WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:00.090 align:middle line:90% 00:00:00.090 --> 00:00:02.490 align:middle line:84% The following content is provided under a Creative 00:00:02.490 --> 00:00:04.030 align:middle line:90% Commons license. 00:00:04.030 --> 00:00:06.330 align:middle line:84% Your support will help MIT OpenCourseWare 00:00:06.330 --> 00:00:10.690 align:middle line:84% continue to offer high quality educational resources for free. 00:00:10.690 --> 00:00:13.320 align:middle line:84% To make a donation or view additional materials 00:00:13.320 --> 00:00:17.280 align:middle line:84% from hundreds of MIT courses, visit MIT OpenCourseWare 00:00:17.280 --> 00:00:19.657 align:middle line:90% at ocw.mit.edu. 00:00:19.657 --> 00:00:21.270 align:middle line:90% [SIDE CONVERSATION] 00:00:21.270 --> 00:00:26.610 align:middle line:84% PROFESSOR: Before we go into the test, there's a couple of tips 00:00:26.610 --> 00:00:28.350 align:middle line:90% that I want to give you. 00:00:28.350 --> 00:00:30.070 align:middle line:84% Some stuff for you to take notes on. 00:00:30.070 --> 00:00:33.850 align:middle line:84% But you don't really have to do this today. 00:00:33.850 --> 00:00:35.850 align:middle line:84% At some point of time in your prototyping 00:00:35.850 --> 00:00:38.245 align:middle line:90% you might end up getting stuck. 00:00:38.245 --> 00:00:40.102 align:middle line:84% And you're not quite sure what to change. 00:00:40.102 --> 00:00:42.060 align:middle line:84% So if I would have been asking you to do things 00:00:42.060 --> 00:00:43.200 align:middle line:90% like amend rules, right? 00:00:43.200 --> 00:00:45.210 align:middle line:84% Replace rules with other kinds of rules, 00:00:45.210 --> 00:00:48.210 align:middle line:90% kill rules that aren't working. 00:00:48.210 --> 00:00:50.470 align:middle line:84% Some other ideas that you might want to play with, 00:00:50.470 --> 00:00:52.380 align:middle line:84% if there is a resource that's currently limited you 00:00:52.380 --> 00:00:53.713 align:middle line:90% might want to make it unlimited. 00:00:53.713 --> 00:00:54.750 align:middle line:90% And vice versa. 00:00:54.750 --> 00:00:58.500 align:middle line:84% And I'll say the number of steps that you can move, 00:00:58.500 --> 00:01:01.560 align:middle line:84% the number of currency that you have, make it unlimited 00:01:01.560 --> 00:01:02.760 align:middle line:90% or you make it limited. 00:01:02.760 --> 00:01:07.226 align:middle line:84% It could change the way how your game feels a lot. 00:01:07.226 --> 00:01:09.750 align:middle line:90% If you're in with other players. 00:01:09.750 --> 00:01:15.892 align:middle line:84% And maybe even sort of messing up the types of decisions 00:01:15.892 --> 00:01:17.600 align:middle line:84% they get to make, or maybe even the order 00:01:17.600 --> 00:01:18.390 align:middle line:90% that they get to make it. 00:01:18.390 --> 00:01:20.250 align:middle line:84% Could be something as simple as reversing 00:01:20.250 --> 00:01:22.080 align:middle line:90% the order of who goes next. 00:01:22.080 --> 00:01:24.900 align:middle line:84% But it could be more significant, 00:01:24.900 --> 00:01:26.700 align:middle line:84% like forcing another player to make 00:01:26.700 --> 00:01:31.320 align:middle line:84% a move that they don't want or taking away their options. 00:01:31.320 --> 00:01:33.330 align:middle line:84% You can mess with the play order. 00:01:33.330 --> 00:01:36.870 align:middle line:84% Like I said, you could reverse who goes next, but then also 00:01:36.870 --> 00:01:39.240 align:middle line:84% the order in which certain rules get played out. 00:01:39.240 --> 00:01:44.670 align:middle line:84% Could be something that you should be always trying 00:01:44.670 --> 00:01:46.110 align:middle line:90% to do with your own rules. 00:01:46.110 --> 00:01:50.186 align:middle line:84% Do your rules has to be executed in the same order? 00:01:50.186 --> 00:01:52.368 align:middle line:90% In fact, the answer is no. 00:01:52.368 --> 00:01:53.910 align:middle line:84% You can probably rearrange your rules 00:01:53.910 --> 00:01:55.500 align:middle line:84% and get a very different effect, even 00:01:55.500 --> 00:01:58.380 align:middle line:90% without writing a new rule. 00:01:58.380 --> 00:02:00.680 align:middle line:84% If you're going to deal with numbers at the prototyping 00:02:00.680 --> 00:02:03.570 align:middle line:84% phase, generally you don't want to be making small changes. 