The elements of Game Design - Gameplay

As i have said before gameplay is pretty much the most important thing about games, graphics sound etc are important too, but without gameplay its just a cgi movie, as game artists its forgivable if we do a good job and the coders aren't switched on but its always more satisfying if everyone does their part.
"Gameplay" is a pretty broad concept and can be defined as how the characters in the game are controlled and how the player effects the world, it can also be described how fun the combat or tasks in the game is. innovation in gameplay is important as the same type of gameplay can get very boring, lots and lots of shooting and jumping can get pretty tiring and most people like a change, its important to have a lot of new things to do in a game, half life 2 had its physics engine wich gave you new ways to solve problems, max payne had a slow motion mode that allowed you to defeat enemies in a different way, no matter how small the innovation it adds to the fun and gives each game its own gimmick or reason to play it, the games that stand out are the ones that have well implemented gameplay innovations.

Periphials can be good for gameplay as they give a new way to control the game, lightguns were some of the earliest oddball creations and proved very popular, other ideas include fishing rods, bongos and guitars, these games were popular becasue they were different and well implemented, they were good games because the periphials worked well, although their have been some failures such as the nintendo power glove and virtual boy.
The nintendo wii is a very good example of gameplay innovation and stands out because its slightly crazy but somehow manages to work well and change the way we interact with a game, the graphics aren't quite up to par but it doesn't matter as the games are good.

Task 10, Story and character

"The rain was coming down like all the angels in heaven decided to take a piss at the same time... in my situation, you can only think in metaphors."

I think i've already gone on about story and characters, but i think i have to write more even though some of it might be recycled from the last blog.
Oh well ill give it a go anyway, stories in games will get nowhere without a decent set of characters some games define the characters around the player instead of developing the guy you play as, games like half-life 2 and zelda do this and it feels more like your them, your own actions and way you play contribute to the main characters attitude. Other games develop all the characters and makes the main character speak for you, although sometimes games give a decision in what to say usually the character has its own attitude and feelings, this can kinda suck when the character lets some bastard escape instead of executing him like you want him to, but most of the time the player would rather see how the story plays out instead.
Over the holidays i had the chance to play through max payne 1 and 2, these games have a very developed story line and characters and sometimes feels like a bad ass action movie. I especially liked the way the tv stations in max payne 2 took the piss out of the original game, and also attempted to develop characters that could die as soon as you meet them (wich happened often as they usually charged ahead and got themselves killed).
My favourite characters in books and films are the type with a huge backstory that you don't know yet, while reading the book or watching the film you learn more about them and what happened before the timeline your reading. My favourite series of books is the nick stone steries from Andy Mcnab, i feel the character is very developed and you learn almost everything about him in the nine books that are written so far, i think a lot of the author is in the character and is written very realistically.
Although for games i don't mind playing as a mute character like in half life. The setting is as important as the character in games, as its a more visual experience than books and sometimes films as games give you the ability to explore and unearth things you may not of noticed on the first playthrough.

Task 9 Ergonomics.

Ergonomics in consoles is something us game artists don't usually worry about, but its still pretty important for a console to have a controller that is comfortable to use.
I personally prefer using the mouse and keyboard, i play shooters most of the time and there isn't a controller that has really been any good at FPS games.
For consoles the gamecube pad was great, all of the buttons and stuff where just in the right place so you can use it for ages and your hands wouldn't get knackered.
Joysticks are apparently good for aeroplane games, i never eally tried using a proper joystick with throttle and all the other bits but for immersion i guess using these would be the best for certain games.
Arcades are good examples of finding tons of different ideas for ergonomics as almost every machine was designed with a seperate team for that area, a lot of cabinets have the classic joystick thing and a few buttons, but walking around an arcade you'll see enterable tanks with different buttons for controls, or sniper rifles you have to look through and moterbikes you have to actually get on and ride, all these machines had to be designed so that different people could use them.
i still prefer the mouse and keyboard though.