unity tutorial 6

Unity tutorial 6

If you go back in my blog posts to a previous unity tutorial you will find that I was having fun with the lighting aspect of unity, I decided to not focus on that this time as I am already adept in it but I did use it a bit this time. I was mainly focusing on trying to get a functioning area in which the player can walk around in while also adding lighting to it in order to create and atmosphere in the area the player is in.

I struggled initially with the spawning but after messing around with it for a little bit I was able to get the player to spawn on top of the platform I placed for this purpose. I didn't bother with any detailed textures so the area the player walks around in is pretty bland and there isn't anything to do quite yet. However despite this I was able to make the area a bit more interesting with the lighting so when I am adding specific textures I feel that I will be able to make a somewhat palatable environment for the entire game to take place in.

overall I feel that I will be able to use these abilities to make a solid game for a final project. I am developing strong fundamentals in unity and I think I can master simple things like this before I focus on the smaller details. I am feeling more and more comfortable with unity every time I open it.

 
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Prototype

I have decided to go for a horror style game in which you will wander around an area, engage in combat with enemies and try to survive. I have chosen this because I enjoyed the details that I was able to achieve with lighting while learning unity.

What is working?

As previously mentioned I have been having success with lighting in my unity experience. Changing colour, intensity, direction and the like have given me some ideas I could use in my game. Perhaps I could make a handheld light that other horror games typically use to build suspense as you don't know what is coming from far away. It gives me a lot of options I can use to build an atmosphere in my game. I have also found things like building an area to be quite easy, molding shapes to be whatever I need them to be is a simple experience for me at the moment so I could definitely make something interesting in my game.

What am I finding difficult?

Some things in unity can be a bit finicky for me. If you go back to my first blog post about using unity you can see that I struggled with the environment a little. Tutorials seem to all be using different versions of unity which makes following along a bit more difficult but not impossible. There really isn't anything else I'm particularly struggling with, every issue I have can normally be worked around or there is a solution online. Deciding exactly what I am going to make is not clear at the moment but I think I will figure it out in due time.



https://i.udemycdn.com/course/240x135/1210008_6859.jpg

Unity tutorial 5

If you go back to my first post about unity you'll find that I found it difficult to learn, however over time I am getting more and more comfortable and I think I may be able to make a game quite soon. I particularly found the lighting interesting, use of shadows and different colour lighting make me want to create an atmospheric horror game. I think this could be very possible for me to use my lighting abilities to create a good atmosphere, along with simple controls and AI for enemies this seems like a very achievable goal for me.

Making areas and lighting them appropriately could make for an interesting challenge that I am excited to undertake. Simple AI, atmospheric lighting, simple environments could all combine for a simple, fun horror game and as I learn more and more about unity I'm sure that I could add a twist and make it stand out from other games in the genre.

At the beginning of my unity career I thought a game would be difficult and perhaps tedious, however upon learning the basics of unity I discovered that it is not the difficult task I once proposed, it is a whole other type of difficulty, the challenge of making something fun with my albeit limited skills. I'm excited to make a game after playing them for years.



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Games GDD

Games GDD

http://www.thegamesjournal.com/articles/DesignConsiderations.shtml

The main thing I pulled from this article is that the presentation of a game is extremely important to some people. The article was about a board game and some of the simple things were things that would seem obvious but could easily be missed such as making pieces smaller than their place on a board, using strong contrasting colours and things like that. This made me think about the games I will be making, board games aren't necessarily on the menu at the moment however these principals could be applied to the UI in any video games I make in the future.

https://learn.canvas.net/courses/3/pages/level-5-dot-0-generating-ideas?module_item_id=44545

This article posits that to design a game you should start with a simple idea, set of rules or something else important and work from there, this will root your game in reality and not lead to you making a huge idea and having to taper down. Know you're aim and your limits before beginning. Start with a realistic idea and do it well, a simple game made well is far better than an overly ambitious game done poorly. The core idea is idea generation because once you have a solid idea you can work from there.

http://gamingconceptz.blogspot.com/2011/12/simple-and-elegant-essence-of-game.html

This article focuses on PONG, one of the first successful games ever. It points out the pure minimalism of the game design and the extremely simple rules of the game. Requiring 2 players makes it a social experience and the article goes on to state that solid game design can stand the test of time as pong has.


https://www.traininginchennai.in/3d-animation-training-images/game-design.jpg

Games MDA

Games MDA

https://vimeo.com/288331391

The main thing I took away from the reading this week was the various different types of fun and how I, as a game designer, could implement them into any future games I make and how I could go about doing this.

