Logos

When I had come into the group, we were in the process of creating a logo. At first, we attempted to make the logo too intricate. I spent half an hour looking up logos of the most successful companies, then narrowed the search to popular gaming companies.

Using Youimake, I created a logo which incorporates our company's initials. I used black shapes like waves in the logo with a cool blue background.

Presence & Conviction

Presence: The way you carry yourself speaks volumes. The way you dress speaks volumes. Your speech must be well-versed and it will never hurt to be quick-witted. Last presentation, I was told I spoke too softly; & I know my presence did not shine through. Be present. Be Prepared.

Conviction: Your confidence in yourself and your project are reflected in your manner. Focus on the best aspects, & speak like millions of dollars are on the line, not just because there is that potential, but because you planned, prepared, pivoted, & practiced to the best of your capabilities. To the best of your capabilities but always hungry to learn more & create even more.

Above all, be bothered by the SUCK.

(& also have fun.)

Miscommunications

With the interruption of Agile training for our design of Absolution, we quickly realized we all had differing explanations for the game. As PO, I went through a list of the changes to the original and had the person who came up with the idea explain why they thought the new version was better. In the end, we kept our scope within our reach with the story we had originally decided upon.

That being said, we did pivot within our plan. We kept our original sequence and are using it as a sort of campaign that users can learn and practice their skill while learning the background. With the addition of an endless arcade mode, we encourage more in-app game purchases and create a competitive atmosphere using a score ranking system.

Get your priorities straight!

For the ending week of Agile training, we had to find an organization system for 20+ dog breeds in which we had to rate our tasks importance based on certain common factors, using the fibanacci sequence. After flailing for a few minutes, Emil kicked out butts into gear. We based each breed using the average adult male.

We then found the smallest and used that as our zero base; vice versa with the largest. Once we had finished the task, Emil reviewed it and agreed with our estimations. Splitting up into smaller groups, we used to same logic to rate the tasks for Four Nights in Paris.

Personally, I find that working through an example with guidance before assigning individuals tasks is the more effective teaching method for full comprehension. Not only do I see the versatility for the system, I understand the sequence of deciding which factors are relevant.

Sprints for Four Nights in Paris

Using Psyberfire, we organized the Four Nights in Paris game box, separating into three teams: the front, back, & text content. We had to create milestones, sprints, and update the tasks as we designed the box. Throughout, the game master gave us real life problems that cut our progress. We failed to update the tasks as we designed the box. Throughout, the game master gave us real life problems that cut our progress. Needless to say, we failed epically.

In this epic fail however, we realized how important organization is to connect scrums together and to understand everything which has been completed and that which still needs to be done. 

Fail early. Fail often. Learn from it.

Find the Fun in Everything

While in training for Agile development, Emil each student chose a role of healer, mage, evoker, or guardian in which the characters held certain beneficial skill towards themselves or others. The game master could, at any time, provide real life scenarios which delay our progress. At anytime, our character could die due to poor planning.

With that said, if a student had an exceptional idea, leadership, or execution, they would be rewarded with PsyberCash.

In our first presentation, we lacked proof of how fun our game is. This lesson, however, really put in perspective how you can find the fun in everything, if you look hard enough. Finding the fun in a game, which is built for entertainment, is not hard at all. Finding fun in everyday situations, depends on how you view your life.

Psyberfire by Emil Harmsen

Not only is it the most legit label ever created, Psyberfire is an intensive tool for agile development. The website is an organizational tool that helps organize development teams' time management, using sprints, kanbans, and milestones. We had to organize milestones and sprints for different game aspects needed for Four Nights in Paris.

While the tool still need tweaks, I can already tell that this is the tool which we should have had while designing the Absolution Game. For future endeavors, this is definitely a tool I will take time to master.

Four Nights in Paris

As a class, we voted to use Noah Rotter's Game design for the board game "Four Night in Paris." The setting is in turn of the century France during a time of political turmoil. Up to 6 members can play in which up to five are set against one another as assassins targeting a man of political importance, the target. Each assassin has a special set of skills based on their class (Spy, anarchist, etc.). The first to kill the target wins. The assassins lose if they kill one another; the target then wins.

