Black Swan film review

After watching countless films so far this year, very few have come as close to brilliance as Black Swan. After enjoying it so much, I thought I would share my views on it with the blogging world. After hearing such brilliant reviews and the inevitable Oscar hype, I was eager to go and see just what all the fuss was about. Going in I had relatively high expectations although I must admit, the idea of a film about ballet was a little off putting, even if Natalie Portman was in the leading role.

To put it simply, Black Swan is the reason I go to the cinema. Films are my favourite media (yes, I do realise I’m on a computer games design course!) and I go to the cinema these days with low to average expectations of what I’ll be watching. Sure, last year produced some fantastic films such as Inception and The Social Network but more often than not, Hollywood churns out complete trash to cater for today’s dumbed down, action seeking audiences. Black Swan, however, gets your adrenaline pumping in a completely different way to fast cars and epic action fights. It evokes every emotion imaginable.

Almost everything about Black Swan can be compared to real, everyday life and while at face value it’s a film based on Ballet, it goes into such depth that it gets into the soul of the viewer. I’m sure you will have by now heard about the basic plot line although for those of you who haven’t, I will outline it below.

Natalie Portman plays Nina Sayers, a professional ballerina that works for Thomas (Vincent Cassel). She gets offered the role of Swan Queen in the upcoming production of Swan Lake, which involves playing both the Black and White Swan. While the White Swan requires an innocent and caring performance, the Black Swan needs to portray sexually charged evil emotions. Nina is fantastic as the White Swan but she struggles with the intensity and pressure of becoming the Black Swan. As the pressure builds, she must change her life and delve deep into her own soul to produce a performance evil enough, which the part demands.

What makes this film so extraordinary is the performance from Natalie Portman and the direction of Darren Aronofsky. Portman is phenomenal and her transition from a kind and caring human being to a sexually charged evil monster is one of the most exceptional pieces of direction I’ve ever seen. It’s a film that plucks at every emotion and its realism is so shocking that it took me days to get over the initial ‘buzz’.

Black Swan is an emotionally charged, rollercoaster ride of a film that will make anyone watching it change their perspective on modern day cinema. It won’t appeal to everyone but I would thoroughly recommend it to anyone that appreciates fine performances and clever, powerful and precise directing. It’s an absolutely superb film that will stick with me for a long time to come. At least there is still a small part of the film industry that can produce a powerful masterpiece like this. 

Key Stage 1 game Essay

For our second set essay this year we have been taked to write about the major design issues we faced during the development of our Key Stage 1 game for children. Below is my final essay.

When designing and developing any computer game there are certain elements that must be considered in order to secure a sound product.  Professional writers’ advice for what constitutes a good game varies, but on reading their work it is clear that there is agreement amongst them that a vocabulary for gaming is essential.  Doug Church (1999:pp1) summarises this perfectly when he says,

‘The primary inhibitor of design evolution is the lack of a common design vocabulary.’ (1)

In his writing, Greg Costikyan (2002:pp26) suggests that the essential vocabulary, and thus the criteria for making a compelling game is to:

‘provide goals, create endogenous meanings, establish a structure, make sure you make the player struggle.’ (2)

His opinion is appropriate for measuring the success of the challenge faced by our own design team when tasked to produce a Key Stage 1 game. As such, it will be used to evaluate the particular issues encountered during the development of the project.

Al and Annie’s History Mystery is a puzzle-based, educational game designed for Key Stage 1 (KS1) pupils (aged 5-7years).

The aim of the game is to progress through a haunted mansion by solving puzzles based on different periods of history. The house is split into five rooms, themed differently, each housing two puzzles. The player must correctly solve both puzzles to advance to the next room. Upon completion, the player must then answer some general knowledge questions to finish the game.

The most challenging aspect of creating Al and Annie’s History Mystery was to make the game appropriate for, and easily playable by, our target audience. Additionally, achieving the correct level of participant challenge or struggle in the game was a key element to its eventual success.  Costikyan (2002: pp28) emphasises this point when he states that ‘challenge’

‘…is at the heart of any game: you may be able to dispense with fantasy or narrative, but you cannot dispense with challenge.’ (3)

It was clear to the development team from the outset that failure to gauge the necessary level of challenge for Al and Annie’s History Mystery would result in players turning quickly away from the game either because of its difficulty or its simplicity and lack of reward.