The 8 types of fun are as follows:

Sensation - Games as a sense of pleasure

Fantasy - Game as make-believe

Narrative - Game as Drama

Challenge - Game as obstacle course

Fellowship - Game as social framework

Discovery - Game as uncharted territory

Expression - Game as self discovery

Submission - Game as pastime

This intrigued me as I started to think about what it was that my favourite games did that made them fun and fitting them into the categories was quite interesting as I found the 2 most common types for me were fellowship and challenge.

https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-08-08-why-are-video-games-fun

This article posits that it is almost the simulation aspect which makes a game fun and attractive for people. Saying it gives them an opportunity to "try on new hats" and to become their ideal selves. This also interests me because video games definitely give people an opportunity to do things they would never do in the real world and to take risks that in a realistic setting they would certainly not take.

https://venturebeat.com/community/2013/04/16/why-do-we-love-video-games/

This article puts forth that the reason we find video games fun is because they offer an escape. This ties back to the second article that says it's about trying new roles we would never be able to in the real world. It also states that it is the sense of accomplishment which drives people to play video games, it gives them something to work towards which I suppose ties back to the "Challenge" type of fun. Players will work towards a goal for a while and upon achieving it will feel a sense of accomplishment that you simply don't get with TV and movies.

https://www.officevibe.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/why-fun-copany-culture-goodi-for-business_quote2.png

Games MDA

What makes up a game?

It's a question that I tried to tackle in one of my initial blog posts way back in the day. It is a difficult thing to answer because the true definition of a game is a difficult one to nail down. However upon reading the readings it has helped me surmount this impossible task of discovering what it truly is that defines a game. The readings handily broke it down into a simple bullet pointed list with items such as rules, objectives and themes. These are the main 3 in my opinion

https://www.familyeducation.com/fun/making-family-time/importance-rules-games

Above is an article about the importance of rules in games, it basically boils down to leaving all players on equal footing and maintaining order in the game. It also kind of ties into the objective as the two work hand in hand in order to guide the players to what it is that the game wants to accomplish.

https://www.publicmedievalist.com/game-objectives/

Objectives are what drives a player to do what the game wants them to do. An example is if a game asks you to defeat an enemy to advance then the player will try to advance by defeating the enemy. Certain games like minecraft have been both praised and criticized for a lack of objective at least before the ender dragon was added which is a pretty loose objective that a lot of players choose to ignore or at least not have it as a priority.

 https://www.giantbomb.com/profile/raddevon/blog/how-important-is-theme-in-video-games/31223/

Theme is very important.Is your game a first person shooter, an RPG, a strategy game etc. This let's
people know what to expect from the game when they are heading in to it for the first time. This can also help set the tone for a game, an RPG will normally convey a better story than a first person shooter, not always but most of the time. Theme also sets the tone as the two are very closely linked, for instance a game focused on being a balanced, competitive game such as overwatch or League Of Legends will not put much if any time into a story and will solely focus on gameplay and balance.

Feedback Thoughts

https://www.themuse.com/advice/taking-constructive-criticism-like-a-champ

Above is an article about handling constructive criticism which is something I do on a near daily basis so I'd like to think I'm alright at it.

The article breaks it down quite a bit but the basics of it are to not lash out, remember why you are getting criticism, pay attention, think about it and apply it. This is quite a good system as people often get annoyed at criticism when it really could help them. if they simply remain calm, and consider what they are being told then they may come to realize that the person is trying to help them and they can improve.

I deal with constructive criticism when I train MMA, people tell me I'm doing something wrong or could be doing it better and I normally just listen and do it that way, normally they are right and I improve slightly but I have seen people get annoyed by it and take it personally which is just dumb.

https://www.radicalcandor.com/blog/6-tips-taking-feedback-well/

This article says similar things but encourages people to seek out criticism as it helps them improve. It goes on to say that Rory Mcilroy actually pays people to criticize him because he always wants to improve, other than that it's more of the "just listen, stay calm, consider it" stuff that we've been over already. Things like this are important in all walks of life as being the best you can be at whatever you do will take you very far.

Game Brainstorm

Game Ideas

Idea 1: Just a simple quiz game similar to something like trivial pursuit or perhaps an adaptation of a trivia game show like the chase, pointless, jeopardy or maybe even family feud, depending on my capabilities in unity. These Ideas seem pretty simple and can make a pretty enjoyable game as long as a few simple things are kept in check such as a lack of repeating questions. Attached is a review of Family feud 2010 edition

https://ie.ign.com/articles/2010/07/07/family-feud-review

Idea 2: A plat-former game seems like a simple yet fun idea for a game, however you would need to focus on level design and controls in my opinion. A great plat-former game in my opinion is "super meat boy" by Edmund Mcmillan. It has good controls, interesting levels and is just a simple fun game. Plat-former need to avoid being clunky and slow in order to make the player feel like things are happening at a good pace. This review repeats things I have said, such as the game being simple yet fun.

