the player creates themselves out of the game. Even games such as 'Angry Birds' have a narrative in there, it just isn't as present as in games such as 'Fable' or 'Portal'. The story behind the game gives it meaning, and gives the player a reason to continue. Stories can be excellent tools to draw in a player, with games such as 'Alan Wake' relying totally on the story, and having add ons so the player can continue the narrative. These types of games can be totally immersive, just like a good film with the player gaining an attachment to the character and wanting to continue the story. 

Mini Brief and Research

 After getting feedback from a few friends, I decided the best idea which was the most original and unique was the 3D Puzzle RPG, pirate themed. We were set the task to create a min brief on our game, and I mocked together this presentation:

'Ghost Ship' is currently a working title, but the presentation went well and it seemed like it was well received. After listening to the other presentations, I also noted that everyone whose presentation I saw, were not having a narrative driven game, as most were focusing on either social based (linked to social media, competing with your friends) or gameplay based (like angry birds, no strong narrative, quick game you play when you are bored). This made me think deeply about my idea, and I feel it can be done well, if I have a strong enough narrative to draw in the player. Narrative based games are successful, such as Machinarium,(http://www.pocketgamer.co.uk/) a cute point and click game based on the story of a little robot. The game has no speech at all, and completely relies on the characters expressions to create comedy, but the player is drawn into the story of this little robot as he loves his girlfriend and the city is dangerous for him. The creators have used emotion to create an attachment to the robot and the player.

Image found here

Drawn, (http://www.bigfishgames.com/) is also a successful point and click game that relies on its strong narrative for the player to continue playing. The story focuses on the player entering a house, and finding out there is a little girl in danger. You have to make your way through the house, solving puzzles to finish the game. The beautiful art and story in this game draw in the player, and the idea of a small girl in peril gives emotion to the game. 

Image found here

From my research of apps with strong narratives driving the game, it is apparent that they also have beautiful artwork and environments, keeping the playing feeling the realism of the game. It is also apparent that the stories contain peril in some way, and use strong emotions such as fear to keep the player engaged. I also decided to look at the pirate games on the app store, and found these two in the top 100 free apps in APPS magazine.

I will be doing a lot more research into these games, as well as the other pirate based games on the market, as well as playing narrative driven games, and also studying pirate games on the Android market. This is also my first concept of a pirate ship, which I mocked together for my presentation. It is a 'ghost ship' with torn sails and dead bodies, to give an element of fear to the concept.