Monday, December 28, 2009
I've found this really intersting article about design a game know as Pulsus read it if you are interested in knowing how games are made.
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
From "Chris Avellone Blog" (Creative Director (and Lead Designer on our Alpha Protocol CIA RPG) here at Obsidian Entertainment.)
"
ONE FINAL QUESTION. Do you have some tips and tricks to new game designers (people who already are one)? What "traps" they should avoid and what do you want them to focus on?
Document all you can in case you're hit by a bus but don't make them so exhaustive that no one ever reads them - keep it to bulletpoints, streamline it, use mock-ups, and if a particular design runs more than 3 pages, consider fragmenting it into its own document to ease reading. Details matter. Learn scripting, make attempts to understand the tools and pipelines of other departments. Don't just play other games to get ideas - read books, graphic novels, history, non-fiction, and expose yourself to a variety of media to round out your design ideas. Learn to recognize design clichés. Play with game tools and game editors across all genres. Resist the urge to re-design the wheel - if the wheel works well, just use it and then build new content on top of it (this especially applies to genre-specific interfaces). Prioritize your work and recognize that it's unlikely that everything you design will get into the game, so be considerate and manage your scope. Ask for critiques of your work frequently and often if you're not already getting it. The sooner you can play a design, the better, so learn to prototype (it doesn't matter what engine you do it in, if you do it in Flash, or whatever). This could go on forever, but that's the short of it.
"
and
"
b) Also, what makes a good character?
Consistent, believable motivation and a believable personal agenda. A tie to the game's theme either to reinforce it or as a sounding board for exploring a different perspective on the game theme. An emotional tie to the player (either hate, envy, love, friendship, respect) and reacts appropriately to the player character's actions. Proper casting of a voice actor or, if text only, insuring that the right writer is assigned to developing that character because they understand it (some narrative designers can't write sociopaths, do reverse gender romances, or commit to doing a goodie-two-shoes character). For a computer game, I feel it's also essential that the player understand the purpose of the character and that the character fulfills that role in the game mechanics and the world (for example, companions in F2 needed to be an asset in and out of combat, which I learned in Fallout 2 - Cassidy was much more valuable and appreciated than Myron).
"
This man help to do Torment, Kotor2 and now it's working on Alpha Protocol: there something else to say?
"
ONE FINAL QUESTION. Do you have some tips and tricks to new game designers (people who already are one)? What "traps" they should avoid and what do you want them to focus on?
Document all you can in case you're hit by a bus but don't make them so exhaustive that no one ever reads them - keep it to bulletpoints, streamline it, use mock-ups, and if a particular design runs more than 3 pages, consider fragmenting it into its own document to ease reading. Details matter. Learn scripting, make attempts to understand the tools and pipelines of other departments. Don't just play other games to get ideas - read books, graphic novels, history, non-fiction, and expose yourself to a variety of media to round out your design ideas. Learn to recognize design clichés. Play with game tools and game editors across all genres. Resist the urge to re-design the wheel - if the wheel works well, just use it and then build new content on top of it (this especially applies to genre-specific interfaces). Prioritize your work and recognize that it's unlikely that everything you design will get into the game, so be considerate and manage your scope. Ask for critiques of your work frequently and often if you're not already getting it. The sooner you can play a design, the better, so learn to prototype (it doesn't matter what engine you do it in, if you do it in Flash, or whatever). This could go on forever, but that's the short of it.
"
and
"
b) Also, what makes a good character?
Consistent, believable motivation and a believable personal agenda. A tie to the game's theme either to reinforce it or as a sounding board for exploring a different perspective on the game theme. An emotional tie to the player (either hate, envy, love, friendship, respect) and reacts appropriately to the player character's actions. Proper casting of a voice actor or, if text only, insuring that the right writer is assigned to developing that character because they understand it (some narrative designers can't write sociopaths, do reverse gender romances, or commit to doing a goodie-two-shoes character). For a computer game, I feel it's also essential that the player understand the purpose of the character and that the character fulfills that role in the game mechanics and the world (for example, companions in F2 needed to be an asset in and out of combat, which I learned in Fallout 2 - Cassidy was much more valuable and appreciated than Myron).
"
This man help to do Torment, Kotor2 and now it's working on Alpha Protocol: there something else to say?
Monday, December 21, 2009
In these days i'm playing with Risen and i'm thinking: how much help player during his play?
After a error, a npc attack me and i killed it: not so surprising in this kind of game.
When i see on his objects i've found a "Don Esteban's mother pendant" (Don Esteban is an important npc): i went to Don Esteban and a new dialog option is showed to me, with a +150xp.
Good thing, rewarding and surprising, because there wasn't no quest in quest log and no mention to this lost pendant.
How much to you feel with these surprising, little thing in games?
After a error, a npc attack me and i killed it: not so surprising in this kind of game.
When i see on his objects i've found a "Don Esteban's mother pendant" (Don Esteban is an important npc): i went to Don Esteban and a new dialog option is showed to me, with a +150xp.
Good thing, rewarding and surprising, because there wasn't no quest in quest log and no mention to this lost pendant.
How much to you feel with these surprising, little thing in games?
Friday, December 18, 2009
Dragon Age is a really incredible good game, nearly perfect, indeed.
Only today i've found Dragon Age: Journey a game where you can unlock particular object for your Dragon Age: Origin game.
This idea is really intersting: give to player some little/easy game to do online, maybe at work, that can unlock some feature to your game at home.
Or maybe divide your game into small games with different feature/ideas that unlock content/power/object/whateveryouwant.
What do you think about?
Only today i've found Dragon Age: Journey a game where you can unlock particular object for your Dragon Age: Origin game.
