What was your overall goal for this week?: To fix and set up the Unity project.
Work Tasks
Date
Task Description
Time Spent
Was this a Best Practice?
3/20/23
I was getting Plastic SCM to pair correctly with the new Unity project my team was making and I was able to get it to work.
The whole class period
Yes
3/21/23
I was learning Unity 3D and I was learning how to build board objects to make the style we were looking for.
The whole class period
Yes
3/22/23
I was trying to get the map properly set up in Unity so Hunter doesn’t need to do so much work for nothing.
1.5 hours
Yes
3/23/23
I was still trying to learn Unity 3D but we realized we should just do Unity 2D.
The whole class period
yes
3/24/23
I was getting MVP ready and getting the project tracking sheet done for this week
The whole class period
Yes
Personal Comments (Optional)
Are there any other comments you would like to include? If so, please enter them here:
Due to Robert convincing us that Unity 3D was a good idea we wasted this entire week and we could have made a lot more progress and made a lot more stuff if we just started with Unity 2D.
By March 1, as the Producer, I will have evidence of creating a dynamic boss fight by following Mediums Boss Tutorial for Session 4.
PRE-PRODUCTION – INQUIRY
Leader(s) in the Field / Exemplary Work(s)
Charlie Cleveland
He was the director for Subnautica. It was a very popular game with the fresh idea of making a survival game set underwater with a good touch of horror with how the the enemies can act.
During the session, I worked on making the boss shooting and the code for switching between things like the main menu and the win screen. I also bug-fixed a lot of minor things that came up and added the walls for the level.
POST-PRODUCTION – REFLECTION
21st Century Skills
Ways of Thinking (Creativity, Innovation, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving)
Due to us just padding our the game this session, I didn’t do anything really creative only bug fixing and dealing with issues when they came up. For instance, the bullets would spawn in but wouldn’t move and after looking I realized the force was not added so after some quick fixes I added it.
Ways of Working (Communication & Collaboration)
I communicated with Liam, Hunter, and Robert regularly to work on the game more efficiently. Since Hunter was the main level/ menu artist, I asked him to make sprites and artwork we needed when it came up.
Tools for Working (Info & Media Literacy)
I didn’t really use the tutorials I found at the start of the session like normal. The ai shooting one though I used a lot this session and I’m happy I did. If I am being honest I really didn’t use much info and media literacy in this session due to how it was structured for my team.
Ways of Living in the World (Life & Career)
I was able to learn many different things to help with future projects like how to make enemies shoot at the players and learned from issues that my team ran into what makes good level design.
Reactions to the Final Version
“The boss and player projectiles were too small” – Neliy. Although I was not there, I heard our game was well received and the main issue came up with art which was not my role in this session. With the SUCCESS model, our game mainly hit categories for gameplay and not for the story since we didn’t have enough time to add a basic intro slide like in the last production session.
Self-Evaluation of Final Version
This session allowed us to make a lot of progress with the game. I will say that there were issues with how the team chose what person would do what thing but I am happy with how far the game came from last school year. I do realize that I didn’t work enough as I would like but I’m happy
IN ONE TO TWO SENTENCES, DESCRIBE WHAT GAME YOU ANALYZED FOR THIS PROJECT AND WHY YOU CHOSE IT
DELETE ALL OF MR. LE DUC’s ALL UPPERCASE INSTRUCTIONS ABOVE
Game Play Analysis
Formal Elements
MMO,RPG
The Basics
Level up and gain more gear, Do harder content and get more cosmetics
Name of the game
Final Fantasy 14
The platform
PC, Console
Time played (should be at least 30 minutes)
200 hours (Maybe?)
If you could work on this game (change it), what would you change and why?
Change the Dark Knight to DPS since it doesn’t make sense it’s a tank class.
Players
NOTES
How many players are supported?
thousands
Does it need to be an exact number?
For raids 8, Dungeons 4, Alliance raids 24
How does this affect play?
Makes players work together to do harder content and get better stuff.
