Game Design

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Inconvenient Truths
Timothy Shaw

Introduction ...............................................................................................................1
Design History............................................................................................................................................................1 Vision Statement .......................................................................................................................................................2 Logline............................................................................................................................................................................... 2 Synopsis ............................................................................................................................................................................ 2 Game Description ................................................................................................................................................ 2-4

Formal Elements .........................................................................................................4
Objectives................................................................................................................................................................ 4-5 Gameplay Description......................................................................................................................................5-10 Tutorial ............................................................................................................................................................................. 5 Character Selection ................................................................................................................................................. 5-7 Conflict/Argument ...................................................................................................................................................... 7 Challenge/Procedures ........................................................................................................................................... 7-8 Outcomes................................................................................................................................................................... 8-10

Dramatic Elements............................................................................................... 10-11
Game World ...................................................................................................................................................... 10-11 Characters ................................................................................................................................................................. 11 PCs .....................................................................................................................................................................................11 NPCs .................................................................................................................................................................................11 Story ............................................................................................................................................................................ 11

Reflection ................................................................................................................. 12
Dissoi Logoi .............................................................................................................................................................. 12 Composition ............................................................................................................................................................. 12

Introduction
Design History
This game started out as an idea in my head and has progressed into a game that I will submit as my third project in my advanced writing class. I am basing the argument of this game on the condition of the relationship between the generations of the past and present. This will be a choice based game that affects the outcome in the ending. The layout is not modeled after any game in particular but does contain similarities with unmanned in the choice factors. It also resembles Mass Effect in how each choice will bring about a different outcome in the ending.

Vision Statement
Logline “Inconvenient Truths” is a decision based game that explores the rift between the generations by showing that all of the arguing is pointless and much more urgent things that need to be addressed. Synopsis This game is essentially a choice based game. There will be different levels in this game and to earn points you must try to successfully argue your points whether they are positive, negative, or neutral. When each argument is argued the player will receive points. Blue points are positive red points are negative. There are also green points which are neutral. This can be a good thing or a bad thing depending on the other decisions you make. The more blue points that are earned means the better the world is around you. On the flip side if there are more red points the world will be in very bad shape. Of course, if there is an abundance of green points then the world will remain the way it is at the present time and that may or may not work for the players. The goal of this game is to demonstrate how pointless these arguments are between the generations because they do nothing to make the world better when they are argued from a negative point of view the majority of the time. This game is marketed for everyone over the age of 12 because these arguments apply to the aforementioned parties. This game could be considered an interactive fiction game.

Game Description
This game has 12 levels that are all arguments that can be made. As a member of any of the generations you must choose an argument to make, positive, negative, or neutral, and earn points based on your decisions. As the levels increase so will the difficulty of the situations and if players are not careful their emotions will also become involved. The objective in this game is to make peace with the other side for the sake of the world around you. Decisions must be made about each argument you are presented with and whether you agree or disagree. Eventually this will come down to the players’ willingness to compromise or subject the world to turmoil. Every good decision has a reward, but every bad decision has a consequence. An example of a good decision could be when you earn a blue point in a debate the world improves just a little bit. This game takes place in an auditorium of some kind. There will be a stage and on that stage two podiums will be available to the opposing sides of the debate. As with any other debate there will be an audience present and they cheer and clap for their respective candidates. Each game process will resemble the presidential debates in a way, but the entire world is at stake in this game.

Something of the nature of this picture will serve as a debate setting for Inconvenient Truths. A game that this one will resemble in its choice based factors is Mass Effect. In this game you must choose between three dialogue options and with each choice you make the future is shaped in a particular way. This is the way Inconvenient Truths will play out. Below is an example of the way Mass Effect uses its choice simulator.

The story of this game is simple. You are either an elder or a youth who feels that the way you do things and see things is the right way and you will not compromise on any issue out of pure dislike for the other side. As an elder you may point out the drug issue, teenage pregnancy, laziness etc. On the other hand as a youthful member of society you may question how the elders failed to provide us with a good planet to live on, questionable laws that may have been passed, or their overbearing attitudes that you feel may be unnecessary. Artistically this game is simple with the features much like the hit PC game “The Sims” Players should expect to see similar graphics and they should also expect to

be able to customize any character they pick to their specific liking. The game will be artistically simple because it’s mostly just a choice based game and does not need the latest technologically advanced graphics to prove the point it’s trying to make. Here is an example of the graphics found in the game The Sims.

These are definitely the graphics that Inconvenient Truths will have.