To tackle this, it was important to experience a wide variety of activities and games that were already developed for and knowingly successful to KS1 pupils.  By accessing and playing a wide variety of computer games for each of the KS1 curriculum subjects and investigating the preferences and interests of this age group, the team established the ideas that were eventually developed in the final game.

With such a wealth of resources available to this age group a further challenge was to select something appropriate but also relatively new.  Early ideas included a numeracy fishing game, shape identification game and various literacy challenges.  The obvious choice was to create an educational game that would develop a child’s early learning skills.  However, it was immediately clear that games for literacy and numeracy were in abundance and this led the team to select a curriculum area that was under-resourced; hence the decision to select ‘history’ as the main theme.

During the research period, the main things noted by the team were that the games were all bright and colourful, whilst being very simple to understand and play. Tasks were clear and characters and graphics predominantly cartoon-styled.  Most of the games were educational and fun to play. Eventually, the coupling of history, as the main subject, with its wealth of story and characters, with a mystery/haunted house theme was selected as a potentially successful combination to appeal most to the target audience. The potential to include elements of literacy and numeracy were also considered. 

Setting the storyboard for the game was simple enough as it was agreed to select those periods in history that were taught as part of the KS1 curriculum: Egyptians, Romans, 17^th and 18^th Century. The challenge here was to re-create thematic rooms for our characters to move through and carry out suitable activities appropriate to each time period. Designing these rooms to be colourful, meaningful and historically accurate took up much research time and a considered selection was made of the most appropriate artefacts and settings.

Having agreed the overall concept and structure for Al and Annie’s History Mystery, the next challenge to face was creating the goals and ‘fun’ elements. It is a common mistake to allow one designer’s idea of fun to dictate the design of a game and not consider whether this ‘fun’ appeals to a wider audience.  Noah Falstein (2004:pp1) asks

‘What makes a game fun? It's a question that seems central to the process of making good games. But it's an elusive and subjective question.’ (4)

As the game developed, the issue over the balance of ‘fun’ and ‘learning’ was discussed regularly and tested out on a variety of other users. Ultimately the ‘fun’ formula evolved with the careful selection and winning combination of structure, goals, struggle and meaning.

Initially, the game was to feature questions which the player would need to correctly answer to continue through the game. However, our discussions with a teacher of this age group resulted in a re-think as to how easy it would be for most pupil of this age group to read the text.  It was decided to change the questions to educational puzzles instead. This allowed the game to be more inclusive, as well as being a more interactive and involving experience for the player.  Feedback loops were also considered at this point to encourage rather than demoralise a player who may be having difficulty with a solution.  One such loop was placed and trialled at the final level.  Further development of this strategy could be included after testing with the target audience in the future.

It was agreed that whilst the game was now based largely upon ‘real’ historical events the issue was to design a game that would offer enough rewards for KS1 children to feel involved. It was therefore important to set a degree of fantasy by including elements of endogenous meaning.

Costikyan (2002:pp22) states that this is something that

“…has no concrete, real-world expression, and no value in any context other than the game” (5)

The team had to be select something in order for the

“…game’s structure to create its own meaning”. (6)

Hence, by adding in collectable cookies that could be earned by completing the puzzles the game retained its fun, modern day feel.  To enhance this element, further cookies were hidden throughout the levels, thus developing the struggle element between players and creating the opportunity for re-playability.

During the initial concept designs, I was personally tasked with creating the backgrounds and puzzle art for the game. It was agreed that each room of the house would be set in a different period of history.  My challenge, therefore, was to create a backdrop for each room and select appropriate artefacts to decorate and enhance these. Using the graphical style of other games, such as Luigi’s Mansion, as a base, I designed each room along a cartoon-styled theme whilst remaining authentic to the period of time being portrayed.  The difficulty lay in capturing the elements of each historical period in a way that remained simple but attractive for the target audience and effective and educational for the overall theme.

This part of the task required a lot of research around the historical periods of history.  I made full use of Internet images, but also studied a series of children’s history books from the local library. These were useful in focussing attention on what main historical sources would be best portrayed.  From my initial series of sketches I drew together whole room design concepts to share with the design team.  The fact that little was altered from my own initial designs is some measure of the success of my research and final selections.