Some types of player frameworks:Single Player – like Solitare.Head-to-head – 1 vs. 1, Chess.PvE – Player vs. Environment, or multiple players vs. the game. Common in MMOs like World of Warcraft.One against Many – Single-player vs. multiple (obvy).Free-for-all – Every man for himself (1 vs. 1 vs. 1 vs. 1..). Most common for multiplayer games, from Monopoly to Modern Warfare.Individuals Against the System – Like Blackjack, where the Dealer is playing against multiple players, but those players have no effect on each other.Team Competition – Multiple vs. multiple, i.e. sports.Predator-prey – Players form a circle and everyone’s goal is to attack the player on their left and defend themselves from the player on their right.Five-pointed Star – Eliminate both players who are not on either side of you.
PvE
Objectives/Goals
NOTES
What are the players trying to do?
Gain More Power, Collect Cosmetics
Some common objectives include:Capture/Destroy – Eliminate all your opponents pieces (Chess).Territorial Acquisition – Control as much territory as you can, not necessarily harming other players (RISK).Collection – Collect a certain number of objects throughout the game (Pokemon).Solve – Solve a puzzle or crime (Clue).Chase/race/escape – Anything where you are running towards or away from something (playground game Tag).Spatial Alignment – Anything involving the positioning of elements (Tetris or Tic-Tac-Toe or that game at Cracker Barrel).Build – Advance your characters or build your resources to a certain point (The Sims).Negation of another goal – The game ends if you perform an act that is forbidden by the rules (Jenga or Twister).
Rules/Mechanics
There are three categories of (what the book Rules of Play calls) operational rules:Setup – the things you do at the beginning of a game.Progression of Play – what happens during the game.Resolution – How an outcome is determined based on the game state.
Controls
NOTES
What controls are used?
W.A.S.D and Hotkeys, Controller
Was there a clear introductory tutorial?
Yes and the entire first part of the game is just and overly long boring tutorial (besides the Coils and Crystal Tower)
Were they easy to understand or did you find yourself spamming the controller?
They have a combo system so you can see what you need to press and then weave other stuff in as you see fit when you know what you are doing
Resources & Resource Management
NOTES
What kinds of resources do players control?
Tank,DPS,Healer
How are they maintained during play?
If no one follows their roles the party wipes.
What is their role?
Tanks draw and keep agro taking all the damage, Healers heal everybody , DPS deal the damage to the boss and enemies
A resource is everything under the control of a single player. Could be the money in Monopoly or health in WoW. Other examples are:Territory in RISKThe number of questions remaining in 20 QuestionsObjects picked up during videogames (guns, health packs, etc.)Time (game time, real-time, or both)Known information (like suspects in Clue)
Money and Health
Game State
NOTES
How much information in the game state is visible to the player?
A snapshot of the game at a single point is the game state. The resources you have, the un-owned properties in Monopoly, your opponent’s Archery skill all count towards the game state. Some example information structures are:Total Information – Nothing is hidden, like Chess.Info per player – Your hand of cards is only visible to you.One player has privileged info – Like a Dungeon Master.The game hides info from all players – Like Clue, where no one knows the victory condition.Fog of War – In video games, where certain sections of the map are concealed if you do not have a unit in sight range of that area. You also cannot see other players’ screens, so each player is unaware of the other’s information.
Sequencing
NOTES
In what order do players take their actions?
They normally have an “Opener” where they get as much damage in as possible and then do there combos.
How does play flow from one action to another?
Real Time
Some structures include:Turn-based – Standard board game technique.Turn-based with simultaneous play – where everyone takes their turn at the same time (like writing something down or putting a card down in War).Real-time – Actions happen as fast as players can make them. Action-based video games.Turn-based and time limits – You have this long to take your turn.
Player Interaction
Direct conflict and Trading
Some examples:Direct Conflict – I attack you.Negotiation – If you support me here, I’ll help you there.Trading – I’ll give you this for that.Information Sharing – If you go there, I’m warning you, a trap will go off.
Theme & Narrative
NOTES
Does it have an actual story structure?
Yes
Is it based on a historical event (or similar)?
Some of the area’s are inspired by real world places
Does the theme or narrative help you know how to play?
Not really
Does it have emotional impacts?
Yes
Also, look for en media res (does it start in the middle of the game)?
ARR (the first part) starts years after a massive war.
