virtualgamedeveloper

If you create a two-player game, you better make sure that the best player normally wins, and not the most lucky one. Imagine a strategy game in which two players compete with each other. As in most strategy games they have to build up a city and for this they need wood. Now imagine there is just one forest in the world and one player starts very close to this forest and the other is far away from it. This gives the first player an advantage that will most likely win him the game. So the game is highly unbalanced. A game of chess on the other hand is highly balanced. Each player has the same pieces and can make the same move. The only problem is that one player can start and this is actually an advantage in chess. But this is balanced out because in a match each player can start the same number of times. Chess is a symmetric game. Symmetric games are well balanced. But symmetry is also a bit boring. Imagine that in the strategy game I mentioned the world looks completely symmetrical and each player plays the same race with the same units. That would make the game less appealing. Still it is used rather often. For example, the multiplayer maps in Red Alert II are very symmetrical. The real game design challenge is to make a non-symmetrical game that is still rather balanced.
One way of achieving this is to use fake asymmetry. Let me demonstrate this with an example. In our strategy game we let the first player start behind a mountain range while the second player has his city behind a river. The first player we give the ability to create boats while the second player has equipment to drill tunnels. This looks very asymmetric but the tunnels can be used to pass the mountain range and in a similar way the boats can pass the river. So balance is restored again. Many strategy games use some type of fake asymmetry. Races might look rather different but in the end the possibilities are very similar.

A game for children should be rather different than a game for adults. And a game for hard-core gamers should be rather different from a game for less experienced players. You need to pick the correct audience.Playing a game is about control The player should feel in control of the game. Not the other way round. Uninterruptible sequences in which the control is taken out of the hands of the player still occur in many games and often lead to frustration. The more freedom there is for the player, the better. There is though a catch here. A game is also about surprises and dramatic effects. Such effects can be created much better if the player is not in control.
Whenever you need to constrain the user, try to do this in a natural way.  Game objects and resources in a game you normally control certain game objects, like the main character, units, a car, etc. In some games you can control just one object while in other games, for example strategy games, you can control many different objects. Besides the game objects that the player controls, there are normally many other objects that are controlled by the computer. The game objects the player controls play a certain role in the game. This is an important property. In other programs you also control certain objects, like buttons, but these do not play a role in the program. They are only meant to give certain commands to the program. Besides controlling game objects you must often also manage certain resources. This is most evident in strategy games and simulation games in which you must manage the amount of food, wood, stone, gold, etc. But also in many other games there are resources to manage, like ammunition for your weapons, a shield that can be used a limited amount of time, etc. Careful planning of resources and their use can add many nice aspects to the game play. The game designer must balance the availability of resource with their need, to achieve interesting game play. A game needs a goal this is a crucial ingredient in a game. People want to win a game and, hence, there must be a goal to reach. For long games there should also be sub-goals, like finishing a particular level, defeating a certain monster, or acquiring a new spell. Reaching a goal or sub-goal should result in a reward. Such a reward can consist of a score or some nice movie, but it is better if the reward is actually part of the game play itself, for example a new weapon, some additional useful information, etc. Reaching Goals An important part of a game is that there is a goal and the game challenges the player to try and achieve this goal. Actually, there are often many different sub-goals. Goals come in all sorts and shapes. A goal can be to try and shoot an enemy plane, or to finish a level by collecting all diamonds, or to reach the highest score or to finish the game. Clearly some of these goals are short-term goals while others are long-term goals that can only be reached by playing the game for weeks. A good game is filled with these goals and the player should be rewarded when he reaches one of the goals. Rewards give an important additional motivation to try and reach the goals. Goals should not be too easy to achieve.

There must be a challenge. And when the game progresses the goals should become harder to reach and the player has to become better at the game to achieve them. This learning curve is very important. In the beginning the player needs to understand the controls and the mechanisms in the game. This is best done by letting him achieve some simple goals. Later on, the player understands the game better and will be ready for bigger challenges.

Obviously, when goals are hard to achieve, there is a big chance of failure. You have to be careful with failure though. It can easily put the player off, making him stop playing. And that is definitely not what you want to happen. To avoid this it is crucial that, in the case of failure, the player always has the feeling he made a mistake that he could have avoided. It should not be the game’s fault that the player lost, but his own. It is one of the aspects that distinguish games like PacMan and Tetris from other games. You always have the feeling you did something stupid. You can be pretty angry with yourself when it goes wrong and you are determined to avoid this mistake the next time. This feeling keeps you playing the game. On the other hand, consider a maze game in which from time to time at a random spot a flash of lighting occurs, killing you if you happen to be in the neighborhood. In such a game you, as a player, did nothing wrong. You just had bad luck to be at the wrong spot. This is very frustrating. You are not angry with yourself but with the game. And you probably soon stop playing it.