00:02:03.570 --> 00:02:06.240 align:middle line:84% You don't want to be making 10%, 20% changes to your numbers. 00:02:06.240 --> 00:02:10.400 align:middle line:84% You want to be doing something like changing things by 50%, 00:02:10.400 --> 00:02:14.490 align:middle line:84% maybe doubling it, maybe halving it. 00:02:14.490 --> 00:02:17.550 align:middle line:84% At least change of 50%, but multiplying 00:02:17.550 --> 00:02:18.457 align:middle line:90% and dividing by two. 00:02:18.457 --> 00:02:20.040 align:middle line:84% This will give you a much better sense 00:02:20.040 --> 00:02:24.520 align:middle line:84% of whether that change to the numbers 00:02:24.520 --> 00:02:28.500 align:middle line:84% is going to be the thing that's going to solve your problem. 00:02:28.500 --> 00:02:31.710 align:middle line:84% If you get the numbers wrong but the changes 00:02:31.710 --> 00:02:33.210 align:middle line:84% lead in the direction that you want, 00:02:33.210 --> 00:02:35.430 align:middle line:84% then you can dial back the scale of the change. 00:02:35.430 --> 00:02:38.420 align:middle line:84% Maybe you have a variable that was too drastic, 00:02:38.420 --> 00:02:42.030 align:middle line:84% but it started achieving the things that you wanted. 00:02:42.030 --> 00:02:43.006 align:middle line:90% And so, OK, all right. 00:02:43.006 --> 00:02:44.080 align:middle line:84% Maybe instead of halving that number 00:02:44.080 --> 00:02:45.750 align:middle line:84% would make it 75% of that number. 00:02:45.750 --> 00:02:48.690 align:middle line:90% 00:02:48.690 --> 00:02:52.230 align:middle line:84% As an exercise, once your prototype is already 00:02:52.230 --> 00:02:54.810 align:middle line:84% starting to work one trick of trying 00:02:54.810 --> 00:02:58.360 align:middle line:84% to simplify your prototype is to try 00:02:58.360 --> 00:03:01.590 align:middle line:84% to identify the very fewest rules that 00:03:01.590 --> 00:03:03.600 align:middle line:84% are necessary for your prototype to work. 00:03:03.600 --> 00:03:06.330 align:middle line:84% So you take all the rules out and introduce rules, 00:03:06.330 --> 00:03:07.410 align:middle line:90% then, one by one. 00:03:07.410 --> 00:03:08.850 align:middle line:84% The rules that you've already got. 00:03:08.850 --> 00:03:12.030 align:middle line:84% And you try figure out what's that bare minimum. 00:03:12.030 --> 00:03:14.393 align:middle line:84% That's finding the core, and that's 00:03:14.393 --> 00:03:15.810 align:middle line:84% the core of your prototype, that's 00:03:15.810 --> 00:03:18.600 align:middle line:84% the thing that you might want to carry into a larger game 00:03:18.600 --> 00:03:20.571 align:middle line:90% project in the future. 00:03:20.571 --> 00:03:21.720 align:middle line:90% Finally, throw away. 00:03:21.720 --> 00:03:23.410 align:middle line:84% In fact what I'm going to encourage you, 00:03:23.410 --> 00:03:26.340 align:middle line:84% at the end of this class today, is 00:03:26.340 --> 00:03:28.877 align:middle line:84% to make a completely new prototype from scratch. 00:03:28.877 --> 00:03:33.114 align:middle line:90% 00:03:33.114 --> 00:03:35.740 align:middle line:90% For each person on your team. 00:03:35.740 --> 00:03:39.700 align:middle line:84% But I would suggest as an exercise is just 00:03:39.700 --> 00:03:42.600 align:middle line:84% go back to the mechanic idea and see what else you can 00:03:42.600 --> 00:03:44.440 align:middle line:90% do with that mechanic. 00:03:44.440 --> 00:03:49.200 align:middle line:84% Whether it's stealing from other people or hidden information. 00:03:49.200 --> 00:03:53.190 align:middle line:84% All of your prototypes right now probably test one kind of way 00:03:53.190 --> 00:03:54.950 align:middle line:90% to interpret that mechanic. 00:03:54.950 --> 00:03:57.030 align:middle line:84% What else comes in completely different ways 00:03:57.030 --> 00:03:59.540 align:middle line:84% to interpret exactly the same mechanic? 00:03:59.540 --> 00:04:00.363 align:middle line:90% Make a prototype. 