Gameplay Pitch - Motion Control & VR

INTRODUCTION

We are approaching new times in “gaming”. VR technology and Motion Control are constantly being iterated for optimal performance. Before we know it, these technologies will be in homes all over the world.

Now you could argue this notion but before you do that try and think without biases. Open you’re mind to the possibilities that are about to be presented to you and see the future of gaming. 

My intentions with this pitch are to address some current problems while theorizing possible solutions. Finally, I want to implement these solutions while introducing you to the VR/Motion Control “MMEEE” program. (Medical, Military, Engineering, Education, Exercise - Training Simulations)

THE CURRENT PROBLEM & SOLUTION

Seeing how I’m trying to create new gameplay opportunities with new technology, I must first address the problems with Virtual Reality and Motion Control.

With Motion Control, one of the key problems has to do with minimizing the abstractions associated with control. By minimizing this abstraction we will see the physical and virtual space as one. This will essentially make individuals feel an embodiment within that world, which means more opportunities for deep immersion. Another problem with Motion Control has to do with realism. Roman Oriola, the Lead Designer for Red Steel 2 (MotionPlus) says “If you give too much to the player they might start to wonder why they didn’t feel the weight of the sword or the knock back when they hit something.” In another light, as motion approaches realism, individuals begin to pay more attention to the dissimilarities in gameplay. To avoid these issues, I present Virtual Reality technology (Data Gloves, Data Suits, and Head Mounted Displays).

Now Virtual Reality might be the cure for Motion Control issues but VR also has problems. What are these problems? Well to start off, VR causes motion sickness.

This sickness is caused by poor ergonomics and a lack of awareness for the physical needs of the user. With time we will see many improvements to this issue (Iterate & test). Now that we understand the “motion sickness problem”, we can move on to the ethical problem of “desensitization“. Basically, this means that a person is no longer affected by extreme acts of behavior, such as violence. He or she also fails to show empathy or compassion as a result. Personally I see “desensitization” as Good/Evil or Ying/Yang because it can have negative and positive connotations. The positive gain would be high cure rates for depression, anxiety, fear and schizophrenia but the negative would desensitization to violence, which can be pretty detrimental to society.

In a final recap:

Solution 1: Gameplay that focuses primarily around training individuals in Medical, Military, Education, Exercise and Engineering.

Solution 2: Focus on the “natural” aspects of simulating and less on the game.

Solution 3: Iterate & test until the experience is familiar and natural for the individual.

IMPLEMENTATION

Seeing as I have many different simulations, I’ll focus with the step-by-step gameplay for the Exercise Training. Now exercise can come in various forms so what we want to do is incorporate as many exercises that work with our technology. We want the user to have a very natural and progressive work out in the comfort of his home.   

All of our exercises will be put under categories based on difficulty and personal endurance. To gamify this we will include progression meters, rewards, achievements and weight/muscle tracker.

Now that you’ve seen the vision lets put this all in motion with a nice step by step guide.  

Step 1: Get equipment attached.

Step 2: Firs time users need to register their height, weight, and fitness level.

Step 3: User opens the simulator and is welcomed with a motivational quote.

Step 4: User selects a category. For this example the user selected Fighting.

Step 5: The fighting category opens up and he or she is present with various fighting styles.

Step 6: User selects Muay Thai and begins his journey.

Step 7: First time training teaches the user basics. This is the tutorial, which focuses on getting the user immersed and comfortable with his surroundings.

Step 8: Next, the user is taught the various techniques including proper punching, kicking and movement.

Step 9: Combining the above skills.

Step 10: After the session, user is praised and given his or her progress report.

CONCLUSIONS

The future for video games is steadily evolving. We must embrace this movement with open arms, constantly pushing the envelope for gaming. After reading my pitch, you can see my visions & ideas. I believe games should teach & reward players. These lessons should transfer over into everyday life, strengthening the self mentally and physically.

Understanding the Game Controller

I believe game controllers will remain an important part of videogame culture but ultimately VR & Motion Control will unlock an untapped goldmine.

With video games, the controller apparatus, or, more generally, the input device, distinguishes gameplay from other forms of media. This is because it requires a level of interactivity and immersion that is normally absent from TV or films.

When players become familiarized with the controller, actions become second nature. It’s this accustomization that makes players feel an illusion of embodiment within that world. Instead of a player saying, “I pressed X to jump and my avatar landed at this location” they instead say, “I jumped and I landed here”. Here we can conclude that, the controller doesn’t feel like an abstract piece anymore. Instead, it becomes an extension of the self.

Individuals who are theorizing about “Motion Control” must first take into consideration the limitations with the current technology. All of these technologies seek to minimize the abstraction associated with control. This will essentially remove the split between physical and virtual space causing players to feel more immersed.

