Game Design
Document
Trash Collector
Richard Maalman HCD 201
28-08-2009
Table of Content
Introduction............................................................................................................................................. 3
Game Overview ....................................................................................................................................... 3
Game concept .................................................................................................................................. 3
Background Story ............................................................................................................................ 3
Target audience ............................................................................................................................... 3
Project Scope ................................................................................................................................... 3
Game play features ................................................................................................................................. 3
Rules ................................................................................................................................................ 3
Movement ....................................................................................................................................... 3
Screen descriptions .......................................................................................................................... 4
Levels ....................................................................................................................................................... 4
Objectives ........................................................................................................................................ 4
Objects ............................................................................................................................................. 4
Maps ................................................................................................................................................ 6
Design Process ......................................................................................................................................... 6
Phase1 Brainstorming ..................................................................................................................... 6
Phase 2 Creating the Game design document ................................................................................ 7
Phase 3 A board game..................................................................................................................... 7
Phase 4 Development ...................................................................................................................... 8
Phase 5 Testing ................................................................................................................................ 8
Phase 6 Implanting the results from the test ................................................................................ 10
Introduction
The game design document is made to show how an video or computer game needs to be build. In
this document you will find all the details about the game, like object, features, story and the
concept. Everything you will find in this document will be implanted into the game. The design
document will be updated every time the developers make new object or chance other parts of the
game.
Game Overview
Game concept
Thrash collector is a 2D collecting game, where the player needs to collect trash to complete the
game. The player needs to collect all the garbage before the timer runs outs and also needs to watch
out for or people.
Background Story
It’s the year 2010, the environment is getting spoiled by trash, people are throwing their thrash
everywhere on the streets. You are working as an thrash collector driver and the major gave you the
task to clean up the streets. It’s your job to collect all this trash before the environment breaks
down.
Target audience
The target group this game is aiming for, are young people. With this game I want to teach them its
important not to let your garbage flow everywhere, but that its need to be collected and destroyed.
Project Scope
The game consist out of 2 levels, this will increase until the game is fully completed. The environment
exists out of a couple of solid objects, like: houses, tree’s, walls and water. There is one kind of NPC, a
human they walk around in each level.
Game play features
Rules
There are a few rules which you need to keep in mind when playing this game. You are not allowed
to hit other people that walk in the game, if you do so, the game will restart and you will need begin
all over again. Hitting the water will also end the game. Before you can end a level you need to
collect al the garbage.
Movement
There are 4 ways to move around in this game.
Arrow key up: This enables the player to move his collector up in the level, when he presses the up
key the object image will chance.
Arrow key down: This key enables the player to move down in the level, when the down key is
pressed the collector image will chance.
Arrow key left: The key will move the player to the left. When this key is pressed the collector image
will chance and will point to the left.
Arrow key right: This key will move the collector to the right. When this key is pressed the collector
image will chance and will point to the right.
Screen descriptions
Main Menu screen:
This is the first screen the user sees when he starts the game. Here you got 3 options you can choose
from. The first option you can choose is “Start” with this button you can start the game. The second
button “Options” will send you to the options screen and the last button “Exit” will quit you from the
game.
Options screen:
The option screen will show how all the controls work and what the rules of the game are.
Levels
Objectives
The Objectives a player encounters in this game is collecting all the garbage in the game. To complete
this objective a player needs to move his collector through a level and search for all the trash. Each
level will have a timer. If the timer runs out the player lost. The time to complete a level will decrease
further on in the game.
Objects
There are different kind of objects in this game, below is a small list of all the object whit explanation
what they do in the game if they get interaction whit the player.
This Object is called the garbage collector. It’s the most important object in the
game. You can control this object using the arrow keys. There are different view for
this object when you press different arrows keys.
Arrow key Up
Arrow key Down
Arrow key Right
Arrow key Left
This Object is called water. It has only one function in the game, When the player get
in touch whit the water object, the game will restart.
The Object is called a human, They walk around in each level, when the player get in
touch with this object it will be game over and then the game will restart.
This Object is called a tree, When a player hits the tree he will bounce of.
This Object is called a house. When a player hits the house he will bounce off.
This Object is called the start button. When the player click on this button
using the left mouse click. He will start a new game.
This Object is called Trash, As a player you need to move you collector over this object
and then you will pick it up. Every thrash object if worth 50 points.
the Object is called Finish. When you have collected all the trash, you can go to this
object and finish the level.
Maps
This game I build up out of different levels each level has its own map. On a map you
can find different objects. Each map has its own timer that indicates how much time the player has
left to finish the level.
Design Process
Phase1 Brainstorming
Before we could start making this game, there needs to be a subject on which this game van develop.
The main subject of this game is: Thrash Collector. Using this brainstorm session, a background story
can be made, objects can be defined and level settings can be made.