In the early stages of the project, when the historical mystery theme was agreed, the name of the game was Haunted History Mansion.  Personally, I did not feel that this was appealing enough and, had the game been a serious attempt at a merchandisable product, such a lengthy title would not have stood out amongst other games.  It was my suggestion to the team that Al and Annie be chosen as names in the title, as the characters would feature greatly in the game. Using the alliterative link would also make them easy to remember.  History Mystery was also my suggestion as it explains clearly and effectively, using rhyme, what the game is about.  Thus, the title, Al and Annie’s History Mystery, was created. Mindful of the fact that, had this been a commercial project it may have needed a follow-up, then Al and Annie have the potential to become the characters for a whole series of games based upon similar themes: Al and Annie’s Maths Mystery or Al and Annie’s Geography Journey could all become future off-shoots.

Creating an appropriate soundtrack was also an important part of designing Al and Annie’s History Mystery. Again, research was done into other KS1 games and spooky television shows to generate ideas on what sort of music to create. Scooby Do, a popular children’s mystery show, was a great inspiration when creating music and sound effects. The haunting sounds used in the show gave ideas on what to create for the right feel to the game. Once the research was completed, sound effects were recorded using everyday objects, which were then digitally altered to give an appropriate effect to incorporate into the game.

Recording the background music for each level was difficult. Having three, separate, main themes for the game required a lot of research into the music styles of each, planned for, period of history. Coming up with authentically sounding, but original, music proved extremely challenging. With the game being aimed at such young children the music needed to be appropriately ‘spooky’ but also fun and lively.

It was essential to make the game appealing to both males and females. In the games used as research, it was a notable common feature that the player was able to choose their own character from the selection provided.  To make our game appeal to both genders, it was decided to create a male and female character, either of which could be selected by the user.  Character creation was an important part of the game to get right if the player was to empathise effectively. The characters needed to be designed in the same cartoon style as the rest of the game but they also needed to be likeable creations. With the target audience being pupils at KS1, young school children were chosen to depict the playable characters in order to help the player relate to what they were interacting with onscreen.

In fully evaluating the design issues faced by the development team, it is important to return to the first quote from Costikyan (2002) and ask, “Did the final game meet the criteria?”  Al and Annie’s History Mystery certainly provides the goals necessary for challenge; has a clear example of a sought-after endogenous element; contains an established and effective structure, and ensures that the player struggles. In every respect it meets the requirements of what might be regarded as a ‘compelling game’. 

To achieve this, the total commitment required from every team member was generated by the desire to question, research, trial and improve every idea plus the acknowledgement that there was, within our grasp, a truly sound product. In conclusion, and on a personal note, I have benefited from the important processes needed to successfully work within a team and of adhering to strict deadlines. From the initial ideas stage, right through to the final product, many design hurdles were faced. Creating Al and Annie’s History Mystery was a difficult but rewarding challenge and I shall use many of the experiences and much of the research findings to aid me in future projects.

Bibliography

Church, Doug. (1999) Formal Abstract Design Tools Gamasutra – http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/3357/formal abstract design to ols,php. pp1.

Costikyan Greg. (2002) “I Have No Words & I Must Design: Towards a Critical Vocabulary for Games”.  Proceedings of Computer Games & Design Cultures Conference.Tampere, USA: Tampere University Press. pp22 – 28.

Falstein Noah. (2004) Natural Funativity Gamasutra - http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20041110/falstein_01.shtml. pp1

Word Count: 1,999 excluding bibliography.

Group project update

So, after months of work, Al and Annie's History Mystery is now complete! As a development team, we presented the final version of our game to both Rob and Dan today alonside our project managers. We plan on testing out the game at a local primary school in the coming weeks to get some feedback from our target audience.

Alloy Wheel 3DS Max

Here is my current progress in making an alloy wheel in 3DS Max. All that's left to do is texture it.

Boston 2011

With two weeks off over Easter, I decided to book myself a holiday to Boston! Having been to America twice before I was looking forward to visiting again, this time to a completely different part. My first trip to the states was back in 2003 when i went to Florida. It was, of course, tailored to tourists which I wasn't particularly keen on. My second trip came in 2005 when I visited Seattle. It is a beautiful city with some incredible sights and is worlds apart from Florida. However, being such a business city it did make it extremely busy and there were parts in desperate need of renovation.

