Javascript is an interpreted language meaning its read line by line instead of being compiled then executed
Variables hold either “primitives” or “compound” data. Primitive data are number and word strings and one word commands. Compounds are held in arrays.
Functions are codes that are repeated.
https://matthew-game-design.itch.io/ghost-shooter-game
Its the ghost shooter game from the Construct 3 tutorial. The player shoots monsters. There is no win condition the player just kills monsters.
Anything else to add?
Are there any major errors?
I like how the game doesn’t crowd you with enemies to fight(ones that 1 hit kos you), feels like a relaxed, manageable experience
That was a lot of ghost
Well no major error I see
The explosions are weird, you have to go to the explosion>effects>blend mode> select ‘additive’ to fix it, as that sould make it so the black corners not appear.
And maybe add a restart system like press space when player.count=0
I chose skyrim because it’s one of my favorite games.
| Formal Elements | |
| The Basics | Skyrim is an RPG based in a ancient Europe type setting. |
| Name of the game | The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim |
| The platform | All 2nd, 3rd, and 4th gen Xbox’s and Play-station’s, and PC’s |
| Time played (should be at least 30 minutes) | Around 6-7 days |
| If you could work on this game (change it), what would you change and why? | Work on the bugs and glitches as they are incredibly frustrating in the game, other than that nothing |
| Players | NOTES |
| How many players are supported? | 1 |
| Does it need to be an exact number? | yes |
| How does this affect play? | It doesn’t |
| 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. | Player v environment |
| Objectives/Goals | NOTES |
| What are the players trying to do? | there is no real objective, but I guess finish the main story line |
| 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 | Sprinting, jumping, moving, sword swinging actions are the main character 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. | Setup: Character has the main story line set up. The game pushes you through harder and harder missions and dungeons so the player gets a feel for the game ad the fighting system |
| Controls | NOTES |
| What controls are used? | Basic walking, jumping, sprinting, and fighting mechanics |
| Was there a clear introductory tutorial? | Somewhat, I wouldn’t call it a tutorial but the beginning mission is how you get a beginning idea of the game |
| Were they easy to understand or did you find yourself spamming the controller? | The controls were easy to understand |
| Resources & Resource Management | NOTES |
| What kinds of resources do players control? | Swords, magic, power dependent on how the player plays the game |
| How are they maintained during play? | I’m not sure what this exactly means but they aren’t necessarily maintained |
| What is their role? | The things the player uses to defeat monsters and enemies |
| 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? | Not much, depends on how the player plays the game. If the play through the main story line and explore enemies forts and dungeons then all the information is visible |
| 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? | Real time |
| How does play flow from one action to another? | Real time |
| 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. | |
| 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. | |
| Theme & Narrative | NOTES |
| Does it have an actual story structure? | Yes |
| Is it based on a historical event (or similar)? | No but it’s based in an ancient European setting |
| Does the theme or narrative help you know how to play? | No |
| Does it have emotional impacts? | Not really |
| 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? | The elements of hte game all work together well |
| What is the gameplay like? | Very smooth and interactive |
| Is it effective? | Yes |
| Are there any points where the design choices break down? | Skyrim is known for having many bugs and it shows during the gameplay. The design choices break down when a bug happens in the middle of a quest and the player must restart the whole thing |
| Design Critique | NOTES |
| Why did the designer make these particular choices? | So the game would be played correctly |
| Why this set of resources? | Because it causes the game t be played the correct way |
| What if they made different decisions? | the game would be much worse |
| Does the design break down at any point? | Yes on small glitches |
| Graphics & Sound | NOTES |
| Does the game art pair well with the mechanics? | Yes |
| Did you find any bugs or glitches? | Many |
| What about sound? | Sounds is great and the game music is also very good |
| 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: | Nothing else to keep in mind |
| What challenges do you face, and how do you overcome them? | The player faces strong enemies and has to do many quests and missions to overcome this problem |
| Is the game fair? | At the beginning it feels as if the player has to level up via grinding levels. Without quickly leveling up at the beginning of the game it is much more difficult |
| Is it replayable? Are there multiple paths to victory or optional rules that can change the experience? | Yes |
| What is the intended audience? | Fans of RPG games |
| What is the core, the one thing you do over and over, and is it fun? | Fighting enemies such as dragons |
This analysis form was adapted from https://notlaura.com/a-template-for-analyzing-game-design/
Played Fallout: New Vegas
Game of my choice was FO: new vegas
I didn’t really learn anything but I expanded my analysis skills.
The game I chose is Fallout: New Vegas, I chose this game because I enjoy it.
