This is the result as I attempt to unlock the mysteries of the Starcraft 2 Editor. Transforming a Real Time Strategy into a Tower Defense seems easier than it is.

AlchemyTD

Alchemy TD Movie

This was my Assignment 5 for Social Media Applications. It was a community conception behind electronically uploading single origin coffee taste testing and latte art: ristretto

Social Media Proposal
Game Developer’s Name: Ian Cairns
Date: 4/20/13
Social Media Concept: www.ehandshake.com

In this social media applications project, I set out to solve a problem that I, as well as most of my colleagues, have when it comes to networking and delving deeper into the fast paced world of professionalism. The system is designed primarily to find a less demanding and less obtrusive solution to the modern problem of networking and trying to remember all the names and pertinent context of having met another networker. The Handshake utilizes new commercial electronic components like RFID chips, Smartphones and Google Glass to expedite the transfer of personal data between one user to another in person. Using this product eliminates the need for handing over business cards, jotting down notes about your encounter, or manually entering an email or request to be LinkedIn contacts.

This sort of transfer has been attempted before with QR codes which are only somewhat effective and look unnatural and aesthetically sterile. Wearing a wristwatch on your wrist, your phone in your pocket and an optional HUD through Google Glass. You can, with the shake of a hand, transfer your contact information via electronic business card, send a friend request on LinkedIn, send a “Nice to meet you” email, and take a picture of your new friend as well as log the place and time that you met. This is even intuitive enough to know this is a friend you have already met and go through a variant of the process which logs your umpteenth encounter.

Via Glass, the network can give you a HUD of shared interests and hobbies, common acquaintances and important projects that they are working on or have worked on. The HUD can serve to smooth a conversation giving it momentum. The Handshake system does not replace human introduction but catalyzes it.

Vision:
Finally business people can share their personal digital profile in person with a shake of
the hands.

Summary
● Genre:
○ Networking, Business Tools
● Differentiating selling points
○ The digital handshake helps to provide the user with contextual information when
trying to recall a meeting.
● Concept
○ When you are at a big event or a conference you meet so many people in such a
short amount of time. Using the Smart Card (RFID) contactless scanning
technology (like Octopus), your smartphone, and your new set of Google glasses
you can quickly send and receive pertinent information about yourself with others
using another smartphone.
○ A specially modified bracelettype
device combined with an app on a smartphone
in your pocket and a pair of Google Glass or specially modified eyeglasses equals
the ultimate in personal data transfer. The bracelet sends and receives
rewriteable data to a close contact reader device (usually other bracelets of its
type.) The smartphone receives a bluetooth signal from the reader and transfers
its data to the app. The application
● Target audience
○ Trade professionals or business people that love the modern ease of creating and
managing a large professional network. These people have small business
related coffee dates as well as go to large intercompany events or trade
conferences. They love the idea of knowing people but don’t always have the
energy to remember every interaction they have. The inability to juggle a
conference full of identities bothers them to degree even if they don’t know it or
won’t admit it. After using the system they will find a new trendy way to stand out
as well as become the ultimate networker and part of the higher echelon of
business networker.
● Key innovations
○ The Handshake system can save countless hours of data input and replace it
with real communications.
○ The Handshake system will sort your contacts as defined by their profile data.
This could be by the event, time, place, etc.
Situations
● Situation 1
■ Users will go to events or conferences with their usual sets of gadgets
and gizmos they currently use for data reference and internet connection.
The act of shaking someones hand or getting sensors close enough to
transfer (approx. 10cm) sends a signal to the smart phone with the
extracted data. The smartphone utilizes main avenues of social media
networks like Facebook, Twitter and/or LinkedIn to search and connect the
other user.
● Situation 2
○ You have this system but your contact doesn’t.
■ Handshake will take a snapshot of your contact (and/or the contact’s
business card and attempt to identify them. If successful, the contact will
be sent requests based on the information retrieved.

Ian Cairns

Open Mic: An Online Music Jamming and Busking Website

This concept is an amalgamation of the innovative ideas that have been springing up in the drive for creating a music collaboration platform via the internet. The collective goal of these endeavors is to create a thriving worldwide music community that is no longer limited by the geographic borders and constraints of that have prevented cross cultural communication in the past.

I was influenced heavily by some groundbreaking projects such as Mark Johnson’s Playing for Change and Eric Whitacre’s Virtual Choir and Amanda Palmer’s Grand Theft Orchestra. At first, I was tempted to simply push the instruments in which people play in this method. I.e. Virtual Choir becomes Virtual Symphony. However, as I delved deeper into this concept, I found a multitude of applications all centering around the ways that musicians interact both with each other and with their audience.

Each of these influences are unique and innovative in their own right. Playing for Change is a recording project that takes equipment around the globe to talented street musicians who each add to the track and in the end have helped to produce an amazing piece of music with styles of various cultural influence. The project is focused on showing the music community from around the world as well as people who enjoy music that in this new technological age, music is no longer limited by the conventional methods.

