An ancient D30

I found this strange artifact in the Real Ontario Museum in Toronto (Canada). It is an asian 30 faced dice. There is no more information about it, but it is an authentic piece of ludic archeology. =)



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Game Design activity sessions – Part 1: remodelling a space war on a blank paper sheet

When I was a child, there was a game we used to play during the free time in between classes. It doesn’t have an official name, but my friends and I always called it “Space War”. Basically, the game’s main idea is:

1) in a regular blank paper trace a dividing line right in the middle of it;

2) Each player (and it’s a two player game) draws 3 to 6 spaceships (represented by triangles) randomly on their side;

3) the oldest player starts: they must draw a small circle on their side, this is called a “shot”;

4) on the next step, this player must fold the paper sheet;

5) after folding the paper the player must guess the place their opponent drew the “shot” and draw another small circle pressing the pen firmly on the area;

6) finally, the player must unfold the paper to check if the “shot” hit the target (the spaceship/triangle); then, it’s the other player’s turn to play. Important rule: one “shot” only hits a spaceship if it is completely inside the triangle area.

The diagram below shows, in images, the basic rules and game dynamics:



Ok! After trying this game and understanding it, your mission in this exercise is: trying to modify the basic gaming mechanics by adding power cards and dice, giving the ships new abilities and trying to create more uncertainty in a match. Think big and modify the space game with creativity (and try to think of a less stupid name for it).

You can share the results with me by mail, if you want >> vincevader@gmail.com

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What we can learn from the old RPG solo adventure books

If you are an old school gamer and a RPG fan like me, you have probably played in the 80’s or 90’s some of the classic solo adventure books created by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, named Fighting Fantasy Collection. These authors disseminated a very unique kind of entertainment in the form of books. Using the idea of non-linear narrative they materialized some stories where the reader (or the player) could take decisions, combat enemies (rolling dice) and obtain different kinds of equipment for his/her journey (that could be controlled using a special character sheet). One of my favorite books from this collection is The Temple of Terror (LIVINSTONE, 1985).



This narrative fits in the idea of ergodic literature, proposed by Aarseth (1997, p.1), because of the unusual effort readers/players must put in text to advance in the story (roll die, take notes, read the pages without logical order etc.). In Temple of Terror the player will be a warrior entering an adventure inside the Temple of Skelos to fight the evil sorcerer Malbordus. Using a clever system based on choices and number of pages, players must use their memory, solve puzzles and get lucky in the dice to defeat the monsters until reaching the dungeon of Malbordus.



Entertainment aside, rests a question: what lessons this kind of ludic experience can teach to us to develop or study games? Here are some points to think about:

1) This kind of book is perfect to deconstruct. To learn from failures is essential to draw a map. This map is the game’s script. Through it, it’s possible to understand the complex “decision trees” created by the author.

2) After playing the same adventure a number of times, you’ll see strong points and weaknesses of the narrative. You can mark the frequency of combat, dialogues and achievements to have a notion of how to balance your game between different features.

3) Temple of Terror, specifically, is an exercise of suspension of disbelief. Can you imagine a dungeon full of goblins, demons, skeletons, dragons and other fantastic beings living in a healthy way? Makes no sense if you think rationally, but in this format it makes all the sense. The script is a little bit naïve, but, on the other hand, it is an exercise of fantasy fiction for young audiences.

4) There’s a crisscrossing between how a book like this is created and how a complex videogame script is created. Basically, both are narratives. So studying different formats will help you have “fuel” to compose new ideas for new games.

5) IT’S FUN! So don’t waste time. If you have never played a solo adventure game, buy a book and try now. During the experience, ask yourself: why books like this one made such success in the past? Where’s the fun factor in them? How we can use them to create games for mobile phones, consoles or board games?



The challenge is yours.

#GoGamers

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Reference:

AARSETH, Espen. Cibertext: Perspectives on Ergodic Literature. The Johns Hopkins University Press: Maryland, 1997.