Game Planning Document

Important Note:

The following sections were written in a language that is general enough to fit many game types. Nevertheless, you may want to implement a game that doesn’t quite fit. That’s fine, but you should still stick to the spirit of this document: There are many details that must be carefully thought through in order to have a proper game.

The more time you spend at this initial stage of development, the clearer and simpler the job will be later.

<Game Title>

<Creators/Authors>

Part I:

Fleshing out the game ideas

(90 points)

1)Overview of the game (10 points):

This section is supposed to be the main ‘hook’ for the game. Think in terms of ‘back of the box’ text: What would you want people to know about this game in order to entice them to play it?

a)(1 pt.) Game title

b)(1 pt.) Game genre/type

c)(5 pt.) What is the synopsis or short version of the storyline for the game? Give one or two paragraphs (or at least a few bullet points, but with enough details to be informative).

d)(3 pt.) The gameplay will lead the player to a final battle: Describe briefly what this final battle will be?

NOTE: Normally, this should be one of the last sections you complete as it will essentially summarize the whole game…

2)Storyline (15 points)

For a game to be interesting, it has to be tied to some form of story-telling.You must design the game so as to make sure the player gets invested in the game over time. This is done by gradually exposing the player to more difficult tasks and richer conflicts.

Typically, youshould plan to have at least thesefive stages below.

  1. Discovery: (Usually one or two levels) This part of the story has two main goals:
  2. Training: The player learns about the game world and how to interact with it.In particular, the player learns about the specific ‘shtick’ or ‘gimmick’ of the game and how it affects the game world. . Gameplay difficulty is usually fairly easy and the length of this phase is usually short.
  1. Exposition/Complications: The playerlearns a little bit about the world and faces some opposition. The gameplay is not too hard and designed to get comfortable with the controls and interface. The story’s tension mounts and momentum builds up.
  1. Conflict/Climax: Typically, this stage has the following structure:
  2. Build-up: (Many levels depending on the complexity of the plot.).The player gradually discovers the true source of the opposition in the game. Gameplay difficulty should start as medium but increasing over time. This is also the longest and most developed stage of the gameplay
  1. Climax: (usually one level.) The preparation before the final showdown. This is where this villain launches into his soliloquy and the hero has his ‘Bring it on!’ moment.
  1. End Game: (Usually one or two levels.) This stage is all about psychological intensity and properly rewarding the player, even if the player fails:If you did your job properly in the previous stage, the player is now thoroughly invested in solving the conflict in the game. The player now faces thegame boss or the source of opposition that’s been impeding the player all along. The gameplay difficulty level is at its highest but the length of time is typically short. This means proper visual effects/music/sounds and necessary pauses when the player or opposition eventually gets defeated.

For each of the stages above, write down a few keys points that will move the storyline. These points will help you write the full storyline later and will also guide the level creation later. For each bullet point, attach an importance level to indicate how critical it is to the main storyline.

IMPORTANT:

  • You MUST present this with an actual story. You can’t just have one-liners for the stages/bullets above.
  • You need a properly constructed story with proper description of scene/décor.
  • If you intend to have dialogues in your game, the exact text for each example must be included.

3)Time Line (40 points)

The timeline breaks up the story into distinct levels and specifies the type of actions, goals and gameplay elements necessary to develop the overall game. (See next page for an example based on a hypothetical game inspired by the movie Raiders of the Lost Arc)

The point here is to list out what points in the story are to be interactive and, for each for these point,how will the player experience them and what will the player actually do to move the story along.

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Story Element / Game Element / Stage Goal / Cut Scene/Animatic/Still images
The year is 1936. Archeology professor Indiana Jones narrowly escapes death in a South American temple with a gold idol - by poison dart, fall, and finally a giant boulder that chases him out the front. / Level 1:
  • Reach the idol with partner
  • Mini boss: Partner betrays
/ Training in basic controls:
  • Movement
  • Fight (gun and bullwhip)
  • Traps
/ Beginning only: view of the temple entrance
Level 2:
  • Race out of the temple avoiding new traps (arrows, pits, etc.)
  • Mini boss: Rolling boulder
/ Get out alive with idol / Dramatic dive out of the front temple. (If time allows)
An old enemy, Rene Belloq, steals the idol and then orders Hovito indians after Indy. Indy, however, escapes back to the USA. where Army Intelligence officers are waiting for him at his university. They tell him about a flurry of Nazi archaeological activity near Cairo, which Indy determines to be the possible resting place of the Ark of the Covenant - the chest that carried the 10 Commandments. The Ark is believed to carry an incredibly powerful energy that must not fall into Nazi hands. / Motivate the actual game quest / Series of still showing the dialogue (animation if possible)
Indiana is immediately sent overseas, stopping in Nepal to pick up an old girlfriend (his old professor's daughter). She has the map’s key for locating the arc / Level 3:
  • Short Trek through Himalaya
  • More jumping/whip puzzles
  • Reach the village
/ Reach the girlfriend and get the map key
Level 4:
  • Nazi try to steal the map key.
  • Indy escape with the girl and the key
/ Mêlée combat
(training for later)
Meeting up in Cairo with his friend Sallah. Danger lurks everywhere in the form of Nazi thugs, and poisonous snakes in the Ark's resting place. / Level 5:
  • Sneak in camp, avoid Nazis and locate map room
/ Learn the location of the arc and being captured by Belloq / Beginning: flyover of Cairo dig site
End: Thrown into the snake pit
After Belloq, hired by the Nazis, makes off again with the Ark, Indy & Marion are determined to get it back, and they overpower the pilot of a German plane. But Indy finds himself confronted with a giant German thug, and after a frightening hand-to-hand fight Indy & Marion blow up the plane. / Level 5:
  • Escape the snake pit
  • Traps and puzzle like level one)