Boston was the perfect compromise of the two cities. Not only was it a business city but it also catered heavily for tourists. Being in New England, some of the views were beautiful and I was thoroughly impressed with the level of care and attention the city had been given. The Boston marathon was also due to get underway as we left which brought in lots of extra media attention.

Some of our activities included, Whale watching, Science Museum, MIT and Harvard tours, History Museum, Trolley bus tours, Harbour Cruise, Aquarium and of course lots of shopping! I would recommend Boston to anyone, old or young.

A-MAZE-ING

Below are a few screenshots of my individual Flash game that we are making for our 'Introduction to scripting' module.

Pesto's Script

We have been tasked with writing a script for our design methods module. For mine, I have decided to create a realistic story about two brothers who inherit a restaurant. Below is a first draft script for the opening scene of the pilot episode.

Act 1, Scene 1: In the restaurant

INT.  RESTAURANT – MORNING

Lights fade up to show the interior of a restaurant. It is empty of people. There are dining chairs and tables and a small bar. The whole area looks run down. The main entrance is centre backstage. There is an exit stage right to the kitchens.

It is early morning. A car is heard to stop outside. A man and a woman approach the front door and a key is heard in the lock. The door is thrown open. Enter Doug and Claudia, dressed casually. They stand still in the doorway and look around.

DOUG

Welcome to your inheritance

CLAUDIA

It’s your uncle that left you this place and you know if I had my way I would have sold it straight away.

DOUG

(Pushing past Claudia and entering the restaurant)

But this business has been in the family for forty years and the least we can do is see if we can make a go of it.

CLAUDIA

(Closing the door)

Well with a name like ‘The Wooden Spoon’, I’m surprised it stayed open for as long as it did. From what I’ve learned about the place it went from one disaster to another. Now what makes you think that a used car salesman and a chef, with two failed businesses behind him already, are going to make a go of this dive?

DOUG

My brother’s a very good chef.

CLAUDIA

Yes, good at encouraging the health inspector to make regular visits.

DOUG

That dodgy prawn incident wasn’t Gareth’s fault.

CLAUDIA

Maybe not, but he was responsible for the business and if we’re going to make a go of this place we can’t afford to make mistakes like that. We don’t want this place known as ‘The Dodgy Prawn’.

DOUG

Come to think of it, what are we going to call it? You’re the one with the good imagination; perhaps you would like to come up with some ideas.

CLAUDIA

I’m not sure if that’s a blessing or a burden.

DOUG

Well, we’re here now and we need to find that magic something to get this business up and running again.

GARETH

(Entering from the kitchen, stage right)

Hi! I’m here.

CLAUDIA

(Aside)

 I’m not sure this is the magic something we really had in mind.

DOUG

Oh, Gareth how long have you been here?

GARETH

Not long. I came in through the service entrance. I must say there’s a fair bit of space at the back. We could set up some outdoor furniture and a BBQ in the summer.

CLAUDIA

Do you think we can concentrate on getting the main restaurant sorted out first, before you and your big ideas run away with themselves?

GARETH

Good to see you again Claudia, my favourite sister-in-law.

CLAUDIA

Your only sister-in-law!

DOUG

Oh don’t start you two.  There’ll be enough obstacles to clear in trying to get this restaurant back in people’s dining diaries without you both being one of them.  Let’s put the past well and truly behind us and make this a fresh start.

CLAUDIA

I’d be happier if he was a fresh starter.

DOUG

(firmly)

Claudia!

CLAUDIA

Okay.  I’m sorry?

GARETH

And I won’t take the pesto

DOUG

That’s it!

CLAUDIA & GARETH

(Together)

What?

DOUG

The name of the restaurant…Pesto!

Claudia and Gareth look at each other in disbelief and sigh.

FADE OUT:

Sound Workshops

Over the past few months we have been participating in some sound workshops led by Matt Applegate (PixelH8). We have been looking at different films and television shows and discussing the variety of sounds within them. Most recently we have actually gone a step further and created our own sounds using everyday items. Making lightsaber sounds with a slinky, thunder roars with a bed sheet and spinning blocks with two tiles are just a few of the sounds we have made in this module.

As we are also developing our Key Stage 1 game, we made some sounds that we have been able to implement into the final version of the game. Creaky doors, spinning blocks and footsteps are a few of the sounds we made that have made it into our game.

