The Game 2 Prototype (G2P) project requires you to design and produce a digital prototype of a card/board game, and post it to TableTop Simulator in the Steam game environment. This second game may be a digital transformation of the G1P, or it may be a new prototype. The G2P project is challenging because it requires you to recontextualize game components and game play in a digital environment.
This project requires submission of 2 versions: V1.0 & V2.0. All files are submitted to an Game2Prototype folder in your shared course space on Dropbox.com.
The Version 1.0 submission includes the following documents:
The Version 2.0 submission includes the document set from the V1.0 submission and the following documents:
Document type: memo, game prototype
Document length: 250 words (memo), see below (prototype)
Project value: 500 points (100 points for V1.0; 400 points for the final)
Evaluation rubric: _RPW350_Eval_Game2Prototype.pdf
The G2P requires you to migrate your Game 1 Prototype into the online game-play environment Tabletop Simulator that is accessed through the Steam platform. The alternative pathway to completion of the G2P is to construct a completely new game. The same core requirements and parameters apply here that were relevant to the Game 1 Prototype project.
As was applicable for the G1P project, this project develops over 3 design phases.
Although it may be possible to migrate your Game 1 Prototype directly into the TTS environment with little or no alteration of game components or mechanics, this change of context may also impact your game design significantly. That said, this stage of game development also offers you an opportunity to reimagine, refine, or completely replace your G1P game.
As was required for the G1P project, your game must include complete game components (e.g., board; game pieces; cards) applicable to your game concept, and a complete game guide that instructs players how to play the game.
The standards for your guide directly parallel those from G1P. That is, whatever medium or media you choose for distribution, your game play documentation should include the following design and content elements.
Whatever visuals you incorporated for your G1P gameplay guide, you will at the minimum want to replace them with the digital versions. Of course, update the document to account for any changes in game design, mechanics, play, and so on that result from the Tabletop Simulator migration.
Note. Provide a quick reference card or the complete version for your play guide inside of the Tabletop Simulator release of the game. The video support I have provided through SVSU Canvas offers instructions on how to manage that addition.
The course calendar dedicates a full week of class time to conducting playability studies of your Version 1 prototype of Game 2. Your goal is to test the game with 4 different groups, at least one of which must rely on participants who are not enrolled in this course. This can also be enacted as a ratio: 25% of your partipants must be drawn from outside the class roster.
The total number of participants should be determined by the number of players your game is designed to accommodate.
Once again, use the feedback you acquire through play testing and your own evolving insights to refine the design of your prototype. Although your final submission need not be ready for market release, it should represent your best design strategies and the most refined versions of game components that you can manage during the project period.
To submit your G2P, connect with me in Steam through our system accounts, and make your game mod (Steam's name for a user-designed game) available to friends. Direct me to that game in your memo by providing me with the team member's name and Steamprofile who hosts the mod and the name of the game.
A memo of transmittal introduces the accompanying document to its audience(s). Your memos should be addressed from you to me, and should introduce the accompanying project. Each memo should incorporate the following content elements.
Recommended tool(s): Adobe InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop or their open-source equivalents for design elements
This section offers guidance for how to interpret the project and how to proceed with your work on it. Consider the following strategies.
Think about how to build a useful, effective game that will engage players. Draw on the strategic knowledge you have acquired and honed this semester for thinking about how people experience design to develop a quality game play experience.
Learn from other designs. Play similar games in the Tabletop Simulator environment. Play different games. Draw inspiration from others' successes. Avoid others' failures. Challenge your thinking through consideration of other designs. Challenge others' thinking through the construction of your own game.
One of the greatest mistakes designers can make is to get trapped in their own vision for a project. As you talk about your project with peers and play testers, open yourself to advice, to questions, to input from others about how to craft, refine, and revise your game.
This section is designed to help you anticipate and avoid problems as you work on this project. Therefore, as you work, consider the following hints and tips.
Remember that communication in professional and technical contexts values highly the ability to write and speak with economy, directness, and professionalism. Another way of saying this is to make every word count.
Details matter in effective information design. Be as specific and concrete as you can throughout as you write and design your content.
Focus on the little and big details. Proofread your project content carefully. Hold your work to a high standard so it reflects the best work you can achieve.
Continue to examine games and game components in multiple formats and media for delivery during the project. Learn from those designs, and apply what you can from them into your own work. Pay particular attention to the standards those designs establish and maintain for layout, for editorial quality, for playability. When you see examples of designs that could be improved, apply that awareness as you build and refine your prototype.
Once you have begun to construct your prototype, review all components for quality and consistency of writing and design, and continue to play your evolving game as often as you are able, especially after you make refinements to the design. Tweak as you work.
I also recommend that you compare designs, decisions, strategic thinking, playability study plans, and anything else relevant to your work on this project with others. Peers in the class understand what you are trying to accomplish, and can assist with refining your approach and execution. People outside of the class can offer fresh perspective on your design thinking that you might lose sight of because you are deeply immersed in professional examination of designs like these. Sharing your work and seeking feedback, even in small ways or regarding very specific details, is often a useful venture in a variety of ways. It is also a good professional habit to develop.
Read and attend carefully to these submission guidelines. Failure to do so may result in delays in receiving feedback on the draft of your project, or in points lost on the final evaluation of your project.
Create a project folder inside your shared class folder on Dropbox.com. Remember, I can only view files that you place inside the shared folder. Until you place files in that space, you have not in practice submitted them.
Name the folder G2P.
Make sure the file listed below is available to me in the project folder by the V1.0 deadline. Model your filename on the listed example.
Note. Do not share the file with me. By placing it in your project folder, you have already shared it by default.
Make sure the file required for the V1.0 submission is available to me as well as the file listed below. Place both files in the project folder by the submission deadline. Model your filenames on the listed examples.
Note. Do not share the individual files with me. By placing them in your project folder, you have already shared them by default.
This section describes the standards by which your Version 1.0 and 2.0 submissions will be evaluated.
There are 100 possible points for this project stage. You will earn points according to the following standard.
There are 400 possible points for the final submission. You will earn points according to the standard described on the policies page (40% content development, 20% design execution, and 20% professionalism & attention to detail, and 20% impact of revision; see Policies). The specific areas of emphasis for this project are drawn from the description and discussion of the project, and are detailed in the evaluation rubric (_RPW350_Eval_Game2Prototype.pdf).
Remember that I will only post the point values for projects on the Grades page in SVSU Canvas. I will post the details relevant to that evaluation in your class folder in a project-specific file.
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