Week 8 - Prototype 2: Save Our Stars

Name of the Game: Save Our Stars

Number of Players: 2-5

Time to Play: 30-60 minutes

Object of the Game: Return all the stars to the Sky

For this prototype we were asked to make a board game that invokes a starry night or nocturnal atmosphere, similar to the painting Starry Night by Vincent van Gogh. This wasn't the first time I had seen the painting, but I never knew the history behind it, and all I knew about Vincent van Gogh was that he cut his own ear off and was in an asylum at some point in his adult life. Either way, this didn't change what I felt when I saw the painting. As most people would I looked at the painting of the sky, the swirling brush strokes having caught my attention, then the firey elemental part  in the front caught my attention as well. Next was the church being the tallest building in the painting of a small village. The village really caught my attention; it brought back memories of memorable starry nights. All I could think about was how when I went to the cottage and went camping how visible the stars were compared to the city. That just made me think about those trips and how people escape to these small quiet places to be together and enjoy themselves.

We decided to use the idea of a team or community to create our game in such a way that players can play however they want, but they are also all working to a common goal as a team. We want players to feel what it is like to be in a team of different people working together, we intended the emotions to come out through dynamics and we structured the game in such a way that we knew what dynamics would arise.

To simulate the nocturnal atmosphere we gave our game a short story in which the stars have fallen from the sky, and the players are working together to put them back in the sky. To make the players feel like they needed each other we introduced the black hole.

The black hole would suck stars out of the sky at random. To stop this from happening a player would have to go and close the black hole, but this is risky since the player can get stuck in the black hole, and only another player can save them. A player can choose not to go close the black hole, but then the black hole will continue to take stars from the sky.

While playing the game it reminded me a lot of times when you need to make a difficult choice that involves other people. You can be selfish, but this may upset other people and result in something bad happening to them. You can be selfless and always help others, but this makes other people's problems your own.

To be honest it reminded me a little of how UOIT Game Dev is structured in terms of teams; we all rely on one another and at the same time we have our own individual goals. I found that the art and emotion in our game was in the dynamics that we intended the players to experience.

Alternatively we could have created our game in an opposite way. We could have created a one player game, and this player is working alone to complete a seemingly insurmountable task, and we could have designed it so that it is nearly impossible to win. This would have invoked more feelings of frustration and loneliness, but it would not have allowed players to experience what it means to be a team, rather it would make them wish they had a team.

Setup:

1. Each player picks an avatar (from the colored gems).
2. All players start from in the center (the Sky) of the board.
3. Place 5 star gems in the center (the Sky) of the board.
4. Place star gems along the outside of the entire board.

How to Play:

• Roll a die to move around the board in any direction.

Rules:

• When you land on a spot with a star on it, physically pick it up and keep it with you in your inventory. 
• You can hold a maximum of five stars at any given time.
• At any time you can also return to the Sky and put the stars you have in your inventory in the Sky
• To place stars in the Sky you must stop there; if you rolled a six but only moved two spaces to arrive at the Sky space to unload your stars, your turn ends.
• When a player rolls a six a black hole appears on an empty space on the board furthest from all the players. 
• There can only be a maximum of five black holes on the board at once.
• The player that cause the black hole to appear also takes a black hole token. 
• As long as this black hole is on the board, the player keeps that black hole token. When it is their turn again (and for all turns hereafter) they must roll a die for the black hole; if they roll an odd number a star is taken out of the Sky (center space) and taken out of play (off the board).
• To destroy a black hole, a player must go to a space adjacent to it or the same space as the black hole and roll a die for himself and the black hole. The higher number wins. If the player loses, they are sucked into the black hole, all the stars in their inventory are taken out of play and that player can no longer move or battle. If the player wins, the black hole is destroyed and any player who was sucked into the black hole is revived.
• If there are no more stars in the center of the board (meaning the black holes sucked the last star out), the game is over and all the players lose. If all the players are sucked into black holes, all the players lose. If there are no more stars except for the ones in the center of the board, the game is over and all the players win.

