Iterating Battleships

17/10/14

In today's class with Rob Kurta we got into pairs and played battleships. The aim of the task was to focus on :

What kind of emotional experience am I getting from this game?

Where in the game is that experience coming from?

Observing the games we played I noticed that I got a sense of accomplishment and happiness when I got a hit. I felt frustrated when I missed his ships on my turn. I was worried when it was the other players turn before he gave his coordinates and before I gave my coordinates to fire on his ships I felt worried because of the uncertainty.

Iteration 

Using the information gathered we were set the task of iterating the game. We came up with two ideas and each played out the games to see if they worked. First was there was no limit to where the ships were placed as originally they have to be a space apart on the board. This made the game harder and more flexible, giving the players more options where to position their ships. My opponent and I felt that it made the game funnier and more enjoyable.

The second iteration was that the ships could go diagonally across the board, where as originally they could only go in straight lines. This made the game a lot harder, added more anticipation and suspense when picking where to fire. We both enjoyed the game and agreed this was the better of the two iterations and made the game even better than before. 

Defining Videogames

16/10/14

We had a lecture today on the Definition of Games. We spoke about ways in which we can categorize games.
We explored the distinction between the words "game" and "play" by looking at Salen,K., and Zimmerman,E. (2004) Rules of Play: Games Design Fundamentals. London. MIT Press.
They discovered that games are systems in which players compete with defined rules in place to have a specific outcome or goal. Play however does not have rules usually, for example when children "play" they have no set rules in which they are playing.

We then looked at Newman, J., (2003) Vidoegames. London: Routledge. to fine tune our understanding. He often referred to Caillos, R., who classified games into two terms:

Paida - When a player plays a game for pleasure.
Ludus - This is defined by rules in which a specific outcome or goal is clear.

 Newman went on to further categorize games using Caillos work adapted from Huizinga.
These categories are:

Agon (Competition) - Sports eg. Racing, Wrestling, Athletics.
Alea (Chance) - Betting, Roulette.
Mimicry (Simulation) - Carnival, Theater, Cinema.
Ilinx (Vertigo) - Mountain climbing, Skiing.

We then discussed in which categories games we play fit into. It became apparent that games can fit into multiple categories. Using what we have learned I used this information to categorize games I play.

ArcheAge

The first game I chose to categorize was ArcheAge. This game is a MMORPG sandbox game, meaning you can literally do pretty much anything you want. I would therefore categorize this game as Paidia. Although there are aspects of Ludus as well because there are rules to limit what you do and rewards for achieving small goals (ie. Killing a dungeon boss). Being a RPG it has a strong categorization in Mimicry because of the role-play and make-believe elements. It has Ilinx styling within the game as your able to climb massive mountains and use a glider to fly across the world. You can really feel how large the world is and that you are just a small cog in the extensive Trion landscape.

 

Forza Motorsport 4

Another game that I spent many hours playing is Forza Motorsport 4. This is a classic racing game but with a twist of being able to modify the vehicles you have in your garage. This is clearly categorized as Ludus because of the clear rules and outcome of having to win. We can also put this in the Agon category because of it being competitive. There are aspects of Paidia though through the reward scheme, in which players get cars in there garage for race placing and completing circuits/race series. There is Mimicry in this game because of it being a simulation.

Bibliography

T.Castillo & J.Novak (2008) Game Development Essentials: Game Level Design. New York. Delmar.

M.Filiciak (2003) "Hyperidentities: Postmodern Identity Patterns in Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games" in M.Wolf & B.Perron (eds) The Video Game Theory Reader. New York. Routledge. pp. 87-102. 

Geffray, L. (1999) Infections associated with pets. La revue de medecine interne. 20 (10), 888-901.

Hey!

Welcome to my blog!

My name is Ryan Knights, I'm a Computer Games Design student at UCS.

What is the title of the book (fiction) you are currently reading, or what is the title of the last fiction book you read?
The Last Book I read was "Marley and Me" by John Grogan. It's more of an autobiography based mainly around his badly behaved dog. It's a very touching book especially for dog lovers. Other than that the last books I read were all of the Lord Of The Rings novels.

What is the title / topic of the book (non-fiction) you are currently reading, or what is the title of the last non-fiction book you read?
I'm currently reading "The Art Of Game Design - A Book Of Lenses" by Jesse Schell. I picked this book up as recommended by Rob Kurta after I was accepted on to the Computer Games Design course earlier this year. I'm enjoying reading this book and it's giving me more confidence with the work on the course as I read further.

What is the last live performance (music, drama or dance) you attended?
The last live performance I attended was a dance show which my god daughter was performing in. She was very shy on the day and tried to dance along with the other kids but mostly stared into the darkness of the crowd looking confused.

What is the title of the last film you saw at the cinema / online or watched on DVD?
The last film I watched was "Pain & Gain". Its based on a true story of how three body builders who kidnap and extort a guy into giving them everything he owns. It stars Dwayne Johnson who I admire and Mark Wahlberg who I enjoy watching.

How often do you read a newspaper?
I don't tend to read newspapers. I read the occasional car magazine as that's another one of my passions.

Which art gallery / museum / exhibition did you last visit?
My last visit to either of these was most likely at school, as it never strikes me as something to go and do. Although in January I do intend on visiting the museums and art galleries in New York City while my wife and I are there on holiday.

How many hours do you play video games a week?
This varies a lot. If I'm busy with work, life and now studying, I would not spend much time playing. But if I didn't I could literally spend all of my time on them, especially new games or particular MMORPGs. I have spent a lot of time in my life playing games and it was epic.

How many hours a week do you spend playing games other than video games?
Zero. The closest I have probably been to playing a game outside computers is a drinking game and that would have been a while ago as I work every weekend.