The Elements in Motion
NOTES
How do the different elements interact?
What is the gameplay like?
Can require a lot of focus and skill sometimes and can be frustrating in some cases
Is it effective?
Yes
Are there any points where the design choices break down?
The Rathalos fight since it doesn’t follow the same Three group system making it a really annoying and aggravating fight most of the time
Design Critique
NOTES
Why did the designer make these particular choices?
Why this set of resources?
What if they made different decisions?
Does the design break down at any point?
Graphics & Sound
NOTES
Does the game art pair well with the mechanics?
Did you find any bugs or glitches?
What about sound?
Can you spot any technical shortcuts?
Various Stages of the Game
NOTES
To wrap up, some things to keep in mind (as if there aren’t enough already) as you play:
What challenges do you face, and how do you overcome them?
Is the game fair?
NO
Is it replayable? Are there multiple paths to victory or optional rules that can change the experience?
Very much so.
What is the intended audience?
People who like wasting their lives on a game.
What is the core, the one thing you do over and over, and is it fun?
It depends on the player and what their mood is since their is so much to do.
By Jan. 13, as the Producer, I will have evidence of menu structure by following Engi Games menu turorial for session 3.
PRE-PRODUCTION – INQUIRY
Leader(s) in the Field / Exemplary Work(s)
Hakita was the producer for Ultrakill. Ultrakill is one of the most well received games on Steam and is generally considered one of the best First Person Shooters.He regularly keeps in touch with the community and has devlogs pretty often .
Training Source(s)
Explaining why not to use multiple canvases/scenes 0:26
This is the link to the slideshow that shows my team’s evidence for the production session.
POST-PRODUCTION – REFLECTION
21st Century Skills
Ways of Thinking
I managed to fix some of the problems we had from last school year. Like having a proper death state or the boss taking damage and it having a health bar. I also had an easier time making a health bar than last year which took most of my time for that production session.
Ways of Working
I was the one trying to coordinate the team this session. They were doing there own things and had to be told what needed to be done sometimes like with the death screen. I also was the one who added stuff like the background since Hunter couldn’t use Unity so he had to email me his background.
Tools for Working (Info & Media Literacy)
I continued to improve my coding skills. I was able to make the win and death screen again and brush up on my health bar coding skills. I also made a basic follow AI which was a massive leap in the game we are trying to make because before I added it Dino acted like a balloon.
Ways of Living in the World
I want to try to get into either Cyber Security or Game Design so being the main coder helps getting some practice in. Having to coordinate my team also helps since I would be working in teams in both job fields so having to organize my team is also great practice for the jobs i’m trying to do in the future.
Reactions to the Final Version
“I couldn’t tell what the Dino was at first ” – Jessica. I felt like it applied to me a bit since I kept that old sprite in the game and I made the Dino much faster than it should have been since it was slow at first.
Self-Evaluation of Final Version
I believe things could have gone far better. The game was all over the place during the session with things like the (He who shall not be named) as the boss or a certain person on our team completely messing up the Plastic SCM. I had to be the main coder again with making the follow AI or the boss health bar, to even making the death code. I think I did ok but I feel like I could have done way better myself.
This is the link to the production cycle 1&2. Getting people into the DunDoc wasn’t hard, it was just them not actually joining because they didn’t check their emails.
POST-PRODUCTION – REFLECTION
21st Century Skills
Ways of Thinking (Creativity, Innovation, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving)
Most of the bugs I just didn’t fix. I didn’t have time to fix things like infinite jump one, to the wall climbing, and especially the death code .
Ways of Working (Communication & Collaboration)
I learned the feeling of doing a big amount of the work on a team. I also had a much better time with this team than a good chunk of last years.
Tools for Working (Info & Media Literacy)
I learned far more things you can do in unity. For instance the camera was a “cinimachine” one which gave a more cinematic feel to the game. And also how to do an intro to a game.
Ways of Living in the World (Life & Career)
I learned a lot of problem solving skills this session and learned the “crunch” people in jobs have to deal with when they are on a tight schedule and have to do a lot of work to do.
