Unit 37 – PPD – Jacob’s game journal

Reflection on last year

During last year, in terms of games developed, I dialed myself back in what I made. There was good and bad behind that decision. Both games I produced where mostly feature complete (I cut some mechanics from the first game, Tip Slingers) which was a big step up from prior games which had large amounts of content cut. On the other hand, I feel that the I could have done more then what I did do. The games I made where both mobile games which definitely helped me build a wider portfolio other then web-games and grow new skills I thought I would have made something more visually impressive. Overall, my progress last year is something I am content and satisfied with what I did. Through this year I would like to focus my skills and develop my specialty. In the past when I’ve been asked the question of what do I want to do in the industry I usually say design ideally with a focus on mechanics and how features involve features. In the past I have done a presentation about how to make a weather system that effects game play, that was a specific topic and an example of what I would like to do, design mechanics that effect game play. But all games aren’t immersive and survival like the example I used some (like games that I have made) are mobile arcade-esc experiences and with those projects it would be about designing player satisfaction, a major driving force in those games. I’d focus on doing that through making more conscious decisions about what mechanics the game has and how they can be refined and expanded. Moving on from this course there is a few paths that I could go down, try to go into the industry, continue education with a top-up year and then look at my next steps or work produce a full indie game myself. I’d say I’m more likely to go for a top up year, I think that its a wiser choice, understanding more of the industry and focus on growing in a specific area. The other choices are both valid options. If I work in a company, that work experience and reference will be a big help with moving onto a new job, perhaps more to some company’s then a top-up year would be.

Self Evaluation – P1 M1

At this point in time a year ago, I evaluated my own skills based on my strengths and weaknesses, where my confidence was with a range of skills and I have grown over this time and learnt more and developed those skills. One of the skills I wanted to grow most over this time was my Unity development, I didn’t write it at the time but I intended for that growth to be focused towards 3D games development. I haven’t worked in 3D in any major way since before that time. That’s not to say that my skills in Unity development hasn’t grown, it has, the second game I produced last year as a match 3 game built inside of Unity but in 2D not 3D. It was my intention to make a 3D game but my design process didn’t take me down that route which was fortunate as I have been able to grow my skill in Unity into 2D, something that I have not done before.

Presenting has usually been a weakness of mine, not due to stage fright or social anxiety but because of my tendency to talk to much, presentations supposed to take 5 minuets take 15 instead. Knowing that I would have to present more during this year then I have in the past, I wanted to sort that issue out, learn what is and isn’t necessary to what I am saying. Unlike Unity where my skills did not develop how I intended, my power points where more streamlined and took out unnecessary information but I wasn’t and usually ended up mentioning the cut content and going past the timer. I am a better presenter then what I was, I say what I say because it had direct meaning to the topic but I am not where I thought I would be.

Problem solving is a highly valuable skill and luckily one that I have developed well. Over the year issues that where once a difficult task to ponder where easier, some where because I had faced them in the past but others like UI and UX which I hadn’t where more manageable and I was able to understand what I needed to do quicker and easier then if I faced them earlier. Creating an idea and executing that idea is an example of something that I have not found easy in the past, taking much larger bites then I can chew. With the first project I did last year I had that issue occur again where what I had envisioned was to large of a task to complete, in the past I have continued to work on that when in reality I should have taken a step back, re-evaluated my position and decided to make a change, like I did with Tip Slingers, the first game I made last year. Originally, I wanted to make a puzzle-platformer and made a few prototypes for what I thought it could be but the project was to big for me and my skills to handle at the time, so I adjusted and realized my mistake and the problems I had made and decided to solve them.

Moving on from my current position on strengths, have my weaknesses been improved on? Stronger strength is good to have, having confidence in what I am good at but if my weaknesses outweigh them, then I have not taken steps in the right direction on my path of development. The two skills that I thought where my biggest weaknesses where 3D modelling and Personal management. Over the year I did produce 3D models but I have not developed this skill to an a level I would say is acceptable. This isn’t going to cause any issues as it is not a skill I have ever wanted to focus on but I set a goal to become better at it, a goal which I did not hit and as such, I should take my own advice and take those steps in a path that is closer related to my skills rather then a different road altogether. From where I am now, I don’t see much reason on why I wanted to develop these skills. It isn’t a weakness if a baker can’t manage a super market, it’s a different skill set. The point isn’t to mitigate the problem of not developing 3D modelling, it’s to outline that I made a poor choice in saying that it was a skill that I am not good at. For ongoing development, it would make more sense for me to choose a skill that is a weakness of what I have developed over the year.

Personal management was another weakness of mine and unlike 3D modelling I have developed well and is directly relevant to the development I have undergone over the year and development through the future. In the past the management of my own time and my projects was poorly managed, an issue that did not stay throughout the past year, there where times when I could have approached my workload better but I had my work turned in before deadlines. Sometimes the work wasn’t always perfect but that’s a weakness in the skill the work focused on and gives an opportunity to develop something specific directly. Attendance and punctuality where not always 100% but compared to the past it was a significant improvement.

