Problem Overview
There are several problems
that Black Ice Games is trying to solve with project Illuminate. Black
Ice Games overall wants to make a game that is enjoyable to play. The
entire purpose of a computer game is to entertain people and if project Illuminate
does not accomplish this then it is a poor quality game. Another goal of
Black Ice Games is to come up with an original idea. There are many ideas
that are used many times in gaming that can get old. Project Illuminate
will feature an interesting gaming mechanic that has not been overly used in
gaming. The final goal of Black Ice Games is to learn how to make a
game. For many of the members of Black Ice Games, Project
Illuminate will be the first game they made. Developing this game will
not only be a large project for these members it will be the first step into
the game design.
Design Constraints
There are many constraints
that Black Ice Games will be facing during this project. The biggest
problem is that the majority of the members of Black Ice Games have little to
no experience in programming a game. The lack of experience will make
Black Ice Games have to perform extra research and addition practice with game
making before starting Project Illuminate. This project must also be completed
within ten weeks. Another problem is that there are many games of all
types that already exist. Project Illuminate will be compared to other
games that are already out and it has to convince those who see it to play it
rather than something else. Gaming concepts such as characters, level
design, and general game play will be compared. The game has to have several
components to do this. First, the game must be functional and not break
while it is being played. Second, the game must be fun in order to get
and keep the attention of the public. In order for the game to be fun it has
to have the correct amount of difficulty. If it is too easy than players
will get bored and not want to play. If it is too hard than players will
get frustrated and quit to find something less difficult. Finally, the
game has to make players want to play through the whole game. If the players
see no reason to continue playing the game, they will stop and find something
else.
Pre-Existing Solutions
To help make programming the
game easier, other developers have used programs such as Game Maker, RPG Maker,
Flash, and XNA to assist them in development. After looking at these
possibilities, Black Ice Games has decided to use XNA to assist with the
development of Project Illuminate. XNA is a game development tool created
by Microsoft that gives many libraries filled with game related Classes.
XNA allows Black Ice Games to use pre-existing programs to create a game
faster. XNA also has many online tutorials that will help the members of
Black Ice Games to understand how to use the XNA program.
The gaming industry is vast and
there are many games that already exist that have similar features to what
Black Ice Games wishes to create. Project Illuminate will be a puzzle
platformer set in a post-apocalyptic world. Black Ice Games will be looking at
LIMBO, a game with the same genre, to see how professionals in the field have
solved the problem that Black Ice Games is trying to solve. Other games
that can be looked at are Braid, Super Mario Bros, Rayman: Origins, ect.
One of the Most interesting
problems that Black Ice Games faces is how to make a game that makes a player
want to finish it. In the industry there are many ways to do this.
Game have made players want to get high scores and achieve goals. Other
games have a long epic story that players want to hear that drives them through
hours of game play. The solution that Project Illuminate will be
attempting is keeping the gamer interested by having a story that is wrapped in
mystery that the player wishes to understand.
Design Goals
- Give a positive playing experience to a broad range of audience (making the range of audience large as possible).
- Generally targeting around 15-20 years above and below the average age of gamers, 17-57; with 37 being the average age of a gamer according to the Entertainment Software Association[1].
- Help the developers broaden their range of programming languages and progress in the Computer Science major.
- Be able to develop a puzzle-based plat former game that is both immersive and captivating (in terms of creating a sufficient story and game elements).
- Find, locate, and use a proper game programming engine that fits to our needs.
- Total play time should be at least 2 hours.
Deliverables
Tutorials Week 3- This
will include screen shots or video of what was created. The sample game created
will most likely not be original. Important parts of the code, along with some
explanations will be posted as well.
Game Story Week 4- The
complete story line for the game will be written. A possible back story will be
included as well. The story will cover events that are broken into different
levels.
Alpha Weeks 5 & 6- This
will be a closed basic version of the game that has the character moving and
interacting within a small environment. An updated version will be released
that includes at least the first level of the game. Only the developers,
instructors, and a select group of outside contributors will be allowed to
play.
Beta Weeks 7 to 9- The
main use will be for testing, it will include at least half of the completed
game. It will be an open beta to whoever has been chosen. Updates with bug
fixes and levels will be released up until the game is bug free and complete.
Finish Product Week 10- Release
the final game and present it. Describe how it was made and all of the steps
involved. The game will come with all of its components, such as a competitive
scoring system. There will only be one difficulty for the game since it is a
platform puzzle game.
Project Evaluation
All deliverables will be
provided to the instructors as well as selected outside contributors. They will
be asked to review the product so far and give any feedback, positive and most
importantly negative. The negative feedback will be most useful to Black Ice
Games because it will be an incentive to change something within the game.
Project Schedule
Budget
- One copy of LIMBO: costs $9.99 on Steam
References
- [1] (2010). Industry Facts [Online]. Available: http://www.theesa.com/facts/index.asp
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