00:04:00.363 --> 00:04:02.280 align:middle line:84% You know, spend about half an hour to an hour. 00:04:02.280 --> 00:04:05.220 align:middle line:84% You only spent an hour on these prototype so far, 00:04:05.220 --> 00:04:07.437 align:middle line:84% and a lot of it was figuring out what mechanic 00:04:07.437 --> 00:04:08.270 align:middle line:90% you were working on. 00:04:08.270 --> 00:04:09.570 align:middle line:90% Right? 00:04:09.570 --> 00:04:13.470 align:middle line:84% So try to build something, test it with dormates 00:04:13.470 --> 00:04:15.480 align:middle line:90% or test it on your teammates. 00:04:15.480 --> 00:04:16.778 align:middle line:90% 00:04:16.778 --> 00:04:19.320 align:middle line:84% It would be great if you had a weekend meeting, for instance, 00:04:19.320 --> 00:04:22.618 align:middle line:84% to go into that meeting with as many different prototypes 00:04:22.618 --> 00:04:23.660 align:middle line:90% as you have team members. 00:04:23.660 --> 00:04:25.470 align:middle line:84% You just play each other's prototypes 00:04:25.470 --> 00:04:26.860 align:middle line:90% and have a conversation. 00:04:26.860 --> 00:04:29.790 align:middle line:84% These are all different ways to approach the same problem. 00:04:29.790 --> 00:04:33.490 align:middle line:84% So away what you got, basically, and make something new. 00:04:33.490 --> 00:04:38.760 align:middle line:84% And then revisit what you've got at a later stage. 00:04:38.760 --> 00:04:42.760 align:middle line:84% So that's some tips for you to do in the following week. 00:04:42.760 --> 00:04:46.010 align:middle line:84% But in the next hour this is what 00:04:46.010 --> 00:04:47.790 align:middle line:84% I'm going to be asking you to do, 00:04:47.790 --> 00:04:49.992 align:middle line:90% and that is to do a play test. 00:04:49.992 --> 00:04:52.200 align:middle line:84% Now, there are many different ways to do a play test. 00:04:52.200 --> 00:04:54.510 align:middle line:84% This is probably what they're going to be doing today. 00:04:54.510 --> 00:04:57.180 align:middle line:84% How many of you have made a game that's really 00:04:57.180 --> 00:04:59.220 align:middle line:90% only for one person right now? 00:04:59.220 --> 00:05:01.270 align:middle line:84% All right, everyone's made a multiplayer game. 00:05:01.270 --> 00:05:05.050 align:middle line:84% So you're probably going to do a play versus player test. 00:05:05.050 --> 00:05:11.170 align:middle line:84% That's fine, that's what we asked for in the assignment. 00:05:11.170 --> 00:05:14.870 align:middle line:84% You can do multiplayer tests for cooperative and competitive 00:05:14.870 --> 00:05:15.370 align:middle line:90% games. 00:05:15.370 --> 00:05:16.912 align:middle line:84% You can have other player tests where 00:05:16.912 --> 00:05:18.580 align:middle line:84% everybody gets the same set of rules 00:05:18.580 --> 00:05:20.800 align:middle line:90% or different sets of rules. 00:05:20.800 --> 00:05:23.780 align:middle line:84% So they're symmetric or asymmetric. 00:05:23.780 --> 00:05:26.262 align:middle line:84% The trick with multiplayer play test 00:05:26.262 --> 00:05:27.970 align:middle line:84% is that they tend to be very, very loose. 00:05:27.970 --> 00:05:29.950 align:middle line:84% It's very hard to do, say, a really, really 00:05:29.950 --> 00:05:32.490 align:middle line:90% tightly controlled experiment. 00:05:32.490 --> 00:05:34.300 align:middle line:84% One thing that often happens is that when 00:05:34.300 --> 00:05:40.825 align:middle line:84% you have people playing a game and later on in the semester 00:05:40.825 --> 00:05:42.700 align:middle line:84% you're going to just give them a set of rules 00:05:42.700 --> 00:05:44.270 align:middle line:84% and they're going to have to interpret it. 00:05:44.270 --> 00:05:46.103 align:middle line:84% They might interpret it in a way differently 00:05:46.103 --> 00:05:47.620 align:middle line:90% from how you intended. 00:05:47.620 --> 00:05:48.990 align:middle line:90% They may come up with-- 00:05:48.990 --> 00:05:51.050 align:middle line:84% they may negotiate the rules based on things 00:05:51.050 --> 00:05:53.050 align:middle line:84% that they don't quite understand from your rules 00:05:53.050 --> 00:05:55.960 align:middle line:84% and come up with a solution that wasn't necessarily 00:05:55.960 --> 00:05:58.520 align:middle line:90% what you expected. 