Paper Prototype update

I was unable to generate the paper prototype by last Friday, as I'd desired. While I was reflecting on my past design as well as the lessons I'd accrued from the excellent game design class I am taking, I felt a sense of dissatisfaction where there had once been pride, for the overt complexity of the blueprint I'd self-indulgently scrawled out. I was a fledgling whose sudden crude grasp of a few game design fundamentals led her to an eager regurgitation of all the game tropes and concepts she was vaguely familiar with. But the depth of insight that a master holds, that allows a master to choose sparingly the best elements to encapsulate a potent vision, was not there. And now that my understanding of games has deepened, I see that mastery lies in simplicity, and in the mastery of game design, in the integrity of a core mechanic that not only communicates the core values the designer wishes to convey but is able to consistently communicate those values throughout multiple playtest scenarios.

I aim on stripping down the current mechanics. I had wanted to find a way to make the game analogue, so that technology would not need to play a factor. I plan on finding a very simple core mechanic that will express the values of communication, cultural differences and intercultural diplomacy and collaboration. I am thinking of taking the language/gesture component of the original design as well as the prophecy card, and then making the game a more charades-inspired affair.

I also really need to try playing the board game Diplomacy. From what I have read of the game, it seems to be a bit on the complicated side, but I still would like to try it out. I may also hold a session where I play games like Charades or Babel build (if I manage to find the materials) with friends.

One major reason my original design had ended up so complicated was because I had a very specific idea on how communication worked. There were particular tenets of culture, of language and of miscommunication that I stubbornly wanted to convey in its fullest sense, and so in my short-sighted desire to express my personal beliefs I got in the way of the game's accessibility. I instead wish to design the game so that it is easy to pick up easily while still providing a skeletal framework through which players can explore and formulate their own opinions and ideas regarding these tenets. I hope the game will spark discussion, rather than serve as a mouthpiece for a single author's ideas.

I also wish to take my adviser's idea and generate the prototype for this analogue game via iPad/some other electronic platform. I aim on creating a rough paper variant to share for this Friday's meeting, since generating that is faster, but the electronic version (despite its longer setup time) will allow me to iterate faster and play around with fine-tuning more detailed aspects of the game, like language modules. It will also make generation of the digital alpha version far more easier later on.

One thing that has persistently frustrated me is a personal lack of familiarity with generating networked games. It is a serious handicap that has severely limited the kinds of games I'm able to make. I also aim on finding some tutorial on networking for Unity and finishing that as well.

Fall Plans

It's been a while since I've touched this blog. I've made a few very rough pencil sketches and tried playing around with different lens filters, but have not made any real substantial progress on my Conflict game idea. I'm a bit swamped at the moment, but I believe I can uphold a commitment to make weekly updates to this blog!

I guess for now I'll share my plans for the fall. I plan on having two playtesting sessions for the two games I plan on making, a board game and a digital alpha based on my interest on communication and diplomacy.

The two sessions are:
Board Game Playtest Session: October 30-31
Digital Alpha Playtest Session: December 11-12

Below is a calendar charting what part of the development process I'll be involved in when I check in, either through this blog (on Tuesdays) or at my advisor meetings
on Friday.

For this week I plan on generating a very simple crude paper mockup of the Conflict game idea I'd worked out. I am also going to do more research regarding lenses and color filters, and then post about that next week. Next week's post will be a bit more meaty, I promise, with photos and pictures and unwanted rambling-ons of minute gameplay details.

Update and Summer Plans

I don't have a playable set ready to really share photos of or playtest, but I suppose a short update on just a few of the things I have on hand at the moment wouldn't hurt.

