Categories
Game design analysis

Helping the player: advice from a gamer

I can’t help but notice features in a game that could have been thought through a lot better. I wasn’t completely suprised when I heard that both Bungie and Blizzard have hired interaction designers for recent games to help improve the experience of playing games using user testing and research.

That said, if I had the a say in the way games were designed, here’s some what I’d improve, and what I’d like to see more of.

Logical subtitle support

It seems like a simple thing – but developers should try to make sure that in-game text is readable. Modern HD games can make text and icons extremely difficult to read on SD televisions. Place simple coloured text (ideally black or white) on a readable background. Or provide an option to amend this. All games should have an option for subtitles as a basic standpoint, this improves the playability (avoiding bad voice acting or weird audio levels) but also improves accessibility for those who are deaf or hard of hearing.

And another important point – all option and menu screen text should be in plain English. Games that have to be localized are a text book example of using the most complicated set of words to explain something relatively simple. Resident Evil 5 uses “authorized game session” to describe “an open co-op game”.

An unhelpful Resident Evil 5 screen asks you to switch to an authorized game session.

A camera that works

One of the major gripes about 3D games – this is definitely one feature where it’s best to stick to the known conventions. Games in the 3rd person are vastly improved by the option to center the camera behind the player with a quick button press (which is partculary helpful for handheld games). The second analogue stick should remain (as with other games) the primary method to look around. Developers need to try trust gamers with camera controls more rather than placing it under the control of the game. A good camera system should be unnoticeable, and the moment visibility is hampered it should be easy to address.

The camera can also be used as a narrative device. Crash Bandicoot 2 used different camera perspectives on bonus and secret areas to indicate the increased challenge of certain moments in the game, a fixed front on in the “chase” areas to increase a sense of panic.

One of the familiar side-scrolling sections of Crash Bandicoot 2.

More engaging tutorials

As gamers increasingly abandon reading the manual we begin to rely on in-game tutorials more, particulary in sandbox games where the controls are becoming more and more context sensitive. A good tutorial should allow the player to explore the introduction of the game in a safe enjoyable area. If the beginning of an game has suceeded in both helping and encouraging someone to move forward then it should be looked back on as a particulary enjoyably moment in the game. This is often why the starting levels of games are often our most fondly remembered moments, so do not force the player to pass a in-tutorial test before they can reach the rest of the game.

Abe’s Oddysee made the tutorial part of the game proper, as the context of why certain moves were needed helped you to learn them. You begin to learn the key elements of the game as your start your escape from Rupture Farms, with helpful signs and billboards present to give you clues. Also one of the most well-remembered features of this game was the Gamespeak mode on the title screen which allowed the player to experiment with Abe’s various conversational combinations before trying them for real in the context of the game.

Abe on the gamespeak screen of Abe's Oddysee.

Bigger and better visual cues

More visual cues should be used in-game to help direct the player, these need not break the forth wall, even a recognisible object or differently coloured point of focus can help draw the eye without revealing the player is lost. Valve frequently uses good lighting, identifable areas and landmarks to subtley suggest the next step, but some games take give a little extra optional help.

Final Fantasy 7 had a useful feature to highlight all of the exits on a particular screen, which was useful given all the murky background environments. This “help screen device” also extended out into battles screens to provide an explanation for each of the spells and attacks used in the game. Above all though it was an optional tool providing a moments of hand-holding in an otherwise enormous game – it proved particularly useful for those to whom which FF7 was their first role-playing game experience.

Cloud in a bar in Cosmo Canyon with help activated.

Loading screens that explain the downtime

Loading is a natural part of gaming and we’re well accustomed to waiting as long as it’s justifiable, and this means explaining what is happening or giving the player something simple to do or watch. The most recent Elder Scrolls games have used these moments as a chance to impart helpful tips to the game, a useful feature that is starting to become very widely adopted in other games.