00:05:58.520 --> 00:06:00.540 align:middle line:90% Communicate openly. 00:06:00.540 --> 00:06:04.750 align:middle line:84% They'll talk about, like, hey you know is that rule-- 00:06:04.750 --> 00:06:06.340 align:middle line:84% do you really want to move there? 00:06:06.340 --> 00:06:06.860 align:middle line:90% You know? 00:06:06.860 --> 00:06:07.735 align:middle line:90% And things like that. 00:06:07.735 --> 00:06:11.560 align:middle line:90% 00:06:11.560 --> 00:06:16.220 align:middle line:84% One thing that you can do is to have the person who is actually 00:06:16.220 --> 00:06:18.220 align:middle line:84% running the playtest, someone from your own team 00:06:18.220 --> 00:06:20.160 align:middle line:84% where you're trying to get information, 00:06:20.160 --> 00:06:23.590 align:middle line:84% you will explain the rules to people at the beginning, 00:06:23.590 --> 00:06:24.340 align:middle line:90% in early playtest. 00:06:24.340 --> 00:06:28.550 align:middle line:84% In later playtests we just hand them rules. 00:06:28.550 --> 00:06:30.220 align:middle line:84% But if they come up with house rules, 00:06:30.220 --> 00:06:32.890 align:middle line:84% if they decide to interpret your rules in a certain way, 00:06:32.890 --> 00:06:35.140 align:middle line:84% I would actually suggest not stopping them right away. 00:06:35.140 --> 00:06:36.432 align:middle line:90% Let them play out a little bet. 00:06:36.432 --> 00:06:39.840 align:middle line:84% Because they're giving you a free iteration of your game 00:06:39.840 --> 00:06:41.790 align:middle line:84% that you may not necessarily have considered, 00:06:41.790 --> 00:06:43.960 align:middle line:90% and may end up working. 00:06:43.960 --> 00:06:47.050 align:middle line:90% It might work out great. 00:06:47.050 --> 00:06:48.100 align:middle line:90% But then you cannot-- 00:06:48.100 --> 00:06:49.740 align:middle line:84% But once they play a little bit of that 00:06:49.740 --> 00:06:52.450 align:middle line:84% and then you get a sense of how that works, take note of that, 00:06:52.450 --> 00:06:56.030 align:middle line:84% make sure that you know how that is supposed to work out. 00:06:56.030 --> 00:06:57.330 align:middle line:90% And then explain the rules. 00:06:57.330 --> 00:06:58.085 align:middle line:90% No, actually. 00:06:58.085 --> 00:07:00.460 align:middle line:84% I'd like you to try playing it with the rules interpreted 00:07:00.460 --> 00:07:03.957 align:middle line:84% this way, which is the way how you originally designed. 00:07:03.957 --> 00:07:05.665 align:middle line:84% And then you can get a second player test 00:07:05.665 --> 00:07:06.832 align:middle line:90% of the same group of people. 00:07:06.832 --> 00:07:10.000 align:middle line:90% 00:07:10.000 --> 00:07:12.285 align:middle line:90% Let's see, what else. 00:07:12.285 --> 00:07:14.410 align:middle line:84% This is absolutely necessary for multiplayer games. 00:07:14.410 --> 00:07:16.210 align:middle line:84% You are going to have to do that. 00:07:16.210 --> 00:07:17.060 align:middle line:90% Even if you make-- 00:07:17.060 --> 00:07:19.150 align:middle line:84% If you go to other classes and make prototypes 00:07:19.150 --> 00:07:21.310 align:middle line:84% for digital games on paper, you are 00:07:21.310 --> 00:07:24.220 align:middle line:84% going to need to do this sort of playtest. 00:07:24.220 --> 00:07:26.680 align:middle line:84% So you're going to get some experience doing 00:07:26.680 --> 00:07:28.392 align:middle line:90% that right now. 00:07:28.392 --> 00:07:30.850 align:middle line:84% I do want you to know that there are a couple of other ways 00:07:30.850 --> 00:07:32.210 align:middle line:90% to do playtests. 00:07:32.210 --> 00:07:36.247 align:middle line:84% The Wizard of Oz test where somebody-- 00:07:36.247 --> 00:07:38.080 align:middle line:84% the person that you're inviting to play test 00:07:38.080 --> 00:07:40.230 align:middle line:84% is basically playing with somebody 00:07:40.230 --> 00:07:41.980 align:middle line:84% who's on your design team, and that person 00:07:41.980 --> 00:07:43.150 align:middle line:90% is playing the computer. 