So I went ahead and ordered those old red-cyan anaglyphic 3D glasses, since they're supposed to, in theory, block out one color and let in the other. They were... a little better than the regular PVC filter sheets I tested out some time ago. Sadly the cyan color used in the 3D images is so light that it very barely shows up through the red lens. The cyan PVC materials are also not particularly good at masking out other colors. In fact, it isn't particularly good at masking out its own color which is... a bit sad. There are other options besides the classic red-cyan glasses, though. There is an amber-green option, for example, which may also work out better in an aesthetic sense, as the game is supposed to have more of a primitive tribal aesthetic. Now that I think about it, just research on materials and means of light filtration is a good idea. I don't know why that didn't occur to me until now.

I plan on making a digital prototype for now. I really would like to make an analogue version that makes use of lenses though, because that is freaking cool. The digital prototype should be easy to make, I'll have something up 2 weeks from now. I'll be using the Phaser.io framework on top of html, since I've tested it out and it's reaaallly easy to work with.

At the moment I want to have an analogue variant done and ready to playtest by the end of the summer. I also want to make the multiplayer variant. At this moment in time the two are basically separate games, just linked with a similar premise and affected in its design by the affordances of its platform.

I won't have much to show next week, but I plan on posting some concept art regarding more insect and plant people for the multiplayer variant. For the MMO I want to slowly build up the requisite skills needed to set up the game. So regarding that front I'd mostly be posting artwork, 3D models and updates on any tutorials on networking I've decided to try out.

Also, I really need to start posting regarding literature that is affecting my design decisions. I won't be able to get around to it immediately, but I really do want to make it a regular thing. Perhaps next week, since I'm only posting artwork, I'll say something about some old obscure game I find interesting.

Suspect Game Identified, plus filter tests

Oh man, I thought the post scheduler would work and never checked to see if this post posted. Well, here it is at any rate! This is a post that should have posted about a month ago. As for my current progress on the game, I have decided to change the very broad generic category of 'Animals' to just 'Bugs.' Making it a game of Plant people and Bug people. I thought this would be more apt, as the relationship between bug and plants harbor both supportive and destructive aspects. I shall cover more on that once I have new concept art of Bug people up. 

I scoped about online and finally identified the board game that I got the colored filters idea from. The game is Clue Jr.: The Case of the Missing Pet. The original rulesheet for the board game can be found online. I apparently did not play the game correctly when I was little. Have a link: www.hasbro.com/common/instruct/cluejr-pet.pdf

The game is basically an identification game, where randomly drawn variables at the start of the game match the configuration for the location, item of theft and robber that make up the mystery. There is also a forced element of competition. Players must not share their discoveries with one another and rather attempt to try and be the first one to figure out the three components of the mystery first.

The filters, in this case then, act as something that divides all the individuals and holds an element of selfishness. When a player lands on a board square that grants them use of their magnifying lens (the red colored filter), they then proceed to use it on a clue space without letting anyone else peek.

Here you can see the lens in action. It removes the mottling, allowing its single owner to peek at a clue.

The obfuscation the mottled design the clue is embedded in becomes a way to place all players on equal ground at the beginning. The knowledge that the lens provides its owner then becomes a way that places the player above others. Knowledge then becomes currency that generates a stratified ranking amongst the players, a stratification that banks on the old familiar mechanic of competition and a single winner. Here the mottled design is indicative of a base level of ignorance, of an ignorance that those that do not have the privilege of the red lens cannot overcome. One must chance upon the right to use the lens to glimpse a bit of the truth.

In my appropriation of this mechanic the mottled design becomes indicative instead of the blind spots that a culture may have when reflecting upon themselves, on the importance of others who can see through different lens to have a more complete picture of themselves. The lens of others with another perspective can shed light to aspects they would not have identified otherwise. They are a source of clarity; the lens becomes not a selfish means of accumulating a currency of knowledge, but rather a means of empowering the other team in an act of altruism. The lens becomes a more pivotal part of the game because of the way they connect the two teams; without the crossing of lens the game cannot be won.

