Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Dead Space - ISSAC - Talk at PAX 2012

these guys were doing a talk on the design and production of their release DS2 in May and the art director was going over design, architecture, lighting and the character design and as a surprise the sketch was on the screen and the character walked out into audience. It was a total surprise to viewers and pretty amazing. I was in 2nd row because of a fluke in the line order wrapping around. I learned so much during this talk.
They were the coolest game company at the show and gave out art books from their DS and they answered questions, met with all fans. This is a game team that works to keep customers happy. Is this heard of today? Oh the other game company that takes good care of the peeps is Harmonix! Love em.








Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Braid, great Indie Game



Download and play a demo level from a site such as GameSpot. Answer the following questions, and provide screenshots to demonstrate your responses: 
What are the level's "affordances"? 
I downloaded the indie game “Braid” demo off of STEAM.  Actually I ended up buyin it.
In the game there were objects that were affordances and they conveyed their use to me during the gameplay.
  • There were puzzle pieces in the platformer that were placed about the game.  I knew that I needed to go to the outlines of the puzzle pieces to obtain the pieces of the puzzle shapes. 
  • There are mechanisms such as a gears that it is clear you need to pull on to move a plank. 
  • There were objects such as door shapes that lead to other levels. 
  • There was a key that fit a locked door I had in the level. 
  • Affordance means is a design term that means an object should convey or communicate it’s use.  In gaming that means that it should be obvious what a weapon or tool is made for during the gameplay.
  • As a player I used the objects, mechanism and shapes to reach areas that I was unable to reach any other way. Objects that were affordances also worked together to show me the path of the gameplay.
Great assignment, gave me a chance to take an objective look at the affordances in a new game.

Sunday, April 22, 2012

Bought The FEZ on Friday . . .

I downloaded The FEZ from Xbox Live.
800 points, or 9.99.  Im surprised at such a small amount of money for so far a pretty complex experience.
Its a puzzle game. Weird thing is I like it. I played I didnt want to stop.  The complexity amazes me.   Its almost natural to discover the cool story as you get to know the environment and Gomez the character. I dont feel stupid while playin like I need some secret technique that only players from years have learned collectivly but I dont know.  I think this is for a wide audience of players.  After watching Indie Game The Movie I can appreciate the heart and soul that Phil Fish put into this child of his heart, The FEZ.  I'll do more updates to this later after more gameplay.   I have played for only about an hour maybe a little more.  Im not a typical gamer and I dont like or do good with puzzles.

Is this a Puzzle game?   Im not sure.  Maybe I dont know what a puzzle game is anymore.


Updates later.
 

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Indie Game The Movie

 Going to a documentary called "Indie Games", at the Brattle Theater, Cambridge Mass 630pm. I cant wait.
I update this with my review of the movie this weekend.
It was pretty cool. We met the directores and Im totally into the movie. The Brattle is is perfect for this.






Thursday, April 12, 2012

Day 1 Pax East 2012


Storytime with Jordan Mechner (aka the PAX East Keynote!)
Jordan Mechner began his game making career in a college dorm room building the seminal 80s hits Prince of Persia and Karateka.  He revisited Prince of Persia decades later as a AAA title and a blockbuster summer film, and this year will return to his indie roots with a remake of Karateka.  In this session, Jordan will reflect on a lifetime of entertainment industry experiences, from having his dad score his first game to collaborating with Jerry Bruckheimer to the 20 years in between.




Penny Arcade Q&A #1

Two mics on stage, two mics in the crowd. Line up for your questions and Gabe and Tycho will do their best to accommodate! And God, please no “who would win in a fight” questions. If you can’t make this particular Q&A, be sure to catch the second Penny Arcade Panel Sunday at 2:00pm. Note that the theatre will not be cleared before this session as it runs immediately after the keynote address.
PANELISTS:
Gabe and Tycho!











BioWare and Mass Effect

Voted the Most Anticipated Game of 2012 at the Spike TV Video Game Awards, Mass Effect 3 is finally here! Join developers for an exciting look at the evolution of the series. Bring your burning questions about Mass Effect 3! Fans wearing Mass Effect costumes will be given special recognition during the panel. Spoiler Alert, Garrus is calibrating and cannot attend.
PANELISTS:
Chris Priestly, Mike Gamble, Corey Gaspur, Patrick Weekes, John Dombrow, Reid

















Day 3 Pax East