00:07:43.150 --> 00:07:44.590 align:middle line:84% This is very good for prototyping 00:07:44.590 --> 00:07:47.850 align:middle line:84% a digital game, especially a single player digital game. 00:07:47.850 --> 00:07:49.808 align:middle line:84% You can be very constrained on what information 00:07:49.808 --> 00:07:50.767 align:middle line:90% you provide the player. 00:07:50.767 --> 00:07:52.240 align:middle line:84% In fact, you don't necessarily even 00:07:52.240 --> 00:07:54.290 align:middle line:84% need to provide a player a full set of rules. 00:07:54.290 --> 00:07:56.207 align:middle line:84% You can just say, this is the computer screen, 00:07:56.207 --> 00:07:58.540 align:middle line:84% your finger is the mouse, or something like that. 00:07:58.540 --> 00:08:01.910 align:middle line:84% Or even giving them a simplified keyboard. 00:08:01.910 --> 00:08:04.090 align:middle line:84% Up, down, left, right or something like that. 00:08:04.090 --> 00:08:05.965 align:middle line:84% That's how you communicate with the computer, 00:08:05.965 --> 00:08:08.790 align:middle line:84% you just push, or you point, you click 00:08:08.790 --> 00:08:12.130 align:middle line:90% by touching on the screen. 00:08:12.130 --> 00:08:14.182 align:middle line:84% The trick is to make sure that the player is-- 00:08:14.182 --> 00:08:16.390 align:middle line:84% that you're not giving clues to the player about what 00:08:16.390 --> 00:08:17.432 align:middle line:90% the computer is thinking. 00:08:17.432 --> 00:08:20.050 align:middle line:84% The computer should be communicating primarily 00:08:20.050 --> 00:08:22.150 align:middle line:84% through the things that a computer will show you. 00:08:22.150 --> 00:08:27.670 align:middle line:84% Either images, sounds, maybe numbers that change. 00:08:27.670 --> 00:08:31.090 align:middle line:84% But the computer doesn't actively explain the rules. 00:08:31.090 --> 00:08:33.309 align:middle line:84% If the game was supposed to explain the rules, 00:08:33.309 --> 00:08:36.190 align:middle line:84% you should have little prototype pieces of paper 00:08:36.190 --> 00:08:40.000 align:middle line:84% that you can hand out in front of the player. 00:08:40.000 --> 00:08:43.317 align:middle line:84% Now say the player is completely confused and you think, 00:08:43.317 --> 00:08:45.400 align:middle line:84% this would be a good time to introduce a tool tip. 00:08:45.400 --> 00:08:48.550 align:middle line:84% Oh crap, I actually didn't have a tool tip prepared ahead 00:08:48.550 --> 00:08:49.130 align:middle line:90% of time. 00:08:49.130 --> 00:08:51.250 align:middle line:84% Well, grab a Post-it pad and write it down, 00:08:51.250 --> 00:08:52.578 align:middle line:90% slap it in front of the player. 00:08:52.578 --> 00:08:53.870 align:middle line:90% Now that's part of your design. 00:08:53.870 --> 00:08:56.470 align:middle line:90% 00:08:56.470 --> 00:08:58.740 align:middle line:90% So you can be-- 00:08:58.740 --> 00:09:03.730 align:middle line:84% this can be a very, very deep prototype. 00:09:03.730 --> 00:09:06.730 align:middle line:84% You can actually test a lot of different things in a computer 00:09:06.730 --> 00:09:09.310 align:middle line:84% game on paper this way, depending 00:09:09.310 --> 00:09:12.160 align:middle line:84% on how much time you want to go into producing something 00:09:12.160 --> 00:09:13.755 align:middle line:90% to be tested. 00:09:13.755 --> 00:09:15.880 align:middle line:84% You don't to spend too much time because, remember, 00:09:15.880 --> 00:09:17.588 align:middle line:84% prototypes are supposed to be disposable. 00:09:17.588 --> 00:09:20.090 align:middle line:84% They're supposed to be fast and cheap. 00:09:20.090 --> 00:09:23.500 align:middle line:84% So it's a Wizard of Oz because it's like the Wizard of Oz. 00:09:23.500 --> 00:09:25.600 align:middle line:84% It's somebody behind the scenes, manipulating 00:09:25.600 --> 00:09:27.500 align:middle line:90% what you're seeing. 00:09:27.500 --> 00:09:30.170 align:middle line:84% But there's no actual computer there, it's just you. 00:09:30.170 --> 00:09:32.350 align:middle line:84% You have to be very, very constrained 00:09:32.350 --> 00:09:34.780 align:middle line:84% yourself when you're running a test like this. 00:09:34.780 --> 00:09:38.464 align:middle line:90% 00:09:38.464 --> 00:09:41.590 align:middle line:84% You don't want to deviate from the algorithm 00:09:41.590 --> 00:09:46.010 align:middle line:84% that you set up for your computer, if at all possible. 