After having these sessions, it's really opened my eyes to the importance of sound in games, films and television. They not only set the mood but also allow the viewer/player to relate to certain events and characters. All of these sessions have been extremely productive and have been incredibly interesting.

Thanks Matt!

Script ideas

For our design methods module we have been tasked with writing an original script and storyboard for a scene of our choice. I have decided to do a realistic, sitcom style script with the possibility of expanding on it further to add to my end of year portfolio.

The sitcom, entitled Pesto's, is a comedy show about two middle aged brothers who inherit a restaurant. They will have to move house from London to the fictional town of Oxington with their families in tow. Below is a very quick character outline biography.

·      34 year old: Gareth (Chef) - Single

·      40year old: Doug (Car Salesman) – Married with twins

Wife: Claudia (38) (Hairdresser)

Daughter: Ella (15) (School 10/11)

Son: William (15) (School 10/11)

·      Inherit restaurant in town of Oxington.

Originally called The Wooden Spoon

Rename to  Pesto’s

For my first script I will write the opening scene of the opening episode. This will be posted soon.

·   

Natural Funativity

Below are some of the types of 'fun' that are addressed in the natural funativity theory. The theory states that games and other types of media use our primary urges as humans to evoke fun.

Physical Fun:
This looks at a humans primary urge, survival. Where humans would need to be strong and fit to survive, certain games today can get the same reactions. Team sports games, physical games such as dance mats and the eye toy are all forms of physical fun that get the player moving and acting in a way that we would once need to to survive.

Social Fun:
As humans we have always been tribal. Attracting mates and forming groups has become a natural way of life. The form of social fun in media are online games, multiplayer games and chat rooms. All of these things allow for interaction between humans while playing video games.

Mental Fun:
Mental fun is how we as humans use our brains. Games such as tetris, the rubic's cube and bedazzled are all games that are much more demanding on the brain than those above.

Blended Fun:
Blended fun is quite simply all of the types of fun listed above mixed into one. Most forms of entertainment these days have more than just one type of fun in them. Sports games tend to have a broad variety of fun in that they are physical while at the same time strategic and social.

Feedback Loops

In game design there are two types of feedback loops, positive and negative. A positive feedback loop is where the act of succeeding within a game makes it more likely that you will continue to succeed. For example, in Monopoly, when one player gets ahead early in the game, it's incredibly difficult for the other players to catch up. Because of this, it inevitably makes the game end sooner as the winning player doesn't get as obstructed as they would in a game with negative feedback loops. Some realistic racing games also have positive feedback loops. If one player gets too far ahead there are less cars trying to race for their position which therefore makes it easier for the leader.

A negative feedback loop is the complete opposite of a positive one. They reward players in the game who have fallen behind and therefore allow them the opportunity to cath up. Mario Kart has negative feedback loops. When collecting items, the players at the back often get rewards that allow them to catch up with the rest of the field and in some cases even attack the leader. Drivers at the front often end up with rewards that offer them little advantage.

Flash project

My final idea for our individual Flash game has now been set. I have decided to do a maze adventure game entitled, A-MAZE-ING!

The player will play as a bunny (name tbc) and will have to navigate their way through a variety of mazes set in different locations. Screenshots and more information will be uploaded soon.

Retro Game Review

I thought i would upload a draft version of my retro game review in case anyone was interested in reading my views on Frogger! Although this isn't the final version, it still has many of the same points.

Introduction

Looking back, the 1980’s was a time of great innovation for arcade gaming.  To view and play some of these games today, amidst the sophistication of modern gaming advancements, some might believe them to be lacking in thrill and imagination. However, without that golden age of video arcade gaming of the 1980’s, with its emerging technical and design creativity, the popularity, innovation and lucrative earnings would not be possible today.   

Take Frogger, for example: a simple enough concept of having to move a frog across a road, over a river and into a safe haven while avoiding various obstacles.  The success of this game, first introduced by Sega in 1981, had to rely on simple and fun game play.  Taken in context, this game would have initially been targeted at a very young market, happy to disregard television in order to play repetitiously and alone.  The added appeal of its innocent, amphibian theme, coupled with a growing acceptance that such games developed good hand-eye co-ordination and thinking skills made this a game welcomed by adults also.  In time, this arcade game was seen in pubs and social clubs, appealing increasingly to an older generation.

To support the review of this game and analyse why it became so successful, the opinions of Greg Costikyan, Chris Crawford and Doug Church will be applied.

