As part of the Project module (which was a year long module), I had to choose for myself a topic that interested me and either do a purely research-based project or create an artifact in the form of a game and then write up about the process. I initially decided to research the differences between Western Role-Playing Games (RPGs) and Japanese RPGs, but this eventually switched to the differences between classic and modern game design and whether players had a preference for either. The final title was "Comparing Classical Game Design to Modern Game Design; Exploring the Effects on Player Experience".
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I started by doing a study on these grouping I was making of classic and modern, analysing the combat, UI design and specialised features. The classic games I looked at were Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy VII. The modern games I looked at were Bravely Default, Final Fantasy VII Remake and Dragon Quest XI. From my report I made a list of what I believed would be essential for my games and made a mock-up of what the design would look like, then started development on the classic game.
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The classic requirements were:
•Turn-based combat – popular and classic style of combat system
•A party of 1 character – Dragon quest started with singular hero with variety of abilities
•No job system – Single hero needs diverse skillset to deal with all issues
•Equipment will be used – A small set of equipment will be available to provide some choice in how you want to focus your play
•Mana system will be used – Common and simple to understand point system
•UI details: player stats; command box; dialogue box; 2D background and sprites – Mostly unchanging and provides all utility needed
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The modern requirements were:
•Turn-based/Action combat – Blend more common now to introduce more intensity to the game and less inaction
•A party of 4 character – Unique characters with different skillsets to provide more strategic opportunity with some customisation
•Character job system – Each character fills a specific predetermined role
•Equipment will be used – A small set of equipment will be available to provide some choice in how you want to focus your play
•Mana system will be used – Common and simple to understand point system
•UI details: player stats; command box; dialogue box – retains key UI elements to keep track of combat
•3D environment and models with free movement – Allows for more interactive gameplay and utilising the space
Eventually after both games were completed through a weekly iterative testing methodology with additional feedback from a supervisor, I did final test run-throughs of the games for balancing purposes and then started the study. I had a total of 20 participants who filled out the Player Experience Inventory Questionnaire which is recognised standard. I also collected some additional data from everyone and with half the participants chosen randomly I did a short interview section to get a more qualitative perception of how things went rather than just quantitative data. The results showed some strengths and weaknesses of both games, but a further study with more control and more participants would be needed for a conclusive result either way as only two of the 10 categories had a clear leaning when using their p-score. I think it was a successful project where I learned a lot about the process of studying games to learn from their design for my own development, how planning and making two quite large games works and revealing factors I hadn't initially considered, and the process of running a study by myself. Writing the report was also valuable for me to help reflect on what I was doing in the moment and at the end of the project once it was done.