A movie is not a game, but why? What elements of games are missing in movies? The main difference is that there is no interaction of the viewer with the environment or characters in a movie. The viewer does not control the movie and cannot make decisions that influence the outcome of the movie. The final outcome of the movie is fixed, you can’t change it! In game the final out come depends on the gamers who are in control. A puzzle is not a game, many games contain puzzle elements. But a puzzle is static, while a game is dynamic and changes while you are playing it. A satisfying game can be played over and over again and there are different strategies that lead to success.
So what is a (computer) game then?  A computer game is a software program in which one or more players make decisions through the control of game objects and resources, in pursuit of a goal. The definition does not talk about graphics, or sound effect, or in-game movies. Such aspects obviously make it appealing, but they are not the essential aspects of games.
Most computer games have a real-time element that is not present in board games. The game continues even when the players do nothing. This can lead to enhanced excitement and a better feeling of presence in the game world. Games can adapt to the players making it satisfying for largely different players, both beginners and advanced. The possibility of having computer-controlled opponents adds many new challenges. Game Designers often forget that you make the game not for yourself but for the people that are going to play it. So you need to think about for whom you are creating game ? Their age, their location, play with the mind of your gamers.

A silent struggle, betrayed by the tension in my muscles, as I place the telephone back on the cradle…the resentment obvious under my smile…as the voice at the other end says – BUSY…
I ‘ve begun to abhor this 4 letter word which slithers into the vitality of the soul – “ BUSY “-
I can absolutely do nothing but frown at this strange characteristic of human persona…
which is inevitably oozing into the mechanical system of every human – The art of being BUSY…
If I tried to fight everyone, reason with “why busy” I would eventually exhaust myself and go down in flames…to me this apparition is like foul cigars, knife twisting tactics or more so like a plaque…The irony of Being Busy is that it evolves around us a grotesque physical environment which sadly is different from social and psychological ones of today. The predicament of everybody just being swallowed in by the unfortunate swirling whirlpool of – ‘Being Busy’ is creating a crater in the heart of loved ones who constantly wait to hear from us.
Its so often thwarting when people use the Word Busy as a Cop-out…It is a euphemism for being over scheduled, frantic with deadlines, boss being in town or a social dinner…the truth is, people are so bamboozled as what to do next that they keep checking Twitter to tell people how busy they are…I feel nothing but empathy for such people who probably forgot to perceive the sun in their backyard when they left for work in the morning.
The essence of “Living “is an overpowering emotion that communicates itself in the gestures, in your tone of voice, in subtle signs that are more powerful for being unspoken… Don’t mute your colors with the colors of painting yourself busy…The best things in life are free to all. The sun shines on everyone , the moon accompanied by countless stars , leads even the beasts to pasture, what can be lovelier than flowing of water , glorifying yourself in love, the tinkling of laughter – don’t restrain yourself…Release your self from the crutches of being Busy …exalt in life…you just live once!
We all have the same 24 hours to fill. Everyone’s are filled with something. The difference is that the “busy” people feel frenetic during those hours. Those of you, who walk around telling everyone how busy you are, get a grip. Don’t get infected with the desire of staying busy, it might happen that some day this vague desire could become an impulse…
Anxiety disorders are on the rise. Accidents are increasing. Being too busy is hurting our health, hurting our well being, can you recount any levels of pleasure and enjoyment, we are deteriorating as humans, and this a result of our modern busy lifestyles. Spouses are waiting on each other, they are involuntarily moving nearer a magnet which repels in the long run. Friends have no time to hug each other any more; they are busy squabbling about their differences. Parents live with ambiguity as to what time is the right time to talk to their siblings as they are suspended into the competitive world…and intercepting them would be blasphemy…
A cloud of unspoken feelings hang in the air before me like profanity, like an elusive, enigmatic aura and my heart instantaneously cries out an earnest appeal to all to move with lightning speed to embrace Life. Don’t let your senses get dulled, don’t let that someone walk away, don’t always be so rational, don’t forget to wipe somebody’s tear, don’t forget to smile at someone who needs it most…Most of all Don’t forget to LIVE”
Its about time to orchestrate those little details in your life – colors, gifts , little ceremonies and rainbows…and LOVE !