Carer opportunities – P2 M1

Internships & entry level jobs are the two big opportunities to continue developing my games carer and there are many studios that offer either or both of these. Jagex are currently hiring a junior content developer to design and implement new and engaging content into Old School Runescape, OSR. This role does not require any degree or diploma in games design but does ask its applicants to be familiar with MMORPG mechanics and game play as well as knowing OSR and its skills and mechanics well. The tangible skills that are asked for are technical experience with programming / scripting, awareness of basic design and development process of games and time management and teamwork / communication skills. My skills match these requirements, I have a more then basic understanding of designing and developing games, time management was an issue of mine in the past but has been worked on thoroughly and my knowledge of MMORPG’s mostly comes from OSR with a mix of Elder Scrolls Online as well. My skills overlap with the “Even better” section of the requirements such as understanding of narrative, knowledge in design principles and then a portfolio of my past work. Other then this junior role from Jagex, Team 17 are hiring for a game designer for Hell Let Loose, developed by Black Matter but published by Team 17. In this role I would be implementing content and balancing the key systems to a high quality whilst also communicating the concept of content to programmers and artists. To do this I need a strong practical knowledge of many areas, game engines (Unreal, the engine Hell Let Loose is on), Photoshop and other adobe software as well as Microsoft office software.

Development needs for self employment – M1

To work for myself, there is a long path of development. Over my years developing games I have developed a wide set of skills and specific skills in system design and programming. My capability to create game mechanics means that games I create can be complex in their gameplay, the other aspects of a game will fall behind. Aspects that commonly fall behind in the games I create, visuals, audio, and narrative, are what I need to develop in order to be successful in self-employment. How can I develop these skills in order to have a skill set that will best equip me for self-employment? To develop my skills in the visual aspects of games I can practice creating assets or create assets with the intention of using them in the games I create. Creating a game and relying on the use of off the shelf assets will force me to put in practice with the development of assets. The next skill area that I need to develop before focusing on self-employment is audio. For most of the games I have developed, I have not put much work into developing the soundscape of the game but it is a vital aspect of creating a whole experience. Good sound design can go unnoticed but bad or a lack of sound design makes a good game visually and mechanically a bad game. The benefits of sound design are only noticed when they aren’t present. I can develop my skills with sound by spending time to understand what the benefits of sound design are and how to create a good soundscape in the games I create. Taking time to implement audio in the projects I work on will deepen my understanding of sound design. Narrative is a driving force behind many games, it creates a bond between the player and the game that makes the experience one to be remembered. Developing my skills in creating narratives will take my game to the next level and is likely to keep a player coming back for the next game that I release. To develop my skills in narrative, playing games, watching films, and reading books will develop my understanding and act as a basis of research for future development of my own narratives. Understanding the reason that makes certain narratives popular allows me to make informed decisions. Another way to develop my skills with narrative is to write stories of my own, or develop plot points as an outline for a game and work towards creating a whole narrative for use in a game.

LO2

Evaluating my past projects – P3

Over the past 4 years, I have worked on many different projects and my skills have developed greatly over this time. At the end of most of these projects, I have evaluated what I thought of the final product as well as the production of the project. Re-evaluating some projects as well as reflecting on projects that I have not written about previously will give me a fresh understanding of my skills. I have worked on 10 projects overall, with two of those projects being outside of prior education.

Name of the Game	Release Date
Bowling Pong	18^th Oct 2019
Cavern Platform game	18^th Nov 2019
1969	24^th Jan 2020
The Pilgrim	13^th Oct 2020
The Pilgrim 2	4^th Dec 2020
Viral	30^th Apr 2021
Asteroids	14^th Oct 2021
Tip Slingers	17^th Jan 2022
Recycler	17^th Mar 2022
Breakout	16^thApr 2022

In order to evaluate my work, I need criteria to compare it to. I have 5 criteria with which I will rate my 10 projects on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 point corresponding to meeting one of my criteria.

Progression of skills – what did I learn from production?
Quality of content – is the game fun to play?
Meeting my expectations and intentions – Is this what I wanted to make?
Complexity of the game – Is the game too simple to be entertaining?
Design – Is the visual, level design, system design of good quality?