Going back to Clue Jr., a very simple change that would make better use of the lens and remove what I feel to be an unnecessary competitive element would be to place all players on a single team, then utilize some kind of countdown that represents the suspect. There would be a limited number of turns that the players could take before the culprit in essence 'escapes' successfully. The players could work together to figure out the culprit within the allotted number of turns, strategically combining the information they glean together. There is also an opportunity for a challenge: players could try and see the minimal number of turns they need to take to solve the mystery. The game becomes redirected towards busting the guilty member, rather than on one-upping one another.

At the moment I am looking at different filters and on ways to recreate the clever mottled pattern mechanic the game implements. I have a blue filter that works very well in removing traces of cyan. I'm still having trouble finding a red filter. At the end of the post you can see two: one does not remove red at all: the other not only removes red, but obfuscates all colors altogether. I also have different colors such as yellow and green, so I may experiment with that as well.

Clue Jr. also has its filters applied to real magnifying lens, so that the clues can be further hidden within the mottled pattern. I will probably apply a cheap magnifying lens I've bought at the dollar store to the filters that work best with mottling.

3D anaglyph images have been helpful in testing filters, and further research into anaglyph images (the red-blue 3D images we're familiar with) should help me figure out what filters work best for colors in addition to the standard red and blue.

Various lenses I am trying out.

A 3D anaglyph image for testing

The blue lens works great! All you can see are strips are red amongst a black-and-white image.

The blue lens's red counterpart unfortunately don't work as well. Red is not masked properly.

The red PVC filter I have works too well, blocking out ALL colors quite effectively.

The game in Card form, and concept art!

I've sat down and generated a board variant of the game that centers on issues of communication and understanding that arise when two different cultures collide. Two teams are involved (to represent the two cultures) and the main goal is to somehow warn and help the other team deal with some particular prophecy.

The pacing will be faster than in the digital multiplayer variant I want to eventually build, so the degree of loyalty and investment in one's own culture and its rituals is an aspect that will not be present in as nuanced or deep a fashion as I'd like. Suspicion and biases are also an element that will not be as present, since players will know from the get go that communication with the other team is the primary goal. Nevertheless the board game will shed some light on the challenges that two cultures ultimately face when they interact with one another.


Prophecy Cards

One particular feature I'll be borrowing from a junior version of board game Clue I used to play are colored filters that reveal words in an otherwise mottled card:

The cards were mottled with the same color as the filter. When the filter was held against the card they would be able to read the name of the true suspect of the current mystery. I thought that I could mottle the Prophecy card with both blue and red. One team would see through the blue lens, and the other team the red lens. Ironically when the blue lens is held against the card, the team cannot read their own prophecy, because only the red ink is visible with the blue lens. They are instead able to read the prophecy of the red team and then utilize their resources to warn the red team of their impending fate, while hoping the red team will be able to impart information on how to avoid their own undesirable fate. (The crude sketch below should give an idea of what I mean.)

Prophecies consist not only of the name of the event (such as famine, disease, a natural disaster, apocalypse). They consist of three symptoms, an exasperator (a move type that worsens the affliction or makes it approach faster), and a solution. The numbers of the cards that make up the prophesied event will be listed below the event's name.

By drawing the cards listed from the appropriate deck, both teams can then fill out their prophecy boards. As a side note, there are 2 sets per deck, to make sure both teams can fill out their boards appropriately.

Language Cards

In addition to the prophecy boards are language boards. The boards consist of a section to construct the team's 'language' and another duplicate section to figure out the other team's language over the course of the game. For their own language section of the board they draw a starting hand of 7 language cards and 7 gesture cards. They would then pair the two hands together on the board. On the blank right side of the board they would keep track of what they believe the elements of the other team's language consists of.

the Game

Winning Condition:
Once the two boards are set up, teams then proceed to play through as long as it takes for both teams to survive and solve their prophecies. Should both teams solve their prophecies both teams win. If one team loses all its members the game is over.


Turns
Each 'day' consists of each team running through the symptom cards followed by five free turns that alternate between the two teams.

Symptoms
A team must first run through the instructions on the symptom cards. If a symptom card lists an impending doom, they must keep track of the number of days falling away. If a symptom card deems that on the roll of an even number a member of the team must die, then a team member must play dead.