Reactions to the Final Version
“The intro seems far too long” -Hunter
Self-Evaluation of Final Version
I could have done a better job given different circumstances.Though I was the only one coding the game when everyone else was making sprites or music. I also wish I used the gifs I was sent since they would have helped a lot with the game since the final product was pretty bare bones.
Liam Skinner has my highest recommendation. We have been teammates for over an entire school year and have a solid friendship. He is talented in many different fields and flexible as well; he was skilled enough to make an entire soundtrack and code a good chunk of the game as well. I would say Liam is funny but knows when he has to take things seriously, which helped a lot with our game design group when we could just relax and come up with ideas. Any team with Liam in it would do far better than without him.
My name is Aiden, I have multiple skills that employers would find useful. I have basic programming skills that I have used to help make a game. I have experience with taking care of animals, as well as knowledge of working outside with plants or just basic yard work. I have worked as the team leader for multiple game projects and directed the team to do their work.
Experience
Have done a considerable amount of yard work
Have done volunteer work
Was a stagehand in two plays and two Talent Shows.
By May 10th, as the UI/HUD person, I will identify the positive and negative feedback systems for Team 2, and I will read Rules of Play by Salen and Zimmerman to help me with this goal.
Ways of Thinking (Creativity, Innovation, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving)
In this session we tried did unity which had a lot of problems we ran into. For instance the health bar not properly connecting to the players actual health. I did however keep trying different ways to try and solve those problems I ran into and solve most of them.
Ways of Working (Communication & Collaboration)
Mainly me and Liam made the game itself. Lizzy also tossed some code and sprites our way but it was mostly me and him. We checked each others code whenever we ran into issues and researched different ways to code things in.
Tools for Working (Info & Media Literacy)
I used a lot of different places to get my info for how to code like forums and Youtube videos. We also created a google doc to put the videos we found as well which helped a lot with double checking our work.
Ways of Living in the World (Life & Career)
I do want to get into the field of coding and game design a little so using unity and learning how to do basic code was a massive boon for me. I also used methods to help with making everything that I never used before which was a good idea.
Reactions to the Final Version
“I managed to die 5 times in 30 seconds”-Larry
I added that way to die in order to test the health system so i’m happy it works but that still is a bit ridicules.
“You can break the game by dying and walking at a specific angle”-Chance
That is not intentional and is a big bug for the game but it’s good that it was found.
Self-Evaluation of Final Version
I am happy with some of the stuff I managed to create this session. With learning how to make basic code in a video game to trying a more complex engine was fun. Even though I could have made a better game in construct in a week I am still proud of what I did. I will say that I could have added things like health for the boss or the sound but I was learning how to do things on Unity along the way.
By March 2nd, as the team sound designer, I will make at the very minimum two sound effects triggered by mechanics in the game and music that adds to the player experience of the game my team and I will create. I will use websites like FMOD to create sound effects and music and the gameindusty.com sound designer tutorial. I will know this when I have sound effects and music that my team and I are satisfied with within session 4 game design.
Throughout the work session, I tried and worked on a lot of new skills. I tried out GarageBand and it helped a lot with making better music for the game. I also had to try and overhaul the level to be better which compared to before is far better.
POST-PRODUCTION – REFLECTION
21st Century Skills
Ways of Thinking (Creativity, Innovation, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving)
I created the movement system and all of the sprites in the newest version besides the character.
Ways of Working (Communication & Collaboration)
Liam and I switched roles so he made all the sounds on the itch version and I assembled the level and made all the level sprites.
Tools for Working (Info & Media Literacy)
I used the game industry article to help me with ideas for the game. When I was still a sound designer I used Charles Cylen GarageBand tutorial since it was my first time
Ways of Living in the World (Life & Career)
I tried a very popular music creation software and developed/and used overall coding skills that I had on the backburner
Reactions to the Final Version
” I like how the grass had texture and was interesting besides just a blank green slate”-Eric (Para Educator)
Self-Evaluation of Final Version
I could have done a lot better with everything I had a part of. Looking back I could have used these coding skills and sprite work to help with my past teams that had problems with the development process.
What I Learned and Problems I Solved
I made a rudimentary movement system that was implemented in the game which fixed the weird submarine movement system that we had for a while. I also fixed the grass and the tree not matching.