Formal Elements
Objectives
Objectives: 1. Navigate your way through each particular argument successfully 2. Avoid gaining too many red points because these will hurt the world around you 3. Also try to balance out how many green versus blue points you achieve because these can drastically change your outcomes 4. Try to gain your desired outcomes, but do not let the world suffer because of it. Outcomes: 1. Completing each level will give the player a blue, red, or green point

2. Successfully completing each level results in the player seeing the aftermath of his decisions 3. A greater ratio of blue points means the world around you is in great condition 4. A greater ratio of red points means you were uncompromising and the world around you has suffered because of it 5. A greater ratio of green points means that the world has remained relatively the same which may or may not be a good thing

Gameplay Description
Tutorial There will be no tutorial in this game because I feel the controls will be relatively simple. Also players should be able to figure out which decisions they want to make without a tutorial showing them how to do it. I also feel that a tutorial for this specific game would not accomplish anything other than making it unnecessarily longer. Character Selection There are only two characters you can pick in this game. One elder character and one youthful character are always going to be a part of the character selection. From there, in order to provide each player with an authentic experience within the game, they will be able to create a player within their desired age group. Choices include 1. Name: 2. Generation: a. Old Timers b. Youth 3. Gender: a. Male b. Female 4. Skin Color a. Light b. Medium c. Dark 5. Hair Color a. Black b. Grey c. Brown d. Blonde e. Brunette f. Red g. Orange h. Dirty Blonde

i. White 6. Hair Style a. Short wavy b. Caesar c. Long curly d. Short curly e. Strait short f. Long Strait 7. Eyes a. Round b. Oval c. Angular d. Squinted 8. Eye Color a. Dark Brown b. Brown c. Hazel d. Blue e. Green f. Gray g. Red 9. Nose a. Small b. Medium c. Large d. Small Pointy e. Medium Pointy f. Large Pointy g. Small round h. Medium Round i. Large Round 10. Mouth a. Small Lips b. Medium Lips c. Large Lips d. Any Lipstick color for females e. Any Lip color for males f. Round Lips g. Angular Lips In essence this character customization is much like that of “The Sims”, but maybe on a simpler scale mechanics wise. Something like the picture below comes to mind when a player will be able to create their own character.

Conflict/Argument The main conflict in this game is an internal one. The player does not play against another player rather he is competing with his morals and ethics. His decisions may become more emotional than logical the further the player advances inside the game. Also there is a time constraint on each decision that has to be made so now the player has to make the best possible choice within the given time constraints. This adds extra pressure to those players having a difficult time with making a very hard decision. There is also the decision between choosing your argument and earning a specific color point. Avoiding as many red as possible may seem rather difficult because those arguments may be what the player actually believes and it may force someone to against what they believe in for the sake of the world around them. Challenge/Procedures Challenge: The main challenge I foresee players having with this game is coming to an agreement with the other side. In other words compromise must happen in order to make a better life for both parties involved. A good way players can make this fun is choose a different age group from their own and debate from that viewpoint. Procedures: 1. The title of the game will appear and the first page will prompt you to select the play button and begin the game.

2. There will be a brief excerpt in the beginning explaining how the game will operate. a. This excerpt first explains the purpose of Inconvenient Truths b. The second thing this excerpt does is tell the players how to play which is simply done by clicking your mouse button. 3. As a player you are presented with a generation selection screen. Here you will choose which side you are on. 4. After you have selected a side you will be prompted to customize your character which provides a personal touch to the game. a. There are many options to choose from so your creative can go very far here. b. Also, like many debates, your target audience will be on your side of the stage out in the audience. 5. Once your player is customized to your liking another screen will appear asking if you are ready to begin 6. When you select begin the first issue will be presented to you and you have one minute to make your decision a. There are a variety of issues and answers that appeal to each side of the debate. 7. Each issue has three decisions that can be made that correspond with different colors. Blue for positive, red for negative, green for neutral. 8. After all of the decisions are made the player is shown the world his debate has created. Outcomes There are multiple outcomes to this game. This is not a winning/losing type game but more of a reflection. Once you look at the world you have created then you will reflect on the decisions you made. Each decision has a consequence or a benefit depending on how you view the world. Let me show you an example of how one particular argument can play out. 1. What to do about the legalization of Marijuana? Be mindful of all this issue entails. a. Blue Argument- We should legalize Marijuana. Too many people go to jail over it and the government can tax it and make a significant amount of money. b. Red Argument- No. We will not legalize Marijuana. It is dangerous and encourages youth to smoke instead of doing schoolwork, working a job, etc. It is just unethical. As a matter of fact we should make the laws more strict when it comes to marijuana. c. Green Argument- Keep everything the same. Obviously we cannot figure out what to do about it so let’s leave everything the same for the time being. As you can see each argument presents a different idea. The thing that should frustrate people the most here is where each side of the argument falls. For example, people who are against Marijuana legalization may feel that this should be a positive

