Ideating and

Conceptualizing a Game Lesson 1

Exam Objective Matrix

Skills/Concepts MTA Exam Objectives

Ideating a Game Differentiate among game types (1.1)

Differentiate among game genres (1.2)

Understand the different game platforms (2.5)

Creating the Game Concept Understand player motivation (1.3)

Ideating a Game

• Identifying the idea of a game is the first

step in the game development process.

• The idea for a game encapsulates defining

the motivation for the set of players you

are targeting.

• A good game begins with a strong idea,

which comes from understanding what

motivates people for playing games.

Identifying the Motivation

• Identifying the motivation behind playing

games involves finding the reasons for

which people play video games.

• Playing games satisfies three

psychological needs of people:

– Achievement

– Recognition

– Satisfaction

Fulfilling Basic Needs

• The three psychological and emotional

needs manifest into one or more of the

following basic needs:

– Quest

– Learning

– Task management

– Determination

– Competence

– Thrill

Identifying the Target Audience

• The game motivation varies with the type

of players.

• While ideating for a game, it is important to

identify the target audience or group of

people for whom the game is meant.

– Casual players

– Hard-core players

– Intermediary players

– Professional players

Identifying the Game Genres

• Video games are classified into various

genres based on the type of player’s

interaction with the game called gameplay.

• You decide the genre of the game based

on the motivation and the target audience

identified for the game.

Common Genres

• Action

– First-person shooter

(FPS)

– Third-person shooter

(TPS)

• Adventure

• Sports

• Simulation

• Role-playing game

(RPG)

• Fantasy

• Card

• Board

• Education

First-person Shooter vs. Third-person Shooter

Halo 4 (FPS) Gunstringer (TPS)

Adventure Games

Kinect Adventures Fable II

Identifying the Game Type

• Games can be of various types: online or

offline, single player or multiplayer, and

console, PC, arcade, or mobile games.

• “Game type” not used consistently.

– Some take it to mean “genre

– Some use it to refer to the “platform”

– Others believe it means the “online status”

• Some examples on the next slide…

Selecting the Game Type

• Common categorization methods:

– Game Status (online, offline)

– Number of players (one, two, many)

• Single player games

• Multiplayer games

• Massively multiplayer online role-playing

games

– Gaming platform used (Console, PC,

Mobile, Arcade)

Platform Examples

• Console:

– Full size: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3,

Nintendo Wii

– Handheld: Nintendo 3DS, PlayStation

Portable (PSP)

• Mobile:

– Windows Phone 8, iPhone, iPad, Amazon

Kindle, various Android powered devices

Platform Examples

Console (Xbox 360) Arcade

• [Prod: Please insert

Figure01-11]

Creating the Game Concept

• Creating a game concept or

conceptualizing your game means giving a

concrete shape to your ideas for the

game.

• This process involves creating a mission

statement, storyline, gameplay, and

mechanics of the game.

Parts of the Game Concept

• The final objective of the game or the

mission statement

• The plot or the storyline

• Various interactive and noninteractive

elements of the game or the gameplay

• The flow of the game or game mechanics

The Game Concept Creation Process

Writing the Mission Statement

• The purpose behind writing a mission

statement is to clearly pass on the idea of

the game to the game production team.

• A basic mission statement must answer

three questions:

– What is the objective of the game?

– What challenges does the game present to

the player?

– How will the player achieve the objective?

Writing a Good Mission Statement

• To write a good mission statement, you

need to ask yourself the following

questions:

– How should the player act and feel in the

game?

– What role should the player perform in the

game?

– Does the player have a well-defined

objective?

– What are the obstacles in achieving the

objective?

– What kind of resources will the player have?

Missing Statement Tips

• Involve everyone connected to the game

and brainstorm together. Others also can

provide useful insights.

• Set aside several hours to work on your

statement.

• Make every word of the mission statement

count.

• Avoid making a generic mission

statement.

A Good Example

• Example mission statement:– "Creating a game that will be set with challenges not

just from your opponent, but also from nature. The

only way to survive is to live, but remember that the

tyrant is watching."

– Objective: to survive against all odds

– Challenges: an opponent player and elements of

nature designed for the game

– Method: live or ensure that the player’s character

remains alive at the end of the game

Creating a Storyline

• The storyline of a game is the underlying

plot that defines the flow of the game from

start to finish.

• A good storyline is the primary ingredient

for creating an engaging game.

• Parts:

– Purpose: who, what, when, where, why &

how

– Complexity: add this in after you answer the

purpose questions

Common Storyline Mistakes

• Too much dependence on lovable, friendly

characters.

– Carefully analyze your target audience to

determine their likes and dislikes here.

• Too many fetch quests.

– Making the player go in circles just to make

the game longer brings the story to a halt.