Moving forward, developers need to understand that all controllers, even motion controls are governed by two properties:

1.    They require some level of habituation of response. (Myers 2009).

2.    They employ arbitrary and simplified abstractions of the physical actions they reference. (Myers 2009).

Reference:

Folmer, Eelke. (N/A). Designing Usable and Accessible Games with Interaction Design Patterns. Gamasutra. Retrieved April 15, 2014 from http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/129843/designing_usable_and_accessible_.php?print=1

Memorable Designs

      I.         Mario 64 (Nintendo 64):

§  Liked the fact that this game was non-linear. The player was able to solve puzzles in whatever order he or she desired. This was especially important for me because it was the first time I experienced authorship in a game.

§  Disliked & Liked the “Cannon” mechanic for several reasons. When you first encounter the cannon in the 1^st world, players are expected to experiment shooting Mario to different locations. This was a nice inclusion as the first world is fairly open. As you progress and intensity starts scaling, I noticed that cannons start getting put in trickier spots. This really makes me question their worth as levels become more compact and difficult. If you overshoot or even slightly miss your target location you end up dead. You could even argue here and say that this is what makes them fun but I guess that comes down to personal preference.

§  Liked the fact that coins played a big part in the overall games design.
(1) 100 coins earn players a star. Why is this important? Well seeing how most maps where large, scattering coins throughout the map made players have to explore every nook and cranny of the level. On this journey players might even end up finding new challenges. 
(2) Collecting the 8 red coins earn players a star. This is also part of the above statement. Only difference is that these coins are hidden in trickier spots and are worth double that of the yellow coin.
(3) Coins give life back. This is fairly self-explanatory

§  Liked the nice fluid movement that focuses primarily around “jumping”. Here players have to learn the different variations of jumping for use in different situations. In total there are 6 different jumps.

§  Disliked underwater gameplay because of the awkward controls and camera rotations. I also find myself asking the question, “What purpose does underwater gameplay serve?” There is no significant difference from land and underwater gameplay except for the fact that on land players have more utility with combos and movement.

    II.         Champion’s of Norrath (PlayStation 2):

§  This was my first introduction to a Role-playing, Hack and Slash style game. I liked the inclusion of a talent tree, which allowed players to optimize their character based on preference. This along with other implantations (Loot) made players feel ownership over their character. On a side note, I disliked that you couldn’t reset your tree after spending a point. This left me wondering why they wouldn’t allow this, seeing how with progression come new strategies and difficulty.

§  Liked the safe point mechanic, which also doubled as a checkpoint. With this players could instantly dive back into the action, avoiding run-time, resurrection sickness and map confusion.

§  Liked the portal system that allowed players to teleport to key locations. This worked well for players who easily got lost or confused when exploring.

§  Liked the inclusion of damage mitigation when grouped. This was a smart choice seeing how all characters had some form of AOE (area effect).

  III.         Mortal Kombat vs. DC universe (PlayStation 3):

§  Disliked the “Rage Meter” which fills up progressively when players take or do damage. When a player is under “Rage” they can break an opponents guard, deal more damage, avoid being knockdown, stunned or popped up. To fix this overpowered issue, I say only give players “rage” when they take damage. This gives the person who is behind a little leverage. 

§  Enjoyed the Free-Fall-Kombat because it added to the fighting experience. This feature was like a little mini-game where players tried to land combos on each other before they hit the ground. Players that dealt the most damage would land on their opponent, dealing bonus damage.

§  Liked the “Test your Might” mechanic that was incorporated into the gameplay. When players entered this mode they assumed two positions: offense and defense. The player on offense tried to spam his buttons to deal maximum damage while the player on defense did the same, mitigating the offensive players damage. Basically this was like a Tug-of-War.

§  My inner-gamer always comes out when I talk about this next mechanic. What is it you may ask? Come on, what defines Mortal Kombat games. Tic-Toc-Tic, Finish Him! Fatality. This to me is the icing on the cake for fighting games. Players who perform fatalities get that much more bragging right for knowing the hidden combinations. From a developer standpoint this feature had some big cultural impact in the fighting genre.

Planning out your game project (Big or Small)

When planning out a project, I generally start by determining and documenting a list of specific goals, tasks, costs and deadlines. I believe having all this information early in development guarantees for successful completion. This is why I prefer to set limits to the scope early as opposed to the later route.

The bigger the project the bigger the scope:

The Scrum process seems to suit big projects that have rapidly changing and highly emergent requirements quite well. How this works is via a series of iterations called sprints, which generally last from one to four weeks. This model suggests that each sprint begins with a planning meeting and concludes with a debriefing. These planned meetings ensure communication throughout various disciplines, which then spark further knowledge and creativity for that project. I believe this model fits perfectly with an early approach because it ensures that the teams understand the project vision.  

Implement, document then test:

When working on big projects, it’s almost natural for parts to change. Ensuring that the project has been “scoped” early in development results in the team being able to adapt faster and more efficiently. Also, making sure that all team members are fully aware of the projects scope, guarantees undivided concentration, which then translates to zero ambiguity.

Naturally one might say that taking this early approach leaves room for contingency. My way around this problem is to leave room in the scope for any unforeseen issues or events. Having this clear path means that a team can devote their time to quality. This absolute devotion to quality is what makes for great games in my eyes.