Geomorphs are square tiles with two evenly spaced entrances on each side, that can be put together to make semi-random settings for games. They are mostly designed to be used in tabletop RPG’s but games like The Binding of Isaac generate their dungeons in a similar way. I myself found out about them though the amazing Dave’s Mapper, and was inspired partly to make them though Dyson Logos’s Geomorphs.

I decided to have a go at making my own Geomorph tiles, specifically to see if I could create a location that was not a cave system or underground dungeon.

As you can see I tried to make tiles for a dense forest village location, playing around with different sorts of blockers (buildings, water, forest and fences), different ways to connect and link together entrances together, and also creating interesting areas to explore within the tile.

I love the idea of using a Geomorph system for procedural generation, as it allows interesting designed spaces that might seem different depending on what they are connected to.

Please go out and make your own tiles, I’d love to see what other people make!

Felix the monk is a character that has never killed anyone in Skyrim.

I think it is a testement to this game’s sytem design that players can create such unique experiences for themselves without breaking the game.

As you can see in the video, the game has not been “pushed to its limits”, it still works just fine. The player is sill having a great time and experiencing a lot of different things to do. In fact he seems to be having a more diverse experience than my character who mainly just sticks to destruction magic!

Link: http://news.killscreendaily.com/post/16869937334/thanks-to-skyrim-gamers-learn-about-non-violent-protests

My favourite entry for the MapCore Door Challenge! Modders are tasked with the challenge of making a level where the player has to open, and then move through, a single door, and are allowed to embellish it in whatever way they wish.

The above entry is wonderful because it plays with the player’s emotions and expectations, through pacing, framing and colour, in a playful and knowing way.

Some very inventive entries, my other favourite being this adventure game themed puzzle: http://youtu.be/eMt0kwSGAu0 A clear eye for detail from it’s creator, and a story that teases you and pulls you in through very simple text boxes.

Shows how a fixed brief can generate truly diverse design.

Link: http://forums.mapcore.net/viewtopic.php?f=57&t=16237

Link: http://gamasutra.com/blogs/GuyHasson/20110515/7637/Storytelling_Tips_WorldBuilding_Needs_Closed_Doors.php

The idea that players need to believe that game worlds might exist beyond the areas that they can get to is a very powerful one, and as a level designer is something you strive to put into your environments.

In most games, making players believe a room is a working space is about making it have a history, and a reason for being. Without this players see the boundaries of what the game can do much quicker, and loose their faith that the fiction of the game can surprise them.

For example, I quickly became bored with WoW after I reached max level and could explore the edges of all the environments without much trouble. As an avid explorer I suppose I may have sped up the process, but once all the dots had been filled in, the mystery of what the world could hold was lost.

Conversely, I am sure that part of the reason the Assassins’ Creed series has been so popular is that they have seeded the idea that any given conflict in human history could have been because of a battle between Crusaders and Assassins. Even after Desmond’s story is finished, I am sure people will speculate about points in time hinted at, but never visited in the games.

[Challenging myself to do different things, so I decided to partake in this months Game Design Challenge at Game Career Guide. The challenge was to fit the recent Portal 2 ARG elements into another game, and I chose the popular indie game Minecraft. Hope you enjoy!]

Challange rules: http://www.gamecareerguide.com/features/954/game_design_challenge_.php

Phase 1: Glyph and Hints

As per the agreed schedule, a glyph is added to Mnecraft as a 1x1 painting, and a new texture file named “Animal King” is added to the regularly modded texture pack. Due to the simplistic nature of Minecraft textures it will be hard for players to determine what the new enemy is; hopefully leading to discussion, while not yet revealing the link with Portal.

Phase 2: Sturdy Friend Box and Aperture Lab Login

A craftable Sturdy Friend Box is added, based on the companion cube, the recipe for which is a cake surrounded by wood. When placed it will lure nearby animals and monsters to it, which adds gameplay value to the item even after the ARG is over.

Also added is the ability to enter a password from another ARG game through the in-game chat channel. Doing so will simulate a  computer printing text messages into the chat concerning a rouge AI called RodgrEXDOS that has re-named itself ANIMALKING, and a ciphered piece of text.

Encrypted text: RODGREXDOS-YKFJ-HROJF-R-UZGARODZO

Decrypting text is a popular puzzle type for ARGs, and players can de-code the above message by using the fact the AI has re-named itself, as a cipher. 

Decrypted text: ANIMALKING-JUST-WANTS-A-COMPANION

If typed into the chat channel it will give the player the password for another of the ARG games and deploy a .ZIP file containing concept art.

Phase 3 & Crescendo: Animal King and Lab

The final phase will add Animal King as a new enemy, which is a giant turret that fires arrows and walk slowly. It can be made passive by putting a “friend box” near to it, which it will walk up to and go to sleep by. Animal King is a character with a number of cameo appearances in Portal 2, and will only appear in normal Minecraft games during the ARG timeline.

Players will also be able to explore an Aperture Lab under the surface of the Minecraft world, with a permanent with Animal King at its centre. Players can access this custom built level by entering a specific password as a faked seed for a level.

The “LAB world” would not include explicit puzzling but navigation will not be straight forward, much spelunking in the normal Minecraft. Specific audio messages from GlaDOS would be found around the level, and a permanent Animal King would reside at its centre, which must be quelled with a “friend cube” to open a door to a cake as a final reward.