Game Character Design

WEEK 1

Resident Evil Village (Capcom, 2021)

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Learning objectives Unit Overview

● Important information

● Assessment Tasks

Introduction to Game Design

● What is a Game?

● What does a Game Designer do?

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Learning objectives Design Documentation

● The High Concept Pitch

● The Game Design Document

● The Post Mortem

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Unit Overview

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Welcome to Game Design Studio 1 ● Welcome everyone to Game Design Studio 1! ● This unit is different to others you may have done. ● No knowledge of programming or art required. ● Bring only your imagination.

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Welcome to Game Design Studio 1 ● On-Campus is fully paper based. No Laptops! ● Online laptops are fine! Collaboration tools will be used.

● This unit will cover the fundamentals of game design

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Welcome to Game Design Studio 1 ● Game Design is heavily multi-disciplinary ● We cannot cover everything ● We will focus on fundamentals and provide additional resources ● The best way to get better is keep making things ● And play games too!

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The Teaching Team ● Josh Olsen (Lecturer) ● Matt Butler ● Rick Laird ● Jason Free ● Cheryl Howard ● Venice Cheung ● Nic Pallant

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● Oneeb Bin Nauman ● Nonzahriyah Adun ● Rebecca Fleming ● Doug Power

Unit Structure We do not use the “traditional” lecture and lab structure ● Before class each week are a series of pre-class videos

○ Also includes small exercises ● It is expected that these be completed prior to class ● This covers the theory we will put into practice

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Unit Structure The 3hr Studio ● Each week you will attend a 3hr Studio class ● The studio class has a mix of discussion & collaborative activities ● These activities help you build your skills as a designer ● It is expected everyone participate

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Unit Structure The 1hr Seminar ● Each week will also have a 1hr seminar ● These seminars are designed to consolidate the topics covered ● Taking a look at existing examples of work and breaking them down ● Critical Analysis is a key part of the unit

○ These will help you build those skills

The Seminars run a week behind. The Week 2 Seminar covers Week 1

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Unit Structure ● This is not a unit you can do well in without attending class! ● Not attending and keeping engaged with content puts you at risk of

failing ● The unit has been described as a “bludge” subject in the past

○ The unit is designed to be fun ○ You do need to put in the work to succeed

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Weekly Content

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Weekly Content Throughout the unit we will be covering the following topics: ● Idea Generation & Presentation (You are here) ● Designing Characters ● Designing Narratives ● Critical Analysis of Characters & Narrative ● Designing Game Mechanics

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Weekly Content Throughout the unit we will be covering the following topics: ● Designing Levels ● Critical Analysis of Mechanics & Levels ● Understanding the impact of Art & Sound in our Game Designs ● Designing Games with technology in mind ● Critically Analysing The Experience and Technology

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Assignment Overview

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Unit Structure The unit has 4 major assignments broken into 7 parts

Assignment 1 - Building A Game World (15%) ● Character Design & Narrative

Assignment 2 - Detailing A Game Environment (15%) ● Game Mechanics & Level Design

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Unit Structure The unit has 4 major assignments broken into 7 parts

Assignment 3 - Major Game Design Project (40%) ● Part A - High Concept Pitch (10%) ● Part B - Game Prototype & Design Document (30%)

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Unit Structure The unit has 4 major assignments broken into 7 parts

Assignment 4 - Self-Reflection & Review (30%) ● Part A - Playtest Feedback (5%) ● Part B - Game Review (10%) ● Part C - Reflection Journal (15%)

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Unit Structure More information can be found on Moodle under assessments.

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Additional Resources

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Resources ● All unit content and resources can be found on Moodle ● You are expected to regularly check Moodle and emails ● Any major announcements are posted on Ed and sent via email ● If you have any questions or just want to start a friendly discussion

please post in the Ed Discussion Forums

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Resources - Textbooks ● The unit does not have required textbooks ● We do have recommended textbooks ● For those looking to excel we recommend the following:

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Resources - Textbooks The Art of Game Design by Jesse Schell ● Available via the library for free

Game Design Fundamentals by Ernest Adams ● Some versions at Caulfield Library and some online

Challenges for Game Designers by Brenda Brathwaite & Ian Schreiber ● Sold as an eBook via Amazon and other retailers

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Unit Information Wrap Up We have put a lot of time and effort into creating this unit so that it is fun and rewarding.

Designing games can be just as fun, perhaps even more fun, than playing games!

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Unit Information Wrap Up Hopefully by the end of the unit you will have designed at least one complete game to include in your portfolio.

Now let’s move onto the main topic for this week.

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What is a Game?

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What is a Game? ● The first question we should ask ● What exactly is a game? ● There are many definitions of games

○ “A game is an activity among two or more independent decision-makers seeking to achieve their objectives in some limiting context” (Clark)

○ “A game is a form of art in which participants, called players, make decisions in order to manage resources through game tokens in the pursuit of a goal” (Costikyan)

○ “A game is a system in which players engage in an artificial conflict, defined by rules, that results in a quantifiable outcome” (Salen)

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What is a Game? ● These definitions show the concept of a game isn’t pinned down to a

single concept. ● All these definitions do have elements in common

○ Games are participatory; they are interactive, not passive. ○ Participants play in order to take part in the game. ○ Games take place in an artificial universe governed by rules. ○ Without rules, the game becomes a toy. ○ These rules define the game goal.