Also working towards this mission is Eric Whitacre who takes a more technologically different approach. Virtual Choir connect singers from around the world to create a virtual choir who perform pieces , composed by Whitacre in, real time with a multitude of participants. The effect is inspiring. The model for interaction here is one of epically large proportion to illustrate once again the loss of physical boundaries within technology.

Amanda Palmer brings an important ingredient to the mix as she has recently created the most successful music Kickstarter campaign to date. She attributes her success to her willingness to appeal to the audience. Her ability to use crowdsourcing in a way not seen before is a trend I hope to encourage by designing this platform.

With all that said, my design is to combine these trends by creating a platform in which musicians can interact in the various ways they are accustomed yet with the amplified presence that comes hand in hand with the new technological age. If the community takes to this method it could revolutionize the music industry and music as an art.

Game Developer’s Name: Ian Cairns
Date: 3/31/13
Game Title: OPEN MIC (working title)

Vision:To bring musicians together regardless of their geographic location.

Summary: This website will connect musicians from around the world, eliminating the physical barriers that prevent them from playing together. OPEN MIC is a music collaboration platform that utilizes the interconnectivity of the world wide web to create virtual rooms in which users can join and participate with a group of other musicians.These rooms act as chat rooms with an audio component as well as an optional video input. Rooms are sorted by genre, size, or social level. Users can search for or be suggested rooms to participate in. Participants in a room can send out notices for instruments needed or other calls for action. The site will also feature performer centered chat rooms that allow for audience members to “drop money into the hat” and donate money towards the performance. This appropriates the webcam chat model widely used in pornographic webcams. This simulates the busking or public performing experience. 

Genre: Music, Social Media

Differentiating selling points:
• Multiple different modes for interaction.
• Unlimited replayability and low repetition.
• Timebased
reengagement (for weekly groups, etc.)
• Cooperative Gameplay
• Visibility of Achievement via participation based ranking and involvement with special events.

Target audience: Musicians who want to collaborate with other musicians without the conventional limitations of space, geographical location.

Release date:
12 month development for Minimum Viable Product. Set to release in Fall of 2013. 

Players: Musicians who desire a quick and easy way to meet up with other musicians. Also people who love watching music being played and want to listen to a live/evolving music performance in the comfort of their own homes. The player will love listening or playing music.

In this project, I attempt to remake the NES version of Joust from Scratch. I had a great time doing this as I loved playing this game on my old school Mac. I used the art of the original game as a reference. I hope to continue working on this bit by bit. Special thanks to Atariage.com for some helpful info.

The following is the first iteration of a new game design I am creating. This can be considered a sample of the work I do. Hope you enjoy!

-Ian

Game Proposal

Game Developer’s Name: Ian Cairns

Date: 3/31/13

Game Title: Gorilla Art

Vision

For the first time, players can experience the thrill of high risk street art by executing pieces of work in a politically-charged, story-driven, urban environment.

Summary

Players sneak around the urban landscape and attempt to paint high-profile locations without being caught. Locations can be hard to access because of guards, obstacles, or other types of security. Players are to exploit existing structures, distract personnel, and otherwise paint high-profile graffiti pieces without drawing attention. The game uses techniques like creating the sense of being hunted by limiting the player to linear paths, fewer choices, less hiding spots. The cost of getting caught is higher as a primate than a human in most cases and the player is to expect dramatic consequences to poorly thought out actions.

Genre

3rd Person, Open-World, Stealth

Differentiating selling points

As opposed to other titles in this genre, this game is relatively non-violent. There are occasions of mild violence as when the player is subdued with nets and tranquilizers, but neither the player nor the NPCs will kill or be killed. In this open-world stealth game, you play as a gorilla. A peaceful, good-natured, well-mannered gorilla with a social conscience.

Concept

By using the archetypal open-world stealth genre showcased in games like Arkham Asylum, Dishonored, or Assassins Creed players will interact with familiar gameplay in an unfamiliar motivations and goals. The player characters will never use violence except in defense against brutal threats to their survival. The context and game mechanics favor heavily the “flight” response in the “fight vs. flight” impulse. Using the storyline and contextual art the game setting provides the player with intrinsic rewards.

Story

Banksy is a gorilla in captivity at the Metropolitan Zoo. He loves his zookeeper, a bright young environmental activist who teaches Banksy to paint and craft tools. The zookeeper has no idea that Banksy is a masked graffiti artist by night. In the fight against corporate greed, pollution and the mistreated environment Banksy takes a refreshingly civilized approach to activism by painting provocative art pieces in prime locations to raise awareness about the environment. The story takes the arc of the quintessential hero drama yet with surprising twists. The story re-appropriates the anonymous character that is the world’s most mysterious artist, Banksy, and allows the player to assume this role in a way they might not have intuited.