Through Agile Development, we must work with our entire class in order to establish roles and perform these roles in order to understand the concepts we will be taught through the Psyberfire training tool, created by Emil Harmsen.

Lean Business

In class, we watched a video of Eric Reis speaking about the Lean Business Model. While we have discussed the concept in class, Reis reaffirmed the notion that most business start ups fail, and in order to avoid failure, the concept of pivots is vital. Shortening the time between pivots increases the possibility of the start up to become successful. While pivoting, it is important to keep the customer in mind and engaged throughout the process.

Showing Up

Google Maps

    After watching  Mitu Khandaker-Kokoris video as the Global Game Jam 2015 keynote speaker, the importance of "Showing Up" really sunk in. During week 8, for our presentation, I was meant to help my brother move from Colorado back to Illinios, and I did. Through four days, I drove to Colorado, helped my brother back, and then drove home alone so I could make the presentation.

   Putting forth the effort to show up and make the most out of the time you have is key to becoming successful. In an industry where the monopoly is held by AAA, an independent game developer has an extremely hard time entering.the industry. Even if someone decides to work for an AAA company, there are long hours and low pay. 

   So to show my dedication to my success in csc110, I'm showing up after 4 days without proper sleep and fulfilling my role as product owner for Black Tide Games.

Organization

Via Gifted Homeschoolers

   While in stand-ups, we had everyone speak about what they had done over the week; as we moved forward in our meetings, we had our members elaborate on their topics rather than just mention them. This way, our entire team is familiar with the topic.

   Although around week 6, we were unsure which tasks were fully completed (correctly). When the leaders and I sifted through the task board to check each task, we reallocated the tasks to get completely along with that weeks assignments.

   After the presentation on week 8, I plan to get a professional grade binder and print out all of our legal, financial, and creative work. Not only will we have all of our documents finished, but presentably and more organized that it is on Trello. In the binder, we will have the official version with a backup online.

   Organizing everything now will ensure that we will remain efficient.

Pitching Ideas

Via businesscomputingworld.co.uk

    Working in a business team, especially an inexperienced one, it is quite unorganized. Extroverts generally have an advantage in groups. In order for your idea to be heard, you have to speak up and ensure that you have the attention of the entire group. To keep the attention and to make the group excited about your idea as you are, your excitement has to come through as you pitch your idea.

    If you do not show the passion for the idea, no one else's passion will be peaked. During week 6, as we started the actual game design, the ideas that were repeated the most, and the loudest, were the ones we talked the most about. As CCO, I have the authority to kill off ideas that I do not like, However, I'd prefer our small team to make decisions together as efficiently as we can.

    When we began deciding names, it took hours, so we figured that online meetings were the most efficient way to decide non-essential game aspects.

Business Model Canvas

 

Via wikimedia

    Studying the business model canvas, we split the canvas up by categories in order to understand them well. However, once we began filling the sections, we found that there should an order to our process. Starting with value props, we had to design our company to be useful to...our customer segments. We had to decide how to get our product to our customer through channels, and then ensure our customers are satisfied with our product. Then we would study the revenue streams to plan for the best way to generate money.

    The most important part however is to "get out of the building" and ask the customers if the product you are offering is as valuable as you believe it to be.

A Design for Success

Taken from giantbomb.com and ign.com

    For our startup to be successful, our first game has to have the properties that will make it the most likely to become popular. While most of our group had the mindset of making the games we love to play - mostly 3D and requiring years of development -, we have to keep in mind the scope of our experience. Therefore, we accepted that we would only be able to make a 2D or 2.5D with our skill set and the time we are allotted to create our project.

     In order to create a game that will appeal to the most people possible while simultaneously making us the most money, we researched multiple genres and demographics. Through magazines, websites, and polls, we discovered the most popular genres were action or puzzle. For demographics, while the younger groups often played more often, the age group 25-34 paid more in-app than any other, while playing only slightly less often than the leading age group.

