Description
A note about what can be designed:
Play, itself, can’t be designed. What we can do as professionals in the field of game and toy design and/or scholarship (that means writing and publishing stuff) is design for the possibility of play to happen. We are creating what is needed to facilitate a play experience.
You will design a Fantasy Escape Room Game for one to four players.
Part 1.
First you must have a theme. Do not use Tolkien’s theme. I have no wish to see his theme rehashed by 40 students in game form. What I do want to play, and I think you do too, is something specific to its author. Something real and deep and relevant to your life.
Creating your own theme should be done based on your life. But those themes are not always apparent to you, even if it is your life you’ve lived. When you start creating your own themes, your game design becomes about something.
To do this, you have to do some digging. Into yourself. Open a blank doc to write this down:
Write down your strongest memories
Think about your biggest values write them down
Remember a time when you learned a lesson the hard way and write a paragraph about it.
If you could give someone 3 pieces of life advice, what would they be?
What are commonalities amongst those answers? There tends to be a handful of common themes in our lives, or lessons we’ve had to learn over and over again. Those are what we know deeply and can design a meaningful game about.
Deduce what the common theme is in your work and write it down. Also write down any reoccurring symbols or objects.
Part 2.
Now that you have some symbols and a theme create a fantasy place and write a backstory (about 300 words tops) for this place using those symbols and theme. This is your transitional space for your game.
Part 3.
Pick one of the escape room games by EXITLinks to an external site. and play the game. You can play in solo mode or with friends. Note: do not play the Lord of the Rings themed escape room game. These games are about 15.00 USD each. It is important to play one of these games so that you have first hand knowledge of what an escape room table top game is. Journal your play experience and reverse engineer the core loop for the game by bullet pointing the steps in the core loop. Write down the puzzles and game mechanics that really made the game fun for you.
Pro-TIP
What is a core loop? The core loop is the element of the game that players remember most frequently or engage with most often. The core loop comprises the most basic kinds of actions that players can take. The core loop is both a simple design as well as the most difficult design problem. The basic core loop should show, in a simple manner, the main actions that users have to do in order to progress in the game.
The core loop should be able to be represented with a chart or a bulleted list of what the player will do over and over again. It will be very, very, very simple. For example the core loop for “Mega Man” would be Run, Jump, Shoot.
For my classes, I do expect something a bit more though. Depending on the class, I will have asked you to create game mechanics that push the core loop into something more unique. I will often ask my students to create NEW game mechanics. I am looking for you to encode MEANING in the MECHANICS and in the core loop ITSELF. Here is a really good video from someone who understands what I am getting at: https://youtu.be/KkdPxZbUNSwLinks to an external site.Watch it if you are confused about my expectations.
Since students are prone to use Chat GBT in an effort to discover what the core loop for a game is I have already done it for you. It is in the following table. DO NOT USE AI to figure out what the core loop is for the game you are playing. Really play the game and write down the main actions you are taking for each turn and/or puzzle. Playing games and reverse engineering their core loops is how you will learn to design a really good core loop.
DO NOT USE this AI generated core loop. When you play and use your own brain you will discover that a core loop is much more simple and interesting than what AI thinks it is.
The core loop of an escape room generally involves a series of steps:
Introduction: Participants are briefed about the storyline or scenario. This might involve a backstory, mission, or a problem they need to solve. It sets the scene and creates immersion.
Puzzle Solving: Teams explore the room, looking for clues, hidden objects, or puzzles. These can vary greatly in complexity and type, from riddles to physical challenges or logic puzzles.
Problem Solving and Collaboration: Participants work together, combining their observations, knowledge, and skills to solve puzzles and unlock new clues. Communication and collaboration are key here.
Unlocking Progress: As puzzles are solved, participants gain access to new areas, more clues, or tools needed to solve subsequent challenges. Each solved puzzle usually leads to the next one or unveils a part of the narrative.
Climax/Resolution: Finally, the participants reach the ultimate goal, which could be escaping the room or solving the final puzzle that completes the storyline. This often marks the end of the game.
Debriefing: After completing or failing the room, there’s typically a debriefing where the game master explains unsolved puzzles, congratulates the team, and perhaps provides insights into the puzzles or storyline.
This loop creates an engaging experience by balancing challenge, teamwork, and the satisfaction of making progress or solving problems within a limited time frame.
To Turn this assignment in:
Upload a word document or pdf of your answers to Part 1, 2, and 3. Google docs will not be accepted. You can save a google doc as a word doc to turn it in here.