| Formal Elements | |
| The Basics | New Vegas is a RPG based in a nuclear holocaust |
| Name of the game | Fallout: New Vegas |
| The platform | Xbox 360, Xbox 1, Xbox series X,PS3, PS4, PS5, PC |
| Time played (should be at least 30 minutes) | around 19 hours |
| If you could work on this game (change it), what would you change and why? | Some mall mechanics like sprinting, I would also add more random enemy encounters and improve graphics. |
| Players | NOTES |
| How many players are supported? | 1 |
| Does it need to be an exact number? | yes |
| How does this affect play? | It’s a solo game so it doesn’t |
| 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. | Player vs environment |
| Objectives/Goals | NOTES |
| What are the players trying to do? | It is a sandbox game, the player can either side with many factions such as: the legion, the brotherhood of steel, the new California republic, Mr. House, or take over new Vegas for themselves. |
| 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). | None of these sound like the game that much but the closest one is probably Capture/destroy |
| Rules/Mechanics | NOTES |
| 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. | Setup: your character is intentionally not detailed, the game starts with you being a courier of a suspicious poker chip and you have been shot by a man who owns a casino on the post apocalyptic new Vegas strip. You end up surviving and seek out the main who tried to kill you, as you search for the man the entire story unfolds. Progression of Play: The player now has many options for how they want to play the game, they can side with factions, kill monsters and ghouls for exp and weapons, or they can continue with quests and explore the map. New Vegas has many vaults, forts, towns and buildings to explore. It has a good leveling system as the player earns levels via experience points from doing quests and killing monsters. The higher the level the harder the enemies become. The leveling mechanic and the freedom the player has to do what they would like are what make the game very good to me. |
| Controls | NOTES |
| What controls are used? | Basic walking, jumping, shooting controls. |
| Was there a clear introductory tutorial? | Not really, that is a big reason why I believe New Vegas is the best Fallout. The game doesn’t hold your hand through missions and kinda throws you out to figure it out yourself. |
| Were they easy to understand or did you find yourself spamming the controller? | The basic controls were very easy to understand |
| Resources & Resource Management | NOTES |
| What kinds of resources do players control? | I’m not exactly sure what this question means but my answer would be the player controls guns, money, armor |
| How are they maintained during play? | armor and guns deteriorate while using them, the repair skill is used with points gained from leveling up |
| What is their role? | Shooting enemies and monsters, protecting the player from enemies and monsters |
| 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? | All of the information for the story is found via exploring |
| 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? | In real time, whenever the react to the prompt of a mission or a fight |
| How does play flow from one action to another? | Real time |
| 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. | |
| 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 and negotiation |
| Theme & Narrative | NOTES |
| Does it have an actual story structure? | Yes |
| Is it based on a historical event (or similar)? | The theme of this fallout and all Fallout’s is about American consumerism and radical patriotism, even though those two are attributed more to Fallout 4 they are also in New Vegas. |
| Does the theme or narrative help you know how to play? | Not necessarily |
| Does it have emotional impacts? | No but some of the smaller themes such as greed, redemption, and humanity are very thought provoking |
| 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? | The element of exploration and the weaker map relative to other fallout’s seem to clash. New Vegas is based in the Mojave desert so the exploration can be plain at times compared to Fallout 3 and 4 |
| What is the gameplay like? | Immersive, and entertaining. It’s very interesting with the fighting mechanics |
| Is it effective? | Yes |
| Are there any points where the design choices break down? | Not really, many small examples such as the map exploration thing I already mentioned |
| Design Critique | NOTES |
| Why did the designer make these particular choices? | For the player to play the game as intended |
| Why this set of resources? | For the player to play the game as intended |
| What if they made different decisions? | The game would be worse |
| Does the design break down at any point? | Very rarely |
| Graphics & Sound | NOTES |
| Does the game art pair well with the mechanics? | Yes, one of my favorite things about the game is the art and design |
| Did you find any bugs or glitches? | Yes, the game is from 2010 so that expected |
| What about sound? | Sound is good and immersive, the in game music is amazingly done and plays right into the tone of the game |
| 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: | The fighting system is difficult because most monsters in the early game are MUCH stronger than the player, either grind levels by killing weak enemies before starting the game or consider a stealth approach. Choose the beginning stats you choose very wisely as I did not and it was a much harder experience. |
| What challenges do you face, and how do you overcome them? | Fighting enemies, kiling enemies |
| Is the game fair? | Not really |
| Is it replayable? Are there multiple paths to victory or optional rules that can change the experience? | One of the most re-playable games I’ve ever played. I believe its more re-playable than Skyrim and Oblivion |
| What is the intended audience? | Probably 12-24 year old men who enjoy games such as skyrim, oblivion, FO3, F04 |
| What is the core, the one thing you do over and over, and is it fun? | the core is the fighting mechanics, it is very fun |
This analysis form was adapted from https://notlaura.com/a-template-for-analyzing-game-design/
I finished the “basic concept” quizzes
I learned how to start up and use construct 3. I learned about the “common units”. I learned that java and javascript are not the same thing.
I learned more about construct 3 and I got through more javascript lessons.
I did the “Math operators” assignment for Javascript practice
I learned that construct 3 is good for learning and understanding programming systems better. Construct 3 is also very easy and accessible to use.
I did the tour in construct 3
I don’t have a very specific structure for my day but it usually consists of doing school and than finishing any easy homework I have right after, and then finishing any homework that will take more than 30 minutes later.
I’m not completely sure what exactly I was supposed to make so I’ll share the little game I made on the tour of construct 3.
I learned even more on the Javascript programming and I learned a little on the construct 3 tour.
I solved more problems with a better system and improved my coding skills.
I practiced JavaScript for 15 minutes
I finished the Javascript overview lessons
I’ve developed my GTD system and it’s based on the David Allen process. It includes capturing and organizing the information in a stress free and efficient way.
I use the notepad on my phone to organize my assignments and projects and to determine which assignments and projects are more important than others
I created a flowchart/”map” for my assignments to get things done
I learned more about the javascript coding and it is very interesting to me. I also improved a system to make my work easier and help me finish it more efficiently.
I learned how to structure my task finishing better.
I learned calmness can come from crisis. “Appropriately engaged”. Keep a mental to do list with things that can’t be finished in one step.
GTD 1 blogpost
GTD 2 blogpost
Other game design assignment
Math homework
Physical science homework
English homework
English homework
GTD 1
GTD 2
Math
Physical science
I learned how to be much more productive. I solved a lot of the work I had to do and will continue using this process instead of the one I was previously using.
I learned how to do the basics of JavaScript including the basic “head”, “body”, and “script” commands.
I learned how to make a flowchart and that solves the problem of making flowcharts when I have to create my game.