00:09:46.010 --> 00:09:47.840 align:middle line:84% So if you've got some sort of AI character, 00:09:47.840 --> 00:09:49.673 align:middle line:84% you shouldn't be making human-like decisions 00:09:49.673 --> 00:09:50.425 align:middle line:90% for that AI. 00:09:50.425 --> 00:09:54.147 align:middle line:84% You should come up with a bunch of rules for that. 00:09:54.147 --> 00:09:56.230 align:middle line:84% This is another kind of prototype that you can do. 00:09:56.230 --> 00:09:58.810 align:middle line:84% Not for today's exercise, but later on in the semester. 00:09:58.810 --> 00:10:00.960 align:middle line:84% If you decide to do a live action game 00:10:00.960 --> 00:10:03.370 align:middle line:84% or if your games really about just a person 00:10:03.370 --> 00:10:05.510 align:middle line:84% walking around in a space, even if it's going to be 00:10:05.510 --> 00:10:07.630 align:middle line:84% like a top down board game in the end. 00:10:07.630 --> 00:10:09.490 align:middle line:84% You could just do a live action game 00:10:09.490 --> 00:10:11.282 align:middle line:84% where you just have people actually walking 00:10:11.282 --> 00:10:14.300 align:middle line:90% around a real space. 00:10:14.300 --> 00:10:16.850 align:middle line:84% You explain the rules to everybody who's involved. 00:10:16.850 --> 00:10:18.520 align:middle line:84% Maybe your game's for five people 00:10:18.520 --> 00:10:22.030 align:middle line:84% and you explain the rules to all five people before the game, 00:10:22.030 --> 00:10:23.350 align:middle line:90% and then you let them go. 00:10:23.350 --> 00:10:25.890 align:middle line:84% The problem, of course, is that they're all 00:10:25.890 --> 00:10:27.940 align:middle line:84% going to interpret those rules their own way. 00:10:27.940 --> 00:10:29.860 align:middle line:84% And because they may be physically separated, 00:10:29.860 --> 00:10:32.250 align:middle line:84% they may not be negotiating with each other 00:10:32.250 --> 00:10:34.270 align:middle line:84% and as a result may be not even playing 00:10:34.270 --> 00:10:35.710 align:middle line:90% with the same set of rules. 00:10:35.710 --> 00:10:38.950 align:middle line:90% That's also a problem. 00:10:38.950 --> 00:10:41.647 align:middle line:84% It's difficult to monitor what's happening with a lot of people 00:10:41.647 --> 00:10:43.730 align:middle line:84% walking around a space and doing their own things, 00:10:43.730 --> 00:10:46.190 align:middle line:90% like individual agents. 00:10:46.190 --> 00:10:49.783 align:middle line:84% But it's really, really fast to prototype because you may not 00:10:49.783 --> 00:10:50.950 align:middle line:90% even need to write anything. 00:10:50.950 --> 00:10:52.810 align:middle line:84% You may not even need to produce any sheets of paper, 00:10:52.810 --> 00:10:54.685 align:middle line:84% you just tell people here's a bunch of rules. 00:10:54.685 --> 00:10:57.220 align:middle line:84% It's like setting up a schoolyard game. 00:10:57.220 --> 00:10:59.740 align:middle line:84% And so if your games about, here's 00:10:59.740 --> 00:11:02.023 align:middle line:84% a character moving around a space 00:11:02.023 --> 00:11:03.940 align:middle line:84% or if you're of course trying to actually make 00:11:03.940 --> 00:11:07.622 align:middle line:84% a live action then this is something that you can also do. 00:11:07.622 --> 00:11:09.580 align:middle line:84% This is just as valid a prototype that anything 00:11:09.580 --> 00:11:13.960 align:middle line:84% that you're doing with paper and cardboard. 00:11:13.960 --> 00:11:17.250 align:middle line:90% So here are the rules. 00:11:17.250 --> 00:11:19.645 align:middle line:84% There's going to be people who are going to play. 00:11:19.645 --> 00:11:20.770 align:middle line:90% I think we have five teams. 00:11:20.770 --> 00:11:22.420 align:middle line:90% One, two, three, four, five. 00:11:22.420 --> 00:11:24.370 align:middle line:90% Right? 00:11:24.370 --> 00:11:26.890 align:middle line:90% So that's a little tricky. 00:11:26.890 --> 00:11:31.438 align:middle line:84% How many of you have two player games? 