That Club For Game Design

[Resident Fascist]

[center][size=8][font=courier new,courier,monospace][color=#0000FF][b]That Club For Game Design[/b][/color][/font][/size][/center]
[center](we need a better logo)[/center]

Welcome to That Club For Game Design, if you're wanting to study Game Design/are a Game Designer or whatever, please do join. Discussion on Gaming is allowed, but try to make your Posts in a perspective that fits in with the club. I.e: "If I where the designer, I would've conveyed this subject better" and so on, not just random questions. Also, tell us if there is a game that suffers from a big design flaw and tell us what it is in detail, as this is a Game Design related club and sharing what you think is a flaw only helps game design in general in the long run.

[spoiler='Members']
Order-Sol(Shard)
Justice Master[/spoiler]
[spoiler='App']
YCM Name:
Why are you joining?:
Favorite Game Series?:
[/spoiler]
[spoiler='Rules']
1.In general, don't be stupid. Simply posting "Don't play this because it sucks!" In all caps lock is not going to further the conversation. When posting a review topic, be both "Strict and Fair" Game Designers are not gods and they certianly can't cater to absolutely [b]everyone. [/b]This is why you should cut down on [b]Opinion [/b]during review. Saying "The controls where bad because I couldn't understand them" Is a bad excuse. "I didn't like the controls because this felt [Unresponsive/Detached from the rest of controls/etc]" Is a good way to explain without barging your Opinion into someone's face.

2.No Flaming. This is both for Developer, Console, Member and even other threads on YCM. If you have a pet hate, don't convey it in such a way that you just insult everyone with a difference of opinion. This is a fair rule, and I'm not saying you can't call out Stupidity, just not [b]insult something directly. [/b]Like: "SEGA Sucks because they suck and they're so bad and they suck!"

3.Stay on topic. Please, it's not hard folks. If you don't know the current topic: Just ask. Don't go "durr I make new topic and derail current topic!" Because that's silly.

Yes, only 3 Rules.[/spoiler]

Current topic: [b]Replayability vs Lasting Impression[/b]
[spoiler='Planned Topics']
[b]Target Audience?[/b]
[b]Depth vs Simplicity[/b]
[/spoiler]

Some games are replayable, time after time. Others simply arn't. Games like Shadow of the Colossus, while very simple after you know how to defeat each Colossus, leave a very lasting impression on the player. MMO Games, while they occasionly dip their feet into a lasting and good storyline, they care much more for Replayability. No game is absolutely flawless, and no game can hope to get the correct balance. Too much Lasting Impression usually makes the game less replayable because the player knows what is coming, and too much Replayability dulls the edge of Lasting Impression. In order for specific game Genres to work, such as RPGs, there must be a balance of both in one game. Other games, like the 2D Fighter Genre aim to be Replayable until the Cows come home. Which is better in certian situations? A overly long, replayable game that offers a decent storyline, or a short game with a really lasting storyline...? Go ahead and discuss this, [u]you can also bring up a second topic if you wish. [/u]

[Justice Master]

YCM Name: Justice Master
Why are you joining?: Because I have an interest in the different elemants of game design and am going to take a class on it.
Favorite Game Series?: The Zelda series.

I honestly think that when it comes to that sort of balence, Zelda's got it down. Let's take OoT for example. The whole game leaves an amazing last impression, however it leaves a bunch of replayability in its secrets that are hidden across the land.

[Resident Fascist]

[quote name='Justice Master' timestamp='1327541036' post='5781127']
YCM Name: Justice Master
Why are you joining?: Because I have an interest in the different elemants of game design and am going to take a class on it.
Favorite Game Series?: The Zelda series.

I honestly think that when it comes to that sort of balence, Zelda's got it down. Let's take OoT for example. The whole game leaves an amazing last impression, however it leaves a bunch of replayability in its secrets that are hidden across the land.
[/quote]

Added
Yea, Zelda always did seem to get the balance right. It's like the Secrets are far enough out so they take of bit of effort to find, but they arn't dangled in your face like a Carrot, which seems to be the major problem of most games now: They don't convey well enough. If you have to bug me every 5 seconds to tell me something that's plainly obvious, then you want to fix the design. Tutorials are fine, but they should be at the Player's will. If I want to read a 50 Page Tutorial, let me. Just don't make me read it before beginning the game. The same goes for Opening Cutscenes. If it's 30 Minutes long, give me a brief summary if I want and then skip it, or let me watch the entire plot. Since I'm designing a fighter, I can't exactly place that many secrets in the game, but as it has an Overworld hub type system where the main character can run around and talk to people and so on, there's a few secrets involved. Balancing the two is actually very hard, because if you forcefeed the player information, they'll forget about the lasting effect of a major plot point. If the characters act more like Real People, the lastability can be lengthened as the player can form a feasable connection to the characters.

It's even harder if you're designing an RPG. Especially in the final dungeon areas of the game, where you have to produce not only a Music Track that implies the situation, you have to give the Protaganists a huge reason of [b]why [/b]they [b]must [/b]defeat the villian. Not like "Oh well he killed my girlfriend! I must go chasing after him and risk my life!" I.e: Meteor in FF7. Lavos in Chrono Trigger. It gave the player a reason of why they have to defeat the Villian. However, "End of the World" has become far too cliche, as has the final boss turning into some sort of Angelic like creature. And you can always place a plot point of the Protaganist being a selfish protaganist, which when done right can make the Protaganist seem like the Villian for most of the game.

Suprise plot twists only work when they've been building up for a while, and not just completely out of the blue. Just "OH YEA I'M EVIL NOW I KILL YOU ALL LOL" Won't suffice, but if it's built up and the player still can't put together the peices, suprise plot twists can really enhance the story's lasting aspect. Or atleast in my opinion.

[Justice Master]

I must admit, I am sick of the whole, "hey moron! Press the X button to jump!" That doesn't mean you just get rid of any tutorial ideas at all. As Egoraptor has said in his Sequalitis of Mega Man X, Mega Man has usually been good of giving you a new elemant in one section without cramming a whole bunch, letting you get a hang of it, then making you use it. The problem here is, you're designing a fighter where your abilities to do so without interupting gameplay are limited. I am unsure of how one would fix this, but I'll think of it later. As for secrets, you can stuff A LOT into a fighting game. Unlockable characters and easter eggs are the main ones, though.

[Resident Fascist]

There is no unlockable characters, all 30 characters are playable from the start. There's a tutorial mode and it respects the intelligence of the player by having them go through a test fight against an AI, then gives you a general idea of who'd be best for you and what you're playstyle is like, and if it notices missed things, it says "Well, you can continue this combo with..." and so on. There's also a sort of "Teach me everything in text!" mode that well teaches everything in the game. Like, everything. I'm leaving the engine guide in the game, as well as frame data charts for the serious players. As far a Easter eggs go, idk.

[Justice Master]

That sounds good, but I am kinda sad that there are no secret people for me to find, yell "THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE!!," kill, and then use them in combat, I am hoping there will at least be secret people to fight. As for easter eggs, they're really the little jokes you put in when you're bored. They're still fun to find, nonetheless.

[Resident Fascist]

[quote name='Justice Master' timestamp='1327552967' post='5781635']
That sounds good, but I am kinda sad that there are no secret people for me to find, yell "THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE!!," kill, and then use them in combat, I am hoping there will at least be secret people to fight. As for easter eggs, they're really the little jokes you put in when you're bored. They're still fun to find, nonetheless.
[/quote]

Well there is a vs Prisimatic arcade mode where you fight super strong characters(Prismatic colours and stuffz) but yea.