IGO720 Game Development - Week 2 - Planning
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Figure 1: Illustration of Game Design (Megan Goodacre, 2021)
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This week dives into the process of game design and what each area involves. When I think of game design, I consider it to be the bridge between departments. It enables us to pour all sorts of concepts into the frame of creativity and enhance it by constructing visual representations. I find designing a game to be the most challenging stage of development, due to how much analysis and research goes into generating a potential idea.
The big question here is 'What titles inspire me to break down the next game I want to develop?'. It's never a simple answer from the range of games out there. Take the level design system in Dishonoured (Arkhane Studios, 2012) , the hard-hitting story elements of Life Is Strange (Dotnod Entertainment, 2015), to the 1 button combat mechanics of Fable (Lionhead Studios, 2005) as just a few prime best-sellers and inspriations.
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Command and Conquer
This weeks criteria from the spark forum required us to choose a game that inspires us and analyse it to breakdown into a game criteria template, as well as share our thoughts on what makes the game special. This exact template was used for my previous module IGD740 Indie Game Start-Up to outline the type of game I wanted to make. Recently, Action-Adventure and platform games have caught my attention. I originally wanted to develop a similar game like Fable with its Shallow-RPG style and player's journey between good or evil.
Sadly, the scope for a game like Fable is not timingly feasable for just 12 weeks. This made me consider looking into games I have brieflly played, but gave that inspring hint to go 'I would like to attempt something similar in future' and this is bordering to one of those times. I know something Action-Adventure based will be a strong starting point as this can be shaped into multiple concepts as the idea progresses. The Last of Us (Naughty Dog, 2013) comes to mind for a prime Action-Adventure title with its survival theme and story heavy moments from a third-person perspective.
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Game Analysis: The Last of Us
Figure 2: The Last of Us, 2013. Naughty Dog. [Online] playstation.com/en-gb/games/the-last-of-us-remastered/
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Game Mechanics - The player experiences a journey of emotional attachment, dispersed between combat, stealth, crafting and survival whilst traversing across a post-apocalyptic environment to deliver an immune child to the other end of the country in search of a cure. Fending off between hordes of infected or the savageness of hunters from either a tactical or chaotic approach, every bullet or shiv counts as resources are constantly depleting. Scour each abandoned house for materials to craft medical supplies or special gadgets to tackle threats smartly. A mid-point in the game takes on the younger companion as a playable character to assist in their struggles against cannibals within snowy territory during the absence of the original protagonist.
Genre - Action-Adventure based with survival-horror and stealth elements.
Player Fantasy - There is still hope, love and companionship with all of the disaster that has befalled humanity and it isn't just about surviving or finding something to fight for, it is about rising from the darkness that has taken place and looking for the light of belief.
Platform and Controls - Playstation console exclusive, first released in 2013 on Playstation 3 and remastered in 2014 for next generation Playstation 4. Dualshock 3 and 4 controllers for player input to character and world control.
Spatial Abstraction - 3D realistic world layout in a linear structure, varying between cities, towns and forests to enhance the player's awareness of surroundings, as well as expansion of storytelling.
Avatar - The player adopts the role of a smuggler and protector, Joel who lost his daughter 20 years prior to the infectious outbreak. The games tasks him with delivering an immune young girl Ellie from Boston to a group called the Fireflies in Salt Lake City in hope to make a cure. The player controls Ellie during the winter period of the game to see her single character develop.
Camera Perspective - Third-person camera perspective over the shoulder to the character for ease of combat use and capturing the centre of gameplay.
Goals and Scores - Primarily survival. A journey across the country full of horrifying infected and murderous hunters. Taking in the overall experience of 2 individuals as your own and connecting with their hardships and loss. There is no physical score, but more an emotional goal of understanding.
Progression and Variety - Progression is mainly character based. Enemy encounters become more challenging as you progress with different stages of infected. Collecting resources to upgrade weapons/equipment and improve character awareness ability (Listen Mode) to locate enemies and plan out takedowns more effectively.
Tension and Rest - Tension is built throughout the game keeping players on edge, mainly during infected encounters. Especially high in dark and confined-spore areas with unsettling enemies lurking around the player. Cutscenes are when rest is permitted to refresh and repeat.
Obstacles and Penalties - An overwhelming swarm of infected can be a tough obstacle. Planning how to approach is essential as supplies only last for so long. The more stealth, the more reserves and the more chaotic, the less prepared and low supplies the next encounter. There is no penalty for failure, only to reevaluate the best approach to bypass the obstacle.
Resources - Ammunition for weapons and materials for crafting are the main resources in the game. Miscellaneous items like memoirs from long ago or medals from fallen soldiers that perished can be collected. Collect Supplements and bolts for upgrading weapons and player abilities
Decisions - There are no decisions to impact the game that affects player engagement. Players preferences allow you to decide what approach to take with obstacles and how to overcome them. The story in a sense, decides and tells itself through the world and characters within.
