COMP 23: Introduction to Game Development

Brief History of Video Games; Game Design Principles

* No good Game Dev course can be without a history lesson
* Shed insight on the progress and significant contributions to
video/computer games...
* ...and perhaps will enlighten you
* ...so sit back and enjoy the ride!

The First Computer/Video Game
=============================
1952 - A.S. Douglas of U. Cambridge developed Tic-Tac-Toe for the
Electronic Delay Storage Automatic Calculator (EDSAC), a British
computer.

The 60s
=======
The first games were hacked on oscilloscopes and university mainframes.
1962 - Spacewar. Developed at MIT on a PDP-1 (Programmed Data
Processor-1; Digital Equipment); used vector graphics.
1965 - Periscope. Developed by Sega; popularity prompted Sega to ditch
the pinball business and produce more of its own games. See
http://www.pinrepair.com/arcade/sperisc.htm

The 70s
=======
1971 - Computer Space (a Spacewar clone). Developed by Nolan Bushnell
and Ted Dabney; used a regular raster display television set; too ahead
of its time.
1972 - Magnavox Odyssey. The first home video game console developed by
Ralph Baer. A commercial success ($100 a system, 330,000 sold).
1972 - Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney found Atari.
1972 - Pong, the arcade machine (by Atari). Home version released in
1975.
1974 - Tank. Developed by Kee Games. The first arcade game to use ROM
chips.
1976 - (Colossal Cave) Adventure. The first text-based interactive
fiction game developed by William Crowther and Don Woods on Digital
mainframes.
1976 - Breakout. Prototyped by then Atari employee Steve Jobs (with the
help of friend Steve Wozniak). Jobs "hosed" Wozniak on bonus money from
Atari. Good read:
http://classicgaming.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Articles.Detail&id=395
1977 - Atari 2600 (128 bytes of RAM); Apple introduces the Apple II. 2
million Atari 2600s sold by 1980 --thanks in part to the next game...
1978 - ...Space Invaders. Developed by Taito in Japan.
1979 - Asteroids. Developed by Atari.

The 80s
=======
1980 - Pac-Man. Developed by Namco. Made over $1 billion since its
release.
1980 - Battlezone. Developed by Atari (who was doing $1 billion in
business).
1981 - Many games released: Donkey Kong, Centipede, Ms. Pac-Man,
Galaxian, Tempest.
1982 - Electronic Arts (EA) is founded.
1984 - Apple introduces the Macintosh (birth of the modern computer).
The best-of-times and the worst-of-times: the game industry > $6 billion
in 1981, then Atari sales down 50% in 1981, the game industry < $800
million by 1984.
1985 - Nintendo Entertainment System (NES)
1985 - Tetris. Developed in the Soviet Union.
1986 - Sega Master System, Amiga by Commodore (computer), and Atari
7800.
1989 - Three major products: Sega Genesis (16-bit console), Nintendo
GameBoy, SimCity (developed by Maxis).
What Sega did right for Genesis: EA sports titles.

The 90s: The Start of the Console Wars
======================================
1990 - Super Mario Brothers 3 (NES)
1991 - Super Nintendo (SNES) released. The 16-bit competitor to the Sega
Genesis.
1991 - S3 introduces first single chip graphics accelerator for PC.
1991 - Two major games: Street Fighter II (Capcom) and Wolfenstein 3D
(id Software)
1992 - Goro lives... Mortal Kombat. Developed by Dan Forden, Ed Boon,
and John Tobias at Midway Games.
Nintendo has $7 billion in sales worldwide; Sega and Nintendo consoles
dominate 80% of the computer/video game market.
1993 - Two major games: DOOM (id Software; 2.5D, not true 3D) and Myst
(Broderbund).
1993 - 7th Guest. First game with full-motion video.
1995 - Windows 95. Make game development significantly easier (DirectX
SDK, plug-and-play).
1995 - Two 32-bit systems released: Sega Saturn and Sony PlayStation.
1996 - Nintendo 64. Cartridge based system aimed for the younger market.
1996 - Quake (id Software). Real 3D engine; multiplayer online game
1997 - Standardization of 3D acceleration; Pentium II 200 MHz PCs.
1997 - Ultima Online. The first 3D Massive Multiplayer Online Role
Playing Game (MMORPG).
1997 - GoldenEye 007 was released for N64. Apparently, the game was
developed by a team of developers who had never developed a game before.
The renown multiplayer mode was an afterthought!
1997 - Final Fantasy VII was released for PS1.
1998 - The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was released for N64.
1999 - Sega Dreamcast released. 128-bit console.

