ETEC 544 IP 8 Game Design 101

Exercise 1.2: D.O.A.

Candy Crush Saga was once a super popular tile-matching game that is free-to-play, released in 2012. As far as I am concerned, after several rounds of play, I found the playing experience mildly entertaining, unoriginal and totally forgettable. It might be addicting at first yet after several rounds, it becomes just repetitive to me without much thinking requested. It is purely time killing game. If the game designers can add a bit more variety on the level of difficulties and solution patterns, it might be intriguing players a bit more time at least to me.

Exercise 1.3: Your Life as a Game

List five areas of life that can be games:

1. Fitness and health: earn rewards and points for achieving milestones can turn exercise into a fun game;

2. Personal finance: role playing for budgeting and saving, tracking progress, answering finance related quiz, accumulate rewards.

3. Education and learning: quiz, challenges for language learning

4. Self discipline: track daily expense, exercise time, sleeping time, food calories;

5. social interaction: online gaming with social network or community services by earning points or badges.

Exercise 1.5: Your childhood

List 10 games played in childhood:

1. Marbles: players take turns to knock marbles out of a designated area with our own marbles. Fun part: players have to compete and take turns to get the chance to win. If chance missing out this round, have to wait for other players to complete before can try another time.

2. Board games: monopoly.
Monopoly is one of my favorite games in childhood. It requests strategic thinking as players must think from long term perspective if buy properties, trading, managing personal finance which keeps the game engaging and mentally stimulating. It is competitive as several players aim to bankrupt their opponents. 

3. Hide and seek: physical activities are involved and encourages running, riding and exploring. Children can use their creativity to find unique hiding spots or come up with clever ways to avoid being found. The simplicity of the rules makes it accessible for kids of various ages.

4. Dodgeball: competitive nature of trying to eliminate opponents adds excitement and motivation to the game. Players often teamwork to strategize and defend against opposing team, fostering collaboration. 

5. Simon Says: the game keeps players actively engaged as they must listen carefully and respond quickly to commands. It is easy to understand, simple and accessible for players of all ages. The unpredictability of Simon's commands adds excitement.

6. Duck duck goose: The unpredictability of who will be chosen as "goose" adds excitement to the game. The fast-paced nature allows for multiple rounds, keeping everyone engaged and involved.

7. Hopscotch: The game involves jumping and hopping, which helps improve balance, coordination, and overall physical fitness. The rules are simple and can be understood quickly, making it accessible for players of all ages. Hopscotch is often played outside, allowing children to enjoy fresh air and sunshine while playing.

8. Red Rover: Players can use different tactics to decide which player to call over and how to strengthen their line, making it mentally engaging. The game can accommodate a large number of players, making it suitable for groups of varying sizes.

9. Tag: The excitement of being chased or trying to catch someone creates an adrenaline rush and keeps players engaged. The fast-paced nature and continuous action make it a game that can go on for a long time without becoming boring.

10. Jump Rope: effective exercise with easy gadgets suitable for different ages of kids. Normally it is played outdoor which allows player to enjoy the sunshine and fresh air. Rule is easy and can challenge oneself with different ways to jump the rope and speed.

Exercise 2.3: Objectives List five games and one sentence per game to describe the objective in each game.

1. Chess: checkmate the opponent's king;

2. Monopoly: become the wealthiest player by trading, developing properties while bankrupting opponents

3. Fortnite: Be the last player by eliminating opponents and surviving in a shrinking battle area.

4. Candy Crush Saga: match 3 or more candies of the same color to clear them from the board

5. Super Mario: navigate through various levels, defeating enemies and overcoming obstacles to rescue Princess Peach from Bowser, while collecting coins and power-ups to enhance Mario's abilities.

Exercise 2.4 can you think of a game that has no rules?

Garry's Mod: players can freely explore, create, and manipulate the game world without predefined objectives, allowing for limitless creativity and experimentation with various game mechanics and tools.

It is difficult to find a game that has no rules! As it would be impossible to provide proper valuation of the gaming result. People play games to enjoy the winning process so if no rules, normally it is hard to hold the attention of players.