Instructinator

This is a questionnaire for an application I did a few years back, It should answer some of the questions about what makes me a game designer.

Why are you (or were you), interested in joining the games industry?

I chose to pursue a career in the games industry at an early age. Since then I have been watching the industry grow. I keep a close eye on companies, games,  technologies, and the trends and fads the produce.  My goal has always been to make games. All of my free-form projects in high school, university, and media college always revolved around games in some way or another. Game design is what I have always wanted to do.

Why would a mission scripting position be appealing to you?

I am a fixer by nature. I have a critical eye, and I am always looking for ways to make something better with a simple tweak. My development experience has taught me time and time again that looking objectively at a mission or environment for ways to improve it, is never a waste of time.  Each detail of a triple A product needs to be carefully considered. On PS2, this is even more the case since what you see on a PC screen is not what you will get on the PS2 hardware sometimes. I worked with PS2 development kits during my internship at Factory One Games.

What games are you currently playing?

I am always playing Morrowind. I also just finished Doom 3, Far Cry, Fable, Zelda: Wind Waker, Thief 3, Sims 2, Burnout 3, and Mortal Kombat Deception. The list goes on and on, I try to play a bit of everything that comes out, and any recomendations from my peers in the industry.
What is one of your favorite games, and how would you make it even better?

A console game that is a favorite and flawed is The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. Why do they make you have a sail item, for your boat, that you must go into the menu every time and re-equip, if you only ever get one sail? Shouldn’t the boat just automatically swap your inventory? Or have the sail as a function of the boat itself? Add to that the travel times between islands; one of the worst things I find about this game. Simply adding faster/better sails for the players would have made this game a lot better. They already have an item with stats, just duplicate and alter the object, hide it in the water somewhere, done. Or if they wanted to be good about it, they could make a dungeon for finding the fast sail. This would make a reason for it to be an item, solve the travel time issue, and add content and depth at the same time.
What game genre(s) do you prefer, if any?

I play everything from Massive Multiplayer Online Games like World of Warcraft, to simple puzzle  games like Tetris. I really enjoy first person shooter action games, the first person perspective is interesting because the perspective is the avatar, but beyond that it is in the first person engines from Epic and id that we often get to see the new level of graphics for the first time. Those engines are used to create all sorts of games for the coming years. It’s fun to play them in their original state.

Do you prefer PC or console games? Why?

I do not favor one or the other, I have all the consoles and my PC is always up-to-date.  I prefer first person on PC, and action/adventure on console. Also I like the PC for its ability to allow me to create my own content for the games I play.
Describe your role on the last game you worked on, if applicable.

Neosaka: The Forgotten was the last project I worked on. It is a mod for UT2004 over a 9 month development cycle.  I was the team lead, or ‘Director’ of the project. I had final say on all aspects, helped design the levels, created assets, all of the marketing materials, scheduling, recruiting for outside help like audio, and video.  I fixed-up allot of the textures, did all of the interface design and assets, and fixed a lot of the scripts in the game.

But for the most part my job was to make the team run smoothly, and make sure that things got done on time and at quality. I resolved lots of team issues and even huge technical crises (like when all of our animation data became un-useable with only 1 month left).  In the end we pulled together a very nice presentation and our mod has made it into the finals for the Make Something Unreal Competition. You can take a look and download a copy at www.neosaka.com

Have you done any scripting or programming before?

I learned Java at UNB, and I have been using JavaScript for the past 5 years. My best language is Lingo. I made a very good living doing Director CD-Roms and Shockwave back in New Brunswick for many years while I was going to school there. But even as far back as high school I was coding games from scratch in Qbasic.

Have you done any game, mission, or level design work before?

I have done level design for X2, and Factory One’s Soccer Skillz. I have scripted dozens of missions in Morrowind. I have lots of documentation and game design experience from school, and the projects I worked on as I was attending. Also, I did a lot of game, mission, and level design for Neosaka. The Dojo level in Neosaka is all my work.

List some elements you have used to make your levels or missions exciting, if applicable.

A good mission is comprised of a series of moments, and a good risk/reward scenario. I like to design the objective (reward) and the situation (risk) first. Then create an interesting series of moments to take the player through it. In Neosaka this pattern can be seen over and over again. Each moment is punctuated with a cinematic. The rewards are the power-ups, and the risk is running through the museum full of guards as you try to make your escape.

What world-building or 3D packages are you familiar with, if any?

I am very comfortable with TES Construction Set (Morrowind) and UnrealEd (UT3). I have also used Aurora (Neverwinter Nights), Woldcraft (Halflife), and RED (Red Faction). As for 3D, I am most comfortable in Maya, but my first 3D package was 3D Studio Max. I have also worked in: LightWave, RayDream, Poser, Bryce, Canoma, and Carrara.

