To start this new blog I have to say that it's important to note that Le Blanc credits Doug Church and his work on formal abstract design tools (FADT) and how these tools are important for creating dramatic content in games.
The tools that are used to do this are aesthetics, mechanics, and dynamics and through the process of utilizing these tools we can create an on going sense that the contest is still undecided and there are many techniques to do this,howeverthey all take the same approach.
Force the approach of creating dramatic tension by manipulating the contest or story (manipultating gameplay directly) and illusion the approach of manipulating the players perceptions so that the game seems closer to the climax than it really is without changing the game state. Now by using the force and illusion tools we can make and only make the circumstances from which drama can accure with positive and negetive feedback loops.
Monday 31 October 2011
Wednesday 12 October 2011
Gamasutra by Doug Church (Weekly Reading 3)
What is a modern computer game made of?
"It Fuses a technical base with a vision for the players experience. All of the disciplines involved (design, art, audio, levels, code and so on) work together to achieve this synthesis."
In other words what Mr. Church is saying, is to make a good game all aspects of the various disciplines must be utilized for the product to fully flourish . There is no area that is more important than another they may be created by different divisions, but in the end it all comes together.
Industry evolution is talked about which is a key point to mention.
Doug church basically goes on to write "as long as the machines that are used to develop games and the machines the games are made for continue to advance, (or how he puts it "evolve" which probably wont stop) the way games are made will also advance."
The two sides of future game design walk down the same path of advancement together.
Design is what gives a game its' experience. It's the accumulation of all the different skills and makes the vision reality.
"It actualizes the vision, puting art, code, levels and sound together into what players experience minute to minute."
Doug Church continues the article by going deeper into why games design isn't viewed as an achedemical subject by saying that their is a need for a vocabulary not just because all other subjects have one, no it's deeper then that he's trying to form a framework of comunication so that it becomes possible to express ourselves fully and be able to understand the feed back you may recieve, instead of describing a game as simply "fun" or "not fun".
"Formal Abstract Design Tools" (FADT) is an attempt to create such framework for such a vocabulary and a way to go about the process of building it.
Formal- Implying precise deffinition and the ability to explain it to someone else.
Abstract- To emphisize the focus of underlying ideas, not specific genre constructs.
Design- As in you guys and us we're the designers.
Tools- Since this will form the base of the vocabulary we want to build.
"It Fuses a technical base with a vision for the players experience. All of the disciplines involved (design, art, audio, levels, code and so on) work together to achieve this synthesis."
In other words what Mr. Church is saying, is to make a good game all aspects of the various disciplines must be utilized for the product to fully flourish . There is no area that is more important than another they may be created by different divisions, but in the end it all comes together.
Industry evolution is talked about which is a key point to mention.
Doug church basically goes on to write "as long as the machines that are used to develop games and the machines the games are made for continue to advance, (or how he puts it "evolve" which probably wont stop) the way games are made will also advance."
The two sides of future game design walk down the same path of advancement together.
Design is what gives a game its' experience. It's the accumulation of all the different skills and makes the vision reality.
"It actualizes the vision, puting art, code, levels and sound together into what players experience minute to minute."
Doug Church continues the article by going deeper into why games design isn't viewed as an achedemical subject by saying that their is a need for a vocabulary not just because all other subjects have one, no it's deeper then that he's trying to form a framework of comunication so that it becomes possible to express ourselves fully and be able to understand the feed back you may recieve, instead of describing a game as simply "fun" or "not fun".
"Formal Abstract Design Tools" (FADT) is an attempt to create such framework for such a vocabulary and a way to go about the process of building it.
Formal- Implying precise deffinition and the ability to explain it to someone else.
Abstract- To emphisize the focus of underlying ideas, not specific genre constructs.
Design- As in you guys and us we're the designers.
Tools- Since this will form the base of the vocabulary we want to build.
In the beginning there is a Game Designer (Weekly Reading 1)
The article to me came across as encouraging constantly reassuring the reader who would be game designers.(Who else would read an article about game design?)
" If only game designers can design games, and you can only be a game designer by making games, how can anyone even get started? If this is how you feel, the awnser is easy. Just say the magic words:
I am a game designer, I am a game designer, I am a game designer."
Game designers need a deep understanding not just about designing games, but an understanding about everything they take on that includes fellow team mates.
