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Create a fun educational multiplayer game where players colonize Mars by acquiring resources, building industries, and trading. The game promotes cooperation and competition, designed for students and casual players to grasp challenging economic concepts. Metrics include successful learning outcomes and player engagement. The game theme focuses on building a Martian economy without violence, emphasizing realistic resource management. Updates include new features, UI enhancements, and guest testing, while the risks involve potential delays and design challenges. Assistance needed with technical aspects and improving presentation clarity.
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Presentation Outline - Concept • Concept • Initial Work • Game Design • Initial Prototype • Latest Work • Game Refinements • Media • Future Plans • Schedule • Final Game • Risks
Concept • Create a fun networked multiplayer business simulation game that can be educational both inside and outside the classroom.
Teaching Method Scenarios • Present an event that exaggerates an economic concept • Challenge the guest to discover that concept • Place the knowledge where they can find it • Reward • Eureka moment! • Improved ability in the game
Intended Audience • Students in a classroom & casual players
Metrics for Success • Helps students grasp some of the most difficult concepts in introductory economics • Give them a quiz afterwards • People want to play it • Classroom • Would you rather learn from our game, or from lectures and textbooks? • Casual • How fun was it? • Number of downloads
Presentation Outline - Initial Work • Concept • Initial Work • Game Design • Initial Prototype • Latest Work • Game Refinements • Media • Future Plans • Schedule • Final Game • Risks
In the beginning… • Research • Determine what the gameplay should be • Prototype • Gameplay proof-of-concept
Research – Gameplay • Supply Chain Simulation • Realistic Economy • Player actions affect others • Goal is simple, but way to get there is not • Have something interesting to do every turn • Avoid • Conflict between story and mechanics • Players feeling disenfranchised too early • Too much randomness
Presentation Outline – Latest Work • Concept • Initial Work • Game Design • Initial Prototype • Latest Work • Game Refinements • Media • Future Plans • Schedule • Final Game • Risks
What have we been up to lately? • Game • Theme – Colonizing Mars • Designed the supply chain • Implemented two economic models – warehouse and market • First Scenario – Marginal Cost • Internal playtesting – 4+ hours of gameplay! • Skyrates: powered by Gamenomic$ • Designed architecture for the new codebase • Media • Touchscreen – Game trailer • Poster • Webpage – www.gamenomics.com
Theme • Why is theme important? • Things we want in a theme • Supply chain must make sense • End products don’t just disappear • Resources come from somewhere • Classroom friendly • Promote both cooperation and competition • Allow for more than one winner
Our Theme • Colonization of Mars • Acquire resources, produce goods, and trade to build the first colony on Mars! • Players are establishing Martian industry • Martian colonists need goods • Resources are harvested on Mars • No sex or violence! • Players can cooperate and will compete • Players are rewarded for growing the economy
Salamander v2.0 Now with Economics!
First Scenario – Marginal Cost • What is Marginal Cost? • Why is it important? • Why is it hard to learn? • How do we teach it?
Presentation Outline – Future Plans • Concept • Initial Work • Game Design • Initial Prototype • Latest Work • Game Refinements • Media • Future Plans • Schedule • Final Game • Risks
Upcoming Attractions • Re-implement Salamander features in Hellbender • Miscellaneous features • Game Master controls • Add new scenarios • Game art
Upcoming AttractionsGuest Testing • David Lamont’s Executive Education • ETC Students & Faculty • Friends and Family • CMU Economic & Business Students
Presentation Outline - Risks • Concept • Initial Work • Game Design • Initial Prototype • Latest Work • Game Refinements • Media • Future Plans • Schedule • Final Game • Risks
Biggest Risks • Classroom vs. Casual • Reward structure doesn’t work • Instead of a game, we end up with an economic model that could be used to make a completed game • Things are taking longer than we planned • Game Design! • Albith has developed Carpal Tunnel syndrome • But the biggest risk of all is…
Things we could use help with • Technical Help: • Java GUI! • Guest Testing • Sound
Feedback from Quarter Presentation • Good • Presentation clearly explained project to naïve listeners • Bad • Presentation style • Need a strong one-sentence explanation of the game • Need a metric for success for casual players