This idea is really intersting: give to player some little/easy game to do online, maybe at work, that can unlock some feature to your game at home.
Or maybe divide your game into small games with different feature/ideas that unlock content/power/object/whateveryouwant.
What do you think about?
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Exploring mind42 site, i've found how to insert mindmaps into blog, here current mind map:
Use mouse to move, wheel (or zoom in/out toolbar) to zoom in/out, explore notes to understand: suggestions are welcome!
Use mouse to move, wheel (or zoom in/out toolbar) to zoom in/out, explore notes to understand: suggestions are welcome!
(you can read other parts: part1 - part2)
To design a decent quest system i see another games quest systems: often bests are rpg, but is not always true.
Main inspiration are great classics: Planetscape Torment, Baldur's Gate, etc.. but also Risen, FallOut3, Dragon Age: Origins, Mass Effect, Elder Scrolls: Oblivion and even Crysis, Crysis: warhead, Far Cry 2, Depth of Peril, Din's Quest, Geneforge, Warcraft3 and event Starcraft
All these games have one thing in common: they have quests.
But how there are organized? Are these quest system enogh deep for players and easy to understand and mantaing? I really don't know: i'm not a developer of any of this games, but i've played all of them a lot. Indeed, i'm playing some of these games even now (Risen).
Main quest systems aim to give all information to complete the quest to player (presentation problem), some give you coordinates for quest systems (localize problem) other give you idea of consequences of quests (consequence problem).
So after thinking some times about quest systems, there are tree problems to design a quest system:
- Presentation problem: how to show the quest to the player? using a npc? using a book? using just indication on screen?
- Localize problem: how player will find all the element to solve the quest? Using a radar map? Or with no sign?
- Consequence problem: what type of feedback system give to player?
Reading this three problems i can see a common factor: player. This is good, because quest system is for a videogame and player is the "first" actor of this kind of system.
In this enlighten post on developing Din's Curse, author wrote something really important in this topic:
"Like I said, the quests are very web like. There are many different things that lead to each quest and many possible other quests it can start."
Yes, great quest systems is a web (not only in Din's Quest, that i'm waiting to see in action), a web where when a spider move on a side, cause some moving in other part of a web. A web that is multi-dimensional: npc and factions relationships, objects, places and even codex (like codex in Dragon Age).
What do you think about?
To design a decent quest system i see another games quest systems: often bests are rpg, but is not always true.
Main inspiration are great classics: Planetscape Torment, Baldur's Gate, etc.. but also Risen, FallOut3, Dragon Age: Origins, Mass Effect, Elder Scrolls: Oblivion and even Crysis, Crysis: warhead, Far Cry 2, Depth of Peril, Din's Quest, Geneforge, Warcraft3 and event Starcraft
All these games have one thing in common: they have quests.
But how there are organized? Are these quest system enogh deep for players and easy to understand and mantaing? I really don't know: i'm not a developer of any of this games, but i've played all of them a lot. Indeed, i'm playing some of these games even now (Risen).
Main quest systems aim to give all information to complete the quest to player (presentation problem), some give you coordinates for quest systems (localize problem) other give you idea of consequences of quests (consequence problem).
So after thinking some times about quest systems, there are tree problems to design a quest system:
- Presentation problem: how to show the quest to the player? using a npc? using a book? using just indication on screen?
- Localize problem: how player will find all the element to solve the quest? Using a radar map? Or with no sign?
- Consequence problem: what type of feedback system give to player?
Reading this three problems i can see a common factor: player. This is good, because quest system is for a videogame and player is the "first" actor of this kind of system.
In this enlighten post on developing Din's Curse, author wrote something really important in this topic:
"Like I said, the quests are very web like. There are many different things that lead to each quest and many possible other quests it can start."
Yes, great quest systems is a web (not only in Din's Quest, that i'm waiting to see in action), a web where when a spider move on a side, cause some moving in other part of a web. A web that is multi-dimensional: npc and factions relationships, objects, places and even codex (like codex in Dragon Age).
What do you think about?
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Main idea is to open a collaborative-platformer-design to everyone wants to partecipate. After some toughts (and great comments by Giovanni, thanks a lot!), i'll start this collaborative effort.
Using Mind42, a powerful mindmap editor (i'll open editing to everyone wants to partecipate) i'll try to design a platformer.. with YOUR help :D
So let's start, this is first version:
If you want to partecipate, please let me know an email, so i can give you an invitation!
Using Mind42, a powerful mindmap editor (i'll open editing to everyone wants to partecipate) i'll try to design a platformer.. with YOUR help :D
So let's start, this is first version:
If you want to partecipate, please let me know an email, so i can give you an invitation!
Friday, December 11, 2009
Do you remember my TonyPa Platformer Experiment?
In these days i've finally found a way to do it in a decente way: strange things in Java, x Velocity wasn't setted to 0 when jump is updating. After many runs i've set it to 0 manually and now all works well.
With Alex yesterday i've a talk about platformer genre and what we can do. He have an impressive demo with Flash+Box2d, with cooperative attempt.
Someone have suggestion about platformer: what do you want?
Games like Super Mario, Sonic, Metroid, Knytt or what else?
In these days i've finally found a way to do it in a decente way: strange things in Java, x Velocity wasn't setted to 0 when jump is updating. After many runs i've set it to 0 manually and now all works well.
With Alex yesterday i've a talk about platformer genre and what we can do. He have an impressive demo with Flash+Box2d, with cooperative attempt.
Someone have suggestion about platformer: what do you want?
Games like Super Mario, Sonic, Metroid, Knytt or what else?
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