Self Reflection of a Year in Globaloria

I've been in Globaloria for 4 years and I have definitely seen improvement. I have come a really long way from making paper prototypes to programming and coding in Flash 2.0 and 3.0. I believe coding is a very difficult thing when you don't know exactly what to do, but once you get the hang of it, it becomes like a second nature. I'm very happy that I got to experience this class. I have definitely learned to appreciate things       things, such as games and animation, much more since taking it. As for blogging, I have always loved it. I love writing and reading just as much as I do art. This class incorporates all of these aspects that I enjoy and I am grateful for it. My blogging has improved significantly from when I first started and I can say that I am far beyond proud. I am definitely looking forward to taking this class and further my technology skills and learning new and better things! Can't wait!!

This is definitely my favorite game that I made in Flash!!

Win/Lose Scene.

   When the player loses, I want them to feel like they have to try again until they win. I want them to understand the importance of safe teen driving and that it's very critical to know what's safe and unsafe.

  This can be conveyed by showing the player a crashed vehicle giving the player a sense of sadness that they lost.
  When the player wins, I want them to feel happy and complete! They will feel content that they know what safe driving is and what it isn't.
  This will be conveyed through the winning scene which will be a green light telling them to 'Go!' and that they passed the game.

Level Layout

When I first designed my game on paper, it helped a great deal. For instance, I would know where everything would go and I wouldn't have to take too much time on placing things in different areas because I would already know.

I didn't make a lot of changes, mainly just with the way the scene would look like and whether or not there will be all the objects.
My decision to change things were mainly the coding. I have a very difficult time coding, so I would like to try to take each step slowly when adding different components.

Add Object Behaviors

I finally got it to work! I'm so relieved because I thought I'd never get it done... But it was definitely worth it once I fixed the coding and labels. Through more of my game, I will add other objects, decoys and enemies to make the game a little bit more difficult. It will take time just like this did, but hopefully it won't be so difficult because now I know what I'm doing.

Design Your Level

   When I was designing my level, I really payed attention to not making the the objects too close together and making sure I didn't just start the player off with objects, instead they have to gradually move into the object obtaining. 

   With my enemy, I simply just placed them near the obtainable objects that the player is supposed to be after and made sure it made the task a little more advanced and complicated.
   I made sure to be careful with my collectable object, making sure I didn't overwhelm the player by just starting off the game with a task. Instead, they gradually moved into the task.
   As for the player's experience, I hope that the player finds the game enjoyable and informational about safe teen driving. 

"Egypt's Islamists warn giving women some rights could destroy society" - Ten Minute Read Summary.

This article was mainly about Islamist women in Egypt getting equal rights. The U.N has declared women's rights to travel, work, and use contraception without her husband having any control over what she can and cannot do. But, President Mohamed Mursi, is completely against the idea and wishes to condemn it all together. These rights would allow the woman to file complaints against her husband if he were to sexually harass, rape or abuse her. The law would have to punish him all the same if he had done it to a stranger. My question is, Why is President Mohamed Mursi so against it the liberation of  Islamist women in Egypt? 

Create an Enemy.

In my game, I want the player to be able to have fun in the game and learn. The player will be obtaining the good objects and avoiding the bad, but also trying to catch the parachutes that will be falling every once and a while that contain factoids within them. Hopefully the game will come out as planned and with all the levels and objects needed to make my game interesting.

Collect the Collectable.

My experience with the collectable object was pretty easy. I didn't have much difficulty adding the code because the person on the wiki helped greatly by walking through the steps one by one. With this new code ability, I would like for the player to be able to collect different objects like the parachutes falling from the sky that would have helpful factoids about safe driving for teenagers.

Increase the Player's Score.

The score in the game continued to increase because the player kept coming into contact with the object and    the object didn't disappear after doing so. So, the score increased every time the player collided with the object.
We can fix the problem simply by telling the code to get rid of the object upon contact with the player and only increasing the score by 1 after doing so.

