Games Development - Game Design Document (Task 1)
25/9/2024 - 20/10/2024 (Week 1- Week 4)
Katelyn Tan Kye Ling (0354148)
Bachelor
Of Design In Creative Media (Games Development)
Task 1 - Game Design Document
LECTURES
Week 1 - Game Design Introduction (25/9/24)
At the start of this class, Mr. Razif started of by sharing with us the MIB of
this module. He mentioned that this module would only have one project, which
is to develop a 2D fully working computer game, but broken down into a few
tasks during entire semester. Then, Mr. Razif proceeded to show us some past
students' work and it really wowed me what the students had created.
Following that, we were introduced our first exercise which was to do critical
reviews on games. We were given permission to play with the games with the
provided link and jot down comments on it. After some time of exploring the
games, we jumped into our first lecture of the module.
INSTRUCTIONS
What we learnt in lecture 1:
- Game design: The process of designing the content and rules of a
game.
- Elements of a story: Includes an exposition, conflict, climax &
resolution.
- Elements of a Gameplay: Includes challenge, strategy, chance,
choice & luck.
Week 2 - Game Ideation (2/10/24)
We started off with a really short and brief lecture. Then Mr. Razif let us
try to play some classic games (Fig).
Fig 1.1 - Classic games we played in class.
After that we had a group activity where we were placed into groups for a
group activity and were instructed to use the "SCAMPER" method to create a
game. Our group came up with a game called "On The Way" that was inspired
by temple run, subway surfers & minion run.
Click
here
for more information about the game.
What we learnt in lecture 2:
Brainstorming: Might be difficult for introverts, final idea can
later be picked by voting.
Brainstorming 3-6-5: A chained brainstorming method. Each person starts with a piece of paper. They write 3 ideas on it,
then pass it to the next person.
Scamper: Substitute > combine > adapt > modify > put
to another use > eliminate > reverse
3(i): Condensed version of scamper.
- Incorporate/Include
- Improve
- Inverse/Invert
Week 3 - Game Development Chapter 1 (9/10/24)
In this week's class, Mr. Razif started with a 2D game tutorial on
Unity. We learnt how to create shapes in Unity and how we can add
collision and mass to an object. Then we were given an in class exercise
to make a catapult using different shapes and adding the "Rigid body 2D"
and "Box collision 2D" components. It was something similar to the angry
birds game. Here is my work for the 2D exercise:
(Slight delay at the start of the video)
Next we learnt how to do a 3D game. Mr. Razif gave us a pre-designed
background which is the road and also vehicles and obstacles. This game
was simple, we were taught how to make the car move back and forth and
turn left and right and hit the obstacles. We also learnt how to move
the AR camera's position so we can determine the view when playing the
game. I think the most confusing part or hardest to remember was the
coding part, but thanks to Mr. Razif's ppt we could refer to it. Here is
my work for the 3D exercise:
(Slight delay at the start of the video)
Week 4 - Game Development Chapter 2 (16/9/24)
During this week we continued learning about unity. We learnt how to make an object shoot something which is called a projector. We also learnt how to make an object get destroyed when it exits a certain boundary and also an inbound where objects cannot cross a border.
INSTRUCTIONS
Exercise 1 - Critical Review
Instruction: We were to pick a game from
this link and
review it, stating what are the things we like or dislike about the game in
detail.
GAME: Conjure
For this exercise, I decided to play the game "Conjure". The title of it
suggests that the game is regarding witches and magic which was definitely the
feel it gave when playing the game. This game was about you, the neighbourhood
witch, to keep the town safe from the appearance of many creatures and
monsters.
There were a few things I admired about this game. I was really fond of the
graphics in the game, they were simple yet brought out each of the character
and even the surroundings. The fonts were legible and fitted the theme well.
Also the animations of objects were done really well and also the sound
effects were really cute. Moreover the audio chosen for each stage helped a
lot to set the mood for different places. The storyline was simple which was
to save the neighbours.