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Elements of a Game Common Elements: ● These rules may (but not always) define a victory condition and loss

condition. ● The artificial world requires participants to pretend the rules are valid.

Computer Games also generally have: ● A setting, or world ● A role for the player to possess ● A narrative

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Defining a Game ● Using these criteria, Rollings & Adams define a game as:

○ A game is a type of play activity, conducted in the context of a pretended reality, in which the participant(s) try to achieve at least one arbitrary, nontrivial goal by acting in accordance with rules

● The text recognises that this definition doesn’t hold for all games. ● This definition is also very general. ● It can apply to any type of game not just computer games.

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What does a Game Designer do?

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What does a Game Designer do? ● Job Post for Mid-Senior Game Designer at Torus Games Melbourne

○ Experience in game design on several published titles ○ Exceptional communication skills ○ Exceptional writing and grammatical skills ○ A high sense of creativity and practicality ○ Knowledge of and passion for games ○ Understanding the strengths and limitations of engines and target platforms ○ Solid understanding of story and character structure ○ The ability to work under tight deadlines ○ A solid and broad understanding of gameplay and what makes games fun ○ Creating work within time and technical constraint budgets

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What does a Game Designer do? ● Job Responsibilities

○ Writing and revising accurate and well presented game design documentation for the internal team and high-profile clients

○ Maintaining the design process in conjunction with our team leads from project inception to completion

○ Working with game concepts origination from yourself and others ○ Writing sales and promotional documentation ○ Writing game manuals and walk-through documents ○ Flowcharting game structure ○ Interacting with producers, artists, programmers and technicians

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What does a Game Designer do? ● What is the takeaway from this? ● A Game Designer’s job is to design all aspects of a game ● Combine them seamlessly to create a fun* experience for players ● Doesn't end with handing off the design to programmers and artists ● A game designer will work on the game right up until publication

○ Sometimes even longer!

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Aspects of games that Designers are responsible for Story ● Responsible for designing the game’s characters and narrative

Gameplay ● Responsible for designing the game’s mechanics and levels

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Aspects of games that Designers are responsible for Art ● Responsible for designing the game’s visual and audio style

Technology ● Responsible for designing (or choosing) the game’s engine and delivery

platform

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Designers work closely with programmers and artists ● As a Game Designer you work with all facets of the development team ● This includes other designers, writers, programmers, artists, publishers,

producers and players ● Communication is key to building a cohesive and fun* experience ● The more you know about the other areas the better you will be as a

designer

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Player Centric Design

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Player Centric Design What is Player Centric Design? ● It is a philosophy of game design ● The designer envisions a representative player of the game being

created ● They then accept two obligations to that player

○ The duty to entertain ○ The duty to empathize

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Player Centric Design The Duty to Entertain ● A game’s primary function is to entertain the player ● It is the designer’s obligation to create a game that does so ● Other motivations are secondary

The Duty to Empathise ● The designer must imagine that they are the player ● Must build the game to meet the player’s preferences for entertainment ● This requires the designer to understand their target audience

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Player Centric Design To achieve this, you must be able to answer: ● Who is the player of your game? ● What do they like? ● What do they dislike? ● What do they want you to do? ● Why did they buy your game?

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Player Centric Design Finding your representative player must occur before any design is done

Common broad groupings include: ● Experienced players (sometimes known as hardcore gamers) ● Casual players ● Adult players ● Children players

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Player Centric Design Important Notes ● Adults regardless of gender identity have similar entertainment needs ● Games marketed to children do however have a distinct gender

difference

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Common Mistakes You are not a typical player: ● Designers tend to be more hardcore players ● You must learn to design for different groups

The player is not your opponent: ● Designers often think ‘hard’ is the same as ‘fun’ ● The goal of player-centric design is to entertain your player ● You are the facilitator of their fun. Not their opponent

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Common Mistakes The game doesn’t need to be fun as long as it is entertaining: ● Most games are designed to be fun ● However games do not need to be fun as long as they are entertaining ● Typically more applicable to games in the horror genre or serious

games

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Common Mistakes As a beginner design for fun first ● Designing a game with dark themes is difficult to pull off ● When starting out it is best to aim for fun first ● We do not recommend serious games for this unit

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Design Documentation

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Design Documentation ● “Boring!” I hear you say ● On face value this might seem like the least exciting topic this semester ● However it is in many respects the most important!

● Why exactly? ● If you can’t articulate your amazing game idea, how will you actually

create it?