Name of the Game	Rating 1 – 5
Bowling Pong	3
Cavern Platform game	2
1969	4
The pilgrim	2
The pilgrim 2	3
Viral	2
Asteroids	3
Tip Slingers	4
Recycler	4
Breakout	4

The ratings tied to each of these games gives a basis for my personal opinion on the quality of the work; the rating will dictate which games I will highlight in my portfolio, showing my best work to people is the best way to present myself to people, professional or not. The work that I show on my portfolio won’t stay the same, as I continue to develop my skill, multiple games might hit 5/5 or my standards reach higher and a 4/10 isn’t as good to game with a higher base standard of quality. Maybe the criteria stays at 5 but the meaning of the criteria is different, at some point the progression in skill won’t be as notable. Whilst I’d still learn from the production, the leap in my knowledge won’t budge as much. The portfolio is a living page and in 5 years I won’t have work from last year because they likely won’t be as good. The evolution

Preparing a portfolio – P4

From this list, I am going to pick 4 projects to have a main highlight in my portfolio. I will then highlight what criteria those games did and did not meet. Reflecting on both negative and positive is how I can accurately evaluate my work and show the highlights of my skills and development in my portfolio. Doing so will act as my justification and reasoning behind my selection of work represented in my portfolio. The four games I am choosing to present in a portfolio are 1969, Pilgrim 2, Tip Slingers and Recycler. The choice to use these projects are backed by the evaluation of my past work. On my portfolio I will also be highlighting work on a project that is still in development, as this project is an excellent representation of gameplay design as well as my only team project as of now, an area of games development that definitely needs to be present on my portfolio.

The portfolio of work I have created can be seen here. The choices I have made during the self evaluation of my past work has been highlighted on the portfolio but it is subject to change. As I develop more games, I will develop better games which will move my older projects that are currently there out of the spotlight to show the best current me. A portfolio is a spotlight of me, its to show employers or clients the work I am capable of doing

Justifying the selection of work for my portfolio – M2 D1

There are different ways for me to present a portfolio, choosing how I will is the first step of prepping my portfolio of work. Creating a show reel which highlights a variety of work is one option, but my lack of experience in video editing out lines this as an option I am unlikely to take. Commonly a portfolio can be a web page of details, showing the work I have done, experience I have as well as listing my skills and greatest strengths. Over the past years, I have presented my work though web pages, the experience I have from doing this would help produce a portfolio effectively this way. A third option would be an interactive portfolio, showing my skills of game development by presenting them through a game. Creating a portfolio this way leaves the most guessing work, the content would be the same as the other options but how I present that work leaves me with many choices as I would be creating a game, a process which is not simple. An interactive portfolio would heavily depend on the presentation of visuals and art, an area that I do not have great strength in. I know which 4 games will be on my portfolio, I know which skills are my strongest and what is relative to my perfected area of development, gameplay design. All I need to do is choose which way I will present my portfolio, a web page or an interactive portfolio. Due to the art aspects of creating an interactive portfolio, I will be producing my portfolio as a page. In the future, creating a interactive portfolio would highlight my skills to a greater degree. For my portfolio I have presented a large portion of my work. On the page I have a section of 3 highlighted pieces of work and then further down, I have 6 more games I have worked on. What choices did I make which lead to me choosing this work? The main choice behind my presented work was the evaluation of my work, where I gave each game a rating out of 5 based on set criteria. Evaluating my work influenced my decision in my presented work. I did not choose each of the highest rated games, out of the group of the highest rated work I chose which work represented myself. The work that I have chosen for my portfolio are: Heatwave, Recycler, and 1969 as highlighted work and then as additional work: The Pilgrim, Viral, Breakout, Cavern Platform Game, Tip Slingers, and Asteroids. The use of a portfolio is to highlight my skills to an employer, what job am I looking for? How does my chosen work help with achieving that job? The field in the industry I am looking to work in is system design. This role is based around designing the mechanics behind a game. Responsibilities of the role are pitching mechanics, outlining how they are supported in the game and by other mechanics or reviewing and iterating on prior mechanics. How does the work in my portfolio help with me achieving a role in system design? The reasoning behind my choices are the games where I worked heavily on the mechanics, I made those choices in the belief that highlighting work where I have worked on mechanics will highlight my keen attitude to working on game mechanics and present my work to the specific job I am after. My work on Heatwave was predominantly based around the main mechanic of the game, when the player is in the sun, they have a limited time frame before they take damage. This connection is apparent in the other choices on my portfolio. 1969 was the first game where I spent time considering how the game interacts with itself, the different abilities that the player can get have bonuses against specific enemy types. For the third highlighted game on my portfolio, Recycler, the mechanics of the game do not lean on each other like in 1969, but the game is made using a singular script where the functions that make the game work are nested in one another. For the future development, continuing to work on game mechanics and highlighting that work on my portfolio assists me in getting a job in system design. Along side this, developing my skills in other engines, Unreal is a good choice for this as it is a widely used engine, development skills in general, working on different genres and widening my knowledge, or developing soft skills that will help in any future employment.