The New Millennium
==================
2000 - The Sims, developed by Maxis and published by EA. The
best-selling PC game of all time (over 16 million copies)
October 26, 2000 - Sony PlayStation 2 released. 128-bit console; 294 MHz
processor ("Emotion Engine"), made software development difficult.
November 2001 - Microsoft XBox released. 128-bit console; Pentium 4 733
MHz processor; DirectX API; hardware is the strength of the system.
Launch title: Halo
November 2001 - Nintendo GameCube released. 128-bit console; IBM Gekko
Processor at 403 MHz; easier software development; cheapest of the three
systems. Over 20 million units sold worldwide as of 2008.
2001 - Grand Theft Auto III. Developed by Rockstar Games.
2004 - Two handheld systems released: Nintendo DS, Sony PlayStation
Portable (PSP)
November 2004 - World of Warcraft released; over 9 million players /
subscriptions worldwide as of 2008
November 2005 - Microsoft XBox 360 released. Custom IBM PowerPC and ATI
Graphics processors. Very powerful hardware.
Problems with overheating
"Red Ring of Death" (hardware failure of some sort)
November 2005 - Guitar Hero I released
November 7, 2006 - Guitar Hero II released
November 17, 2006 - PlayStation 3 (PS3) released. Chaos ensue in lines
at Best Buy stores across America and on eBay.
Supports Blu-ray. An optical disc can hold up to 25 GB or data.
Expensive to produce initially
40 GB or 80 GB hard drive options
November 19, 2006 - Nintendo Wii released. You no longer need good luck
finding one, unlike the past two years!
Originally code-named "Revolution"
Can play NES / SNES / Nintendo 64 / Sega Genesis / TurboGrafx-16 / Neo
Geo games via emulation and download services
No high definition support
April 2007 - Nintendo profits up 77% (thanks WSJ); Wii outsells the PS3
4:1; XBox 360 outsells PS3 2:1
June 2007 - Apple releases the iPhone
July 2007 - Zynga founded
September 2007 - Halo 3 released. Sold over 8 million copies sold
worldwide.
November 2007 - Rock Band released for PS3 and XBox 360 by Harmonix
Music Systems (based in Cambridge, MA)
January 2009 - Apparently, Wii Sports becomes the best-selling game of
all time (that was quick)
November 15, 2009 - 2D lives! New Super Mario Bros. Wii
December 2009 - Rovio Mobile publishes first Angry Birds
April 3, 2010 - Apple iPad
June 24, 2010 - iPhone 4
November 2010 - Microsoft Kinect

Motivation: Why Do We Love Pong?

• Simple
• Every game is unique
• Elegant representation (of table tennis in real life)
• Social: it takes two to play
• Fun
• Cool

What is a Game?

• What are the differences between a movie and a game?
  • A movie does not require any input from a user; a game does
  • A movie has a predetermined ending; a game sometimes have no ending, sometimes have one ending, sometimes you can have multiple ways to die
  • You have to make (interesting) decisions. There are consequences for all decisions
• What are the differences between a toy and a game?
  • Every game is unique; you face different choices in each game
  • A game has rules and clearly-defined goals
  • There may be constraints in a game
• A game has a universe
  • Players
  • Objects (e.g., vehicles)
  • Terrains
  • Behaviors: e.g., physics, sound, speech, emotions
• Pretending - the mental ability to establish a notion of reality

What is a Digital Game?

• Immediate interactivity
• Visible and measurable feedback
• Narrow input and output
• Information manipulation
• Automation of complex systems (e.g., graphics, AI)
• Network communications
• Integration of all the traits above

What is Fun?

• Games tap into human motivation systems
• Fun = self determination theory

Game Design Principles

• "Why should someone else play it?"
• Identify the players and the audience
• Identify the genre, which may automatically put in place constraints
• Identify the universe and landscape
• Identify the constraints and goals
  • Determine the criteria for success. How do you win? How do you lose?
• Determine the rules of interaction
  • Controls; interaction with character, put the player in some environment
  • How do you explain constraints to the player? Do you tell a story?
• Operational issues (e.g., delivery)

Rules

• Semiotics - symbols; sometimes abstract and sometimes have parallels in the real world
• Gameplay - the challenges that a player must face to arrive at the objective of the game; the actions that the player is permitted to take to address those challenges
• Sequence of play - progression of activities
• Goal(s) of the game - the objective of the game
• Termination condition - a.k.a, victory conditions, a.k.a., end-game
• Metarules - rules about the rules

Common Goals in Games

• Beat the final boss
• Save the princess
• Capture the king, the country, flag, etc.
• Save the world
• Beat your opponent, the other guy
• Get the highest score
• Complete all the levels
• Build the best {fill in the blanks} without going bankrupt
• Sandboxing; play God (a.k.a., "wuss" mode)
• Achieve something (e.g., reunite the Triforce)
• Grab a lot of grub
• Get the most kills
• Kill everything that moves
• Be the last man standing
• Don't die
• Beat the clock; don't run out of time
• Character building
• Build relationships
• Solve a puzzle
• Level up
• Make the right choices (well, try not to screw up)

Designing the Gameplay: Making the Fun Happen

• Some skill or strategy involved
• Feeling of accomplishment
• Immersion: you are living a different life, or something that you wish you were
• Anticipation: do I look forward to playing this? Can this pass time? Sometimes addiction.
• Replay value
• A good story
• Believable story
• Good production
• Real-world feel
• Bug-free
• At least give me a chance
• Reasonable learning curve
• Some variety
• Not too linear
• Game balance
• Competition
• Well, is it suitable for certain people?

