Tetris Deconstruction

The Tetromino


To formally define the tetromino, it is an arrangement of four squares into various shapes, and each shape variation has its own distinctive color (the cosmetic attribute). 


Player Actions


Under the players control, the tetromino can rotate 90 degrees left or right, and can be accelerated downward more quickly. By rotating the tetromino, the player effectively arranges the 4 constituent blocks into different formations. So, the possible formations of the tetromino's four blocks changes with each type of block is falling.

Scoring System and Dynamics


A popular scoring system increments the player's score based on the lines that they clear by filling an entire row with tetromino blocks. Variables scaling the added score are: Number of simultaneous lines cleared (up to four), and the current level number. Typically the player is allowed to select their starting level if they desire the game to be more difficult immediately (or get higher score faster). The levels progress, regardless of starting point, when a fixed number of lines has been cleared (most commonly 10 lines). As the levels progress, the blocks fall faster, and in some versions of the game (Tetris DS, for example), the blocks don't even fall at a certain point, they just appear (but you can move them around for a few seconds on top of other blocks).


Design Practice Questions

1. What entities and resources will be in the game? Which resources are made up
of individual entities (such as a resource of airplanes consisting of individual planes
that the computer can track separately) and which are described by mass nouns
(such as water, which cannot be separated into discrete objects)?

• Individual Entities:
• Player, weapons, enemies, doors, save-points, respawn point, switches, platforms(moving and static), bullets
• Broader Entities:
• Ground(organic and non-organic), sky.

2. What unique entities will be in the game?

• Described above.

3. Which entities will actually include other entities as part of their definition?
(Remember that an avatar may have an inventory, and an inventory contains
objects.)

• The player has an inventory which contains references to other entities.
• Weapon entities spawn bullet entities
• Enemy entities can have references to Weapon entities, which in turn can spawn bullet entities.
• Respawn entities create the Player entity at their world location.

4. What attributes describe each of the entities that you have identified? Which
attributes are numeric and which are symbolic?

• Movable base class:
• Position, velocity vector, graphics.
• Item base class:
• Respawns (true if it re-spawns in the world when re-loading room), 
• Bullet base class (subs Movable):
• Speed, spread, hasGravity (bullet affected by gravity)

• Player (Movable):
• Inventory, current spawn location, current world location, currently equipped weapon (null if none).
• Enemy (Movable):
• Currently equipped weapon, move pattern(s) (AI), lethal (determine if it hurts player)
• RangedWeapon (Weapon):
• Bullet type (class reference), rate-of-fire
• Door:
• Locked, open (door currently open)
• Save-Points:
• isActive (it's the currently selected save-point), initialSpawn(true if it is initially set as spawn, for game start), respawner (Respawn-Point class ref)
• Respawn-Point:
• graphic
• Switch:
• target (the object that the switch activates), locked, room (the room that the switch is in)
• Platforms(Movable):
• moving (true if it moves), nodes (the movement nodes, accepts 2 for linear motion), moveVector (the vector describing the platforms movement), speed

5. Which entities and resources will be tangible, and which will be intangible?
Will any of them change from one state to another, like the resources in Age of
Empires?

• Tangible entities: 
• World, platforms, doors, bullets, switch
• Intangible entities: 
• Weapons (after they are collected from the world)

6. What mechanics govern the relationships among the entities? Remember that
any symbolic entity requires mechanics that determine how it can get into each of
its possible states and how other entities interact with each possible state.

• The Player changes the state of:
• Enemies, Doors, Items (Weapons), Bullets, Save Points, Switches
• Enemies change:
• Player, Bullets (depending on enemy type)
• Doors change:
• nothing
• Switches change:
• Doors
• Bullets change:
• Player, Enemy, World, Switches (possibly), Doors (possibly)
• Save Points change:
• Respawn points, Player
• Respawn Points change:
• Player
• Platforms change:
• Player (add to player velocity if it moves)

7. Are there any global mechanics in the game? What mechanic governs the way
the game changes from mode to mode?

• There is a global mechanic governing changes to individual rooms, as well as the switching in between the rooms.

