There are many elements of game design that comprise the player experience, and many influences that effect how positive that experience is as a whole.
1) What is your essential question, and what are your answers? What is your best answer and why?
My essential question is: "How can a video game be designed to enhance the player's experience?"
My first answer is character design. Characters are the agents through which a story is told-- in order for players to best experience and understand the digital world happening around them, it's vital that these agents are well-designed.
My second answer is frequent and continuous playtesting. Playtesting is a key time in development in which outside parties can test the functionality and state of the mechanics of the game.
My third answer is well-defined and functioning rules. Rules constitute the inner, formal structure of the game. They don't create the player experience, but they constitute an experience.
My best answer is my second answer: playtesting. Playtesting is a key time in the development cycle of a game, as it's when designers learn what is and isn't working within their game. In playtesting, designers gather data and information regarding the functionality of their game's mechanics. From this data, they can arrive at new ways to resolve the issues within their game.
(2) What process did you take to arrive at this answer?
Aside from my regular research on the importance of playtesting in assessing the balance and functionality in a game, I also got to see firsthand just how important playtesting is in the design process.
For the last few months in my mentorship at USC, I've taken a class under game designer Michael Annetta revolving around the creation of board games. In this class, I observed students brainstorm and create their board games, many of which started off as scribbles on paper and cardboard. However, with these prototypes, myself and the other students had the regular responsibility of playtesting these games to assess their functionality and enjoyability.
Firsthand experiencing a playtest and being on the receiving end of designers' questions made it very clear to me just how important the gathered data from playtests are to the improvement of a game. After giving my feedback and watching other playtesters give their critiques to the designers, the designers were able to significantly improve or change their games.
Aside from my regular research on the importance of playtesting in assessing the balance and functionality in a game, I also got to see firsthand just how important playtesting is in the design process.
For the last few months in my mentorship at USC, I've taken a class under game designer Michael Annetta revolving around the creation of board games. In this class, I observed students brainstorm and create their board games, many of which started off as scribbles on paper and cardboard. However, with these prototypes, myself and the other students had the regular responsibility of playtesting these games to assess their functionality and enjoyability.
Firsthand experiencing a playtest and being on the receiving end of designers' questions made it very clear to me just how important the gathered data from playtests are to the improvement of a game. After giving my feedback and watching other playtesters give their critiques to the designers, the designers were able to significantly improve or change their games.
(3) What problems did you face? How did you resolve them?
For me personally, it felt very much like the process of arriving at each of our answers was very rushed. A lot of first semester composed of just finding and looking at research on the general concepts of my topic-- however, down the line, this information I found wasn't helpful in supporting my answers. I did learn a lot from my research, and it was very helpful in gaining a better understanding of the foundation of my topic, but I really wish I had spent more time researching about my answers, specifically. The information I found in the first semester was great, but I know I won't be able to use a good chunk of it in my final presentation, as much of it isn't necessary in supporting my answers.
Because everything was so rushed, it felt that my reasoning formulated behind why I chose each answer was also rushed. There wasn't really a way to solve this issue-- just ways to get around it. I knew once we hit the second answer things would really start picking up speed, so I focused efforts to complete core class work at a faster pace to get ready for the new load of senior project work.
For me personally, it felt very much like the process of arriving at each of our answers was very rushed. A lot of first semester composed of just finding and looking at research on the general concepts of my topic-- however, down the line, this information I found wasn't helpful in supporting my answers. I did learn a lot from my research, and it was very helpful in gaining a better understanding of the foundation of my topic, but I really wish I had spent more time researching about my answers, specifically. The information I found in the first semester was great, but I know I won't be able to use a good chunk of it in my final presentation, as much of it isn't necessary in supporting my answers.
Because everything was so rushed, it felt that my reasoning formulated behind why I chose each answer was also rushed. There wasn't really a way to solve this issue-- just ways to get around it. I knew once we hit the second answer things would really start picking up speed, so I focused efforts to complete core class work at a faster pace to get ready for the new load of senior project work.
(4) What are the two most significant sources you used to answer your essential question and why?
Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals by Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman
Rules of Play is a textbook on three core fundamentals of game design, specifically: rules, play, and culture of games. This book was most helpful in understanding how the activity of play is heavily influenced by the rules and formal systems within games. This book was a great teacher in the impact rules have on games, and how vital it is to have well-structured, defined, and specific rules-- it is these things that directly influence how the players experience the gameplay.
Better Game Characters by Design: A Psychological Approach by Katherine Isbister
Better Game Characters by Design is another textbook, but focuses instead on how to create game characters that more appealing to an audience. The book insists that instead of relying on overused "relatable" tropes and cliches, the best kinds of characters are those who can be understood by an audience on a psychological level. This book excellently explained how and why characters developed in this way create more impact on players, are more memorable, and can help craft a better overall player experience.
Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals by Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman
Rules of Play is a textbook on three core fundamentals of game design, specifically: rules, play, and culture of games. This book was most helpful in understanding how the activity of play is heavily influenced by the rules and formal systems within games. This book was a great teacher in the impact rules have on games, and how vital it is to have well-structured, defined, and specific rules-- it is these things that directly influence how the players experience the gameplay.
Better Game Characters by Design: A Psychological Approach by Katherine Isbister
Better Game Characters by Design is another textbook, but focuses instead on how to create game characters that more appealing to an audience. The book insists that instead of relying on overused "relatable" tropes and cliches, the best kinds of characters are those who can be understood by an audience on a psychological level. This book excellently explained how and why characters developed in this way create more impact on players, are more memorable, and can help craft a better overall player experience.
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