The Game Studio

Each game has its own set of rules about how player death is handled, what consequences are doled out, and how players must recover from it. In some games death even has a habit of evolving from one set of parameters to another, even increasing in scope how players can come to their own demise. While the death of a character may not always seem like a factor that should drive the mechanics of your game, if it’s not setup correctly or in a way that positively effects you game (go figure), then this is a feature of your game that may cause you some serious headache down the line. Death of characters also provide you, the game developer, with unique opportunities when you create an online game. Not only do they give you the potential to keep player stats, items, development, etc, in balance, it gives you the potential to create new levels of detail or experiences in your game that don’t follow the typical game progression.

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Recently I attended a lecture where the speaker stressed that for new projects, it was vital to “Begin at the beginning”. While this is an important notion for many industries and professions, it got me thinking about the implications of such a mentality in the game development world. Perhaps instead of beginning at the beginning, we should begin in the middle of the story, where the action already exists. Each time we decide to drop players into our virtual worlds, we have decisions to make about how we treat those players. Do we slowly and carefully lead them into storyline? Do we nurture their progress in the game with hand held tutorials, or throw them directly into the fire? Do we set them up for a roller-coaster ride, or present them with bountiful opportunities and an open road? One of the most important decisions you can make that ultimately decides how a visitor perceives your environment, is to decide how they make their entrance onto the stage. Does your player make a grand entry at the beginning of the show or do they tumble head first into the act, having to think on their feet in order to stay on track?

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Recently there has been some buzz about the importance of a players “First Hour Experience”, when creating your own game, partially because Linden Lab, a leader in 3D Worlds and virtual environments (the creators of Second Life) have begun research to improve their first hour experience. For many games a users first impressions of your game are what create lasting images and thoughts about how successful your game is. If you manage to “Wow” someone initially, you’re more likely to have an easier time keeping their momentum going throughout the rest of your game. But at the same time, it can be a pitfall to over shoot the first impression, making the most impressive scenes carry out within the first ten minutes of your game could leave your players wondering “What happened here?”

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One of the hardest (and most exciting) things about the initial startup of game design and creating an online game for me has always been locating resources which you will build your game on. Where does the art come from? What engine will we use? What is our budget? Where will we host this game? It seems that my luck has always been in everything but the last question and challenge - locating a good game host.
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