00:11:31.438 --> 00:11:32.730 align:middle line:90% AUDIENCE: Ours has two to four. 00:11:32.730 --> 00:11:34.240 align:middle line:90% PROFESSOR: Two to four. 00:11:34.240 --> 00:11:36.310 align:middle line:84% How many of you have three player games? 00:11:36.310 --> 00:11:40.191 align:middle line:90% One, two-- three to four. 00:11:40.191 --> 00:11:41.335 align:middle line:90% Better with four. 00:11:41.335 --> 00:11:42.800 align:middle line:90% And how many players? 00:11:42.800 --> 00:11:43.300 align:middle line:90% Four. 00:11:43.300 --> 00:11:45.490 align:middle line:90% Yours is a four player game. 00:11:45.490 --> 00:11:48.085 align:middle line:90% OK. 00:11:48.085 --> 00:11:49.900 align:middle line:90% So there's three, three. 00:11:49.900 --> 00:11:51.858 align:middle line:90% Yours is three to four. 00:11:51.858 --> 00:11:54.990 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: Do you want me to grab Sarah? 00:11:54.990 --> 00:11:55.990 align:middle line:90% PROFESSOR: Oh, actually. 00:11:55.990 --> 00:11:56.782 align:middle line:90% That's a good idea. 00:11:56.782 --> 00:11:57.610 align:middle line:90% OK, all right. 00:11:57.610 --> 00:12:02.170 align:middle line:84% So we're going to grab one more MIT Game Lab staff member 00:12:02.170 --> 00:12:06.400 align:middle line:84% to come in and will help test whatever team is not 00:12:06.400 --> 00:12:08.540 align:middle line:90% getting a chance-- 00:12:08.540 --> 00:12:11.110 align:middle line:84% that doesn't have a team available to test. 00:12:11.110 --> 00:12:12.820 align:middle line:84% We'll probably jump in on this game. 00:12:12.820 --> 00:12:16.590 align:middle line:84% So can I just check the two teams on my right. 00:12:16.590 --> 00:12:18.407 align:middle line:90% You're both three person games? 00:12:18.407 --> 00:12:19.990 align:middle line:84% All right, you test each others games. 00:12:19.990 --> 00:12:24.242 align:middle line:84% And then this group here, the two to four player games 00:12:24.242 --> 00:12:25.450 align:middle line:90% will test each other's games. 00:12:25.450 --> 00:12:27.790 align:middle line:90% OK? 00:12:27.790 --> 00:12:29.924 align:middle line:84% So you're going to test one game. 00:12:29.924 --> 00:12:33.130 align:middle line:90% [SIDE CONVERSATION] 00:12:33.130 --> 00:12:37.960 align:middle line:90% 00:12:37.960 --> 00:12:39.020 align:middle line:90% So, to clarify. 00:12:39.020 --> 00:12:41.248 align:middle line:84% You're going to test one game, and they 00:12:41.248 --> 00:12:43.540 align:middle line:84% are going to shift over and test the other teams games. 00:12:43.540 --> 00:12:45.992 align:middle line:84% We're not going to do it simultaneously. 00:12:45.992 --> 00:12:46.492 align:middle line:90% OK? 00:12:46.492 --> 00:12:48.460 align:middle line:90% People, I'm not done yet. 00:12:48.460 --> 00:12:49.820 align:middle line:90% I'm not done yet. 00:12:49.820 --> 00:12:50.320 align:middle line:90% OK. 00:12:50.320 --> 00:12:53.620 align:middle line:84% So we're not going to test games simultaneously. 00:12:53.620 --> 00:12:56.512 align:middle line:90% You're going to actually-- 00:12:56.512 --> 00:12:59.710 align:middle line:84% we're going to test one team's game at a time. 00:12:59.710 --> 00:13:02.520 align:middle line:84% So, say, the two groups on my left. 00:13:02.520 --> 00:13:06.110 align:middle line:84% If you are testing your four player games, 00:13:06.110 --> 00:13:08.360 align:middle line:84% we're going to play one groups four player game first. 00:13:08.360 --> 00:13:11.530 align:middle line:84% Then everyone's going to move over and play the other game. 00:13:11.530 --> 00:13:14.830 align:middle line:84% And the reason for that is because the team 00:13:14.830 --> 00:13:17.350 align:middle line:84% that designed the game, even though they're not playing 00:13:17.350 --> 00:13:20.020 align:middle line:90% the game, has a job to do. 00:13:20.020 --> 00:13:22.823 align:middle line:84% Someone's got to be the facilitator, sometimes. 00:13:22.823 --> 00:13:24.240 align:middle line:84% In a Wizard of Oz test that person 00:13:24.240 --> 00:13:26.450 align:middle line:90% is often also the computer. 00:13:26.450 --> 00:13:30.610 align:middle line:84% and that person's got the job of explaining the rules, right? 