Game Development Log 1.

This post will be about a specific artifact in our game, Fancy Mansion.
Specifically, the design-choices and drawing of the moneybag, used as an item to be picked up to increase the players overall score in the game.
Fancy Mansion is a game about picking things up and increasing your own monetary value by stealing items. In order to represent a valuable items, first of all we chose iconic objects to symbolize this. The first object, the most basic design, was a […]

Game Development, Meeting 1 and 2.

During week 3 of January, we started a new course titled “Introduction to Game Development.” During the 11 weeks of this course, we were told we would be re-creating another teams game that they designed during the course “Introduction to Game Analysis and Game Design.” We were to remain in our teams, choose another teams game, and set to work developing it using Scrum, an agile workflow to help us along.
We, team 4-est, chose a game previously labeled as Fancy […]

Developers Diary. Meeting 4. Jetpack Orangutan.

Today (22/10 -14) we had our 4th meeting in order to lay a solid foundation for our pitch, and determine what we wanted to do for the next few weeks. After a rather stagnant weekend with a few members (including me) of our group having left the island to spend time with friends and family, it was time to get back on the horse and plan the next phase of our game concept.
In order to start with the pitch, we […]

Developers Diary. Meeting 4. Jetpack Orangutan.

Today (22/10 -14) we had our 4th meeting in order to lay a solid foundation for our pitch, and determine what we wanted to do for the next few weeks. After a rather stagnant weekend with a few members (including me) of our group having left the island to spend time with friends and family, it was time to get back on the horse and plan the next phase of our game concept.
In order to start with the pitch, we […]

Developers Diary. Meeting 3. Jetpack Orangutan.

I came home from Stockholm after visiting family and celebrating my sisters birthday.
Upon arrival I went to bed and the following morning (21/10 -14) we met for the third time to start production on our paper prototype.
Our first problem arose very early. We had no materials to build. However, as we knew exactly what we wanted for our prototype, what we wanted to deliver, we knew what materials were needed and we set out to find some. After picking up […]

Developers Diary. Meeting 3. Jetpack Orangutan.

I came home from Stockholm after visiting family and celebrating my sisters birthday.
Upon arrival I went to bed and the following morning (21/10 -14) we met for the third time to start production on our paper prototype.
Our first problem arose very early. We had no materials to build. However, as we knew exactly what we wanted for our prototype, what we wanted to deliver, we knew what materials were needed and we set out to find some. After picking up […]

Developers Diary. Meeting 2. Jetpack Orangutan.

Second Meeting.
We met up again and immediately began discussing what the group had done.
As producer I had the team assemble in the library and I asked the group to look at the slides for the One-Page Design Lecture that Marcus had put on our web-portal for Uppsala University.
The first thing we did was decide on a high-concept. A sentence that is the essence of our game, is punchy and informative and interesting.
After that we decided to hold off on the […]

Developers Diary. Meeting 1. Orangutan.

First meeting.
We met up to start the prject by discussing our different ideas and settling on one.
First things first however, we decided to fill in the other roles:
I was given the role of Producer.
Erik decided to be Lead Coder.
Filip decided that Lead Art was for him.
Marcus chose Game Designer.
Alex 1 chose QA and Lead Sound was given to Alex 2.
We discussed at length our different game ideas and finally settled on Marcus’s, which I’ll explain briefly:
You are an Orangutan in […]

Developers Diary. Meeting 2. Jetpack Orangutan.

Second Meeting.
We met up again and immediately began discussing what the group had done.
As producer I had the team assemble in the library and I asked the group to look at the slides for the One-Page Design Lecture that Marcus had put on our web-portal for Uppsala University.
The first thing we did was decide on a high-concept. A sentence that is the essence of our game, is punchy and informative and interesting.
After that we decided to hold off on the […]

Developers Diary. Meeting 1. Orangutan.

First meeting.
We met up to start the prject by discussing our different ideas and settling on one.
First things first however, we decided to fill in the other roles:
I was given the role of Producer.
Erik decided to be Lead Coder.
Filip decided that Lead Art was for him.
Marcus chose Game Designer.
Alex 1 chose QA and Lead Sound was given to Alex 2.
We discussed at length our different game ideas and finally settled on Marcus’s, which I’ll explain briefly:
You are an Orangutan in […]

Depressing State.

Today I was invited to a group dedicated to discussing the design of games, and games in general, as well as the overall state of gaming, the game industry and most things included in this. First and foremost, however, it’s an ongoing discussion.
Unfortunately (and there’s not escaping it) the first 2 or 3 posts in the group are all very depressing and bitter, warning us as designers not to get into the industry.
What? Well, obviously this is not a great […]

Depressing State.

Today I was invited to a group dedicated to discussing the design of games, and games in general, as well as the overall state of gaming, the game industry and most things included in this. First and foremost, however, it’s an ongoing discussion.
Unfortunately (and there’s not escaping it) the first 2 or 3 posts in the group are all very depressing and bitter, warning us as designers not to get into the industry.
What? Well, obviously this is not a great […]