Art In Games:

To me art is anything where I feel something significant when I experience it or if it brings back a memory that I personally find significant. I know that this is vague, but it's difficult to explain. 

For example, when I played the game Heavy Rain, I felt very connected to the characters in the story because I was essentially determining their fates. I cared and felt responsible for whatever happened to them. I would compare this to when you get attached to characters in a TV show or a book, except a more powerful connection. 

When I played the game Flower, I couldn't believe just how much fun I was having. I felt emotions of happiness, relaxation, and at times guilt. Through the sounds and visuals the game depicts what is essentially our world. The message was that we have allowed nature to go to waste and we have destroyed nature to build our cities (that's where the guilt came in). I loved that the game was about restoring the balance.

I also enjoyed Journey, by the same developer as Flower. The fact that the story is told without anybody or anything saying words left it up to me to decide what the story was about and what was happening. I felt curious for the entire game and enjoyed exploring the world. The multiplayer was also interesting since you couldn't actually talk with other players directly and interacting much more challenging but cool at the same time.

Starry Nights in Games:

I've only ever experienced a couple starry nights in games. 

One game where I experienced a starry night moment was Grand Theft Auto IV. One of my favorite things to do in GTA was just to get a helicopter and get to the tallest building and just look at the city at night.

Another game where I experienced a starry night (more nocturnal atmosphere actually) was Batman Arkham City. I really enjoyed the movement system in the game and the dark, grunge environment. But I really like doing the classic Batman perched on a gargoyle shot then diving off and gliding. I would say this is more power fantasy than a starry night though. But I love Batman and associate him the most with the night.

Week 6: Atari Golden Age Card Game - Paperboy The Card Game

Name of the Game: Paperboy - The Card Game

Number of Players: 3 - 4

Object of the Game: The player with the most pairs at the end of the game wins.

Setup:

1. The deck is shuffled.
2. Each player is given four cards.
3. The rest of the deck is set aside, and a dealer must be chosen.
4. The dealer will place 4 cards in the center of the deck and keep track of rounds.

How to Play:

1. Four cards from the deck are placed face up in the center of the table.
2. Once all the cards have been placed, players can begin picking up cards when the dealer says go.
• A player must put down a card to pick up another.
• After ten seconds the cards are removed and placed in a trash deck on the side.
3. Once a player has 4 cards that are of a set (the sets are specified below), they can claim that set by showing their cards to the other players after a round of cards has been placed. They set this set aside in their own deck, and the dealer deals that player 4 new cards.
4. If a player has the trump card (which is the bike with an explosion behind it) they can use that card when another player claims a set and the targeted player will not receive any points and his/her cards are placed in the trash deck.

Sets:

1. House, Bike, Paper, Fence.
2. Rock, Fire Hydrant, Dog, Old Man.
3. Window, Car, Tree, Mailbox.

Our game is based on the Atari game Paperboy.

Week 5: Collection Board Game - 4 Tile

Name of the Game: 4 Tile

Number of Players: 2-4

Object of the Game: The first player to get the specific number of each color tile wins.

How to Play:

1. All players start on any corner on the board.
2. At the start of the game players roll a die for each of the 4 colors(green,red,blue,white) on the board. Each roll determines how many tokens of that color players will need to win. Eg. Roll a 4,3,2 then 1 would mean the first player to get 4 green, 3 red, 2 blue and 1 white token will win.
3. Players take turns rolling the die and move around the board in a clockwise direction.
4. When a player lands on a colored space, they collect one token of that color.
5. When a player lands on one of the 'X' spaces, they should follow the directions written on the board.
• For the top right and bottom left corners: Pick a player. This player loses one token of every color.
• For the top left and bottom right corners: Lose one token of every color.
• For the top and bottom middle spaces: All other players lose one of every color.
• For the right and left middle spaces: Take one of any color from each player.
6. The player to get the specified amount of tokens wins.
7. Players may trade with others at the start of their turn.