     Moreover, we needed a low barrier platform to host our game. We choose Kongregate as a team. It is a popular site with a low barrier entry, allowing us to keep our copyrights. While Kongregate would allow us to keep 15% more profit should we host our game solo on their site, we decided to post it to multiple sites in order to attract the most people possible. We looked at sites like Yahoo!, Google Chrome Apps, and Miniclip. Some we discarded due to their conditions or difficult entry, others we agreed would be worth the time and/or money for maximum exposure.

    While many of us are anxious to design the games we would buy, our starting point is this game. As a team, we will learn together what it takes to make even the simplest games come to life.

Our futures

Wallpaper taken from lemontree

From the recap of the first week of class, I understood that this course is to prepare us for future careers in the gaming industry.  It was wholly clear, coming in on the second week, that high school group projects had not prepared our members for the intense cooperation required in designing the Black Tide studios.

For our top five rules we focused on team efficiency and communication. Failure to complete a task causes setbacks for the entire team. Failure to communicate could mean an oversight, which again, creates a setback. Creativity prospers with the combination of open-minded individuals passionate for their project, and that is the vision we have for our group.

Individually, we assigned members of our groups to learn about and explain a variety of legal forms which everyone is subject to. To learn and understand these now will ensure we understand the terms and conditions to which we accept a job offer.

The LLC, or Limited Liability Company, is ideal for a startup company due to the flexibility allowed in both management and accounting aspects. It is also designed for the owners to handle losses for the first two years, rather than relying on investors or a larger corporation. We ruled out C- (standard corps with unlimited shareholders and strict meetings) and S- (smaller corps with a restriction of 100 shareholders) Corps due to our absence of shareholders.

We chose to include a NDA, non-disclosure agreement, to our company so our ideas and plans remain confidential from third-party groups. Meanwhile, the NCC protects the company’s actions if an employee were to leave the company. It may keep a previous employee from joining its competitor and revealing company plans. The NCC usually ends after a specific period of time or only applies to a certain area/company.

IP (intellectual property) agreements protect the “creations of the mind,” generally involving any form of art including: animations, logos, literature, music, words, phrases, etc. There are laws to further protect these which include patents and copyrights. As our company involves a great deal of artistry and innovative thinking, a well thought out IP agreement will protect our employee and the company from disputes involving creative properties.

EULA, or end-user license agreement, allows the purchaser – our customers – to use a copy of the licensor’s – our – software. The user must accept the EULA before using the product. It may protect the licensor from extensive cost of damage should the software cause damage through improper use.

We are currently subject to many of the legalities above without investigating them at all. To be a successful startup or employee, one must understand the concepts and their importance. Learning about these terms is a step in creating our futures.

Turning Passionately Overwhelmed into Devoted Efficiency

Take from Old Fort Church's website.

        Any product created through passion is art. A passionate person could have in mind a masterpiece, but may not share due to lack of design.

        During week 2’s class, many of the team members were not working within the scope of their job titles. The desire to work and the desire succeed were present. Passion was present, but chaotic.

        Our roles within the group reflect the experience we have, as well as the future careers we aspire to. With an artistic background, I was placed into the marketing team during my first day. Once the leaders recognized my ambition and how valuable my input was to the group, they promoted me to CCO, or Chief Creative Officer. This role gives me both the flexibility to coordinate with the marketing team and the power to participate with the leaders. In the future, this role will provide me with the insight of my bosses, as well as the opportunity to learn how to pitch ideas to a group of people in an attractive way.

       By the end of the day, we had settled more into our roles and the team was more comfortable following the orders of our leaders. While there was development within our ranks, there is room for improvement. The quieter members often are talked over and, therefore, many ideas remain unheard. Encouraging each member’s input creates more diversity and ingenuity, which is so important to create a unique and inclusive company and game.

       Our current improvements are exciting; I look forward to witnessing our team progress further.