Goals

Frogger has one clear and simple goal; to maneuver a frog through lines of traffic and hungry crocodiles in order to reach a lily pad home. Although this is a basic goal, its appeal is in allowing the player to pick and choose the route in which to achieve this. According to Greg Costikyan, some of the more sophisticated games, such as Sim Earth, can become boring due to its lack of explicit goals. While this type of game will appeal to some players, it will alienate others and leave them frustrated and unfulfilled. Frogger requires a high degree of attention from the player in order to achieve its end goal. This in itself provides the necessary appeal to make it enjoyable and successful.

Structure

‘Game structure has to do with the means by which a game shapes playerbehaviour’ (1)

In order to understand the effectiveness of the structure in Frogger it is important to briefly explain the game.

Beginning at the bottom of the screen, the player first moves a frog over a road, avoiding an array of various road vehicles. Upon successfully completing this, the next challenge is to direct the frog across a river by hopping onto various logs and lily pads which scroll from left and right across the screen. However, crocodiles infest the water and must be avoided for the player to eventually reach their end goal in the form of various homes at the top of the screen.

Frogger is wells-supported by its game structure which allows the player to use different strategies and take alternate paths through the game.

Although a simple structure, Frogger allows itself to be played by players of different game styles. Take a tactical player for example: in no rush to complete their goal, they are still rewarded for doing so, simply by getting a larger number of frogs home. The game does call for quick reactions and decisions, but a player can take time to look ahead and plan a strategic route through the obstacles in the way. Frogger also appeals to those with a rushing style of play. With a high risk/reward incentive, players who want to earn points quickly can reach their goal with as much time on the clock as possible, and so earn more points.

Starting with five lives, there are a number of ways in which a player can be defeated. If, when trying to navigate a way through the plethora of obstacles that lie in their path, the player allows their frog to be struck by a car, drowned in the river or eaten by a crocodile, they lose a life.  These elements reinforce the idea that the structure influences player behaviour which then leads into ‘perceivable consequences.

Perceivable Consequences

A perceivable consequence as defined by Doug Church in Gamasutra - Features - Formal Abstract Design Tools is

“A clear reaction from the game world to the action of the player.” (2)

 In Frogger, when a frog ‘dies’, the game reacts with the player by doing two main things. Firstly, a small, skull and crossbones animation is displayed, allowing the player to see where they went wrong and what to avoid at their next attempt. The second game interaction is for the player to return to the bottom of the screen and restart with a new frog. The advantage of including perceivable consequences in this way provides the player with experiences to overcome during the continued playing of this game.

Rewards

Scoring in Frogger is dependant upon the amount of frogs successfully kept alive and how quickly they reach home. Avoiding a line of obstacles earns the player ten points, with extra points awarded for speed and completion of the task. As more frogs are saved, the more difficult the game becomes. Obstacles scroll across the screen more frequently and quickly, forcing the player to make quicker decisions when maneuvering their frog.

Frogger is designed to reward the skilful player but its appeal is also in allowing the novice to enjoy this gaming experience. With the scoring system set the way it is, advanced players have their efforts rewarded with a higher points score whilst novice players may be less concerned about time constraints, but continue to score points consistently by moving their frog through the various obstacles. This creates a challenging and rewarding game experience for players of all abilities.

Herein lies the success of Frogger. It is a game with a very clear and strict set of rules supported by a flexible scoring system to allow each and every player to find something rewarding. Although the rules remain constant through the levels, the challenge increases, benefiting increasingly skilful players with the reward of reaching the later stages of the game. Similarly, players with limited skill, earn points quickly and easily to maintain both entertainment and involvement in the game.

Interface

The user interface for Frogger is simple yet effective. With a single, non-scrolling screen the player is able to see their goal at all times which allows for a strategic style of game play as well as a speedy one.  During the game, the player is also able to view their time and number of remaining lives.  Cars and other objects are not graphically spectacular but their basic designs are colourful and engaging to the user.

Struggle

A game needs the correct level of struggle to make it enjoyable. If the challenges and struggle are too difficult, players will find the game frustrating. Similarly, if the game has little struggle it becomes too easy and the player will become bored. Creating the correct balance of difficulty is key to creating an enjoyable and rewarding game.

