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GDC 2002 Level Design Keynote: Super Monkey Ball Creator Toshihiro Nagoshi Perhaps best known for mega-hit Super Monkey Ball, Toshihiro Nagoshi has worked at Sega Enterprises in Japan since 1989. He worked on such games as Daytona USA, Virtua Striker, and Slash Out before taking over Sega's software development team, Amusement Vision. In his keynote, he discussed the potential of level design, offered lucid suggestions to prepare a game concept before beginning the design process, and explained ways to increase the effectiveness of level design once you begin the work. He started his talk by looking back on his career with Sega and recalling the evolution of game design from 2D, to "pseudo 3D", to 3D hardware. He remembered attempting to shepherd his staff through the painstaking labor of capturing, reconstructing, and displaying images, and remembered how several staff members quit in the process. He compared what it took to make effective graphics then, before the days of zero shading and texture lighting techniques, and now. Nagoshi outlined several suggestions to keep in mind during the design process, using the development of Super Monkey Ball as an example. He advised developers to make sure they visualize game elements (backgrounds, characters, and special display effects) well before starting the design process. Before presenting the game concept to team members, ask yourself the fundamental questions: What is interesting about the game? And, how can you make the game work? Nagoshi remembered taking one day to come up with the concept of Super Monkey Ball and visualizing how it could work; he advised developers to stick to the shortest time period possible as a guideline for conceptualizing a game concept. In fact, he noted that in his experience, there is an relationship between how long it takes to visualize how a game will work and how successful it turns out to be: the more clearly you see how a game will work in the shortest amount of time, the better your odds that others will like it, too. Nagoshi started by determining his latest game's key concept: a ball, which players manipulate, rolls along an unstable surface. Game tension is created by trying to keep the keep from falling off the edges of surface. Level design determines the functionality of the game. Once Nagoshi had outlined his game vision, presented the concept to the development team, and they had determined that the game play would, in fact, be fun, the team proceeded to finding ways to make it a reality. They took Nagoshi's vision and came up with game rules, defining the entertaining essence of the game, evaluating the development process, and creating a database of game components. They determined what sorts of obstacles (undulating levels, mechanical traps, enemies, and dynamic scenes) to put in the way of the rolling ball, and at which levels to put them. They added texture to the ball, allowing players to more clearly see where the ball is rolling. Later, the team decided to put a monkey inside the ball. Making the monkey express its emotions at the player's successes or failures at controlling the ball as it rolls along makes the player emotionally invested in the game. Nagoshi also discussed the concept of applying semiotics -- signs and symbols -- that give mental clues about what events are likely to occur, to game design. Semiotics, he suggested, makes game play more enjoyable and makes the game run more smoothly. He opined that the most effective games are those in which you only need to look at the background during game play, and in which you can rely on your instinct in figuring out what actions to take. For example, he pointed out, a common problem in racing games is that players tend to veer the car off to the right or left during unexpected turns. One way designers can "train" players to keep the car on the road is by subtly incorporating elements that will come to symbolize "time to turn" in the player's mind. For instance, a designer can put trees closer together before sharp turns in early game levels, so that when trees appear clustered in later levels, the player will have an instinct to prepare for an upcoming turn. Nagoshi reminded the audience that it was important to use semiotics subtly, but nevertheless to keep in mind the following rule of thumb: Do more than you think is necessary to help a player out, and then it's usually about right. Nagoshi ended his presentation on an inspirational note. Extensive knowledge and experience in making games, he said, without love and passion for games, is not enough to make successful games. "If you have love and passion for games, I hope you'll be able to master the techniques necessary to turn your ideas into reality," he exhorted. |
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