Mass Effect notoriously “hid” it’s long loading times in lift sequences, but developers shouldn’t be afraid of giving gamers the chance to pause and reflect. Loading screens are a chance to chat, eat, discuss tactics or just have a little fun. The best loading screens avoiding stating the obvious (now loading).

Namco had a little fun when developing the original Tekken, the initial loading screen boasts a mini-game to play while you wait.

A classic Namco title that plays as you load up Tekken.

Better designed maps

Use clues to help the player realise where they go next, and points to recognise where they are now. The player shouldn’t have to struggle with spacial awareness because the in-game map is so badly designed, or even worse, there’s no map at all! If maps are left out then a level should be designed with key focal points to jog the memory of where the player is, and there they should be heading.

Make sure the full map is available somewhere – ideally mapped to it’s own button so it is accessible quickly. A map in the corner that turns as the character turns are always helpful, and help the two types of map-reading brains.

Final Fantasy 12 has a near-perfect gaming map, and it’s usability is down to the fact that is is well labelled, easily understood, and it also reveals more of the current area as you explore it. It also includes a journal at the bottom that reminds you where to go next – a critical feature if you return to the game after being absent for a while.

A map of Rabanastre from FF12 with journal help at the bottom.

And lastly design for the player not for the gimmick

Most games released today have a unique selling point, whether it is Borderlands “bazillions of guns” or the ability to start a family in Fable II. These features provide a unique gaming experience, but developers need to include these new ideas into their games with a full understanding of how best to present them.

The simple ideas really are the best. If we can see the game properly, and experience controlling it without difficulty, than the unique selling points are given a proper chance to shine.

Categories
Gamers

How to be a greener gamer

As a gamer my hobby poses a conundrum. I describe myself as green but I also partake in one of the most ungreen and consumer-focused hobbies I can imagine. So I started to try and think up some small practical steps myself and others could take to start to improve this aspect of our hobby.

Gaming is my last big luxury – the one thing up to now I’ve not compromised on. But that needs to change, and here are some of the first steps you can take.

Try to reduce your energy use

Use only what you need

Do you really need your entire console collection plugged into the mains? Be more selective about what you’re going to play on and unplug what you’re not using. Standby modes on consoles and TVs quickly sap up power – as does leaving games on pause while you go AFK. (It also causes damage to your DVD drive too) so avoid both at all costs.

You’re probably already using socket adapters to plug in multiple consoles, so set them up a little smarter, make them easy to reach and completely unplug everything at the mains when you stop playing. Even devices that are plugged in and not on still take power from the grid. If you need to leave your router plugged in 24/7 choose an energy efficient one and stick it in it’s own dedicated socket so that’s no longer an excuse for you not unplugging consoles and TVs. Even turning your router off when you’re out or on holiday will make a massive difference and give your device a break.

Use LCD screens rather than plasma

Of the three main TV options, that old CRT screen you’re using for your retro games is definitely not the helping. But when it finally bites the dust opt for an LCD TV over a plasma as it uses slightly less energy, and should cost you less money to run in the long-term. Read more about the LCD or Plasma debate.

When HD gaming, try to go for a smaller screen where possible – but if that’s not an option at the very least choose a highly-graded energy efficient TV which should also save you money!

Use green electricity

Gaming simply isn’t a green hobby because of the amount of electricity we use to fuel it, and more often than not your gaming habit is being powered by fossil fuels and other brown sources of energy. By using a renewable energy provider for your electricity you help to remove the biggest energy problem surrounding our hobby and actively do something to help stop climate change.

Make sure you choose a tariff that’s actually green, not one provided by a big energy company that’s not actually improving the situation. An ideal green energy tariff should be creating new sources of green energy rather than buying up clean energy generated by everyone else. Read the small print for each energy provider and make an informed choice!

