Week 7

The week started with the team presenting our project progress at the ETC mid-term (1/2s) presentation. The feedback we received from the faculty required us to reflect upon the following concerns-

  • Design around Metrics:
    Design based on trackable metrics. Train the guests for the right things.
  • Playtest for Fun:
    Is the concept still fun as original prototypes.
  • Short Levels:
    More shorter levels gradually introducing new gameplay mechanics.

There was a good amount of time going through the individual feedback of each faculty and filtering out those that aligned with our stated objectives.

We spent the week consolidating our experience goals and setting the scope for the remaining semester. Upon iteration, we narrowed our focus from all the following goals to just the top three-
Low barrier of entry
Simple to pick up, hard to master
Wants to keep playing

Mastery over skills
Track level success

We revised our gameplay to fit our revised goals better and came up with the decision to design short and progressive levels.

With our aim to have a version by week 10 that can be playtested with our actual demographic, paralyzed patients, we started with implementing the level that included all the game mechanics including gazing on to chase the enemy and flinging the asteroids.

Demo Version 1 WIP – Chasing Mechanics

Some initial Feedback:

  • There was a lot of skepticism on the Distance to fling bar. It was distracting for most users and took some energy to look at.
  • A lot of confusion on what the player was doing at the moment and what the player was chasing.

Those initial thoughts became part of iteration for the week after.