Explores the rules and procedures followed by players and games-more broadly and not limited to computer games-that are the building blocks that make up gameplay. Students look at the various aspects of game mechanics; what they are, how they can be formed, how they interact with each other, what values they transmit and topics relating to the application of game mechanics. Examines system dynamics, balancing luck and skill, cooperation and competition, in variety of gaming and non-gaming contexts. Students will prototype, test, and implement mechanics in games and learn how to visualize, simulate and operationalize game mechanics. Topics include: emergent gameplay, balancing game mechanics and level design, and scripted events vs. dynamic progression systems.

Despina

Juan Callejas

Despina is a tricky platformer where you must navigate a city full of hazards, but the game plays very differently depending on which of the two characters you decide to play as.

The game is a simple platformer in which the player must get to the end of the level without touching any hazards while collecting any bonuses they find along the way, though before they get a chance to even start the game, they must make one important decision. Despite the level layouts never changing, the game will appear differently depending on how one enters the city. Certain paths will be more accessible depending on how you enter the city, while some will become more treacherous.

Game link: https://theshadycolombian.itch.io/despina

Trials of Perinthia

Kristen Grinyer

Trials of Perinthia is an action-adventure game set in the magical, medieval, plagued city of Perinthia. Players play as a young traveller looking for a new home, but ending up twisted in the afflictions of a mysterious city. It seems the city and its citizens have been cursed with deformities, the children so much so that they only show their faces at night and attack anyone in their eyesight. Players must travel through the 12 neighbourhoods while battling the mutant children to collect pieces of an effigy that when put back together will reveal what happened to Perinthia.

Eyes on Me

Yodhin Singh

Eyes on Me is a third person puzzle-platformer game. The goal of this game is to solve the 3 puzzles so that the exit door is unlocked and the player can escape the prison that they are trapped in. The game takes place in a futuristic cyberpunk environment and so, even in the prisons there are bright neon-like lights everywhere and everything is automated, including security systems. Using an advanced tech gun, the player can modify the state of various objects –states such as the size, speed and their on/off switch– that will help him accomplish his goal of escaping.

Video link: https://youtu.be/SSXkozDO0tE

Cipher Room

Yikun Peng

Cipher Room is a horror game that features the gameplay of action-adventure, strategy and puzzle solving. Sounds complicated right? You will enjoy this game by playing as a detective who is hired to find the missing secret code by fighting against a ghost and solving the hidden puzzle in a dark house. Now, be brave to explore this unknown place and have fun!

Video can be found here: https://youtu.be/QOuHN3ZPUtg