Principles & Conventions in Interactive Media & Game Design

The principles and conventions of interactive media and game design as I understand them:

I see interactive media as more than just a tool for people to use and exploit, I see it as a way of life as we know it. How would things be if we weren’t able to interact with what was around us be it television, iPods, mp3 players, games consoles, Sky Boxes, PC’s, Apple Mac’s, mobile phones or even the humble radio? We would be lost in a place of static, moronic and constricted entertainment...
The 20th century...
Interactive entertainment and media is a revolution, a free thinking world’s solution to a dark age of technology. The way forwards and the dawn of endless inspiration, personalisation and control, maybe not your control but some ones.
To be able to customise your life in an infinite amount of choices and experiences, Interactive media is progression, its part of our culture and will progress further unto things no one may have yet dreamed of.
As stated in the book “Principles of Interactive Multimedia” by Mark Elsom-Cook Interactive media is near impossible to describe and in his book he breaks it down and explains the concepts and why it is an utterly different thing to multimedia as well as getting the reader to master the differences in the areas of multimedia.
While we design new ways of interacting with all forms of media fundamentals of design appear to stay the same in games,
• Story
• Degree of control
• Character
While all these things are no doubt customisable on some level there has never been a game designed to tear people away from what they would consider a game.
This maybe because most designers are paid when creating a game and games wouldn’t sell if their design was so complex or different that no one bought them, as people undoubtedly hate change.
But it has to happen eventually games along with other interactive media need to have a design revolution that surpasses the boundaries we have set as a materialistic society.
Games as a whole are very linear there’s a start, a middle and an end. This is standard. This is generic. This is boring. Why? Why can’t we have an end then a start then middle or just a middle and an end or just a start and middle with no end? The game just keeps evolving and changing and ultimately becomes an integrated part of our society.
In my opinion the principles of game design and interactive media revolve around linearity and material gain. Progression here is simply finding a newer way of delivering the same product instead of creating a new product with unknown experiences. Until our society changes and becomes less capitally obsessed, we are doomed to live a liner life.

~SmileyManiak

Omnitrix

The Omnitrix is an idea I’ve had for my FMP. Some of you may be thinking about that crappy watch off Ben 10 but I assure you this is nothing to do with that...

The Internet... a shapeless mass of interlinking websites and data streams, in my own words.
These are some quotes I found that describe the internet in these people’s views.

Advances in computer technology and the Internet have
changed the way America works, learns, and communicates. The Internet has become
an integral part of America's economic, political, and social life. ~Bill
Clinton

Internet: absolute communication, absolute isolation. ~Paul
Carvel

The Internet is the world's largest library. It's just that all
the books are on the floor. ~John Allen Paulos

The Internet is just a
world passing around notes in a classroom. ~Jon Stewart

I believe the first quote is relevant because it describes the internet as a place people escape to and a place people spend most of their time. A place people spend money and a place they develop relationships among other aspects of life.
The second two quotes I believe relevant because they describe the internet in a repressive state i.e. books or paper... this made me feel like the Omnitrix could be the next stage of the internet.

So as the internet is to books
The Omnitrix is to the internet.

It took me a while to come up with a name, I researched more than a few before I settled with Omnitrix, and here are a few.

UnaMatrix
iMatrix
eMatrix
Omniweb
Omninet
oMatrix
Intertron
Interweb
VE3D - Virtual Environment 3D
Intertrix
Lifeweb

When I was researching these names I wanted something that meant all,everything,perfection,one,unity,collective,network,interlink,
So that’s what made me think of these terms.

Now, the Omnitrix is a 3d virtual environment, a city. This city will have one of every store in the world or at least a 3d representation of it. People can enter these stores and look at detailed 3dimentional products and purchase them as if you were on the internet. Not only will this give you a chance to see the item as if you had it in front of you but some retailers may give you the chance to try them before you buy them, which is a problem most people face when purchasing on the internet. The Omnitrix won’t only be for stores. All websites on the internet (excluding those that be illegal or unethical) will also have a structure as well as actual people. Accounts will be made for every individual who has access to the Omnitrix. These people, which I hope will include the whole world one day, will have their own space, a structure in the centre of the city which will virtually hold every accountholders free space, simply enter the building input your desired room and the door at the end of a hall will lead you to whatever you inputted. More about this method will be explained in my theory work.
These buildings will have a “smart input” where the user simply describes details of rooms or objects and they are created ready for editing and viewing though the user (apart from world moderators) will have sole manipulation over these objects and different levels of manipulation can be assigned through a hierarchy effect. Though the 3d aspect is a relatively small one considering all the different parts of this world changing technology, there will be security to manage, physics and other scientific aspects to be taken into account. As far as the Omnitrix environment is concerned it will be developed as a high-end computer game would be but things such as security, accounts and personal information, corporation information and databases, the interface technology. All of these aspects will require multiple companies from all industries to work together to create a safe and secure virtual environment.

More on this may be posted if i get good feed back over the next week or so.

~SmileyManiak

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~SmileyManiak

Rigging

Woot, wow havn't posted in a while well today was very productive, i now know how to rig bipeds and have semi-succesfuly rigged my mech, now im just learning hot to rig skelital structures so woohoo!
btw there is an awesome video of this mech dog that wont fall over its worth taking a look at.

~SmileyManiak

Presentations

FINALLY! got them pesky presentations out of the way thats a load of i think everyone can relate.
Got given lots of great feedback and questions and its made me think alot about my final FMP proposal and i hope to thrill you all with the details later on in the year. =D

fo that puts the end on a long and interesting day so i say "Adur" and Good night.
p.s. will also try and post my presentation on here too.

~SmileyManiak

Wack-A-Something

Wow so just made a new wackamole game thanks to raj's tutoring skills =D

Was pretty interesting to make and work out the bugs in the script and alot of the scripts couls be implamented in other aspects of director work so we shall see.

ill try post it up on here sometime soon and hope y'all look forward to seeing it.

~SmileyManiak

Salter Heating

These are three website designs i'v made for a company called Salter heating in Chepstow
this is not the whole layout just a few sections to test the themes. Any comments would be appreciated.

~SmileyManiak

totallylookslike.com

This is a great lil site i found a couple of days ago. Its quite fun, it has pictures of famous people, objects and places and next to them a picture of something not so common that is quite similar.

worth taking a look at in my opinion.

~SmileyManiak

Crazy Shop in Cwmbran

DOOODE! this is awesome went to a small shop in the centre of cwmbran theotherday and its one of those shops that sells gadgets n stuff.
It sold all the old 90's toys that you used to play with as a kid =D

those lil worms on the string
finger traps
sea monkeys
illusion boxes n stuff
Grow your own

wish i'd taken pictures i cant remember most of it, there was so much haha.
will try and update with pictures some time.

~SmileyManiak