“I make world-class images. Why not put those images into a game?”
-Micheal Bay
Why does Micheal Bay going into game design worry me? I feel like I just saw a kid drowning kittens and now he’s staring at my pup. . . .
“One thing about my game design is that I never try to look for what people want and then try to make that game design. I always try to create new experiences that are fun to play.â€
-Miyamoto
Ahh. Nothin’ like a cool glass of Miyamoto.
I am decidedly against the idea that any art “should” be created in any particular way.
After my post on The Marriage, I felt like this was the obvious next subject. I’ve played a number of games claiming to use game design as the primary avenue for artistic expression. This idea is completely absurd.
These art games are interesting, I like playing them, they’re unique, and maybe they’ll help grab some attention, but they’re not proving anything we didn’t already know. On the contrary, by ignoring 90% of game capabilities and simplifying the last 10% for the sake of philosophy, we will severely retard the progress of our art form. In an industry with so few calling themselves artists, we need everyone we can get pushing games as far as they can. But let me slow my heartrate and digress. . . .
Let’s examine the feat of the art game: the hope to remove all other art forms from games and, in doing so, prove the importance of games to the art world. I’ll use Rod Humble’s The Marriage and Raspberry by Jonathan Blow as examples because these are a couple of games I like by designers whom I respect.
I played The Marriage, read the explanation and read the interview with Rod Humble on Arthouse Games. Good thoughts all around. Good interview. If you haven’t yet played the game, do so. If you haven’t read the interview, I suggest it.
The circles represent outside elements effecting the marriage. Will this one be for the better?
The game is interesting. I’m glad it’s getting the attention it is, but I must say I’m disappointed.
I remember when I first got my Wii online, I immediately went to try out some flash games. If you found the right mouse controlled stuff, it would become clear that there was territory to be explored.
I was just looking through some things at wiicade.com and thinking about it. I don’t see anything particularly innovative, but they’re pushing and making high quality stuff and that’s really good to see.
I didn’t spot anything that seemed specifically built for the wii. By that I mean, something that didn’t seem just as fun with a mouse. Playing with a wiimote is a different experience, but not by much.
What kind of a game would it take to separate the motes from the mice?
I don’t know really, but I like the gun games and the missile flight one is pretty cool. . . . A sword game could be interesting.
-Christopher J. Rock
The player generally controls a “player character” within a game. I’ve heard designers discuss whether or not the player is becoming the player character, playing their role as a fictional character, or replacing them as their real selves within the fictional world. When you play Mario, are you playing as Mario as he saves the Mushroom Kingdom or are you saving the Mushroom Kingdom yourself? A lot of people say both are happening. You are yourself and the player character at the same time. How can that be possible?
I believe the blur comes from two issues. One, I’ll call an “illusion of individuality,” and the second “empathy.”
Now for a listing of events in which you have no interest!
My film went well last week. Everyone else’s work has gone smoothly as well. Last one tomorrow, then my mind can drift from shooting mode.
Meteor Henry continues nicely. My ultimate trigonometry AS file is annihilating, but I have a couple more updates to make before it is truly unstoppable. Before I do those, I have to throw together an AS file for converting between different coordinate systems, which may include 3D systems. The two of those would make a lot of physics and 3D rendering very simple. I look forward to seeing them in action and will try to get them up here for distribution.
I believe today I will finish an old blog article and try to get some writing done on a film I’d like to start next fall.
I am happy and productive!
-Christopher J. Rock
Meteor Henry is coming along. It’s a slower process than it was the first time through because I’m trying to do everything right, building lots of AS files along the way. Right now I have the elastic effect working the way I like, the variable framerate clock setup and I’m gettin going on one of the more important elements of gameplay: Poles that ropes and chains will wrap around. The real trick is that I’m trying to come up with forms of collision detection that have infinite resolution. Sometimes that’s a snap, sometimes it ain’t.
I won’t be making any updates to Henry for a while though. At least I shouldn’t. . . . In two weeks I’m shooting a 16mm project for school and a few things have gone . . . well, badly.
Lately I’ve had 3D on the mind. I was speaking to a fine, upstanding gentleman from _futurism about simulated 3D in flash, came across it again in a couple different AS3 discussions, have been reminded of it because of some trig work I’m doing, and also got talking to my friend Ken about it while he tried to finish his old save game of “God of War.”
It’s a really dangerous concept. Lemme explain:
When I think 2D, I can picture some pretty flawless games, many of which are decades old. When I think 3D, much fewer come to mind, and many of them still seem pretty flawed. Maybe there’s some nostalgia tied up in the old 2D, but when I play those games again, I find them genuinely exciting and inspiring. And now and then I find a new 2D for PC or flash that makes me feel the same way.
Games are an art of derivations. They are paintings of invisible lines that give birth to the visible, the only true embrace of time as an element of art.
Or is it just me?
-Christopher J. Rock
http://www.liquidgeneration.com/Media/Games/The_Breakfa…
That’s the latest game I’ve finished. We had to rush some bug fixes at the end which cost us some sound effects, but we’ll be updating it this week with the right stuff. The game won’t be any different really, so go ahead and give it a try.
Here are a few thoughts on the game and its development. I list some “lessons to be learned” at the bottom, so feel free to skip down to that.
Sokay is a Los Angeles native game development crew.
The say it never rains in Southern California.
At Sokay, we make it rain.
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