Blog Post 9: Course Reflection

Blog Post 9: Course Reflection

I love that we get to play physical games and digital games. Also, I enjoyed the topics that you discussed in class about games. It isn’t just about how to make a game but the concept behind it. I do have a difficult time having to read the articles. I hope this type of learning can be change into a lecture type so it can be more interactive because I really enjoy the YouTube videos you show us to explain further the topics from the articles. Besides the course, I wish that there were further lessons in the programs for game designing like some lessons in GameMaker. I know that we had a lecture on it, but it honestly wasn’t that great of a lecture. I guessed I wanted more time to actually learn how to use GameMaker, but I’m glad you introduced it to the class. I will definitely play around with it after this course. Additionally, I like that we discussed about the controversial in games since I never thought about games in that way besides Grand Theft Auto. There is so much more than GTA crazy killing spree. Some of them that you went over were Train and the massacre based events. I’m thankful that you have a lot of decoms for extra credits in case some students needed it. Basically, I love that this class wasn’t about the grade and more like learning and trying your best to turn in a project. Honestly, every other class should have this type of grading system.

final - project submit

Demons of Sengoku Castle
CLICK for game!
Arrow Keys = shoot
Space = shoot

Some questions needs help with.
1. What other obstacles can I add to each levels to make it less repetitive besides killing the ghost?

Final Project Draft

Demons in Sengoku Castle <<< download game here!

arrow key = move
space = shoot

Blog Post 8: Final Project

Demons of Sengoku Castle <<< click for game!

Arrows keys = Move
Space = throw weapon

The game play is similar to the game Eva I made earlier in the blog, which is flat 2D puzzle action game. The player will control the main character, which is the ninja. The goal of the game is to get to the boss and to defeat him. The setting of the game is in a castle. I will build more levels so players can travel through the castle and fight the different enemies available. The ninja, or main character, travels through the room to get to the door to continue towards the next level. While traveling through the room, the ninja needs to defeat the enemies. What changes in this game is that I will add a sword so the ninja can use as a weapon as well as a talisman. Additional things I will add are the enemy. Currently, I only have the green goblin; I want to make ghosts and demons so that the ninja can only use certain weapons to defeat certain enemy. I still suffer from not knowing how to program in Gamemaker. Some of these things are switching weapons, switching characters so players can choose between different versions of ninjas. Other thing that I still have problems with Gamemaker is the programming area. For instance, when I try to use “space” to shoot my weapon, the weapon comes out with a drag image behind it. Another programming problem is to use the step process. For example, I do not know or understand how to set my character back to the beginning when it is out of lives. I don’t even know how to set up the lives!

Blog #7: Ingress

Design:

When I first download and open Ingress, the design is very beautiful and attractive. Not in the terms of sensual but of how it mimics the digital ideal world, similar to how the matrix pattern looks like. I also love how the “map” in Ingress is recognizable for the player to know exactly where they are. 

What I don’t like or was confused when I first open the game was the goal of the game. I wish the menu button was more obvious, not hidden in the “OPS” menu. I wish there was also a requirement to take the training before starting playing the game for the first time. Similar to Syphon Filter shooter game, there is a training to complete a mission before actually starting the real mission to learn the controls of the game.

Gameplay:

It’s very confusing at first. I was unclear of what I was supposed to do except to hack, hack, and hack. After asking my teammate, I realized that I was able to fire the portal to receive points by holding down onto a portal. There is still one confusion; I don’t know how to actually capture the enemy’s portal. I definitely need to go back in Ingress and do that training. Unfortunately, when I’m at home, there’s no one in my radius with Ingress that I can detect. 

Overall, I love the design of the game, its very technology base. I wish the instructions were more obvious or simple to understand. I do also love how you have to be actively moving around the urban area in order to do things. Ingress is very interesting concept of a game.

Blog Post 6: Video Game Prototype

EVA to the Rescue!  <<<< CLICK for GAME

This game is called EVA. My name is Dao. I am the designer for this game. My partner, Robert Buser, is the programmer of the game. EVA is a simple game inspired by Disney’s movie, WALL-E. The character that is being play is EVA. I wanted to make this game because I feel like almost all movies are male-based heroes. I wanted to make EVA, female robot, my heroine. Basically, in this game, EVA travels through the mazes in levels one and two to find WALL-E. While traveling through the maze, she can obtain battery to score more points. In addition to the batteries, she can also shoot laser ball at the evil robots guarding the maze. This gets her more points as well. As you move from one level to the next, the maze gets more difficult and there are more robots. Overall, we didn't have any problems with the glitch. There was just a lot of things we thought of in order to improve the game AFTER it was created and completed.

Ways to improve the game (from critiques and ideas afterward):

1.       Make battery be life instead of points.

2.       Make the robots come back to life if EVA dies and goes back to beginning.

3.       Include a door or gate to unlock in order to rescue WALL-E.

4.       Make a level 3 so puzzle can get intensely difficult