What role in game development would you eventually like to take on, and why?

I would like to become a producer. I have been a competent manager on a variety of independent projects and have no trouble taking a leading role. I enjoy the work of scheduling and problem solving. So a management position seems like a good place for me eventually.

OBJECTIVE: Game Designer

To join a game development team where my broad experience in media production, and genuine passion for games will help to create a fun, polished and successful product.

HIGHLIGHTS OF QUALIFICATIONS

• 3+ yrs as Level Design Instructor at The Art Institute of Vancouver (AI) -Teaching; Documentation, Design Fundamentals, Level Design using Unreal, Board Game Design, and Post Production.
• 3 yrs game experience as Motion Capture Specialist at Electronic Arts (EA) - Scripting many tools and producing animation for almost every EA franchise including games like Fight Night, NHL, Godfather, and Dead Space.
• Experience working in virtually every form of electronic media – print, web, audio, film, TV and interactive games (Education and Casual).
• Strong technical knowledge – Scripting in Java, Python, Lingo, Action Script, Unreal Script, and EA’s proprietary tools scripting languages.
• Level building expertise – Unreal 3, Unreal 2004, Source, Aurora, and TES.

EXPERIENCE

Game Design Instructor 2007-Present

The Art Institute of Vancouver-Burnaby

• Developing curriculum and instructing: Post Production for Games, Game Design 1, Game Design 2, Level Design Foundations, and Advanced Level Design
• Instructing 2-4 courses per term
• Helping students troubleshoot and polish work to a portfolio presentation level

Motion Capture Specialist 2 2005-2008

Electronic Arts Canada, World Wide Motion Capture Studio

• Producing motions for nearly every EA Sport title released from 2006-2009, and many other top selling EA Games titles
• Assisting in U-Cap pioneering (ie, PS3 Tiger Woods demo at E3 2006)
• Scripting many tools to accelerate and measure the data pipeline

Designer & Environment Modeler 2003-2004

Soccer Skillz for Factory 1 Games, 3D Sports Game for PS2

• Working with the lead designer to flesh out better systems for gameplay & more attractive easy-to-understand documentation
• Collaborating with modeling team members to complete all asset creation tasks weeks ahead of schedule

EDUCATION

Game Art & Design Diploma 2002-2004

The Art Institute of Vancouver-Burnaby

• 2 year program focusing on Game Design, Game Production, Project Management, Interface Design, Level Design, Game History, Advanced 3D Lighting, Texturing, Modeling, and Animation.

Digital Communications Diploma with Honors 1999-2000

New Brunswick Community College, Fredericton campus

• Intensive course in multimedia authoring for web and CD-Rom with emphasis on interactivity, 3D animation, video compositing, and graphic design.

Faculty of Arts, Multimedia Major 1997-2001

University of New Brunswick, Fredericton campus

• Excelled in classes dealing with Java Programming, Interactive Design Theory, Typography, Photography, Advanced Color and Compositional Theory, Computer Logic, and Object-Oriented Programming Theory.

NOTABLE GAME PROJECTS

• Programmed 3 games in Qbasic in a team of 3, 1995 – 1997
• Authored Norland and RPG for Palm Pilot, 1998
• Created DC Invasion on-line Shockwave game done in a single frame, 1999
• Programmed Triple Triad. A card game for PC including multi-player modes, 2000
• Midwifery in Early Modern Europe, Educational Software for University of NB, 2001
• Authored a Virtual Tour of UNB’s Multimedia building using the Half-life engine, 2001
• Game Designer for X2 an epic 2D side scroller with a team of 10 students, 2003
• Lead Designer for Zero|One an RPG project in association with Bioware and Nvidia using the Aurora Engine, 2004
• Director of Neosaka a total conversion using Unreal Tournament 2004 leading a team of 12 over a 9 month period. The project was a finalist in the Make Something Unreal 2004 competition, 2004

REFERENCES AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST

Jeff Mundee – Game Designer – Vancouver, BC

This is about pulling the player around a level, whether it is a single player level or a multiplayer environment the basics remain the same. There are 3 main ways to lead a player through a map. Light, geometry, and pickups.

With Pickups:

Leading the player with Pickups (pac-man method) involves placing pickups in a way that draws the player towards where they should go using their greed or need impulses. Value of these pickups is only an issue when there are more than one pickup in view. Usually you can place anything obtainable by the player in their view, and they will go out of their way to obtain it, even if they don’t need it.
Mario coins, Sonic Rings, Health Vials, are all examples that spring to mind.