Simulation and Chance - Clearly no RPG elements, the game has been scripted and written with the same outcomes of encounters and events. There is flexibilty in chance with how you defeat enemies from the variety of weapons and traps that can increase or reduce the duration of conflicts.
Storytelling - Diverse storytelling in a survival-horror setting with a smuggler who has lost all moral from losing his daughter, and an immune child, destined to cure the rest of humanity. Both character relationships strengthen throughout the game. Height of impactful storytelling is displayed through emotional cutscenes with disheartening tragedies to NPCs and banterous dialogue during area exploration.
Art Direction and Style - The games art direction represents a post-apocalyptic dystopia in a realstic style to assimilate the hardships and terror the outbreak has impacted on society, coming across both fascinating and unsettling.
Animation and Visual Effects - Full unit animations (idle, move, jump, attack etc), object breakage/bleeding damage. Attention to detail when it comes to player death scenes. The environmental aspects are portayed to a high level like flooded streets or snowy forests that maintain a consistent flow with lighting and texture.
Sound Design - Uniquely triggering sounds to enhance player tension and involvement ranging from screams and crys from infected enemies, to the emotional responses of the character dialogue to express what they are feeling. Background music is used to represent the aftermaths of events that have taken place and attempting to build some closure.
Your thoughts on what you think makes the game special?
I believe that The Last of Us gives that experience that can only be given from a handful of games, fluent and strong storytelling. The narrative design behind this game is beyond any other game I have played, especially hitting the ground running with the first title to extend into a promising franchise. The not-so-successor The Last of Us Part 2 (Naughty Dog, 2020) attempted to create the same impact. Everything but the narrative was perfect and I feel that players held on dearly to that as nothing could compel to the first game. It was that critical first moment with Joel and Ellie's bond that demonstrates powerful character development. I do consider horror and stealth games to be my preference of genre as I like the tension and patience when tackling challenges. The Last of Us adopts those genres into a particular way.
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Game Outline
This weeks activity involves the previous game design principles and constructing a proposal for our upcomng indie game prototype by using our own game analysis, consideration of scope, hours of contribution to each principle during development and which parts of the game will be developed, either by myself or outsourced. This had me stuck in what particular game I wanted to develop, combined with my skillset that was reviewed last week. I want to create something that answers to my expertise, as well as trying something new. I decided to overcome this by refering back to some strong techniques adopted from the development practice module and outline my potential game by brainstorming, which narrowed down the idea through a mindmap.
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Figure 3: Game Proposal Brainstorm (Kyle Cornwell. 2022)
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Figure 4: Ryōshi Mindmap (Kyle Cornwell, 2022)
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Game Name: Ryōshi
Game Mechanics - The player experiences the criminal underworld of a dystopian japan full of corruption, violence and profitable opportunities. Take on contracted jobs as a skilled hunter to rid the streets of Osaka and put an end to the dealings of the syndicate to cripple their power on the city. Earn a reputation within the hunting business as you make your mark and search for lost answers that unveil a bigger plot that just financial gain.
Genre - Platformer and Action-Adventure
Player Fantasy - "I'm a hunter for hire. Just a few bullets and slashes of my blade will get the job done. Price is nothing without precision".
Platform and Controls - PC-based using keyboard and mouse for player controls.
Spatial Abstraction - 3D world following a linear structure, splitting the city into districts to reduce amount of content that differentiates the level of threats towards the player.
Avatar - The player adopts the role of a skillful hunter, whose idenity unravels as the game progresses through different contracts. WIth their samurai sword and pistol, roam the city in search for the next hunt that leads them one step closer to loosening the syndicate's control and bringing closure to the hunter's past.
Camera Perspective - Third-person camera perspective, as well as over the shoulder for ranged combat only.
Goals and Scores - Take on contracted jobs across each district of the city to weaken enemy control and the scores are financial and sometimes informational when the job has been completed. The more jobs, the more disruption and gain.
Progression and Variety - Progression is world and character-based. The more challenging districts hold opportunities for seizing control and gaining more profit to upgrade character weapons. Variety involves information being the most valuable reward after the completion of story-relevant contracts.
Tension and Rest - Tension is at the player's disgression. A contract has to be accepted in order to carry out the job. The tension is only present during missions with enemy encounters. Rest is not essential for the player, unless they wish to explore what the city has to offer or allocate time upgrading the hunter's weapons.
Obstacles and Penalties - Obstacles are the gang members of the crime syndicate. Some are more difficult to defeat due to the level of district and the players current state. If the hunter fails to complete the contract, they can re-attempt the job. Continuous failure or death of player will generate an urge to overcome and proceed further, especially if the reward contains story elements.
Resources - Money and ammunition are the primary resources for the player. Money is earnt from each contract you take on, enabling you to upgrade weapons and ammunition for the player's pistol can be acquired from fallen enemies.
Decisions - Decisions are to the players preference when it comes to combat and potentially how to complete a specific contract. There maybe the occasional choice to leave certain enemies dead or alive depending on the clients wishes that can affect the reward outcome. These decisions do not impact the player's experience, only to a degree.