Create a Score Counter

  I believe that games with score motivate the player to keep getting a better score. Mainly because if they reach a high score, they will be rewarded by being able to put their name on a list where everyone can see what they scored on the game.
  In my opinion, I enjoy games with score over games without score for the reason that you know how good you are doing and you wouldn't have to guess whether or not you are doing really bad or really great.
 

Create a Collectable Object.

More movement will definitely help my game. Such as, the dropping of my parachutes onto the car and the movement of the car by itself with the help of the player's finger swiping it to do different activities. Hopefully I will get these things incorporated into my game...

Move the Player.

I don't plan on using this coding for my game because I want the player to continuously be moving in order to  collect the objects. Also I want the gamer to control the the player with swipes of their finger.

Programming with Action Script 3.0

1)What was it like using code to move your objects?
2)If you’ve used AS2 before what differences did you find between the two?
3)What are some other ways you think we’ll be using code to make your game?

The coding wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be. So, therefore, I'm happy..
The difference between Actions Script 2 and 3 was that the coding is definitely different, not completely, but subtly. Then there's the fact that Action Script's 3 code is in a different file.
I don't understand the 3rd question....?

My Player!

My player in the game is a car. I chose this as my player simply because the game is about safe driving. I want the player to play as the car to understand what it's like to be driving in the game and what it's like to drive and obtain and avoid certain objects. Hopefully the game will come out as planned and will be better than my last game. I believe no other object or person would be a better fit for the part.

Drawing A Background

   While drawing my background in flash, I found it to be tedious and time consuming. I enjoy drawing on paper more than I do in Flash, because of the fact that when drawing on paper, my creativity is easier to draw than it would be in Flash.
   The main differences I find when drawing in Flash than on paper is the difficulty. I find it difficult to draw in Flash because I have a small pad to move my finger on compared to a sheet of paper and a pencil. So, I prefer paper over Flash, but working in Flash is interesting because I can add animation and a better color scheme.
   With creating a paper prototype, I found that it helped me a great deal because I could map out all my ideas before drawing in Flash.

Making the Paper Prototype:

Making a paper prototype was easy. I actually enjoy making them because it gives me an idea of what my game is going to look like. Even though sometimes my game won't come out looking exactly the way it does on paper, it's always good to have something to fall back on when drawing in Flash.
   The paper prototype helped me to visualize what I wanted my game to look like and it help me understand just  how much work I'm going to have to put into my game!

Game Learning Topic

I chose safe driving as a mobile game topic because I feel that it would make an interesting Adventure/Action game. Also, it would be ideal for a mobile game because the controls would be easy and so would the scrolling background.
I chose the topic because I, as a teenager, am interested in knowing more about being a safe driver, and I am certain that other teenagers feel the same way.
I would use the scrolling background in my game by having the car continuously moving through out the game and the car will be jumping to avoid the bad objects that prevent people from being a safe driver. I will also allow the player to tap on the facts boxes that are falling from the sky in order to learn facts about safe driving.

Imagine Team Game

In my game, I believe the age group best suited for this type of mobile game is: Teens.
I think that teens will benefit most from this type of game because it teaches about Safe Driving.
The skill ability required for this game would be: Being able to focus on many things at once. Such as, being able to collect the good things and avoid the bad things, and obtain the boxes falling from the sky with parachutes in order to learn the facts of driving, and finally to watch for the speed limits.
My game will take place on a road where the player will have to obtain different objects and avoid others.
The setting will just be a road with a scrolling background with trees and possibly other cars also.
The game will teach the player about Safe Driving because they will have to know the good things to do while driving and the bad things to do while driving. There will also be facts DROPPING FROM THE SKY!!!