Use rechargable batteries

Most handhelds use rechargeable batteries these days. But even then don’t forget to remove a fully-charged device from the mains to save power and prevent battery damage. You should also try to use rechargable batteries for your controllers, wireless guitars and other devices. Rechargeable batteries have come on leaps and bounds in recent years and should last you almost as long as regular batteries if you follow the instructions – and all it takes is a little preparation.

If you’re still using normal batteries – did you know you can recycle them rather than send them to landfill? Ask your local council for your nearest battery recycle bin.

Buy greener electronics

Of the three current gen consoles, the Wii tops the board as the greenest using the least amount of energy with the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 lagging behind in second and last place respectively. Read more about the energy use of game consoles.

If you’d rather not choose between the three main consoles. Make sure that you choose energy efficient TVs and other devices such as DVD players and monitors for your next purchase. Remember using devices that do multiple things use up using more energy than the equivalent standalone product. e.g. watching a DVD or Blu Ray movie on your console rather than a seperate DVD or Blu Ray player.

Recycle and repair

Make your games last longer

If your discs no longer work clean them with an anti-static cloth and some cleaning fluid (for a cheaper option use some stuff you can find easily around the house – furniture polish should do the trick!) For those really scratched, unplayable discs try taking them to be professionally fixed using a disc cleaning service at a local gamestore. The kits you buy in the shops just don’t compare, as industry machines remove the scratched layer off of the disc, making it playable again. Old retro cartridges can be saved in much the same way using cleaning alcohol and cotton buds.

Your current gen systems should still be under warranty, so you’re already making the most of this year-long period. If you must buy a console try to get a second hand one – and even if you opt for a brand new console avoid repair bills by picking out the ones with the newer chipsets. These are more energy efficient and less likely to break down. Find out how to tell a Jasper chipset Xbox 360 from the rest

Buy second hand

As gamers we already buy a lot of our consoles and games secondhand but there are other benefits to doing so. By buying a game second hand you don’t have any of the wasteful packaging that arrives with the game first time around, and the same is true for second hand consoles. You’re reusing the product that someone has already bought meaning the need for more to be produced is reduced!

Dispose of your electronics responsibly

When consoles and games are beyond repair or you simply don’t want them anymore, give them to friends or sell them on. Even broken consoles can be scavenged for parts, and empty game cases or manuals used by those who are missing them. Most public disposal areas have designated areas for electronics – and this is where your consoles should end up rather than in landfill, that way all the harmful chemicals used to make the consoles are disposed of safely in accordance with EU or other international regulations.

Remember that it’s not a case of out of sight out of mind – even if you give things to someone else, are you sure that they’ll dispose of the stuff you’ve given them responsibly too?

Reuse game stuff

And that means everything that you receive through buying games. Cases, leaflets, console boxes, cables – the lot. The excessive packaging for every peripherial can be reused as packing material, storage materials or a helpful part for someone else. Everything that you’re able to reuse again should be leaving the bare minimum for the bin.

Change the way we play games

Take the campaign to the console manufacturers

The process of making consoles and games also uses a lot of power, and on top of that minute amounts of toxic chemicals go into the plastics and metals that compose a console shell and motherboard if you disagree with this (and I hope you do) – take it up with Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft using the Greenpeace site.

Spread the word

Hopefully some of this blog post has given you some food for thought, if it has let other gamers know what they do to improve matters and suggest new ideas, as my post is by no means authoritative. With more and more of the world becoming aware of the threat of climate change gaming runs the risk of falling behind with our part of what we need to do – and that’s going to reflect badly on our community.

If someone challenges you about the impact of your gaming you should be able to list some of the actions that you’re doing to try and improve things, can you honestly admit to that now – and if not, is there something about your gaming behaviour that you can change?

Categories
Currently playing

Beatles Rock Band

I have never been a huge fan of the Beatles, but I had a feeling that Harmonix’s latest title would be the perfect opportunity to experience the discography of the biggest band ever to pass me by.

And for the first time this may be the music game for the quiet bystanders – Beatles Rock Band is a open invite to anyone that knows a Beatle song.