However, I felt like the game keys were placed weirdly and inconveniently (Fig
2.1). Also, there was a glitch is the first stage where I accidentally hit
into a ghost 3 times and it brought me straight to the 3rd stage. The words in
the second stage was cut off, so you couldn't read the words and get the story
(Fig 2.2). There also was a bug in the second stage, when you go beyond the
map there isn't a blockage to it, you just drop outside of the world and stay
stuck there. Which leads you to have to restart the whole entire game. Then in
the 3rd stage, I kept dying and it was really hard to figure out how to pass
that stage as there was no clue or instructions at all. I couldn't see the
entire monster so I just kept attacking it but I wasn't sure if I was doing
the right thing (Fig 2.3). Eventually I quit the game out of frustration. The
next day, I decided to try again and noticed that when I attack there was
blood animations coming out of the monster, and that was when I decided to
attack it longer and eventually completed the game (Fig 2.4).
Overall, I think that this game is simple to understand as there was a
storyline right at the start of the game so players know what to do. I find
the art and graphics of this game to my liking. However there were a few bugs
and glitches that needed to be fixed so that the game can be more playable.
And also to suggest some improvements, I believe that the game keys could be
switched so the fingers won't be in such an awkward position. Also, I think
the monsters in the game pop up too suddenly which causes the player to loose
hearts very quickly. Lastly, I also suggest that the final stage monster could
have a health bar to show that attacking it is the right thing to do.
Fig 2.1 Game keys
Fig 2.2 Conversation cut off
Fig 2.3 No instructions & could only see bottom of monster
Fig 2.4 Completed the game
IDEATION
I created all my ideas in a canva slide so that it's much
more fun and easy to organise.
I usually watch gamers play horror games like the youtuber
Markiplier (Fig 3.1) and I really like the thrill factor of it so all of my game ideations were horror/thriller themed. I decided
to make the games very story based, for example idea #2 is more of
a one off game, where you know the plot twist once then it isn't
very replayable.
Fig 3.1 Markiplier
I wanted my games to have a lot of horror elements so players feel
more intense when they play the game, so most of the games are in
typical horror movie settings like a forest or school. I also want
to try to add jump scares if possible to do. I thought about all
of the story ideas myself, but idea 2 was inspired by the game
called "my eyes deceive".
Out of all the games, I prefer the first and second one. The third
one seemed very normal.
Feedback from Mr. Razif:
-Idea 1:
- Will be good if
graphic is nice.
- 50% 50% of both
story and exploration.
- It's like a
detective game, more mysterious.
- Idea 2:
- Very story based
game.
- A bit slow paced
because only towards the end it gets exciting.
-Idea 3:
- A bit of a
weaker plot compared to idea 1 & 2.
Overall:
- Can maybe combine idea 1 & 2.
FINAL SUBMISSION
Canva Slides
Video Presentation
REFLECTION
Experience
Honestly, the first few weeks on this module was so fun! I learnt so much about games and that there is so much more to it. Creating a game isn't that simple and take skills and time to brainstorm the ideas. I really enjoyed the in class activities and also how we got to explore different games. Learning Unity was a slight challenge. There were many codes and jargons that I heard for the first time and took time for me to understand. And actually I'm currently still not fully familiar, but this is only week 4. I really hope I enjoy the rest of the semester creating my game and that it succeeds.
Observation
Through various in-class activities, I made several observations. I observed that creating even the most simplest games take time and effort. When learning how to create a mini game in tutorial classes, it took us a few hours to not even create a full game. In Week 2, we experimented with classic games and brainstormed ideas using the SCAMPER method. This group activity sparked collaboration, allowing us to merge different perspectives.
Through various in-class activities, I made several observations. I observed that creating even the most simplest games take time and effort. When learning how to create a mini game in tutorial classes, it took us a few hours to not even create a full game. In Week 2, we experimented with classic games and brainstormed ideas using the SCAMPER method. This group activity sparked collaboration, allowing us to merge different perspectives.
Findings
I find myself appreciating game developers more I've said this many times but it seriously takes lots of time to develop a game. We took 4 weeks to just come up with 3 ideations that are very surface. My findings through the weeks have given me a deeper understanding of game development. From learning Unity’s 2D and 3D environments to coding and object manipulation, I discovered the complexities of creating interactive experiences. For example, working on a catapult game in Unity exposed me to how physics-based components like collision and mass can shape gameplay. I also found coding to be the trickiest part.
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