8. For each entity and resource, does it come into the game world at a source, or
does it start off in a game world that does not provide a source for additional entities or resources? If it does come in at a source, what mechanics control the
production rate of the source?

• All entities spawn at set locations (which are set in the level editor). Certain items are set to spawn every time the room is loaded, and some are not.

9. For each entity and resource, does it go out of the game world at a drain, or does
it all remain in the game world and never leave? If it does go out at a drain, what
conditions cause it to drain?

• All entities are unloaded when the room is changed, but their states are saved for reference when that room is loaded again. 

10. What conversion processes exist in your world? What trader processes exist? Do
any feedback loops or mutual dependencies exist? What means have you provided
to break or prevent deadlocks?

• Some enemies drop out of their idle movement loops and enter action loops based on varying conditions, usually based on the Player position. For example, one enemy type's action loop is to move directly toward the player at a greater velocity, and this is triggered if the player collides with the enemies vision cone.

11. Can your game get into a state of equilibrium, static or dynamic? Does it include
any form of decay or entropy that prevents states of equilibrium from forming?

• No, the game is constantly in a state of inequality, since enemies will always spawn and will always impede the players progress in certain parts of the game. At any instantaneous moment, there me be a state of equilibrium (a room is loaded that has no enemies), but this is not global.

12. How do mechanics create active challenges? Do you need to establish any
mechanics to detect if a challenge has been surmounted?

• The game's challenges will consist of various platforming elements, the avoiding of enemies, and sometimes both simultaneously. There is no need for an explicit mechanic to detect whether or not these challenges are surmounted-- the player getting farther in the world and saving their location at a save point accomplishes this implicitly.

13. How do mechanics implement actions? For each action that may arrive from the
user interface, how do the core mechanics react?

• The player is provided a movement, shooting, action, inventory, and map interface.
• Movement:
• Change the players velocity after checking for collisions.
• Shooting:
• If the currently equipped weapon is not null, then trigger the Weapons fire method, which in turn spawns Bullet objects with the correct position and initial velocity
• Action:
• If the Player is next to an interactive object, then pressing the action button will cause that object to activate. 

14. For autonomous entities such as nonplayer characters, what mechanics control
their behavior? What mechanics define their AI?

• Their actions are determined by defined movement patterns pertaining to enemy type.

Donkey Kong Ragefest 2011

Well, the game isn't actually THAT enraging, however, it is definitely difficult, and brutally unforgiving. What makes the game so difficult is the degree of randomness that is present, and the lack of air control of the avatar. However difficult this makes the game, the simplicity of the controls and obviousness of the goal make it very inviting to players.

From my quick interaction with the game, it seems that timing is a very important skill to get down, without a quick reaction time those damn springs will get the best of you. If you want to get good, you should also have patience, and an alarming amount of free time for practice.

Here is my game, my totally awesome high score has both Billy Mitchell and Steve Wiebe weeping with jealous hatred.

King of Kong Questions

1. Mitchell is unabashedly cocky and fond of self promotion, proclaiming himself the "Sauce King" of Florida for his successful line of homemade hot sauces. Next to his family, Mitchell considers his arcade scores his greatest achievements in life.

How typical are these types of values and attitudes among 'core' gamers and how important is it to understand these values if you are a game designer? What *are* these values, exactly?

Many core gamers consider their scores and progress in games as real accomplishments, whereas non-core gamers just see them as numbers on a screen. Their attachment to their scores can vary, but every single one feels something when there is proof that they have done better than someone else. Understanding this addiction is absolutely crucial knowledge to the game designer if they are making a game for the core crowd. If the core gamer cannot use their skills to make consistent progress in a game, they will move on.

2. Steve Wiebe has been laid off as a Boeing engineer, and now spends his time as a science teacher. His friends and his wife, Nicole, describe him as a tragic figure who always comes up short, despite being proficient at music, sports, art, and mathematics.

Is Weibe's 'tragic' aspect typical of core gaming 'types'?

What role does self esteem (high or low) play in the culture of hard core gaming and such subcultures as competitive vintage or 'classic' game playing? How would you best describe the relationship between low self-esteem and videogame mastery?