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Design Documentation ● Do not think of this as a chore ● Consider it a chance to hone your idea and to begin implementation

● A game is normally made by a team ● It is crucial that all members have a shared vision ● Having concrete documentation assists this goal

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Design Documentation What kinds of documentation are we talking about? ● The High Concept Pitch ● The Game Design Document

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The High Concept Pitch

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The High Concept The High Concept Document is also known as the pitch document ● It is (usually) a 1-2 page document ● It should capture the essence of your idea

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The High Concept The High Concept Document is also known as the pitch document ● This document is not unique to games ● They are used in any instance where you need to present a new idea ● If you cannot put your idea on a page (or a poster) then you need to

refine it!

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The High Concept We have provided a handy template for getting started!

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Step 1: Game Premise ● The first section you should start with is the Game Premise. ● You should describe the overall premise of your game. ● This is the main point of your game in a few sentences at most. ● You can consider this your initial elevator pitch too.

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Step 2: Target Audience ● Once the premise is done you should state who your target audience is ● This is not a throwaway decision! ● Your target audience will define everything about your game. ● From theme, style, graphics, mechanics, level design and story. ● At this stage it does not need to be detailed. Just a general idea.

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Step 3: Genre ● Next you need to outline your Narrative and Gameplay Genre. ● You do not need to provide sentences or justifications. ● Just list the genres here. ● E.g. Survival Horror, Medieval RPG, etc.

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Step 4: Uniqueness ● At this point you need to talk about what makes your game cool. ● This is perhaps the single most important step. ● The uniqueness of your game is the selling point. ● You should explain this in a good bit of detail. ● Is your uniqueness narrative based? Mechanics based? ● This is the reason why people should play your game.

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Step 5: Story Overview ● For this step provide a brief overview of your story ● This can just be the introduction to the story and setting ● A couple sentences at most here

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Step 6: Gameplay Description ● Similar to the previous step, except explaining gameplay. ● What are the core mechanics? ● What are the main level styles? ● How does your game play?

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This is a lot! ● This seems like a lot to fit on 1-2 pages!

○ And it is! ● Each of these things needs to be a few sentences at most. ● You should NOT use dot points here at all! ● The tough sections to condense are gameplay and uniqueness. ● This is a required skill however. ● You may be in a situation where you need to pitch your idea. ● Or write a blurb for an app store.

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It does take practice ● It can be difficult to do. ● And does required a lot of practice. ● We will be doing this multiple times during semester to hone your skills. ● If you have trouble with your own ideas, try creating high concept

pitches for existing games!

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The Game Design Document

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The Game Design Document ● Also known as a Detailed Design Document. ● This document is the one that describes all aspects of the game in

extensive detail. ● It usual serves to purposes

○ So designers remember all the details they came up with ○ To communicate those ideas to the full team

● It takes the high concept and fleshes out all details ● Also includes market research and awareness ● If details for your game are not written here. It’s not in the game!

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The Game Design Document A Game Design Document will usually contain the following sections: ● Story & Characters ● Level / Environment Design ● Game Mechanics ● Art Style ● Sound & Music ● User Interface & Game Controls ● Market Analysis

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The Game Design Document ● Much of the document will sound similar to the High Concept. ● What about Market Analysis? ● You need to consider where your game fits into the landscape of

existing games on the market ○ How does it compare? ○ How will it be different? ○ Who is your target market? ○ How do you appeal to them?

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The Game Design Document ● There is no strict template for these documents. ● A comprehensive example can be found here:

https://sites.google.com/view/indiana-game-design-template/home ● Gamasutra have a number of great articles about what makes a good

design doc ● While this one is quite old now (almost 20 years!), it still has some great

points about what makes a successful design doc http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/131632/creating_a_great_de sign_document.php

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The Game Design Document The general idea of the article is as follows ● Describe not just the body, but the soul ● Make it readable ● Prioritise ● Get into the details ● Some things must be demonstrated ● Not just what but how

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● Provide alternatives ● Give it a life ● Remove Ambiguity ● Deliver it in Good Condition

The Game Design Document ● There are many examples of Design Documents online ● Check as many as you can for examples ● This can help you see the different way designs are articulated and

presented

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Presenting your ideas

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Presenting your ideas ● An important part of being a designer is the ability to present your ideas ● This includes being able to pitch your ideas in person ● It can be scary and intimidating for some ● Throughout this unit you will be developing this skill

● You will find yourselves in situations where you cannot just hand someone a document

● You will want to pitch your idea then and there

Presenting your ideas So what do you present? ● You high concept document can be used as a foundation for a

presentation or a pitch ● It is short and to the point ● It cleanly articulates what your game is about ● It highlights your uniqueness

Presenting your ideas ● Improving your presentation skills is simply about practice ● This is one reason why we will be covering this heavily in class ● Any chance you can, take the opportunity to pitch your ideas ● You should always be enthusiastic about your ideas ● Enthusiasm rubs off on people ● If you are not enthusiastic about your idea why would someone else

be?

Coming up this week ● Studio - Idea Generation & Presentation ● Seminar - Unit Q&A

Homework ● Play Games!

Reminders ● Look at the Assignment 1 Brief ● Yes seriously. Play Games!

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