Simulation and Chance - The mechanics will be scripted as intended for an action-adventure game with no randomisation present. Chance is only relative to player during combat using the samurai sword or pistol more to defeat enemies.
Storytelling - An introduction cutscene will set the story filled with question as the player's identity is currently unknown until the game progresses. Information collected from contracts provide story elements, revealing more of the hunter's past and purpose. Minimal text through a phone system will occasionally reference story-based content.
Art Direction and Style - Chosen art direction is a futuristic and dystopian version of Japan, in a minimalistic low-poly style to express the colour aesthetic and environmental criminality that the game has to explore.
Animation and Visual Effects - Full unit for character animations due to parkour ability/climbing obstacles. Player weapon effects such as sword slice particles and bullet projectiles. Amplified world with colourful visuals and vibrant lighting to capture the lawless aspects of the city life.
Sound Design - The majority of the games sound will be ambience-based due to the range of tone and volume a city atmosphere incorporates. Player narrative is displayed through visual text so minimal dialogue audio is required. Character and interactable sounds will be present to indicate the player's motives and actions.
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1. What is the scope of this game?
This prototype is going to be a 3D district/section of the city, consisting of 2 contract missions to demonstrate the first iteration of core design and showcasing the functionality of gameplay mechanics, excluding any finalised and polished content. The design layout is a roamable area comprising of a low-poly modular building environment. The first mission introduces player controls and the second is story-related, revealing a familiar character from the introduction cutscene, concluding on a cliffhanger to leave the player succumbed in both disarray and confusion.
2. How many hours do you think it would take to produce or source each element of the game?
My level of contribution will aim to be balanced throughout the course of this prototype, implementing my strengths and concentrating on my weakest areas to allocate a reasonable level, meeting the games vision to expectation. I narrowed the duration for each element down into an estimated amount of hours to carry out.
Area | Duration | Notes |
Programming | 35-40 Hours | A lot of scripted event involvement Is required to program for this, so most of the time is allocated to this area. |
Art | 15-20 Hours | Art is a medium strength but will be balanced between programming and design for character world and content of assets. |
Animation | 15-20 Hours | Animation is a challenge to overcome with the help of animators and linking with programming to rig and function accordingly. |
Story | 10-15 Hours | Story is captured through cinematics (animation) which will be visually narrative but not yet relative to the player, alongside minimal content over two missions. |
Level Design | 25-30 Hours | Strongest area of development and will ensure design specification meets scope criteria through outcome of game level. |
Sound | 5-10 Hours | Sound is a mixed area that will involve outsourced files, as well as self-recorded due to majority of game including ambience sound. |
Figure 5: Prototype Estimations Table (Kyle Cornwell, 2022)
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3. Which parts would you produce yourself, and where can you use pre-made assets?
I will develop the majority of this prototype myself as I really want to make an impact on this game towards the standards of a solo indie. I want to measure how each area can be carried out to a degree and test whether I can maintain a flow of balance when transfering my skills. There is a core focus on some areas more than others due to allocating further time and effort between departments. This has also been narrowed down to measure what I shall develop or outsource.
Area | Self/Outsourced |
Programming | Self - Visual Studio/Unity |
Art | Self - Sketching/Photoshop |
Animation | Self - Adobe Mixamo |
Story | Self - Unity |
Level Design | Self - Blender/Unity |
Sound | Self and Outsourced - Freesound |
Figure 6: Prototype Contribution Table (Kyle Cornwell, 2022)
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Reflection
This week has been hectic in regards to generating an idea for the prototype. I think it has helped breaking apart an inspired game to understand the core areas in what makes it appealing. I have a strong idea in mind as to what I want to develop and I feel once I finally get into the workflow schedule of devloping the prototype, the weeks will eventually roll into one and before I know it I'll have a working prototype to be proud of, as well as something to add for portfolio content. I aim to stucture the following weeks to keep up with the activities that will assist towards the assessment brief. I'm looking forward to starting with a fresh project with some experimentation in C#, followed by some innovation in Blender and prioritising my tasks effectively to stay on track.
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References:
Dishonoured, 2012. Arkane Studios. [Online] Availabe at: https://bethesda.net/en/game/dishonored-de [Last Accessed 04/04/2022]
Life is Strange, 2015. Dotnod Entertainment. [Online] Available at: https://square-enix-games.com/en_GB/games/life-is-strange [Last Accessed 04/04/2022]
Fable, 2005. Lionhead Studios. [Online] Available at: https://store.steampowered.com/app/288470/Fable_Anniversary/ [Last Accessed 04/04/2022]
The Last of Us, 2013. Naughty Dog. [Online] Available at: playstation.com/en-gb/games/the-last-of-us-remastered/ [Last Accessed 04/04/2022]
The Last of Us Part 2, 2020. Naughty Dog [Online] Available at: https://www.playstation.com/en-gb/games/the-last-of-us-part-ii/ [Last Accessed 04/04/2022]
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