I think core gamers come in all shapes and sizes of character. Self esteem doesn't matter so much, it doesn't change the euphoric feeling gained by core gamers when they accomplish a high score, which is what drives them forward. This couldn't better be represented by Mitchell and Wiebe, polar opposites in terms of self-esteem, yet competing at the extreme core-gamer level.

3. Despite Wiebe's protests that his own first score was disqualified for being submitted via unsupervised videotape, Twin Galaxies accepts Mitchell's score over Wiebe's and proclaims that Mitchell is still the record holder.

How valid do you think videotaped gameplay should be in establishing videogame playing records?

If valid, why? If not valid, why not?

Perhaps 15 years ago this would be viable, however it's too easy to seamlessly edit video with modern software.

4. Peter Travers of Rolling Stone gave the film 3 out of 4 stars, wondering "Who would have guessed that a documentary about gamers obsessed with scoring a world record at Donkey Kong would not only be roaringly funny but serve as a metaphor for the decline of Western civilization?"

What do you think of the film?

Is it an accurate portrayal of what makes videogames so compelling for those who play them?

It doesn't really explain the characteristics of an addicting game, just that there are people addicted to them. 

5. On November 10, 1981, Walter Day opened an arcade in Ottumwa, Iowa called Twin Galaxies. Though it was a modest arcade of merely 22 arcade games, it soon became known as the International Scorekeeper for the burgeoning video game industry. Under Day's direction, Twin Galaxies set rules for gameplay on hundreds of games, while maintaining a records database of competitive high scores. Twin Galaxies is considered by gaming historians as being the first organizer of professional gaming, putting competitive electronic gaming on the world map.

How important do you think organizations like Twin Galaxies are in the vintage arcade gaming community?

Could such communities exist without such organizations?

What role does Twin Galaxies play ultimately, and why is this significant to the film and its story?

Considering how competitive core gamers get, an organization for official score keeping would eventually rise out of necessity, or the gamers would just pummel each other over whose score is legitimate. Twin Galaxies acts as the goto place for core gamers wanting recognition (in vintage games), which adds much more significance to the scores, since they are officially validated.

6. The film depicts Wiebe's skill at Donkey Kong being linked to his ability to deeply understand the title's game mechanics, particularly the way that rhythm and timing work to ensure a successful outcome.

The film in one scene compared his love of drumming and his abilities at basketball as well as his musical talent as part and parcel of his gift at playing Donkey Kong.

How would you best describe this set of inter-related skills?

Have you experienced anything like this yourself when playing games? Have you been able to associate the skill of playing games with similar related skills and talents and how would you best describe the nature of this set of inter-relationships between skills/passions/abilities?

Dexterity and pattern matching and recognition absolutely ties into serious gaming. When you get into that trance state of gaming, where your skills are challenged, but you are still making progress, it's a great feeling. 

7. In the film, Wiebe, while playing the game says hello to Mitchell. Mitchell didn't respond. As he's walking away from Wiebe, Mitchell says, "There's certain people I don't want to spend too much time with." Mitchell offered no explanation for his behavior towards Wiebe but did later explain that at the time of filming, he had not played video games for "more than a year", and that the filmmakers had not given him enough advance warning to train for a public record-breaking attempt. Seth Gordon, the film's Director, in referring to Mitchell's character says that Mitchell "is a true puppet-master", "a master of information-control".

What do you think Gordon means by this? What role does such behavior play in general terms in videogame culture? 

Gordon is saying that Mitchell is extremely obsessed with his public image, and knows exactly how to control it. Mitchell is able to sacrifice other individuals to better himself-- without a second thought he would have 10,000 people killed in front of him to save himself. The typical core gamer may exhibit such behavior when playing a game, but not carry it over into their real lives.

8. What did you think of the film? Is it really only about the game "Donkey Kong" and those who seek to hold the highest score or is it really about something more?

The film is more about the clash of two skilled competitors, who come from opposite ends of the narcissist spectrum. It is basically played as a typical good versus evil plot. 

9. Have you ever played "Donkey Kong"? What was your memory of playing it? Where were you, when was it?

Yes, and I failed miserably. I played it at one of my cousins houses, about 10 years ago.