Level 6:
  • Fight Nazi in camp
  • More aggressive play than in level 4
  • Mini boss: Giant Nazi Thug
/ Blow up the Nazi’s escape plane / Dramatic plane explosion
Now the Nazis must drive the Ark to Cairo, but Indy regains control of the Ark after running the convoy off the road, one vehicle at a time. / Level 7:
  • Chase Scene
  • Running the convoy off the road
  • Destroying the Arc
/ 1-Getting the convoy off the road.
2-Destroying the Arc
NOTE: we have not had vehicle training so far. That’s a problem… / Indy can’t bring himself to destroy the arc and is recaptured by the Nazi
Once again the Nazis recapture the Ark...Everyone is heading for a Nazi-controlled island. There, Belloq will open the Ark...to demonstrate the horrific power it can unleash upon the world! / Story conclusion / Impressive animation of the ceremony where the arc is opened. Everyone dies except Indy and Marion. (why? We need to explain this clearly with wrecking the drama of the moment)

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4)Level Design (15 points)

For each levelin your timeline above you need tospecify:

(1)What is the goal of this level in terms of the storyline? Another way to ask this: What are the major story conflict points that must be tackled in a level? (Graded as part of grid above)

(2)Draw/sketch adetailed level layout. You must include a clear description of the world, including the precise placement of every item/character (15 pts.)

(3)Clearly illustrate (diagram or picture) the actions the player my take. For example: what does a typical fight will look like from the player’s perspective? How does the player manipulate the environment to solve a puzzle? Etc.)

Start a preliminary level layout (on paper) and simulate (in your mind and/or discussing with your team mates) the gameplay you expect the player to experience. Make sure the experiences move the storyline along and that the points above are satisfied.

Note:Now is the time to think about the AI behaviors you wish to have in your Non-Player Characters (NPCs): using paper simulation, are your characters fulfilling their stated roles in the gameplay?

5)Character, Items and Other Main Entities (10 points)

This sectiondescribes the cast of characters/Items/Entities for your game. For each character/Item/Entity, you need to write down some information about:

(1)Name

(2)High level description of role, appearance and place in the world.

(3)Capabilities and behaviors. (detailed bullets)

(4)Specify all the controls and/or AI behaviors you expect it to have.

Part II:

Workload & Time Management

(10 points)

This section helps you visualize the amount of work necessary to complete your game idea.

You should be as detailed as possible. Once completed, assess whether the amount of work is feasible within the time allotted (hint: however long to think it will take, double that number). If there isn’t enough time to realize this idea, go back to Part I and see what can be trimmed to make it fit.

6)Gameflow Diagram

Draw out the complete gameflow diagram for your game and indicate all possible transition events (keys, button, game events, etc.). Include every splash, menu, inventory, shops, upgrades, win, lose, etc. (See example below:)

7)Menu/Interfaces/Controls

After all the work you’ve done in the prior sections, you now have some idea of how to represent the various information-giving screen your game will need. Describe them here at least in their initial form. At the very least, you’ll need to have something for:

a)Main character controls, including how to trigger the various abilities available (leveling up).

b)Heads-up display (user controls, visual feedback, etc.)

c)Inventory (includes management, display and selection processes)

d)Shops (includes management, display and selection processes)

e)Text/Dialog Pop-Up (display and control)

f)Other screens to consider: Instructions, Maps, Bartering/Shops, etc

8)Other elements?

Depending on your particular game, you might need to develop more sections. Base on what you’ve written in the sections above, you should have a clearer view of what additional elements you need. Make sure to write down as much as possible about them.

Example:

  • Cut scenes or other visual story-telling between levels (voice over, still images, etc.)
  • Alternate endings (I don’t recommend those: too much work!)
  • Etc.

9)Assets

At this point, you can start making a list of all/most of the game assets your game will require. Go back thought each of the previous sections, and list out assets required for them:

a)Screen/overlays

b)Sprite or models

c)Animations

d)Sounds

e)Code components:

  1. Menu selections
  2. AI behaviors
  3. Player controls
  4. Important state changes (next level triggers, power ups, loss of life, death scenes, etc)
  5. Special capabilities
  6. Level controller and game controller
  7. etc.

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