Digital Game Spaces

In the process of game design, we have to consider the game spaces for the players experience to make the game unique in different spaces. There are many different spaces of games we can use to make the game, they are as followed;

Text based games is where the player progresses throughout the game by typing commands to prompt a response to give the player a description of the area or situation. This allows the player to make decisions based on the small but detailed level of information given.

Contained 2D space games, the gameplay features in a scene where the player cannot go beyond the boundaries of the screen. These game can use the edges of the screen to restrict the gameplay ability to make the game simpler or more intense. An easy example of this is pong, where the top and the bottom of the screen acts as the walls and the either side of the screen acts as the goals.

Wraparound space games allow the player loop around the world when the player leaves the edge of one side of the screen, the player will appear on the other side of the screen so the player doesn’t get trapped. An example of this is Pacman where when you reach the edge of the screen, you will end up on the other side.

Side scrolling games is when the game moves across the screen creating a horizontal environment for the player to progress through. Games like Mario where the player have to make their way from one point to another by going across the playable environment.

Scrolling along two axis, the game allows the player to move in both the X and Y axis throughout the playable environment. Games such as Pokemon allow itself to have an open world which isn’t just horizontal just like Mario but has simplicity in its gameplay.

Adjacent space games are similar to side scrolling games in the sense that they can be linear, but in adjacent space games, when the player moves, the background moves as well. The background and foreground can have set speeds to move along with the player to create speed and depth to the game.

Limited 3D space games are created to seem as if they are 3D, for example, they can give you a sense of going through a narrow street but the game is actually using lines which give you a sense of the game being 3D.

Isometric  3D space games is where the sprites and the world are isometric to give a 3D effect to the game. Games like SimCity have this kind of space as well as many Tycoon games.

Window to the outdoor games puts the player into the outdoors through the screen. An example of this is Duck Hunt, where the player is set in an open field and is tasked to shoot ducks from the sky.

Two spaces on one screen is where the players are forced to play the same game, on the same screen, but each have their own half of the screen for them to play on. This is close to split screen gameplay where it is usually used for co-op gameplay.

Video capture games is where, for example two people fighting each other, are video recording of the people doing the fighting moves and then added into the game as the game characters.

Mapped space games is where the game has images set in place and the player will go through game by clicking on either the left, right, top or bottom of the screen to decide where you wish to go.

Early 3D space is based on the early days of 3D games where they were only on one flat horizontal level with walls to move around and enemies in the level. The early Wolfenstein game is a great example as it was based on one horizontal plane for the player to play through.

Finally full 3D space which is what we are used to know as everything is 3D and the player has the ability to move where ever they want within the level/environment restrictions.

Contained space game

As a group we, we were tasked to create a concept for our teams digital game space which was contained space. We went through the stages of development by looking at games which were also sontained space games. I individually reseasrched these games so I could assist our teams development as well as my own knowledge. Frogger, galactica, minesweeper and Pac man were some of those I looked into. All of the games researched all had the same simplicity to it, for example, in minesweeper, you had to click on blocks which didn't have mines in them. After researching games similar to our set given digital space,  we then started to discuss game concepts for our final outcome. We came up with different ideas and one of them being a fish in a fish bowl and the player has to avoid falling pieces. We finally decided on a tank game which runs on the same principles of minesweeper. The player has to manouver their tank from one corner of the map, to the other. The player is given a small radar to make the game easier, but it only has a small radius. We were not tasked to actually develop a game, but out team created a basic game, with simple graphics to give a real understanding of what our game concept and digital space was.