The first week can only be described relaxed. Whether it was just because it was the first week or the fact that only 2 of the 4 of us attended due to flooding i couldn’t say. We spent the first 30 minutes of the lesson talking about our own D&D adventures and a unique store that my fellow student found on a kick starter he backed while the teacher tried to fix the enrollments on plato (JMCs online system). From there we talked about how video games fit into society and how we each see them as their own unique medium and art form. Then we picked a game each and read and wrote our own reviews about the game of choice. I can only assume next week will have more “action” to write about.
My Interest In Game Development?
My biggest interest in game development when I was child was always the ability to write my own stories, forge my own worlds, build my own cities, bring my characters to life. Because of this, ever since I was a child sharing that PS2 with my little brother 1 hour each at a time I wanted to be a concept artist/designer. Of course throughout the years I did drift away from this idea now and again but always ended up returning to design for games and maybe even comics.
Since joining JMC Academy however the 3D design and development classes have been the most enjoyable experience of my life. I am attending every possible 3D course I can. This is where I see my future in game development and animation going. To list a few possible 3D departments in design there are:
- Environmental Modelling & World Building
- Character Modelling
- Prop Design & Modelling
- Character Animation & Rigging
- Etc
So of course I still want to design and write my own stories but bringing characters and worlds to life in a 3D environment is definitely the path I see my career taking.
What Do I Care For In A Game?
The most important thing I look for in a game is of course the ability to enjoy myself. Whether this be in a competitive scene or just mucking about with or without friends. This is closely followed by a satisfying game play loop that suits the game story, style, music etc. For example, Ubisofts Rainbow Six Siege is a game that me and my friends can jump into and play competitively as a well oiled team or muck around in performing stupid yet fun tactics and messing with each other. While the story is a little bland as unreliable, the game play and mechanics suit it perfectly. This boils down to its realistic tactics, unique operators, destructible/realistic maps and very unique and well fitting shooting mechanics.
Another game that is completely different but also fills these criteria is Stardew Valley. The simple movement and tool mechanics mixed with memorable music and pixel art all blends together perfectly making the game enjoyable, memorable and able to completely make me lose track of time.
The other games that that have lately been checking these boxes include:
- The FromSoftware trilogy (Dark Souls 1-3, Bloodborne, Sekiro)
- Titanfall 2
- The Borderlands Series
- Grand Theft Auto V
- League of Legends
- Enter The Gungeon
- Dead Cells
- Apex Legends
- And so, so much more
What Is My Favourite Game
Asking me my to name favourite is almost impossible. The answer to this question changes from day to day. Instead i can possibly give you the answer to my current the game I am currently playing most and that would Enter the Gungeon. Enter the Gungeon or Gungeon for short is a roguelike, bullet hell dungeon crawler developed by Dodge Roll and published by Devolver Digital.
Gungeons pixel art style, upbeat yet eerie music, array of random and quirky weapons and unique characters and bosses make for an epic journey of limitless replay ability. I think the thing that makes this my top game at the moment is fact the every time you delve into the dungeon below you start a completely different journey. The rooms rearrange every time on every floor. The bosses reset from their pool depending on the floor you are on. Chests and weapons randomise and new enemies spawn. While Gungeon is not online multiplayer, it is 2 player on the same screen. You can invite a friend in and both of you will work together to conquer every boss and dungeon floor together.
The story to Gungeon is never actually fully explained to the player. You know that you are entering to find “The Gun that Kills the Past” and that it lies beyond the final boss on floor 5. It is implied that each of the four playable characters is after the gun for their own reasons but it is up to the player to work out the rest of the story through interactions with NPC’s you rescue as you explore. I feel that this adds onto the unique experience of the game as each person can interpret the story as they play until they eventually conquer the dungeon and find the gun.
Update: I have since finished the game as the convict character. It turns out that each character has multiple endings. Retrieving the gun that kills the past is only the simplest ending and doesn’t explain much at all abut the characters motivations. There are other objectives you must finish in the dungeon as well as beating the final boss on floor 5. This adds even more repeatability to the game.
After hearing all this I hope i have convinced you to at least look into this amazing and hilarious game. But if my fanboy rambling wasn’t enough feel free to check out some reviews I will post below.
IGN Review – Posted: 5 Apr 2016 11:00 pm Updated: 3 May 2017 4:59 am – https://au.ign.com/articles/2016/04/05/enter-the-gungeon-review
Meta Critic Review – https://www.metacritic.com/game/switch/enter-the-gungeon
Enter The Gungeon was released worldwide for Microsoft Windows, OS X, Linux, and PlayStation 4 on April 5, 2016, on Xbox One on April 5, 2017, as well as on Nintendo Switch on December 14, 2017. I myself own it on PS4 where I have finished game as the convict as mentioned above as well as recently buying on switch so I can play it on the go.
I’m still very new to this whole blogging thing but thanks for reading. I hope you’ll be keeping up to date with my weekly updates and I keep you entertained.
-T.Styles
The Studies & Reviews of a Game Development Student 