Frogger, like many other games from its time, relies on game mechanics rather than game interface to make it engaging for the player. Greg Costikyan claims that:

‘A game is an interactive structure… that requires players to struggle towards a goal’ (3)

The increasing difficulty of Frogger adds struggle, with the time aspect adding higher risk and a higher reward. Players are constantly required to make choices; choices which will eventually have a high impact on how well they do at the end. Forcing players to choose the direction they need to move in and which objects to land on allows them to interact with the game continuously. This maintains the player’s involvement at all times, as a slight loss of concentration could lead to failure.

Interaction

Interaction gives players various choices which allow them to shape the game state. Puzzles are an integral part to any game and those puzzles need a purpose or end goal for a player to successfully interact with the game. I agree with Chris Crawford when he distinguishes between a puzzle and a game:

‘A puzzle is static. A game is interactive’ (4)

To be interactive, decision making in a game is key and Frogger requires the player to make plenty of them. By forcing the user to continuously assess where they are moving and what lies ahead makes for an engrossing game. The decisions needed in Frogger are certainly meaningful. Each decision the player makes has an immediate impact on how well they progress through the game. Making the wrong decision can lead to a loss of life or a slower completion time, both of which impact on the overall score. One of the biggest decisions in Frogger comes when the frog reaches its lily pad. With a number of homes to choose from and fill, the player is forced into deciding upon a strategy to place each frog in a separate home. Such a decision has inevitable consequences for the rest of the game. Strategic players may feel that occupying the trickier homes first will allow for an easier task when it comes to facing the tougher levels. Rushing players may have the attitude that ‘any home will do’ so as to get a quick completion time and a higher score.

Endogenous Meaning

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, one definition of ‘endogenous’ means to be ‘confined within a group or society.’  Put simply and in the context of gaming,

‘A game’s structure creates its own meaning.  The meaning grows out of the structure’

Elements of endogenous objects in a game are those which are created for value to the player alone whilst playing.  Without the game, the same objects have no value or meaning to them whatsoever. 

The lily pads in Frogger are a good example of this.  They are of vital importance to the player and as such have an endogenous meaning. Without them, the game cannot be completed and so they become a compulsory and meaningful item within the context of the game. Taken out of the game state, the Frogger lily pads have next to no value. Being a necessary item, the lily pads become an integral part of how the player views and plays the game, while in reality, there would be no use for the item outside of its game state.

Summary

Costikyan’s functional definition of “game” is

‘an interactive structure of endogenous meaning that requires players to struggle

             towards a goal’ (6)

Even in its most basic form, Frogger fulfills this definition with its clear structure and simple goals.  Providing an element of struggle which, when overcome, rewards the player effectively is all part of this game’s appeal. Frogger was a classic 1980’s game, from whose simple but successful format other similar arcade games were launched.

It is, therefore, hardly surprising that Frogger still has a devoted following today amongst classic game restorers with their websites full of tips and advice and various versions of Frogger is readily available to download and play.

Bibliography

1 Costikyan Greg. (2002) “I Have No Words & I Must Design: Towards a Critical Vocabularly for Games”.  Proceedings of Computer Games & Design Cultures Conference. pp20. Tampere, USA: Tampere University Press.

2. Church, Doug. (1999) Formal Abstract Design Tools Gamasutra – http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/3357/formal abstract design to ols,php  pp7.

3. Costikyan Greg. (2002) “I Have No Words & I Must Design: Towards a Critical Vocabularly for Games”.  Proceedings of Computer Games & Design Cultures Conference. pp25. Tampere, USA: Tampere University Press.

4. Chris Crawford 1982 The Art of Computer Game Design, referenced by Costikyan Greg. (2002) “I Have No Words & I Must Design: Towards a Critical Vocabularly for Games”.  Proceedings of Computer Games & Design Cultures Conference. pp24. Tampere, USA: Tampere University Press.

5. Costikyan Greg. (2002) “I Have No Words & I Must Design: Towards a Critical Vocabularly for Games”.  Proceedings of Computer Games & Design Cultures Conference. pp22. Tampere, USA: Tampere University Press.

6. Costikyan Greg. (2002) “I Have No Words & I Must Design: Towards a Critical Vocabularly for Games”.  Proceedings of Computer Games & Design Cultures Conference. pp24. Tampere, USA: Tampere University Press.

Word Count: 1838 excluding bibliography.