Mobile Game Plan:

  My vision for my game is to help the player succeed at being a safe driver. They will learn the "good" and the "bad" things to do while driving. There will also be facts about safe driving and how to be a safe driver. Throughout the game the player will be faced with obstacles that they must overcome in order to earn a score worthy of being a safe driver. I also vision my game being very helpful to new teen drivers who need a little more information on the topic.
  The thing that excites me most about my game is: Helping Teen Drivers Understand Safety When Driving.
I want teens (and even adults) to be safer drivers on the roads and know what to do while driving and how to do it. There will informational facts about driving and I might even put in some statistics to help teens realize what happens when you're not a safe driver.

Choosing a Learning Topic!

   I chose safe driving as a Game Topic because I feel that teens need more information about safe driving. When teens get their learner's permit, they are all excited about being able to drive that they may not take all the safety precautions needed. Also, it's important to know what to do and not to do when driving!
   We want the player to learn what is safe and what is unsafe when driving. In order to avoid distractions, they have to know what the distractions are before-hand.
 

Learn to Design for Mobile.

  For the Console game, I would design an awesome action filled adventure game with realistic graphics and backgrounds! I would have button combos and enemies attacking the player. I would try to make the greatest game EVER!
  For the Mobile game, I would tone down on the action and make it more simple. I would probably have the player run through courses and not have an enemies attacking because then they would need to press buttons in order to perform attacks, and we all know that having buttons on a Mobile device is VERY complicated.

The main difference between the two games would be Action. I wouldn't put a lot of action into the mobile device, but I would for the console. Also, I would like to have the mobile game be simpler.

PlayStation 4!!

This PlayStation 4 is going above and beyond. Technology wise, anyway. This new, updated Sony product has improved on it's features. Touch screen controller, speakers built in and it's also much sleeker than the original controller. Then there's the game system itself. There is now more memory, 8GB to be exact, and there is also there the option to play the game that you are downloading at the same time!! Finally, we all know what it's like to be downloading an AWESOME game, but then you have to leave!! Normally, you have to turn off the console, stop downloading and leave, but now, you can turn the console off and still download games!! Sony sure has come a long way!

Black History Month Game

This is a game I created in Flash for Black History Month.

 It is about Langston Hughes, a famous poet, novelist, and social activist.

In order to Play it, you have to click on the objects that are hidden throughout the game that represent Langston Hughes.

Black History Month: Langston Hughes

James Mercer Langston Hughes was born on the first day of February in 1902. A few of the many things that he was, was an American Poet, Social Activist, and a Novelist. During his active years as a poet, he has written approximately 348 poems and as a Novelist, he has written approximately 31 books. Besides being a Poet and Novelist, he was also was a Social Activist in which participated in many strikes and also he wrote about many problems taking place in the African-American community. Many of his poems and books deal with his struggles and the struggle of his people and how he wants the world to change.

Presentation of Game

   My learning topic for my game, "Handling Stress", is learning how to handle stress the right way. There will be both objects that help handle stress properly, like sports objects, reading materials, and movies, then there will be objects that are bad ways of handling stress, like alcohol and drugs.
   For research, I looked at a lot of polls taken by teens about which ways were best on handling stress. The majority said being active or just hanging out and reading a good book or watching a good movie helped lower their stress. Then there were things like taking up an activity that they enjoyed.
    My ideas didn't change so much, but on thing did. When I first thought of the game, I thought about a drag and drop game instead of a hidden object game, but that changed rather quickly.
   The resources I used were VERY helpful in coding. Especially the Magnifying Glass and the Zooming ingredient. If I didn't have the coding for these ingredients, I would never have made it through my game successfully.
   The coding was most difficult and has always been most difficult for me to this day, but having a something to refer to in the Wiki made it manageable. Through all the coding and madness of not knowing what's wrong with it, I am most proud of how smooth the magnifying glass came out even though there are MANY glitches still happening.

Add Game Ingredients

     I had a lot of problems with my game ingredients, but my main concern is trying to fix the code for the magnifying glass ingredient. I had all of my ingredients working before I put in the hard one. Now the only ingredient that is working is the hard game ingredient. So my progress on making my game work isn't going as planned, but I will try to fix the coding even though nothing looks wrong and there isn't any errors in the code.