side of the argument. They must compromise if they want the world to benefit more than themselves. At the end of the game when reviewing this decision if you chose the blue argument then Marijuana is now legalized and being taxed by the government. With this new tax the government is making serious money and the crime rate dealing with Marijuana is almost nonexistent. Your ending picture of the world from that standpoint should look like this

This is a pre-rolled Marijuana pack and in your world they are fairly common. It makes the government an abundance of money. If you picked the red argument your result at the end will look something like this.

As you can see this is a prison cell and that’s where the majority of Marijuana users will reside if you do not choose to legalize it. Of course in this instance the green argument will look similar to the red argument so there is no need for a picture there.

Dramatic Elements
Game World
My Game World is basically a one room debate much like the presidential debates. You have a stage that is spotlighted with two podiums set in the middle of it. In the background is the audience of each respective candidate and they cheer for their candidate and boo the other one. Each candidate will be a creation from the player depending on the side he chose. For example if he chose to be the youthful candidate then that is the one that will be customized. The world outside after the game is over will vary because of the abundant decisions that have to be made. The setting will be a modern day world, but there will be twists to it depending on what was chosen and what was ignored. This world represents the real life debates that go on between presidential candidates, senators, etc. Since this world is set in the modern day the artistic style will be modern and upscale. To show you an image of this world I will use one of my previous images.

This is how the debate room will be set up, however the background will show the audience instead of the outside world.

Characters
PCs The PC will be a created character from the player. The player, upon beginning the game, has a ton of options to choose from to customize his character. All movement by the characters is predetermined. The only thing the player does is click on the choice that he wants to make. The characters controlled by the players will not have voices. NPCs There are only a few noticeable NPCs in this game. They are all essentially generic depending on which candidate they are supporting. The younger audience members dress more hip while the older ones have on mostly suits and ties. These people cheer for their candidate and boo the opposing one. They also clap after their prospective candidate makes a choice.

Story
The story behind this game can be seen as simple yet complex at the same time. It follows a person from a select generation and uses his or her’s opinions to navigate through a very intricate debate. The future of the world is at stake here and compromise may be the only way to improve it. This is the complex part because compromise is not always simple, especially when it is something you believe very strongly about. As the game goes on more and more issues are presented to the player and they must continue to make the difficult decision. In the end when everything is laid out before them the players will reflect on their previous decisions and begin to wonder if what they did was right. Hopefully this explains to people how pointless some arguments can be. If both sides are willing to compromise then good things should happen. If not then the opposite will happen and the players will have nobody to blame but themselves.

Reflection
Dissoi Logoi
If someone were to look at my game from a different point of view then my game may give them the opposite effect of what was intended. By looking back over my game I can certainly see someone viewing the arguing as necessary because at least it brings both parties to the table. Also I can see how those who were contempt with being neutral the entire duration of the game and keeping the world as is would say there is nothing wrong with following the status quo that has been set for modern times. The problem I have with these arguments is they do not fix problems. In the first argument in opposition to my game yes the arguing brings everyone to the table, but it does not mean they can come to common ground. It also seems to be the way things are done now and that way is not working. For the second argument in opposition of my game, keeping things the same over the same period of time, to me, is the same thing as moving backwards. My rebuttal against someone who agrees with this argument is why not try to change things for the better when you can make a difference. If you read my game through a postmodern lens then my argument now insinuates that there is a solution beyond arguing if that makes sense.

Composition
Game design as a composition technique had me kind of skeptical at first, but the more a delved into it, the more interesting and enlightening it became. When you look at game design from different points of views you see that if done properly it can be a learning experience and help explain how effective games can actually be. This style of composition differs from others because it is more of a blue print for the final thing rather than being the final thing. Game design is more technical to me than just doing a term paper. It also can express your opinion thoroughly while getting others to see your point of view. It does not matter that I cannot produce a game like this because the idea is out there and my point has been made. That is all I was really trying to do. There is a place for game design in the composition classroom because it provides students with an ingenious way of breaking down their arguments and constantly restating them. This is the same as writing a term paper, but it is much more interesting.

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