Results from the brainstorm session:
Air
thrash
city
Environment
Trash collector
City
Smell
Time
Phase 2 Creating the Game design document
All the input that has been collected during the brainstorming session. Will be writing down into the
game design document. After each phase the document will be updated, so at the end of the design
process there will be an complete handling manual of the game.
Phase 3 A board game
After the game concept was made clear a board game was created. Whit this board game, the
concept of the game could be tested without actually playing the game. The board game will be the
first version of the game that is able to be played. Here the developer can get his first impression of
the game, also the different objects with their special abilities can be tested. So the developer knows
how people will interact with an object when they see it for the first time and also when they get in
contact whit the object several times. The developer makes notes during the game so he can update
the game concept when there are mistakes in the rules, or object don’t behave like real ones.
Phase 4 Development
Creating Objects:
Before I could start making this game. I created some basic objects with a paint program. That would
be the basic structure of the game.
Designing a level:
This game would exist of multiply levels, so to improve the game play, each level needs to be
different and the further you get, the more challenging. After choosing a background setting I
created some objects, like tree’s and houses and placed them on the map.
Writing down the code:
Before the game could start working code needs to be written. The programming code will execute
all the rules, that will be present when you interact with the game. For each object different lines of
code need to written because each object needs to behave in a unique way.
Phase 5 Testing
To test the product a series of different test will be conducted. Each test has its own purpose to give
the developers and designers results about the effectiveness of the application. The methods that
will be used during the test (the participants test and the heuristics) will be explained.
For a test to be successful, a series of test-sections will be presented to the participants. These
sections will be:
Orientation
Participants will each receive a verbal introduction which will explain the purpose and goals of the
test. They will also be assured that the game is what is being tested and not themselves. Participants
will then be introduced to the game and told that they will be observed during the test.
Performance test
The performance test consists of a series of tasks that the participants will carry out while being
observed. These tasks will be conducted in the following manner:
Participants will be asked to think out-loud during the tasks they have to perform during the
test and give comment when something happens.
Participants need to fill in the heuristics that will be presented to them and explain each
answer they fill in.
During the performance test the developer will make notes on elapsed time and participant errors.
The developer will also look at the facial expressions the participants make during the test.
Participant will also receive sheets where they can make notes of what they don’t understand when
using the product, or if they don’t know what to do at a given task.
Participants responses
After the participants have completed all the given tasks, they will give the heuristics back to the
observer to complete the tests. Thereafter the developer has the ability to talk to the participants. At
this moment the participants can inform the developer how they experienced the product. The
developer can still obtain the last pieces of information from the participants in this last stage of the
tests. This is useful for the developer because at this stage they will know what kind of information of
the product is still in the memory of the test users. By obtaining this information the developer will
then know in what state the user will begin playing the game next time they are presented with the
game.
Results of the heuristic filled in by a participant.
Concentration
- Games should provide a lot of stimuli from different sources yes
- Games must provide that is worth attending to yes
- Games should quickly grab the player’s attention and maintain yes
their focus throughout the game
- The player shouldn’t be burdened with tasks that don’t feel yes
important
- Games should have a high workload while still being appropriate yes
for the player’s perceptual, cognitive and memory limits
- Players should not be distracted from tasks that they want/need yes
to concentrate on
Challenge
- Challenge in games must match the player’s skill level no
- Games should provide different levels of challenges for different no
players
- The level of challenge should increase as the player progresses yes
through the game and increase their skill level
- Game should provide new challenges at an appropriate pace yes
Player skills
- Players should be able to start playing the game without reading yes
the manual
- Learning the game should not be boring, it should be part of the fun yes
- Games should include online help no
- Players should be taught to play the game through tutorials or no
initial levels that feel like playing the game
- Game should increase player’s skills at an appropriate pace as the yes
progress through the game
- Players should be awarded appropriately for their effort and skill no
development
- Game interface and mechanics should be easy to learn and use yes
Control
- Players should feel a sense of control over their actions yes
- Players should feel a sense of control over the game interface and yes
input devices
- Players should feel a sense of control over the game shell yes
- Players should not be able to make errors that are detrimental yes
to the game and should be supported in recovering errors
- Players should feel a sense of control and impact onto the game world yes
- Players should feel a sense of control over the actions that they take yes
and the strategies that they use
Clear Goals
- Overriding goals should be clear and presented early yes
- Intermediate goals should be clear and presented at appropriate no
times
Feedback
- Players should receive feedback on their actions no
- Players should receive immediate feedback on their actions yes
- players should always know their status or score yes
Immersion
- Players should become less aware of their surroundings yes
- Players should become less self-aware and less worried about every no
day life or self
- Players should experience an altered sense of time no
- Players should feel emotionally involved in the game no
- Players should feel viscerally involved in the game no
Social interaction
N/A
Phase 6 Implanting the results from the test
Fixes that have been made after the game was tested by an participant:
The trash collector can’t get out of the screen anymore. In the older version some maps had
little gaps on the side, which aloud objects to pass through and vanish.
The option menu has been updated.
Spelling mistakes in the background story have been fixed.