Target audience

Young adults. The average age of players is approx. 25 years old.

Release date

1.5 year production cycle. Due to release 2015.

Players

The players are highly intelligent primates who seek to participate in the high cultural dialog of human society. The players remain mute as they can not speak in the traditional ways of humans but due to their cultural drive use nonverbal signals and art to communicate with other characters. There is a small entourage of primates to help Banksy. After the primary release, there will

Game structure

In this narratological approach to a game, the structure mirrors the story arc. Working in 3 main acts that divide the beginning middle and end of the narrative. The change in acts is driven by a critical event change in the character’s environment.

The first act which introduces gameplay begins with the primate habitat that Banksy calls home. It ushers the player through subtle movement tutorials which are inherent to the design of the habitat itself. Toys like a tire swing, hanging ropes, cargo nets, balls and finger paints inhabit the space and are the first exposure to the gameplay elements that will be interacted with by the player.

The story turns as the zoo is threatened by rising costs, lower attendance and funding. The primates overhear this news and are driven to take action but at this time in a local way. The player gets familiar with the open-world as the group driven mainly by the player character, attempts to advertise for the zoo using light techniques like postering and wheatpasting. The players must first obtain the materials then execute the piece. Upon seeing the direct result of their actions, they reinforce their mindset of art with a purpose.

The true call to action happens when the zoo is shut down through a profit-seeking corporation which poses as environmentalist but in reality is concerned about attaining rare species to fuel their pharmacological research. Banksy frees the animals and a group of them reassemble in a large metropolitan park not unlike Central Park.

Game situations

Situation 1

There is a stash of paint in a construction site across the street. But there is a guard patrolling the area. Find a path there and retrieve one can of paint from the stash. Better leave some bananas as compensation. Don’t be spotted by the guard. He can call for backup and if you get caught it’s big trouble for you and the zoo. But who would believe the guard if he called in a 400 pound gorilla stealing paint? The more eyewitnesses, however, or the vigilance of the guard and things might get hairy.

Variations

The heist can take place in a variety of locations where different materials are stored. This includes, but is not limited to, convenience stores, supermarkets, home improvement centers, recycling centers, dumpsters, alleys, etc. There can be any number of different “guards” with different temperaments and AI features. I.e. drunkard, old people, cops, park rangers, G-men.

Situation 2

It’s time to execute a piece that shows the city the truth about the evil corporation. The monkeys developed a plan and now it’s time to execute it. With materials in tow, the player uses environmental mechanics to apply the layers of paint. Using techniques like repelling and utilizing existing scaffolding, window washer platforms, fire escapes, ropes or chains. The larger and more ambitious the piece the more techniques need to be used.

Approach (an example)

The background of the piece is red. The team must coat the surface with red paint before moving on to the foreground. The paint in this scenario is applied using rollers on poles. The poles however only extend your reach by 1 meter. The paint is applied by holding down the designated button and your character will use the tools to apply the medium to the surface they can readily reach. As this happens the character must be on guard to hide or run. Once an area is covered, use the climbing mechanics to reach the rest of the “canvas.”

Abbreviated prototype version of the approach to familiarize the player with concepts

The tutorial is contained within the gameplay itself. The player will learn to complete missions by interacting with the introductory storyline. This includes movement mechanics, item utilization, storage and character interaction.

Moving

Movement centers around a free-running mechanic that is familiar to players who are used to similar genres. The player will move with incredible efficiency over difficult urban landscapes by utilizing the inherent structures and mechanics that inhabit the levels. A good reference to this is the Assassin’s Creed games where the player is enabled by ropes, handholds, and ziplines. As the character is a primate, the speed and strength of the player’s movement is amplified appropriately and attempts to accentuate the feeling of freedom from captivity. Movement is a key component to the completion of the levels. Not all levels will require a timely completion, so speed is often devalued by cleverness.

Representing the Player

The player is represented as a 400 pound, hairy, noble primate with a soft spot for humanity. Banksy is imagined by combining Ape from George of the Jungle, a highly sophisticated, literate gorilla, who is smarter than most humans, with a realistic gorilla who was brought up in captivity like KoKo. KoKo learned sign language and enjoyed painting when the materials were set up for her.

Visuals

The game takes a gritty semi-realistic approach to the content. The characters are rendered in 3D and the camera is 3rd person. The city looks like New York City but dirtier like Gotham City, but only at street level, where the player experiences the most threats. The city is meant to be precious to the player yet harsh. The vigilant states of enemy NPCs are represented by distinct behavioral animations and outfits.

Modes

In addition to the story mode, there is a challenge mode where players can run against  the clock or tackle harder challenges featuring the game mechanics without the burden of contextual constraints.

Missile Command Revisited

Welcome to my Game Design Blog! In this blog, I will be discussing all things associated with the Game Design Industry. Feel free to post, comment, heckle, or contribute in any way.

-Ian Cairns