• Overuse of “turnarounds”.

– Making players return the same way they just

traveled, often used with fetch quests.

Conceptualizing the Gameplay

• A gameplay describes various elements

through which the player interacts with the

game.

• These include the visual theme and

cinematic, objects and characters in the

game, user interface, and the audio

theme.

• Gameplay is largely influenced by two

things: game setting and the storyline of

the game.

Game Setting

• Game setting: the procedures that

players use for setting up or personalizing

a game.

• Examples:

– Typing in the player’s personal information,

such as the player’s name

– Choosing the character that the player

wants to play

– Allowing players to design their avatars

Storyline

• The storyline is the birthplace of gameplay

because the storyline sets the mood of the

game.

• A strong storyline creates an excellent

game experience with various gameplay

elements in the game.

Gameplay Types

• Linear:– The challenges are predetermined in a fixed

sequence

– The gamers have to follow the predetermined plot in

this gameplay type

– Halo 3, Call of Duty 4

• Nonlinear:– The challenges are posed to the player in multiple

sequences

– The gamers can choose their choice of path to victory

– Borderlands, Alpha Protocol

Gameplay Elements

• While conceptualizing a game, you

conceptualize the following gameplay

elements:

– Visual theme and cinematic

– Objects

– Characters

– User interface (UI)

– Audio theme

Visual Theme

• The visual theme helps set the stage for

the game. – Creating a visual theme involves deciding a common

background, color pallet, and effect for all the visual

elements of the game, so that they all look like they

belong to the same game.

• The visual theme has to go hand-in-hand

with the idea of the game.– For a reality-based game, you need to thoroughly

research the background to create a visual theme.

Cinematics

• Cinematic or cut-scenes are sections in the

game where the player does not have any

control.

• Before creating a cinematic sequence, you must

outline the goals by answering the following

questions:

– Why must the player watch the cinematic elements?

– What kind of reaction from the player is the cinematic

intended to elicit?

– Will the cinematic inform the player about the game and

the characters?

– Do you want the cinematic to showcase the game’s

graphics?

Objects

• Objects are the visual elements of a game

that complete a scene in the game and

make it look real. – In a car racing game, all the elements that constitute

a gas pump where the car stops to take fuel are

objects.

• The player may or may not be able to

interact with all the objects.– The player may be able to click the hose to fill up the

car but may not be able to swipe the credit card

machine placed in the scene.

Characters

• The character in a game represents the player.

– The player should be able to recognize and identity with the

character.

• Answering these questions will help you create your

character’s persona:– How will the physique of the character be?

– What does the character eat?

– Where does the character live?

– What is the character’s routine?

– How does the character behave when angry or surprised?

– Does the character have a unique catchphrase?

– How does the character feel about the game situation?

– Who is the character: villain, hero, mentor, ally, or some other?

User Interface (UI)

• User interface (UI) is a collective term referring to the

onscreen elements through which a player interacts with

the game.

• The UI helps the player access information about the

game world and the status of his or her character.

• The UI elements in a game include:

– Menus

– UI components (for example, different character

avatars)

– Text

– Icons

– Layout

– Color

User Interface: Good vs. Bad

Good User Interfaces

• A well-designed UI

makes the game easier to

play.

• The player can easily

assess the situation and

respond accordingly.

• The player can focus on

the game itself and not

the interface, thus

increasing enjoyment of

the game.

Bad User Interfaces

• A poorly designed UI

makes it harder for the

player to identify what

needs to be done or what

resources are available

• This results in frustration

for the player and ruining

of what might otherwise

be a good game.

Well Designed UI Characteristics

• Intuitive

• Responsive

• Customizable

• Relevant

• User friendly

Audio Theme

• A great game depends on a great audio

theme.

• To choose the best audio theme, you need

to consider the following questions:– Will each character have a unique voice?

– How does the characters’ sound or dialogs function in

the game?

– What types of music work best with the game?

– Where in the game will the music play?

– What types of sound effects work best in the game?

Defining the Game Mechanics

• Game mechanics is all about how a

game operates.

– Game rules, challenges, activities to be

performed, goals required to win the game

• All games have the same mechanics; only

their complexity differs.

• Consider each of the following elements of

game mechanics in your

conceptualization:

– Quest, task, activities, how to gin, game

goals

The Game Mechanics Cycle

Common Game Mechanics

• Quest:

– Kill quest, collection quest, target quest

• Tasks:

– Like a quest, but may not always yield a

reward

• Activities:

– Loss avoidance, eliminating opponents,

logic, races, scoring

Recap

• Identifying the Motivation

• Identifying the Target Audience

• Identifying the Game Genre

• Identifying the Game Type

• Writing the Mission Statement

• Creating a Storyline

• Conceptualizing the Gameplay

• Defining the Game Mechanics