What's in a game - Unit 72

BTEC Diploma in Computer Games Design

Unit 72: Computer Game Design

Unit 2: Communication Skills for Creative Media Production

Marc-Antony Whitworth

What's in a game?

The primary game I will be referring to is 'Terraria' however over the course of this assignment, I will refer to the visual and gameplay styles of other games to ensure a extensive description of different styles not portrayed in 'Terraria'.

Visual style

This is a completed world map.

'Terraria' is a 2D scrolling, sandbox, survival game with exploration elements,developed using pixel art, as the player must search the area in order to discover the other biomes of the world, as shown on the left [1]. Biomes include different backgrounds and sounds each built to symbolise the effects or experiences the player will have in these areas.

Different areas have diverse effects, such as a sandstorm that can occur in the desert which effects movement, shown right [2], and can spawn new enemies. 'The Angry Tumbler is an enemy that spawns in the desert during sandstorms. It attacks by rolling quickly towards the player. They can be extremely difficult to deal with for new players due to their speed when moving in the same direction as the sandstorm, as well as their considerable damage output. [3]' Other variables include terrain differences such as trees which grow in the plains or the flat landscape of the desert.

User interface

Terraria has a quite simple interface, left [4], with the heath and mana in the top right, the inventory at the top left whilst near crafting stations, a crafting window is displayed bottom left other options include a mini-map, full-screen map and buffs.

In the Magic Circle, it's cell shaded colourless design helps accent it's unfinished feel, with wild architecture and texture-less objects however, it's simplistic abstract design is contrasted effectively.

The NPC's of the magic circle are coloured, a clear juxtapose to the blank world, clearly signifying what is alive in the world and what is not. [5] The 3D, first person gameplay simulates other role-playing games.

There are many non-playable characters in Terraria, shown right [6], however, each with their own defensive interactions when an enemy gets into range to protect the area/base they reside in. [7] Each NPC's design reflects their character and occupation.
There is also a mode where the bosses in Terraria gets additional abilities such as Duke Fishron and his 'invisibility' phase.[8]

Full motion video

FMV is rare in games as of recent and they are not very popular other than special cases like Contradiction - Spot the Liar, a game where you play as a detective and interrogation is completed by videos, left [9].

Gameplay Styles

Terraria is an avatar-based multiplayer co-operative game which can be played entirely solo, there is not much of a story to the game as it is sand box however, the basic goal is to find and accommodate all the inhabitants in the world whilst killing a magnitude of different bosses to gain powerful loot. Whilst PvP can be enabled, the games focus is its Player versus enemy gameplay and it's designed symmetric difficulty however, the player can chose between normal and expert mode as well as softcore, drop money on death, mediumcore, drop items on death, and hardcore, permanent death. Terraria allows to player to experience many environmental changes such as a lower gravity in space to events like Slime rain or a Solar eclipse [10].

Whilst Terraria is avatar-based, another interaction model used in games is omnipresence, Pillars of Eternity, a real-time fantasy RPG [11], gives the player command of all characters at their disposal. The player can control the flow of combat with a pausing system and the interface shows which characters are being controlled at a time. This game is single-player and is highly focused on it's story and narrative, which can be dependent on the player's choice of actions with NPC's making it non-linear, Due to this, the game must ensure it does not present cultures of the real world in a bad light or give the player the option to commit unjust actions.

Sanctum 2 is a first-person shooter, tower defense hybrid set in future years and has the player defending key points of a falling civilisation therefore, you have access to incredible technologies such as the ability to call down turrets, left [12], to assist in the defense. Whilst NPC's consist of enemies after your base this multiplayer game contains attainable lore throughout the levels. The game contains a linear story presented by comic strips to portray the relationships between the playable characters.
Sanctum 2's difficulty is artificial, which scales by health values, can be made easier by using diverse builds gain from leveling your account by completing matches.

Rules, Risks & Rewards

Terraria does not have many rules being a sandbox game but some restrictions include, the player must gain a pickaxe with enough power to break the block it is attempting to mine, The guide must be sacrificed in order to develop the world past it's original state, hard-mode. All ranged weapons have a ammo usage that can not be exceeded. It is require to have obtained the right materials and crafting stations to create more developed items. The player must scour the world themselves to reveal the map. Area's such as the Temple and the Dungeon require access to be earned before the player can enter [13].

Boss fights, [14], in Terraria can be incredibly challenging but give incredible rewards and advancements, they require players to plan accordingly which can depend on how the player wants to progress towards them, multiple tries with different loadouts, the use of potions and foods to provide much needed buffs or even fighting near NPC's to gain the extra support whilst in battle. Other challenges are grinding for materials for armor, weapons or even building materials, building in Terraria can be a hefty task, creating rooms of 10x6 with walls, furniture and light but, for those who enjoy it many blocks can be found from leaves to make tree-houses to gold en-dubbed stone and tinted glass windows for castle designs, [15].