Core Mechanics

• Determines how the game actually operates
• Consist of data and algorithms that precisely define the game's rules and internal operations
• Should be so precisely stated that the programmers can write the code
• Its functions:
  • Operate the internal economy of the game
  • Present active challenges
  • Accept player actions
  • Detect victory or loss
  • Operate the artificial intelligence
  • Switch the game from mode to mode
  • Transmit triggers to the storytelling engine

Designing Core Mechanics

• Keep it simple and elegant
• Look for patterns, then generalize
• Don't strive for perfection (on paper)
• Refinement is important

What are the rules and core mechanics of Monopoly?

Game Balance

• Fairness (start symmetrical: equal resources and powers to all)
• Asymmetrical
• Challenges vs. success
• Meaningful choices: low risk / low reward, high risk / high reward
• Short vs. long
• Rewards
• Punishment

Feedback

• What happens when you win?
• What if you lose?

Uh oh.....Game Design and Gameplay Blunders

• Very flat; linear gameplay
• Incorrect facts
• Really really poor production: bad acting, bad voiceover, bad translation, bad everything
• Bad physics
• The unfinished or rushed game. The consequences:
  • Overworked developers
  • Bad testing; bugs galore
  • Doesn't sell well
  • Players get pissed
  • Patch /update hell
• I need the CD to play this game?
• False promise (a.k.a., Duke Nukem Forever)
  • Not as good as advertised
  • WHAT? I HAVE TO PAY FOR THIS PLUGIN IN THE GAME?!?!?!?!
• Dead as you know it
• Unrealistic storyline
• LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG movie that you CAN'T SKIP
• Bad camera control
• Bad AI
• Repetition, no variety
• You can't save
• I don't know what to do; lack of feedback
• Really really clunky user interface
• Too much emphasis on sound, graphics
• Really bad sequel
• Really bad support
• Poor lighting
• Bad port
• Poor performance; game crashes

Game Genres

• Classifications of digital game features
• Describe the style of the game
• Problems:
  • Most games fit into multiple genres
  • The list of nomenclatures goes on forever (see below)
  • No standard; been an issue of controversy
• Importance: Set expectations
  • For players: they know what to expect in the game
  • For developers: they have to adhere to the design patterns (sometimes known as the "unwritten rules") of the genre

The Running List of Popular Genre Nomenclatures

• Strategy
• First-Person Shooter (FPS)
• Real-Time Strategy (RTS)
• MMORPG
• RPG
• Adventure
• Action
• Simulation
• Sports
  • Racing
• Shoot 'Em Ups / Beat 'Em Ups / Blow 'Em Ups
• Brawlers
• Fighting
• Sidescroller
• Puzzle
• Party
• God Games
• Music
• Space Shooter
• 2D Space
• Movie-Based / Full-Motion Video
• History
• Education / Edutainment
• Simulation
• Stealth
• Interactive Fiction
• Text
• ...and this list goes on!

Genre: 2D Space (a.k.a., Shoot 'Em Ups; Arcade)

• Examples: Space Invaders, Asteroids, R-Type, Defender, Chromium
• Spurred the arcade boom in the '80s
• Easy to develop
• Problems: unrewarding; stale; not a good sell anymore

Genre: Simulation

• Examples: SimCity, any EA sport game
• Mimics real-world scenarios, including physics, atmosphere, and limitations

Genre: Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPGs)

• Examples: World of Warcraft, Everquest, City of Heroes, City of Villians
• Descendant of interactive fiction and Multi-User Dungeons (MUDs) (e.g., Ultima)
• Popularly subscription-based for revenue stream
• Character-building
• Requires computer networking
• Problems: software patches; out-of-game economies; addiction; can have lots of mundane and boring tasks

Genre: Interactive Fiction (a.k.a., Adventure, Text-Based or Graphical)

• Examples: Blade Runner, the book, Adventure, Zork
• Sometimes known as interactive drama
• Immersive story
• Primarily text
• Completeness of world
• Prose
• Challenges and puzzles are typically conceptual solved by lateral thinking
• The world is essentially a (mathematical graph) where each node in the graph is a separate scene
  • Tree
  • Death trap (many ways to be dead)
  • Open world
• You are faced with discrete and limited choices
• You could be dead as you know it, or loop around the world with no end
• What to avoid
  • Puzzles solvable only by trial-and-error
  • Illogical spaces. Perfect example: Legend of Zelda (NES), the second quest
  • Require outside knowledge

Elements of a Game Design Document

• Game Title
• Overview
• Gameplay mode
• Core features in the game
• Secondary features in the game
• State diagrams (schematics)
• Internal economy
• Game balance
• Victory conditions
• Interface design (high-tech or low-tech)

The Importance of a Game Design Document

• Memory (i.e., Have a plan? Write it down!)
• Communications
• Identify system limitations
• Scope tentative project plan and budget
• Good read: The 7 Deadly Sins of Startup Companies