Free Play
During the five free turns members may either choose to attempt to communicate with the other team, perform an action that may hopefully solve the prophecy, attempt to draw a new language/gesture pair to grow their language or draw a ritual card.

Communication
When communicating with the other team, members are not allowed to use words. They may either attempt to utilize what they believe consist of the other team's gestures, or attempt to communicate using their own team's language gestures. They are free to utilize universal gestures such as pointing at things or shaking their head, but must be aware that those very gestures may be mapped to some other meaning on the other team's language board. Communications are timed with an hourglass. Members are also free to stage 'conversations' in their own language; this may help the other team decipher the current team's language more clearly. Using a turn to draw a language/gesture pair can help expand one's repertoire of available gestures which may aid in communication events.

Rituals
Ritual cards hold actions that may either fulfill parts of the conditions for the solution or for the exasperator card of the prophecy. If all the conditions for the solution card are fulfilled, the other team may then provide the solution and exasperator card to the current team and that team is considered saved. If conditions for the exasperator are fulfilled instead, then the other team signals its fulfillment and the current team must then play through a symptom card again.


There are a lot of decks involved in the game, but since the cards for the prophesy board are pretty much fixed I don't think it will be too confusing. The main decks used in the game are the ritual, language and gesture cards, and since most of the game will revolve around attempts at communication, cards should not factor too heavily in the game. In the end I am hoping the game will come across as a more structured and collaborative form of charades with a bit of a goofy streak. I dunno, I guess I would call the board variant Prophesy! or something.


Also, here is nice, colored concept art of plant and animal inhabitants for the digital version. I am a bit sad that there isn't really a way for me to incorporate little animal and produce people, but the potential goofy hi-jinks that a very charades-esque game provides is amusing enough to make up for that disappointment.

Update + multiplayer plan

I'm really sorry for the lack of consistency in my updates. I discussed things a bit with my adviser and we've decided that by the end of the semester I'll have a paper prototype of the game. We also discussed future work that could be done, such as making the game multiplayer or incorporating more novel mechanisms for control, such as the Leap Motion or the Wii. I think making the game multiplayer is a good way for players to gain a sense of the kind of 'us'-ness that so easily arises in communities as well as the kind of barriers that naturally come up when attempting to communicate with 'others.'

With multiplayer signs, gestures, signals would also be able to naturally emerge among community members, thus adding another level of complexity. Perhaps holding a dorky egyptian pose while moonwalking naturally emerges amongst a community as an expression of agreement and great enthusiasm. Or maybe having the avatar shake its head holds a positive meaning in one community, and an offensive one in another. The plus side is that language would build up organically and naturally; the need to implement a system of gestures would be lessened. AI would also not need to be as robust.

Multiplayer, despite its many pluses, is also a hairy beast to handle, so I would slowly build up to the addition of that feature. I would just do a bunch of simple tutorials that would help me get more comfortable with confusing database syncing networking stuff. I have worked on multiplayer support for a group project once in Unity, and been involved (though not in networking) on an MMO with multiplayer for lab once, so I'll be focusing on using Unity. While level-grinding in the Networking skillset is going on, I'll be doing stuff like the aforementioned paper prototype and a split-screen version. Another professor, Dr. Smith, has agreed to help me out with the technical side, so that should be fun. ^_^

I am going to post concept art sometime this week, so that should be fun. It will be colored and everything!

Here's one for now: it is a cherry person.

A Culture's Behavior Makeup

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. I kept wanting to finish and post up an alpha for the next post, but obviously that hasn't happened yet. I also felt sheepish because I am still finishing up the XML editor. But I do have some thoughts and developments regarding the game, and I don't want to neglect this blog, so I'll go ahead and share what I have so far for now.

