Month: January 2021

Summary

• Kaiden, complete the summary, here
• 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
The Basics
Name of the game
The platform	chromebook
Time played (should be at least 30 minutes)
If you could work on this game (change it), what would you change and why?	make hiring units cheaper
Players	NOTES
How many players are supported?	1
Does it need to be an exact number?	yes
How does this affect play?
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?
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).	capture destroy
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.	set up get a basic group of people to storm the first cover progression battle back and forth resolution capture enemy’s flag
Controls	NOTES
What controls are used?	use move and spawn
Was there a clear introductory tutorial?	no
Were they easy to understand or did you find yourself spamming the controller?
Resources & Resource Management	NOTES
What kinds of resources do players control?	friendly units
How are they maintained during play?	you click on the new unit button and spawn new units
What is their role?	shoot
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 RISK The number of questions remaining in 20 Questions Objects picked up during videogames (guns, health packs, etc.)Time (game time, real-time, or both)Known information (like suspects in Clue)
Game State	NOTES
How much information in the game state is visible to the player?	enemy’s position and your own position
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.	total info
Sequencing	NOTES
In what order do players take their actions?	there is no order just what you think will work
How does play flow from one action to another?
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.	real time
Player Interaction
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.	direct conflict
Theme & Narrative	NOTES
Does it have an actual story structure?	yes
Is it based on a historical event (or similar)?	yes
Does the theme or narrative help you know how to play?	yes
Does it have emotional impacts?	n o
Also, look for en media res (does it start in the middle of the game)?
The Elements in Motion	NOTES
How do the different elements interact?	fight
What is the gameplay like?	smooth and stressful
Is it effective?	yes
Are there any points where the design choices break down?	no
Design Critique	NOTES
Why did the designer make these particular choices?
Why this set of resources?	it is whats needed for the game to be accurate
What if they made different decisions?	there would have to be aspects of the game missing that were in portent
Does the design break down at any point?	no
Graphics & Sound	NOTES
Does the game art pair well with the mechanics?	yes
Did you find any bugs or glitches?	no
What about sound?	no
Can you spot any technical shortcuts?	no
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?	weapons that aren’t maned by the enemy like gas and mortars you over come this by moving fast and effectively
Is the game fair?	yes
Is it replayable? Are there multiple paths to victory or optional rules that can change the experience?	i don’t know
What is the intended audience?	12+
What is the core, the one thing you do over and over, and is it fun?	try to control the trenches

Summary

• a military combat game with many different maps and weapons to choose from

Game Play Analysis

Formal Elements
The Basics
Name of the game	call of duty cold war
The platform	ps4
Time played (should be at least 30 minutes)	1 hour
If you could work on this game (change it), what would you change and why?	add more weapons and equipment
Players	NOTES
How many players are supported?	18
Does it need to be an exact number?	no
How does this affect play?	some times there will be un even teams
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.	pvp
Objectives/Goals	NOTES
What are the players trying to do?	reach a score limit
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).	goal
Rules/Mechanics	killing people gives points to the team
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.	set up choose a class progress shoot and shoot more resolution most kills
Controls	NOTES
What controls are used?	shoot move equiptment
Was there a clear introductory tutorial?	yes
Were they easy to understand or did you find yourself spamming the controller?	yes
Resources & Resource Management	NOTES
What kinds of resources do players control?	player
How are they maintained during play?
What is their role?	control the game
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 RISK The number of questions remaining in 20 Questions Objects picked up during videogames (guns, health packs, etc.)Time (game time, real-time, or both)Known information (like suspects in Clue)
Game State	NOTES
How much information in the game state is visible to the player?	most
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?	spawn attack
How does play flow from one action to another?	kill and then find more to kill
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.	real time
Player Interaction	team and enemy
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.	direct conflict
Theme & Narrative	NOTES
Does it have an actual story structure?	yes
Is it based on a historical event (or similar)?	no
Does the theme or narrative help you know how to play?	yes
Does it have emotional impacts?	depends
Also, look for en media res (does it start in the middle of the game)?	no
The Elements in Motion	NOTES
How do the different elements interact?
What is the gameplay like?	crazy
Is it effective?	yes
Are there any points where the design choices break down?	yes
Design Critique	NOTES
Why did the designer make these particular choices?	to make it a front line battle
Why this set of resources?
What if they made different decisions?
Does the design break down at any point?	no
Graphics & Sound	NOTES
Does the game art pair well with the mechanics?	yes
Did you find any bugs or glitches?	no
What about sound?	yes
Can you spot any technical shortcuts?	no
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?	being gunned down by the enemy
Is the game fair?	yes
Is it replayable? Are there multiple paths to victory or optional rules that can change the experience?	yes
What is the intended audience?	17+
What is the core, the one thing you do over and over, and is it fun?	shoot

This analysis form was adapted from https://notlaura.com/a-template-for-analyzing-game-design/