Final Project COUNTDOWN

Deadlines loom, and I shit bricks.

My final project can be found here, in its currently incomplete state.

Design Questions

1. What types of challenges do you want to include in your game? Do you want to challenge the player’s physical abilities, his mental abilities, or both?


Both physical and mental challenges will be present. The challenges will be: Enemies, Doors/Switches, Exploration, Memorization, Platforming.

2. Game genres are defined in part by the nature of the challenges they offer. What does your choice of genre imply for the gameplay? Do you intend to include any cross-genre elements, challenges that are not normally found in your chosen genre?


The challenges will take cues from platforming games, as well as action games. Pretty standard fair for an action-adventure game. 


3. What is your game’s hierarchy of challenges? How many levels do you expect it to have? What challenges are typical of each level?


The game will take place over one large world, divided into 4 sub-sectors. The player will only be able to progress to new areas of the world as they gain new skills, so there is still a linear progression. 


4. What are your game’s atomic challenges? Do you plan to make the player face more than one atomic challenge at a time? Are they all independent, like battling enemies one at a time, or are they interrelated, like balancing an economy? If they are interrelated, how?


At most, the player will be fighting enemies, platforming, and puzzle solving simultaneously, but only at the most hectic moments of the game. The challenges are basically independent though.


5. Does the player have a choice of approaches to victory? Can he decide on one strategy over another? Can he ignore some challenges, face others, and still achieve a higher-level goal? Or must he simply face all the game’s challenges in sequence?


The player progresses linearly, having to overcome the area of the world they are currently in before moving on to the next one. Inside of an area though, the player is free to explore at their own will. 
6. Does the game include implicit challenges (those that emerge from the design), as well as explicit challenges (those that you specify)?


The overarching goal of the game is implied at the beginning, then hinted at through level design and enemy type as the player progresses. There will be no explicit goals, to make the game feel more open and encourage exploration. 


7. Do you intend to offer settable difficulty levels for your game? What levels of intrinsic skill and stress will each challenge require?


I didn't plan on implementing difficulty levels, but it would be easy to vary the damage taken by the player to accomplish this. 


8. What actions will you implement to meet your challenges? Can the player surmount a large number of challenges with a small number of actions? What is the mapping of actions to challenges?


The player will unlock 3 different weapon types, as well as the ability to double jump. The three different weapon types will do different things to the world and to enemies. Any more than three weapons and it turns into redundant gun porn (which is fine, but not fitting of an adventure game) Most of the actions will have a single use, but some will have multiple uses. 


9. What other actions will you implement for other purposes? What are those purposes—unstructured play, creativity and self-expression, socialization, story participation, or controlling the game software?


The player may deformate the world, perhaps blow up a wall here and there. Other than that, nothing else. 


10. What save mechanism do you plan to implement? 


Saving will automatically be done at checkpoints (which are also your respawn points). Checkpoints are activated by the player, and only 1 can be active at a time.

Pinball Wizardry

In general, a good pinball game is one that constantly provides feedback to its players, making them feel as if their every action is meaningful and exciting. They should feel as if they are making accomplishments, whether or not they are skilled at the game.

A pinball table designer creates excitement for their game by spicing up the game with flair. All pinball tables are essentially the same hardware and basic gameplay, so the real thing that attracts players is how entertainment they think the table will provide them. The successful table designer adds lights, screens, and sounds that constantly run, which will get the prospective player to look at the table. Once their attention is had, the table itself has to have lots of interesting looking challenges-- not necessarily difficult ones, but ones that the player wants to make happen (explode a castle, run ball through intricate tubes, etc.)

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Starsky & Hutch

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Original Hardcore

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Tiki

Game Sounds

Some sound effects for use in my future game.

1. Generic contextual sound HERE
2. New environment + ambient music (Factory/Industrial setting) HERE
3. Transition signal HERE
4. Attention grabber alert sound HERE
5. Contextual switch throwing sound HERE
6. Test song HERE

Sound effects were provided courtesy of freesound. Music for track#2 provided by benoz11 via Newgrounds.