I've actually been to two conferences back-to-back the past two weekends, which has been very helpful regarding ideas. One was a Korean christian conference, and the other IndieCade East, and the difference in cultures in both in addition to the inspirations both separately provided helped with fleshing out my game idea. I found that at IndieCade East there was a marked openness and ease compared to the average public setting. The fact that the group held an interest in the encouragement and embracing of diverse types of games and developers, and the fact that many of the games encouraged participation of multiple peoples into a context of collaborative play contributed to a culture where the level of familiarity between strangers was markedly higher than in most other public contexts. It was presumed that all the people about you were conducive to a playful spirit and willing to collaborate to reap max enjoyment from a game. The amount of distance people had between one another was also reduced (their 'personal space' bubble was smaller or was flipped off if a game demanded it).

At the Korean conference the particularities of Korean culture was present, as well as the context of religion. Like in most Korean cultures, rather than a meeting of eyes and a hello, there is a brief meeting of eyes and then a short, humble nod from both parties. There was also markedly more distance between people; the 'personal space' bubble was more pronounced and rarely broken. Interestingly a number of group games were played, but even during such moments of altered context did the bubble remain in effect. The context of the conference kept players back from being too fully engaged. Rather, the lack of the properties of the pro-diversity pro-play context at IndieCade East meant that like in most public contexts there was a reserved undercurrent amongst those present, one that requires a great deal of energy to cast off. The serious properties of morality affirmation, soberness, humbleness that marked this conference also further reinforces that undercurrent.

That being said, in addition to the more noticeable 'personal space' bubble I find in Korean culture there is also a contrasting concept in Korean culture known as 'skinship.' This social concept refers to any hugging, patting on the back, joking punches, pinches that one might do to someone they feel comfortable with. The term actually does not refer primarily to couples, and it can be done to strangers as well. If someone tends to be a very huggy sort of person, they would be deemed a person inclined to skinship. Perhaps it is the more pronounced formality of Korean culture that has led to the acknowledgment and delineation of more physical means of language. Though the kind of playfulness and approachability I felt at IndieCade was not present, in this new context I implicitly understood that pats, playful hits, leaning, hugging from a newly-formed acquaintance was acceptable and a part of the social language, an expression of affection and goodwill.

The religious context of the conference, coupled with a very Korean inclination towards the expression of strong emotions also led to a phenomena that honestly shocked me when I first encountered it. Before I address that, though, I would like to note differences to the Korean church that arise from the particularities of Korean culture.

Korean church is actually markedly different from most American churches. The sharing of food is actually considered a very important part of expressing goodwill, respect and common courtesy. When one has a guest, for example, it is expected that tea, drinks, and snacks be presented, and that the guest has brought gifts as well (usually consumable). On roadtrips it is implicitly understood that the females (or males/others that are predisposed towards cooking) will have spent the morning preparing something to share with one another. In every Korean church you go to, you will find that after service there is always a shared lunch that is always made from scratch. People are expected to stay after and eat together, and it is considered almost as integral as the service preceding it. The making of food from scratch and the eating of that food is considered a very important, intimate part of fostering and acknowledging camaraderie within a group. This applies as well to the Korean workplace (perhaps to a detriment, as sharing all meals with workmates rather than family has become the norm, and here heavy drinking, sometimes daily, is expected and its refusal a social no-no).