The Experience

  • This is not just a music game and band IP smashed together. Every moment of the game is a loving recreation the Beatles’ career arc, puncatated with artwork, audio clips, and the fab four themselves, crafted seemlessly into the Rock Band game framework.
  • The classic Rock Band gameplay continues and is every bit as usable and enjoyable as you’d expect, only with added Beatle-esque touches and colours. This helps makes the game immediately accessible to anyone familiar with either the music or Rock Band setup.
  • It does play just like Rock Band, and while this isn’t a negative in itself, fans will notice that the two guitar parts have been replaced with one single track due to a lack of screen space, Harmonix have taken some liberties with the note charting, which leads to an easier Rock band experience.
  • The photos, clips and information unlocked after each song are a great idea which help to cement the experience, but also add extra clutter to the results screens. This is definitely one for the fans, as everyone else will just be eager to get to the next song.

The Visuals

  • The imagery used in the game are stunning, from the cell-shaded and cutout animation style of the intro, to the crisp visuals of the studio melting into the visual dreamscapes inspired by the theme of each song. Even if you don’t like playing music games, the visuals alone are a must-see.
  • For once the graphical prowess of this game is not just for show, each background scene manages to tell a story, while carefully managing the balance between the artistic talent of the band and the many illustrious interpretations of their songs, this is by far the best looking music game of this type, and best of all the glamour is completely appropriate.
  • Just occasionally the beautiful imagery in the background can be a little distracting to those trying to play, however it does give you an incentive to take a break and experience the visual aspect of the game.
  • In the longer term the visuals seem to follow the same pattern on each play, as imaginative as they are initially, this is a downside to not having personalised characters, as previous incarnations of Rock Band make the songs sequences, characters and camera changes slightly more dynamic.

Gameplay

  • The story mode is the definitive way to experience the game, either alone or with others, and it is with others that this game really shines, appreciating the song catalogue with friends or family who enjoy Beatles songs is a real epiphany moment.
  • The new vocal harmonies are a new treat, but they can be tricky to master. It’s a perfect idea for this game though, as it matches the musical expertise of the Beatles with everyones need to sing along.
  • As popular as their music may be, it would have been nice to have more songs available to play on the disc from the get-go. Some notable songs are missing from the tracklist, no doubt to be included later on using DLC, for shame.
  • Other than a slightly different interpretation of the known Rock Band format, there isn’t too much (other than harmonies and extras) to set the game apart from Rock Band 2 – that is except the pleasure of playing along with Beatles songs, but the added touches to UI and practice modes will still delight.

Thumbs up to the fab four

The differences between this Beatles versions of the game and the standard Rock Band aren’t enormous, but what is clear is that this could well be the definitive version of this music title – at least from a creative perspective. Beatles Rock Band takes the format of the last two Rock Band games and adds the visual and thematic icing on the cake. Normal gamers will be impressed, and no doubt fans of the band will be in total awe.

Categories
Video games

Violent video games for all ages

It turns out that any violent video games sold to underage kids in the UK has not been technically illegal due a loophole in the 1984 Video Recordings Act.

So for just over twenty-five years a lot of the negativity that gaming has courted in this country since the “video nasty” era of the 1980s has been upstaged by an even bigger blunder over legislation.

Won’t someone think of the children?!?

The revelation that the UK’s 1984 Video Recordings Act is fundamentally flawed raises considerable concerns for the future of video game classification.

Technically speaking right now any child could walk into a games shop and buy any 18 rated game or DVD they desire – with no current formal repercussions for the retailer. I don’t expect a flurry of underage gamers mostly because most decent game shops wouldn’t allow it, but I do hope this will help to ignite debate about the way games are sold in this country again.

Put it this way every single game that the BBFC has ever reviewed for a mature release into this country is affected – that’s a massive back-catalogue.

It puts the furore made over every single violent game released in doubt – and makes any changes made to any violent game on “accessibility to children” grounds ever so slightly absurd, comedic infact. I cannot help but laugh.