An example that might not spring to mind, is using an enemy or group of enemies to pull in the same way. The player wants action, or to harvest drops off the enemies. So you can treat enemies as Mario coins in this way.

With Light:

Using light or absence of light to show the way is a subtle almost subconscious way to guide a player through an environment.

In that example from The Darkness the player is lead left to the light source even though his powers demand he stay out of the light.

The path in Gears of War is almost always lead with light.

Players will gravitate to doorways which are well lit and often ignore darkly lit or under lit paths and doors.

With Geometry:

Geometry can be used in a lot of ways to lead the player but there are some basics that should always be considered.

One way is the management of the main resource in shooting, Line of Sight. A player given the choice between two exits, one with more and one with less line of sight, they will associate the larger path with the “way they are supposed to go”.

In the example above you can see how a simple edit can drastically alter a decision point in a level. By increasing line of light by opening up the angle to the left I can draw the player toward that choice.

With a Combination:

These principals can come together to create an intuitive flow to a level, where the player natualy makes decisions that lead him allong the right path. This can avoid allot of the complaints players sometimes have about getting lost or backtracking to find the exit to a dungeon.

In the above image they are using all 3 types of pull; Light on the left, Pickups with the enemies, and the geometry is far more open to the left which opens up line of sight. Plus the ground tilts left inviting the player to turn left. The choice between these two paths to any player is clear.

Games can be broken down in many ways, you could divide the level design and the core design, when describing the application of challenge. You could further divide that core into UI, mechanics, and couple them with the level design and talk about gameplay. But before you have any of that, during the conceptual phase it is important to look at the game in lager sense.

The Hook:
The hook is the fun new thing in the game that makes it stand out from others in the genre. This is usually a primary feature of the game.

The Core:
The core mechanics, including but not limited to; perspective, genre, UI standards, and primary mechanics.

The Fantasy:
The fantasy aspect in a game refers to the intended level and focus for the suspension of disbelief. It’s the illusion that you are not sitting in a chair, that you are controlling an avatar doing something else somewhere else.

Its a quick way of describing a game and hitting the high points. A good tool for elevator pitches, marketing speak, and to identify the pillars of the game during the conceptual phase.

This method can be applied loosely to other forms of new media. Film will sometimes have a hook, a core and obviously the big one in film the fantasy aspect.

What is a game?
Jesper Juul’s definition is: “A game is a rule-based formal system with a variable and quantifiable outcome, where different outcomes are assigned different values, the player exerts effort in order to influence the outcome, the player feels attached to the outcome, and the consequences of the activity are option and negotiable.”

I agree with the first part: “A game is a rule-based formal system with a variable and quantifiable outcome, where different outcomes are assigned different values, the player exerts effort in order to influence the outcome,…”
This is essentially the prime directive for interactivity, Choice.
But requiring the player to feel attached to the outcome, or asserting that consequences in games all have negotiable outcomes by definition is a bit restrictive for a definition of all games.

If you take this definition from a different standpoint, it could be a definition that developers could strive to achieve for every game they make. Because games that do fit this definition, in all aspects of their mechanics, would only be better for having it.

FF6 – Evolution of adventure storytelling

Description:
Final Fantasy 6, was an RPG for the Super Nintendo which is widely known by fans of the series to be the best. There are several reasons for this. However these reasons do not include best graphics, or best sound quality, or the best characters, or the best enemies or combat system. The reason for this being voted best final fantasy game by an overwhelming majority of 81% in 2001, is because of it’s illusion of non-linearity, it’s great ending and its diffusion of the ancient recipe for myth and heroism.

System:
Who is the main character in FF6? There is none. There are cohesive arguments for at least 6 of the characters to be the “main protagonist” in FF6. because they all have equal screen time and equally important roles in the overarching story.

The player starts off controlling the enemy. Which includes one of the heroes who later joins the rebels. Then the scene cuts and you are thrust into the shoes of another avatar. This one meets up the first and they escape, meeting up with an old friend of theirs in the next town, and by this point the player’s expectations are already thoroughly confused. This pattern is amplified in the beginning of the second half when you wake up on a beach with none of your party but a girl who had only recently joined the group as your only available avatar.

By hopping between characters and their motives as the focus for different segments of the game the player cannot easily determine the outcome based on the formulae they are used to experiencing. The normal arc of a story is cut up and divided among the group with an overarching story which affects them all. Other games that have tried this and failed have not gone so far as to make precisely equal that amount of content for each character, or worse have not had the balls to take the player away from the “main protagonist” for more than a short period of time.