There's more to designing games than just that you must be able to understand and communicate with others by listening to your team, client audience and self.
The 5 kinds of listening
Team
Audience
Game
Client
Self
" If only game designers can design games, and you can only be a game designer by making games, how can anyone even get started? If this is how you feel, the awnser is easy. Just say the magic words:
I am a game designer, I am a game designer, I am a game designer."
Game designers need a deep understanding not just about designing games, but an understanding about everything they take on that includes fellow team mates.
There's more to designing games than just that you must be able to understand and communicate with others by listening to your team, client audience and self.
The 5 kinds of listening
Team
Audience
Game
Client
Self
Tuesday 11 October 2011
Introduction/Interview
It's taken me a while to get this blog up and running, but better late than never.
My name is Glen Symns and im currently studying computer games design at UCS Ipswich. I like video games and that's all you guys need to know. What can I say im a mysterious guy at least until our interview assignment was given out.
I paired up with Mark pretty cool guy we had ask each other a series of simple questions pre written on a handout sheet.
What fictional book are you currently reading?
Well at the moment I'm not reading any fictional books, however I do like to read manga though I don't know if that really counts as it's more like a comic or graphic novel than a book, but in any case it's fictional and I am currently reading several to name a few: History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi, Bleach, and Tri-Gun.
What Non-Fictional book are you currently reading or last read?
The last book I read non fiction would be Nintendo mounthly it has all the latest info on everything that's Nintendo or Nintendo involved.
What is the last live performance you attended?
I used to be in a band called Troll Master before I came to uni and we were asked to play a set for the people who lost their homes in the London riots.
What was the title of the last film you saw at the cinema, online, or on DVD?
Star Wars: Episode 6 - Return of the Jedi. Nothing more need be said.
How often do you read the news papper?
Not very often in all honesty and thats exactly why I dont read them, it's good to keep up to date on world news, but you cant trust everything a news papper says there build on facts twisted into lies to sell as many copies as possible.
Which gallery/museum/exhibition did you last visit?
The Last exhibition I went to was the Euro gamer expo held in London, Earls Court.
How many hours a week do you spend playing video games?
I used to spend about 40-45 hours a week just playing games however now I spend considerably less time playing games so i'd have to say i spend about 20 hours a week playing games.
How many hours a week do you spend playing games that aren't video games?
I'm not personaly a big fan of board games although i do enjoy the odd mouse trap, or pictionary, or the classic monopoly games though about 5-6 years ago i got really involved in dungeons and dragons to many hours were spent playing that game.
My name is Glen Symns and im currently studying computer games design at UCS Ipswich. I like video games and that's all you guys need to know. What can I say im a mysterious guy at least until our interview assignment was given out.
I paired up with Mark pretty cool guy we had ask each other a series of simple questions pre written on a handout sheet.
What fictional book are you currently reading?
Well at the moment I'm not reading any fictional books, however I do like to read manga though I don't know if that really counts as it's more like a comic or graphic novel than a book, but in any case it's fictional and I am currently reading several to name a few: History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi, Bleach, and Tri-Gun.
What Non-Fictional book are you currently reading or last read?
The last book I read non fiction would be Nintendo mounthly it has all the latest info on everything that's Nintendo or Nintendo involved.
What is the last live performance you attended?
I used to be in a band called Troll Master before I came to uni and we were asked to play a set for the people who lost their homes in the London riots.
What was the title of the last film you saw at the cinema, online, or on DVD?
Star Wars: Episode 6 - Return of the Jedi. Nothing more need be said.
How often do you read the news papper?
Not very often in all honesty and thats exactly why I dont read them, it's good to keep up to date on world news, but you cant trust everything a news papper says there build on facts twisted into lies to sell as many copies as possible.
Which gallery/museum/exhibition did you last visit?
The Last exhibition I went to was the Euro gamer expo held in London, Earls Court.
How many hours a week do you spend playing video games?
I used to spend about 40-45 hours a week just playing games however now I spend considerably less time playing games so i'd have to say i spend about 20 hours a week playing games.
How many hours a week do you spend playing games that aren't video games?
I'm not personaly a big fan of board games although i do enjoy the odd mouse trap, or pictionary, or the classic monopoly games though about 5-6 years ago i got really involved in dungeons and dragons to many hours were spent playing that game.
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