Imagine if this had happened in the States, specifically at the time when Hot Coffee in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas reared its ugly head. How differently could things have been if a legal blunder as big as this meant that the mature rating giving to that game in retrospect was not only technically redundant then, but had been for the last twenty-five years.

My Fable baby is covered with the red 18 rating.

A little context to the 1984 Recordings Act

Retailers, consumers and parents have been saying for years that our current games rating system is inherently flawed, difficult to enforce and hard to understand.

We currently operate on a two tier system – violent videogames intended for the over 18s are rated by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC), which also handles other legally enforceable ratings such as 12 and 15.

Everything else is classified using the Pan European Game Information (PEGI) system which works on a code of conduct model and serves as an advisory scheme to help parents make decisions on what games are suitable for their child using iconography.

Ironically it is the planned movement from the BBFC system to a new legally enforceable PEGI system that uncovered this serious loophole, and it will continue to exist for the next three months until emergency legislation can be passed to plug it up.

How did this happen? Basically when compiling the Act the Conservative government of 1983 failed to inform the correct European Authority of the intention to make it law, so parts of the Act never became law, subsequently it wasn’t checked by numerous Labour governments.

A Mario Kart winning picture, Peach and Mario's faces are covered by an 18 rating.

This raises some huge questions

By my reckoning the BBFC have been responsible for classifying games since 1985 – why was this not noticed just one year after the newly passed act came into power? And even worse not noticed again by the government in 1993 and 1994 when the law was reviewed?

It has taken until 2009 – when a potential new ratings system is being pencilled in to protect children from violent media that they could undoubtedly access anyway. How does replacing one unenforceable system with another make our games system any more tenable?

I’m convinced no one really cares, and that’s a crying shame – because before this loophole even existed the games rating system was already broken, and it’s a problem you’ll find absolutely everywhere regardless. It’s because games are deemed something suitable for children and not a emerging and varied medium – like film – capable of displaying the very best and very very worst of what we are.

Parents buy unsuitable games for their children regardless of the ratings, they cannot be told at point of sale and they certainly won’t pay attention to governments especially with bureaucracy like this fresh in their minds.

It’s a hilarious day to be a gamer, sing the blunder from the rooftops – when the next Rockstar game comes around the UK government won’t have a leg to stand on.

Categories
Currently playing

Drumming with Rock Band #2

Time for an update on on the progress I’ve made with learning to drum from Rock Band.

As fate would have it in the time since my first post on this subject I have been without the internet for nearly two months – so despite being unable to write about my progress I’ve certainly been able to give it more time and focus. So now it’s time to get serious.

Week Three to Six – Rudiments, rudiments, rudiments

Last time I talked about bad habits I had picked up from Rock Band, a big part of the downside about learning how to play from the game is that is drops you in at the deep end by allowing you to play the song in full. This is great to get a feel for the songs and to feel motivated and pleased quickly, but you end up learning to play each song using the shortest route to win, the path of least resistance if you will – your own way of bashing through which usually takes up the most energy.

Qazimod and I play Rock band gold star Living on a Prayer.

In reality every song is made up of key grooves, with independent parts for each hand and foot that you build up in layers, as I learn to play the drums I am in fact mastering each hand and foot movement, and while Rock band has helped me to perfect a steady sense of rhythm it can at times hide the individual components that build up a song or leave entire parts out altogether on some difficulties.

Jesse touched on this in his comment on the last post. It’s actually very hard as a drummer to figure out which drum pads are playing which parts in Rock Band, or to deconstruct the song in the way you would if you were actually learning it. This wouldn’t be so bad if every pad stuck to a certain part, but each colours purpose changes based on context.

However another problem with the game is that I’ve always known my hand movements in Rock Band were a mess, as I was failing sequences of songs completely by just making up how to play it. This is where learning rudiments come in, as you learning to play the basic parts of songs accurately using efficient hand patterns.