LO3

Business structures and legal frameworks of game development – P5

There are many ways that a business is structured, each type of business has its own benefits which means starting a business needs to be an informed decision in case I where to make the wrong choice. What are the different types of businesses? Sole trader, partnership, limited liability partnership, and limited company. Sole traders are single owners of the company, the owner is liable for all business expenses. Money that the company makes is tied to the owner of the company. These companies are simple to set up and require limited administration, meaning that the company can be run by a singular person. Along side the limited skill needed to run the company, there is no registration fee, which continues to lower the barrier of entry. All money made by the company, after tax, is kept by the owner of the company. The accessibility and simplicity of this company structure is highlighted by the fact that over half of private sector businesses are sole traders. The drawbacks of this business is that the owner and business are one, this does mean all company profits are the owners profits, but it also means that all company losses are the owners losses. Being liable for the entire company brings a massive amount of personal risk. Partnerships are similar to sole trader companies, except that the responsibilities are shared by the partners of the company. These companies have multiple owners, each of the owners are responsible for one another and the business. One partners negligence affects the other partners and the business. The same aspects of partnerships and sole traders are the simplicity to set up and the level of administration that is needed, although all partners are responsible for one another. Partnerships have shared revenues and shared liability. LLPs (Limited Liability Partnership) are a structured form of a partnership which makes it a more favourable choice for larger business or ones looking at expansion. A major difference between LLPs and partnerships is that the partners are not liable for the other partners. Bad decisions that one partner makes is that partners responsibility. The lack of liability for negligence may be why this structure is chosen over a partnership. LLPs come with increased registration costs and admin, although it is possible that less tax is paid when compared to sole traders. The increased admin is backed by the LLPs need to submit End of Year Accounts. An LTD company can still be registered by a sole trader, the reason why a sole trader may choose to do this is that it separates the company and owner. A sole trader is responsible for the debts of their company whilst the owner of an LTD is not responsible for the debts and liabilities of the company. LTDs have a much higher cost to run and register. The need of larger scale administration is required as LTDs have multiple workers, his leads to ongoing costs. Alongside this, LTDs have a company tax which adds further onto the cost of running an LTD. LTDs also have the decision to stay private or go public. Public LTDs are on the stock market and need to feed back to shareholders, private companies do not need to make any information public, which in the games industry may be favourable as information about unannounced games does not need to be public information.

Business plan for a game studio – P6 M3

businessplan Download

LO4

Reflecting on my skills & justifying the presentation content– P7 M4

The key element of a presentation is the work being presented, I have created several games and have reflected on what I have learnt from those projects, to present what my studio can do for its clients I will create a presentation that introduces my studio and the work that I have done in order to create a positive impression on my clients. What work will be in the presentation? The studio provides a range of services, the main service of the studio is game development in 2D, 3D, and VR. For each of these I will have a slide depicting projects of that type I have developed. The first page of work will be VR, starting with an area of development in an emerging technology will create an impression of a high-tech studio that is worth investment. For this slide I will show my work on an on-going project where the player uses a camera to take pictures of an environment for use a nature magazine that they are hired to work for. The main highlight of the work here is the ability to work in VR but also highlight the studios capability to create bespoke mechanics from scratch to fit whatever needs the client has. The next slide will be based around non-VR 3D games. Heatwave will be mentioned on this slide as it is the most impressive 3D game that I have worked on, I will also be able to mention my time working with a team on the project and reinforce the ability to create bespoke mechanics, as I created the main mechanic present in Heatwave. On this slide I will also mention 3D modelling, a skill that is not my strongest but is still worthwhile to mention as it widens the range of work the studio can provide, heightening the clients belief in the studio. I will use the model from a cancelled project to highlight my skill in 3D modelling as its art style will show a range when compared to Heatwaves realistic visuals.

The next slide will be about 2D development, after this slide I will present the skill set of the studio, a more business orientated slide and a slide about the practical skills of the studio. For my 2D slide Recycler is going to be the focus. My reasoning behind this is the focus on accessibility that I worked towards with the visuals of the game. When creating the art for this game, the limited need for assets left me with open opportunity to create a game inclusive of colour blindness. Highlighting the studios ability to work towards an accessible experience opens the studio up to clients that are looking for inclusive experiences.

Moving on from specific development, practical knowledge is the next slide and here I will talk about the specific technical details like what scripting language I write in, what engine I use, other software that I am proficient in, and adding any extra details that I may have yet talked about during the presentation. After the specific skills that focus on the development of games, I will move onto a wider professional skill set that will highlight soft skills such as teamwork and communication and my knowledge of the games industry as a market, highlighting this will make the business audience interested in what the business can provide for them. One of the slides will mostly focus on the business orientated information that the client will benefit from knowing. The client(s) understanding the process of development will help in their understanding of what work we would be doing if they where to hire us. Alongside the process of development, this slide will highlight other business related information. The reason for this slide is to appeal to the audience of the presentation, most of the content prior has been game related and introducing a business orientated slide will make the overall presentation more familiar to the primary audience of the business.