Implication:
This is the evolution of the “hero’s quest” story structure. This is the “party’s quest” story structure that has yet to be fully discovered. Other mediums have done other things to try and put this feeling of decentralization across to the user. The movie Pulp Fiction used a non-linear showing of it’s scenes to isolate the protagonists and their conflicts and was successful for those of the audience who were not simply confused by it. In games we have the luxury of interactivity and huge amounts of time to get the job done. So it falls to us to flesh this tool out and document it for whatever medium will follow.

Jeff Mundee March 11, 2004

Black and White – Learning AI

Description: Black and White is a game in which you play a god sent to a planet to do good or evil. The path you choose shapes the land and the inhabitants. You are given a creature of your choosing to act as your visible avatar in the world. But you have limited control over this creature and they must be controlled somewhat like a pet animal.

System:
In Black and White you are given a creature which you can train to work for you. You can teach them to play and work but the use of a praise/ punishment system. When you show the creature something an action, you can then access the interface for the praise/ punishment. Then you can either encourage the action or discourage it by either beating the creature or petting it.

Implication: This system could be used in any game where you have in-direct control of an avatar for prolonged periods of time. This is the foundation for a great system for teaching a program what behavior you would like to be performed, and what ones to avoid.

AI, of this nature is comprised of a set of available actions for a context. Say there is the context of a villager in front of the character. There is a list of actions to choose from. Either the creature can kill the villager, perform a food miracle and feed the villager, or pick the villager up and transport it to where it needs to go. If killing the villager has a lower rating then the probability that the creature will perform the killing action will decrease.

This way, simply making lists of actions with ratings in context we could perhaps have an enemy stalking the player, use ratings of actions in context to learn the players objectives and motives. Use that information for the AI character to formulate plans to track and thwart the player, or even move ahead of the player and lay traps where it knows the player is likely to fall for them. Think if Kefka had this AI in Final Fantasy 6. That would be a fun gameplay experience.
Jeff Mundee March 18, 2004

Final Fantasy, two games in one

All of the games in the ever popular final fantasy series have a few things in common. One of the core elements that these games always share is the “Battle system”. In the beginning this was done because the most effective way to display combat and the most effective way to navigate a map for the purposes of exploration were different. So rather than toning down the combat system or making the exploration weaker, they decided to make a hard cut between the two.

Now, here in the land of 3D this problem no longer exists. But the fans of the series are so used to this setup that it cannot change. For other RPGs though in this generation I think it is a bit of a copycat cop-out to cut to battle. This is an old design standard that can be replaced with more transparent design.

RPGs don’t need to be two games in one anymore, they can now be a smooth integration of these gameplay standards.

Jeff Mundee Jan 29th 2004

Concept: Futuristic racing game in which the racer can control the magnetic fields of their vehicles.

Gameplay: Same as standard racing game, (Fzero, Wipeout,) except: Ability to rotate the magnetic field, allowing vehicles to attract and repel each other, either front to back or side to side. They also have the ability to increase and decrease the intensity of the magnetic field.

Attract yourself to someone in front of you and use them to pull you. So long as they do not switch their magnetic field back toward you.  You will never have enough fuel to complete a race and therefore you must strategically use the other cars to get around the track.

Locking with other characters to prevent people from passing you, then switching the magnetic field on your pal, thrusting him into the wall.

Other things you could do is attract yourself to another player who is taking the turn more on the inside and use him as a sort of aid to make the turn. Magnetic emplacements along the track could provide this dynamic as well.

The finer points of this system are complex and difficult but I think that players of varying levels could find fun ways to play with this magnetic racer.

Left triger – Positive

Right Triger – Negative

Left Thumb to steer

Right thumb to aim Magnet.
Jefff Mundee Jan 15th 2004

Challenge is fun, so why are some challenges in games not fun? One of the primary factors that lead to frustration for the player comes right down to communication. Because the player is an active participant in the medium, you need to instruct them or inform them about what is going on.

In some instances this can be compared to not telling someone how to play poker before you start. In other circumstances though, it is like taking the production of a linear medium back a step. Imagine a director not telling his editors what the movie is about, or what the target audience is .. imagine they don’t tell them any thing at all. How the hell are they supposed to do a good job cutting together hours maybe days of shots into a 90 min thing that’s fun to watch. I’ll tell you how; trial and error. Frustrating, tedious, repetitive work. Exactly the kind of response that not communicating effectively or informing the player will produce.

If you let the player know somehow that there are traps in the dungeon, by maybe having an NPC die from one in a cinematic, the player will be prepared for the event of dying by surprise. The shock and surprise will still be there in the instance of the trap that kills them, but their reaction to it will be tempered by their mental preparation. This preparation for challenge can be the difference between fun and not fun, return it to EB.

Inspiration, preparation, fear.