Hitting 53% of the notes in the mixed hands groove in drum trainer.

For example on sections with tons of red notes (snare drum usually) I was doing the following.

R L R L     R L R L     R L R L     R L R L

Or alternating my right and left hands and doing loads of single hand movements back and forth between my two hands, sometimes just because of the way I had originally learnt the song in Rock Band I was even hitting all notes with one hand for entire sections – now that is tiring especially when the songs speed up significantly.

I could have been using paradiddles to improve my accuracy in these sections.

R L R R     L R L L     R L R R     L R L L

With practice the speed and accuracy of my paradiddles (among other rudiments) has rocketed already, but I still have tons more rudiments to learn and I’ve spent most of the intervening lessons since my internet absence to slowly make my way through a big list of the main ones. This isn’t considered in Rock Band in any major detail. You get given the part and how you interpret to play with your hands is completely down to you, while I appreciate the freedom behind this idea, it’s helped me to develop some really bad habits.

Week Seven to Nine – Buying my second drum kit

I say second drum kit because buying my Rock Band instrument set was extremely exciting, but I have to say nothing beats the experience of bringing a real drum kit into your home.

It seemed apt to go for an electric drum kit because of how I had gotten into drumming, and I eventually decided on an electric kit for two very simple reasons – I am short on space and I can’t make a lot of noise while practicing.

The kit itself is a Roland TD-4K, and I think the best feature is the fact that I now have a practice setup which properly matches that of my lesson kit – the bounce of the mesh snare drum feels like an actual drum skin, and I have actual, playable cymbals and a proper closable high hat (and a second pedal for it no less).

Upon building the kit I realised another factor about drumming that Rock Band has taken away – personalising your kit. Half the battle with drumming is setting up your equipment around your personal space, with everything at a comfortable height and reach, movements between each of the drums need to be factored into the speed of your play, and the close proximity of the RB pads takes a lot (but not all) of these considerations away.

The Roland kit in parts, and the finished drumkit!

The bass drum is a huge improvement over the RB offering. My original RB pedal is cracked after months of play in expert and hard, mostly due to the way that I play it – heel up rather than heel down. The bass pedal has always been a major complaint of mine regarding the original game, because you have no beater actually striking a drum. This has led to another problem my heel up technique is good, but I’m now so used to holding the pedal down when it’s not in use I automatically muffle the bass after each note.

But at least I can now I can start to get some proper accents into to my drum beats rather than making up when I think the drums should be struck harder, it’s actually miles more difficult to count the beat and be told when exactly to do this. But at least real drums have an actual bounce and sensitivity to them. I’m used to the RB pads now, but when I started it was rather like beating a piece of wood.

Regardless, accenting will mean learning to count the beat of the song properly so I can place extra emphasis (or less emphasis) on key notes, this is still as much about feel as it is precision, to explain further:

1 e & a     2 e & a     3 e & a     4 e & a

R L R L    R L R L    R L R L    R L R L

All this means is that I am hitting the first note of each bar more strongly than the others, you can see how simple things can quickly get very complicated when it comes to notation. But despite some of the RB learning disadvantages that’s come out of this post I want to end this post on a very large and extremely positive point:

It takes genuine understanding of your craft to be able to simplify it so you can explain to others, and if anything the last few weeks of drumming have made me understand and appreciate Rock Band more. Harmonix have laboured over every finite detail of four sets of theory and practice to make an extremely accessible game and a valuable learning tool, while it’s hindered my experience this time around, in the long run it’s benefited it a great deal more.

Jumping in at the deep end

So I’m nearly ready to start learning some actual songs, I’ve drummed along to some basic pieces but I’d like to try something a little more challenging, so I can test my sight reading, (and my recording ability) Since I started in Rock Band I’d say it’s only fair that I get started on some songs from the games, so feel free to comment with any requests from the original game or it’s sequel.

Be gentle with me guys!