00:13:30.610 --> 00:13:32.988 align:middle line:84% Everyone else has got to be an observer. 00:13:32.988 --> 00:13:34.530 align:middle line:84% You should have a notepad, you should 00:13:34.530 --> 00:13:36.500 align:middle line:84% have something that allows you to take down notes really, 00:13:36.500 --> 00:13:37.000 align:middle line:90% really fast. 00:13:37.000 --> 00:13:39.340 align:middle line:84% You should be like writing down everything you can 00:13:39.340 --> 00:13:41.010 align:middle line:90% about what you're observing. 00:13:41.010 --> 00:13:45.608 align:middle line:84% In particular, keep an eye on the faces of the people 00:13:45.608 --> 00:13:46.650 align:middle line:90% who are playing the game. 00:13:46.650 --> 00:13:49.930 align:middle line:84% It's too easy to just get mired and try to record everything 00:13:49.930 --> 00:13:50.710 align:middle line:90% about game state. 00:13:50.710 --> 00:13:52.860 align:middle line:90% It's more interesting to-- 00:13:52.860 --> 00:13:55.570 align:middle line:84% it's more important to also pay attention 00:13:55.570 --> 00:13:58.125 align:middle line:84% to whether they're engaged or whether they get confused, 00:13:58.125 --> 00:13:59.500 align:middle line:84% whether they're being frustrated, 00:13:59.500 --> 00:14:04.990 align:middle line:84% or whether a particular game interaction-- 00:14:04.990 --> 00:14:06.220 align:middle line:90% what's interesting to them. 00:14:06.220 --> 00:14:08.810 align:middle line:84% You can tell a lot just by looking at someone's face. 00:14:08.810 --> 00:14:11.770 align:middle line:84% So, the observers and the facilitator, 00:14:11.770 --> 00:14:15.190 align:middle line:84% once you're done explaining the rules really 00:14:15.190 --> 00:14:17.800 align:middle line:84% shouldn't be talking all that much. 00:14:17.800 --> 00:14:20.380 align:middle line:84% In fact, once you get onto the later stages of prototyping, 00:14:20.380 --> 00:14:22.922 align:middle line:84% when you have written rules, you shouldn't be talking at all. 00:14:22.922 --> 00:14:24.820 align:middle line:84% You should be leaving it to the players 00:14:24.820 --> 00:14:28.480 align:middle line:84% to actually figure out the rules on their own. 00:14:28.480 --> 00:14:29.980 align:middle line:84% And the reason for that is you don't 00:14:29.980 --> 00:14:31.630 align:middle line:90% want to bias your results. 00:14:31.630 --> 00:14:34.970 align:middle line:84% You don't want to accidentally suggest good strategies, 00:14:34.970 --> 00:14:35.597 align:middle line:90% for instance. 00:14:35.597 --> 00:14:37.930 align:middle line:84% Saying that no, you really want to be moving this first. 00:14:37.930 --> 00:14:40.990 align:middle line:84% Well, maybe you should make that a rule instead of making it a 00:14:40.990 --> 00:14:42.880 align:middle line:90% suggested strategy. 00:14:42.880 --> 00:14:44.900 align:middle line:90% So take that out-- 00:14:44.900 --> 00:14:46.690 align:middle line:84% Once you're taking notes, practice 00:14:46.690 --> 00:14:48.160 align:middle line:90% being as quiet as possible. 00:14:48.160 --> 00:14:52.690 align:middle line:84% This is a small room, it's very resonant. 00:14:52.690 --> 00:14:54.250 align:middle line:90% It gets pretty loud. 00:14:54.250 --> 00:14:57.085 align:middle line:84% You can have a discussion after class is over 00:14:57.085 --> 00:15:01.600 align:middle line:84% or after the two play tests are over about what you recorded 00:15:01.600 --> 00:15:03.100 align:middle line:84% and we can discuss what you're going 00:15:03.100 --> 00:15:05.230 align:middle line:90% to do with that information. 00:15:05.230 --> 00:15:06.460 align:middle line:90% OK? 00:15:06.460 --> 00:15:10.560 align:middle line:84% So I think the three of us will be playing this game. 00:15:10.560 --> 00:15:14.860 align:middle line:84% And you'll need to explain to us the rules and take down notes. 00:15:14.860 --> 00:15:15.760 align:middle line:90% All right? 00:15:15.760 --> 00:15:17.488 align:middle line:84% If you need note taking material, 00:15:17.488 --> 00:15:18.982 align:middle line:90% there's plenty of pads. 00:15:18.982 --> 00:15:23.720 align:middle line:90% [SIDE CONVERSATION] 00:15:23.720 --> 00:15:29.593 align:middle line:90%