In addition to the aspect of food, there is also a very interesting phenomena, and this is tied into the aspect of strong emotion that marks Korean culture. I cannot say I know for sure where the origins of this aspect of Korean culture stems from, but I believe it is related to the persistent drama that Korea has faced regarding its existence throughout history. Korea has persistently been invaded, endangered and in political turmoil thanks to its location. During the Japanese invasion of WWII, the culture and its language itself was also in danger of complete erasure. Perhaps it is because of its persistent exposure to turmoil, but in Korea there is a degree of intense emotional expression that is more pervasive, common and accepted than I have found here in America. It is common for the angered or wronged to scream hysterically, red in the face. It is common to, upon facing heartbreak or some other equally depressing downer, to stumble dramatically into a bar and drink oneself into a stupor. One common trope is for an elderly mother at a family member's funeral to be on the floor, sobbing, pounding her chest, while grieving loudly and persistently regarding the tragedy of the person's undeserved death. These tendencies towards intense, emotionally charged outbursts also inform Korean media, specifically that which they call 'Korean Drama.' The absurd, hyper-dramatic scenarios that litter most standard dramas become understandable in this context. On a side note, the lack of emotional expression is seen as highly creepy, and in the context of something that should elicit emotion, like a puppy getting kicked for example, not showing much emotion will get you serious creeper points. I guess a very good thing that comes out of this is that, if someone in a public space is getting wronged, everyone in that room will jump on the offender and totally harrass them into stopping, rather than ignoring and walking by it.

When this emotional intensity combines with religion, something very interesting happens. There are designated moments where people at service are expected to delve completely into prayer for a good ten-fifteen minutes, and unlike most American churches I've gone to, this moment is very charged and chaotic. The first time I experienced it I was honestly shocked and freaked out. Devotion is considered best expressed emotionally, and so, rather than pray silently, those all around you will suddenly start crying out their fears, their sins, their pleas out loud all at once. It is also common for those around you to start weeping openly. People will get on their knees. There is also another phenomena I find kind of terrifying still where some people, completely overwhelmed with emotion and devotion, will suddenly start uttering loudly a string of repetitive gibberish. This is a phenomena that happens to circulate amongst the Korean churches, and is explained as a kind of possession of the afflicted by the holy spirit. It is seen as something that is achieved and occurs when the person truly opens their heart and lets the holy spirit in, and is seen as an experience that consumes the person, terrifies them at the same time, and yet gleans high respect. The mixture of the contexts of church and Korean particularities has led to the natural birth and propagation of this particular behavior phenomena naturally throughout particularly the Korean American churches. It is almost like a natural emergence from the rules of a running simulation.

From all of this and from some of the games I'm familiar with I've decided that the main mechanic of the game will consist of a string of gestures and sounds. Players will start within their own village and through observation of and interaction with the other members of their village, pick up the gestures and grunt-sounds that make up the culture's social language. I thought that the gestures could consist of a series of very simple movements tied to keys. Q would raise the left arm, E would raise the right. Arrow keys could make the body either tilt left or right, or get on tiptoes or crouch down. Based on variable weights and 'beliefs' in the village there will be a series of gesture combos that tie into various expressions of goodwill and camaraderie generated from the get go. Gestures and grunt-sounds do not always hold a positive valence, of course. They may also hold romantic, rude, derogatory meanings as well. Later in the game, when another village is introduced, the differences between the gestures that make up the two village's social languages will naturally create conflict and DELICIOUS CHAOS. Seeing the misunderstandings arise should provide countless entertainment. You would play mediator, pick up the nuances of the new village's culture, and then learn how to get the two villages to work together.

My main interest still remains an illustration of the cultural clash that was encountered during the handling of the Ebola situation, and so I would want to throw in some sort of natural calamity or impending apocalypse scenario into the mix. Perhaps the rude, totally strange and definitely unwanted new villagers that have oh so rudely invaded our village are in actuality here to desperately stall said impending calamity and save our ignorant, difficult selves. And by finally getting to understand these new strangers and then acting as liaison between both villages said scenario can be averted. To put both villages on equal footing, I could also damn both villages, and force both to find a way to alert and inform the other. I am hoping that while playing the game the player will be able to better understand the feelings that the villagers during the unexplained invasion of the hazmat suits experienced, and that from this means of more compassionately and respectfully approaching those of other cultures, beliefs and backgrounds can be cultivated.

I am going to work on the cool keyboard gesture thingy that I mentioned, that should be easy. Games I am drawing inspiration from include QWOP (for the gesture system) and this other gesture-based communication game that I cannot remember the name of. When I remember I will post that as well. I go to GDC next week, so that should be exciting and further inspiring.