https://ie.ign.com/articles/2010/12/01/super-meat-boy-review

Idea 3: A game akin to something like The Binding Of Isaac or Enter The Gungeon in which you collect randomized items in randomized areas while fighting randomized enemies, games like this are infinitely replayable however they may be quite a challenge to create as so many things will be needed such as a durth of items, areas and enemies. The binding of isaac is a 40 minute long game that many people have thousands of hours in so it is quite the marvel of game design.

https://ie.ign.com/articles/2014/11/26/the-binding-of-isaac-rebirth-review

Idea 4: My final idea is a silly game similar to something like goat simulator, get a fairly innocuous controllable character and add as many zany effects to the game world as possible, something silly that people can have fun with for a little while without taking itself too seriously. This review opens with a similar sentiment " goat simulator is a joke of a game. It’s small, deliberately unpolished and buggy, and its design is simple."

https://ie.ign.com/articles/2014/04/01/goat-simulator-review



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unity tutorial 1

Unity Tutorial 1

This was my first foray into actually making anything in unity. I wasn't able to make anything spectacular but I did learn some of the basics such as camera movement, terrain manipulation and texture. Upon opening unity it was quite intimidating because there is a lot of moving parts that goes into making a game and there is a plethora of options and menus that you see when opening unity. It took me a while to really get anything to actually happen but once I was able to start manipulating the landscape and adding a bit of texture it felt quite rewarding. I struggled with adding in grass as I think the tutorials I was using may have been out of date or maybe I was just missing something, both are possible. I am honestly not too worried with not getting things like that on my first outing because I know it's all a learning experience. As Bob Ross said "I'm not very good but it doesn't matter" I know I'll grow and improve over the coming weeks if I just keep going with unity so not being perfect doesn't really phase me.

Overall unity was an interesting piece of software to mess around in and I look forward to becoming better and better with it because game design is something that interests me as I play a lot of games and have always been curious how I would do if I was making one myself. Unity is a great tool for game designers especially because of how many tutorials are out there to help people like myself become better and better.


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Game Design

Game Design

As a person who has played my fair share of games over the course of my life I was quite surprised when I discovered that I didn't really know what a game was. I could tell you a game if I saw one but if I had to explain the concept to another person who somehow had never heard of a game then I would struggle. I would have probably just said something along the lines of "it's like when you want to do something that doesn't really matter for fun against someone" but that doesn't really make sense so the readings have definitely made me clear up the exact vernacular I would use if I ever find myself in that situation.

The dictionary definition of a game is as follows "an activity that one engages in for amusement or fun." This definition isn't great as things like cooking, watching tv or sleeping fit the description and when someone says they like games nobody expects that to be the extent. The reading has many more parameters for what makes a game but the main four I like are "games are an activity with rules, goals and decision making" there may be a couple non game things that fit those rules but I feel that those are the four main ones.

Now that I can nail down a better explanation of what a game actually is I should be more equipped to create a game of my own as I can check back to the rules and make sure my game has followed them. Without this my game may lack something important and I could end up making some sort of visual novel or an interactive movie which isn't exactly what I'm aiming for, however I am still not entirely sure what exactly it is which I am aiming for when I make my first ever game in unity over the coming weeks.

However knowing what a game is isn't enough. I need to know how to design a game. I need to spend time thinking about how my game will begin, what will happen in the middle and how it will end along with the transitions between these. If my game has story as a core element then I will need to figure out how to lead the narrative through these stages and if gameplay is more at the helm then I will need to find a way to keep it interesting throughout.

https://www.pcgamer.com/the-making-of-divinity-original-sin-2/
That is an article about the making of divinity original sin 2, in my opinion one of the best games ever. The article has the developers mention prototypes that were used before making the game full scale, this is something that could certainly prove useful to me. They also mentioned repeating the great parts of earlier games they made but that isn't really an option for me.

https://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/182380/postmortem_mcmillen_and_himsls_.php
That is an article about an indie game named "the binding of isaac" the part which stood out to me most was when they mentioned that they drew inspiration from the legend of zelda's dungeon system and expanded upon it to create something that hadn't really been done before, at least not to that extent. This simple idea led to one of the best selling indie games of all time and has spawned a sequel and a spin off is currently in the works too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvm0CN3tQFI

That is a video about the making of "oblivion" an open world RPG which I have personally put countless hours into. Around the 12 minute mark they mention that some things they make for the game don't make it in but it's just fun to make crazy, cool stuff. this leads me to think that I shouldn't be too serious about everything I make for my game, if I make something cool and it can fit in then sure, throw it in. If I make something that has no place in the world, perhaps I modify it or learn from it when making other parts.



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