We wanted to make a game that was simple enough for players to understand while still creating opportunities for players to interact, and not having the game drag on. We started the initial concept with just the colored tiles, and then we added the 'X' spaces and made them all do something different. We found that there was much more interaction that way, without having to add more mechanics and rules.

Week 4 - Prototype 1: Pretentiousness and Piracy

Name of the Game: Pretentiousness and Piracy

Number of Players: 2-4

Time to Play: 30-60 minutes

Object of the Game: Collect the most affection points to win.

Our board game is based on Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. After reading through Sparknotes pages, and watching the movie, we noticed that most of the unmarried male characters were wooing one of the Bennets at some point. We also took note that there was always the question of money when people were getting married. That was when we decided that this game should be a collection game. We also decided to design the game such that all the men are trying to marry the prettiest of the Bennet girls, Jane. However, Mr.Bennet and Mrs.Bennet only want the best for their daughter and so they decide that whom ever holds the most wealth and power, and whom ever Jane loves most, will marry Jane.

We looked at the list of male characters who were looking to marry and there were really only 4; Mr.Collins, Mr.Darcy, Mr.Bingley, and Mr.Wickham. We decided to go with a mechanic where players (playing as one of the 4 listed) could manage their estates and purchase more land, meaning we also added money. Each player has his home estate space. When they pass this space, they receive a salary (similar to the Go! space in Monopoly) based on what level their estate is (4 levels). There are also special spaces such as Lady Catherine de Bourgh's estate, where should a player land on it, they receive a cash bonus. If a player trespasses onto his love rival's territory, he has to pay a fine based on what level that territory is. 

Retro Filigree pattern money

We also needed another way for players to lose money, and that's how we incorporated the pirate. At first the pirate was just a space on the board, but after some discussion we thought that it would be best if the pirate were a non-player character that moved around the board, and if he lands on a property he destroys it, or if a player were to share the same space as him, he would rob them. This allowed for a slightly more realistic pirate as most pirates don't stay in the same place for a long time.

The final score is based on affection points, so we convert all the properties into cash, then cash into affection points.

Setup:

1. Each player picks a character (from the 4 corners of the board).
2. Each player starts with a level one estate (represented by one gem on their estate).
3. Each player starts with $500.
4. The pirate piece starts at the x2 money space.
5. One player is the accountant and handles the money.

How to Play:

1. Roll 2 dice and move around the board clockwise.

Rules:

• When a player passes their home space(one of the four corners), they collect $50 for each property (represented by a gem) on it.
• If you land on a space that is a part of your love rival's estate, you must pay them $25 for each property on that space.
• If a player has no money, but has properties left, they must sell their property for cash to the bank (the accountant handles this transaction). Each regular property sells for $125, a property adjacent to the Bennet's sells for $500. They then pay what is owed to their love rival
• Each space can hold four properties.
• You can place a property on a space that you land on. Properties cost $250 each. 
• Note: A space can contain properties of different players.
• If a player lands on the Lady Catherine de Bourgh space, they receive $500. A property cannot be placed on this space.
• If a player lands on the x2 money space, they collect $100 for each property on their home space. A property cannot be placed on this space.
• If a player lands on the Bennet space, they may choose to stay there and skip a turn, after which they will receive one affection point. A property cannot be placed on this space.
• If a player lands on the x2 heart space, the next time they land on the Bennet space and choose to stay, they will receive 2 affection points.
• If you land on this space again the bonus remains x2
• If a player shares a space with a pirate, they forfeit $500 to the bank. If the pirate lands on a space with a player's property on it, one property is destroyed
• If multiple players own property on the space, they must each roll the dice. The player with the lowest roll will have his property destroyed. 
• It costs $1000 to place a property in a space adjacent to the Bennet house. However, if a player has a property there, when ever they land on the Bennet house, they collect an affection point immediately and no longer give up their turn.
• If a player has no money and no property, they are eliminated.
• The game ends when all the spaces have at least one property on them.
• At the end of the game, all property is converted to cash. Each regular property is converted to $125, and a property adjacent to the Bennet's is converted to $500. All cash is then converted into affection points. Every $500 gives one affection point.