For our Capstone Project, Jake Federkeil and I will be working together to create a small video game using a program called GameMaker. The game, entitled “10” (which may change during creation), will explore the differences between digital natives and digital foreigners. As these two perspectives are explored, the [...]]]> Capstone Proposal

            For our Capstone Project, Jake Federkeil and I will be working together to create a small video game using a program called GameMaker. The game, entitled “10” (which may change during creation), will explore the differences between digital natives and digital foreigners. As these two perspectives are explored, the player will see that they are in fact not so different, and that the line between them is actually quite blurry. They will be presented with choices that require them to help or hurt others while attempting to complete a certain goal.

The game will be created for use in the GameMaker program, but may be expanded for use on computers without the program. We have chosen GameMaker because it is (relatively) easy to learn and it is a perfect match for the gameplay we plan to create. The game is based on a simple platformer expanded to incorporate fighting (shooting, punching, etc.) and special abilities. The player will move, jump, and shoot (weapons or abilities) through levels that scroll as the player moves right (directionally). The screen does not move as the player moves left, preventing the player from backtracking. They will encounter various forms of enemies throughout each level that may require special abilities to defeat or avoid. These enemies will be able to hurt the player, potential preventing the player from completing a goal or from moving on to the next. The player will move and perform actions using keyboard and mouse input. The mouse and keyboard will also serve as a means to manipulate the main menu (selecting to play a game, change the options, or view the credits).

The game’s title, “10”, represents the number 1 in binary code. Many people do not know binary code, so the title acts as a hook to pull potential players in. These players (because they do not know binary code or did not realize the title was a reference to such) will hopefully be players that can connect with the main character (because they both lack digital knowledge in some way or another). The player will begin the single-player story by being “sucked into” a computer screen. They will move through a background encountering and interacting with NPC’s (non-player characters). As the player progresses through the story, they will come across a group of digital natives (or hackers) who will recruit the player based on their potential displayed during previous levels. The player will work with this group in order to complete certain tasks to help them, gaining knowledge and abilities along the war. He/she will encounter bosses that require them to use new-found abilities or think of different ways to use them that allow them to defeat the boss and move on. One of the members of the digital native group (while on a mission with the player) will display a lack of digital knowledge that the others within his group do not know about. This begins to show how the line between digital natives and foreigners becomes unclear. Later in the story, the player will come across a group of foreigners that they will choose to help or harm, depending on their allegiance to the digital native group. Each option leads to its own final mission and game ending.

The game will consist of somewhere around five levels and five bosses. Abilities will be granted along the way for defeating bossed or completing missions. Abilities may include any of the following: email, email attachments, web search, coding, and hacking. Some other abilities (that we have not yet thought of) may appear in the game. As the player becomes stronger and gains new abilities, they will find themselves encountering a virus more often. The virus threatens to destroy the world (and the player), so the player must find ways to defeat and/or evade the virus when need be.

The abilities seek to emulate the knowledge one gains when learning to use the internet. The virus and non-player characters act as entities that people often encounter when using the internet. Just as the player encounters the virus more as they gain powers, people often encounter viruses more often as the time they spend on the internet increases. The NPC’s encountered by the player can be hostile, stand-offish, or inviting (genuinely or falsely), representing different groups one can come across while traversing the web.

Both Jake and I have used the GameMaker program (although we still have little experience), so we feel confident that we can complete the entire game (the five levels and story) by the deadline. Our biggest challenge to overcome is creating the art for the game. We are both science majors (Physics and/or Computer Science), and neither of us have any background in art. As such, the time taken to create the art will probably be equal to that of creating the other game elements.

We will split the workload evenly, both working on various aspects of the gameplay and art in conjunction with each other to make the game cohesive. We will both be responsible for completing half of the levels, but working together so that the levels will flow together nicely. We will also split up the game mechanics and artwork evenly, again working together to give the game a sense of continuity.

We will begin by creating the first mission. Following that, we will create/design the two final levels and game endings. Then, we will create the three other levels and implement the various abilities and gameplay elements (health, damage, effects, etc.). After the levels and gameplay elements are completed, a “level hub”, where the player chooses which level to enter next (though they may only enter the current level or previous ones), will be created. The remainder of the time will be spent on art, including the GUI (Graphical User Interface), characters, level backgrounds, music, and visual effects.

As this game is in the early planning stages, it is likely that some of the above-mentioned specifications may change. We will attempt to follow this proposal as closely as possible, but it may not be possible to implement some of the gameplay elements or include certain pieces of the story.