Benjamin Vasquez- Journal Entries

[benvaz722]

• Name of Game: Fez
  Game author (If known): Phil fish
  Game Studio: Polytron Corporation
  
  Original Platform & control mechanism: pc and mouse keyboard
  
  Control mechanism you used
  Would the experience have been different using the original? How?
  I used the same mechanisms that it was designed for.
  
  Describe game play and mechanics
  From the photos in the steam page I did not expect much from this game. I thought that it was a simple 2d side scroller with a pixel art style. Once I started playing, I was hooked. The controls are a bit odd as I am used to the W, A, S, and D to be the locomotion controls, but this game uses the arrow keys as its way to move the character. Space bar is still the jump but when pressed the up arrow also press it allows the player to hang on ledges. This allows for interesting climbing mechanics. Possibly what makes this game stand out from the rest is the use of shifting focus from a 2d world to a 3d world. I was shocked when it first happened. This forces the player to think and move around a new dimension while solving puzzles and collecting the 8 cube shards.
  
  Describe strengths & weaknesses of art & design
  I played so many 2D games with a pixel art style that I didn’t think much of it. However, in games, the world seems so colorful and active. I would think that the mechanic to shift into different views would ruin the illusion of the world, but it complements and shifts very well. As an animator I particularly like the way the character moves about. I love the drag that the animator placed on his big head when he breaks to turn or when entering a door. The main character oozes with personality to just being a goofy boy in an adventure. The designers found a way to fit the 3d mechanic into everything in the game. One of my pleasant surprises is the map menu being in also 3d. It was pleasant to look at the space background to the golden bands that surround the completed levels. I also like how the game allows you to see a preview of the level so you don’t have to keep going through random doors you have already been in.
  
  What made it fun?
  What made the game fun is it combination of world and puzzle mechanics. The world is believable and well lived in. It feels like the main character and the side characters have lived in that village their whole life. Their houses are personalized, and they each have their own personality. The other interesting part is the introduction to the main mechanic of the game. It was ominous to see what we in 3D recognize as a cube, but it is such a foreign concept to this 2D being. It was like seeing an eldritch horror from a dimension we couldn’t comprehend. This, along with the game breaking and glitching out taking us back to the main menu, made it feel all too real. As if the game was reaching from the land of fantasy into our real world. The puzzle aspect is quite fun also. I have a soft spot for puzzle games because games such as Shoot ’Em Ups or first-person shooter games end up getting repetitive and frankly boring. When it comes to puzzle games, the creator must think of creative ways to stump and provide a challenge to people he has never met. This results in a creative influx of world building and level management.
  
  Now that you’ve played it, why would this game be considered influential? How does it fit into the evolution of games?
• I feel like the way that this game fits in the evolution of games is how the game represent the accumulation of history of games. For example the the game central art style is similar to early arcade with 2D 8 bit characters. This is also helped by the title screen music and set up to be similar to an arcade. Move to the era of personal computers and consoles being able to handle 3D worlds better and when the game showed the game crashing it exhibited a bios and start up sequence similar to being on a console or a personal computer. The other point I want to emphasize is the time that Fez came out. In a world filled with established triple A companies and the fan base increasingly craving more realistic games. FEZ was exciting change of pace to the point that it received inde awards before the game has even been finished. It reflects to the now where the buyers are getting tired of the large corporations and instead are buying cheap fun to play games off of steam. Over all I really did enjoy this game and it world. Sadly I only had time to get through the first levels, but for sure is a game I plan on eventually playing fully.
• How would you rate this game (1-5 Stars (5 stars good))
  5 stars!

[benvaz722]

Name of Game: under dark defense
Game author (If known) : couldn’t find
Game Studio: liberalDust

Original Platform & control mechanism
phone game

Control mechanism you used
Would the experience have been different using the original? How?
I played it how exactly it should have been used

Describe game play and mechanics
The game is a strategy tower defense. Your goal as a player is to attain the best combination of heroes, weapons, towers, pets, support mercenaries, structures, props, background, and artifacts. You do this by buying them in a shop, through passes, events, or beating levels. The main game is about defeating waves of monsters and protecting your campsite. Differentiating in heroes, weapons, and towers will give the player different experiences and freshen up the gameplay. The heroes have different abilities and rarities. For example, the main hero “wondering soul” have the ability to move around after the player dies. This ability comes in handy because there are towers that need the player to stand on it to activate. Weapons have many abilities and can be ither close or long range. The towers can have different synergies to each other to maximize damage to the waves. Some towers focus on statis effects, damage, splash damage, and buffs for your towers.

Describe strengths & weaknesses of art & design
The game is frankly quite charming. The cute characters mixed with the scary and weird looking monsters gives it a fun appeal. What continues with these emphases is the setting of levels being dark and gritty. The Heros designs give them so much personality. There is a dwarf character that looks like there is nothing going on in his mind. An elf girl who is sassy and pouts while waiting for you to start a level. The main hero who looks like he is ready to take on everything. All the personality was able to be read in just the way they are designed and posed. The towers have personality too as some are just other characters standing on a slab instead of just mechanical. For example, there is a goblin guy with raised sword on each hand and large smile. From just the design the player knows he has the ability to strike the enemies twice. A lot of “show not tell” with the art and design.

What made it fun?
What made the game fun is its personalization and art of the game. The various paths for the player to get stronger allow the player to customize their experience in the game. One way is selecting which hero to use during your game play. I personally like using “agni” which is an anthropomorphic iron pot that has the ability to spawn in with a cooking pot. When the pot is placed, and the player stands near it, it will spawn in some experience orbs that are used to get a new tower every single time the player levels up. Pairing the pot with a mystery tower, which gives the player a random tower at different levels with the cost of waiting 40 seconds, allows me to farm experience and maximize the amount of towers I use. The main menu is a camp site where the player can decorate with items that can buff the player and further support their play style. The other thing that is appealing is the art style. It is so unique, stylize, and charming. I find the characters fun and make me want to experiment and play with them. Each one has abilities that are suited to their personality. The weapons look cool that I want to play with different styles. Overall, the game is extremely fun.

Now that you’ve played it, why would this game be considered influential? How does it fit into the evolution of games?
This game was released in May 2024 with 97,000 downloads in the first month and currently sits at 1.7 million. It is highly rated at 4.48 out of 5 and I think that I can reflect that statement. My first experience with games is playing on an iPod and so it is incredible to see how the development of phone games has changed over the years. This game feels like it is a result of years of trial and error of years of phone games being in development. One example is the option of different passes the player could buy to receive more rewards. However, players hate paying for passes but feel like they have too in order to fully enjoy the game. As a result, Under Dark provides other ways to advance without forking up cash. Another thing I enjoy is the games use of Ads. Nowadays there is no place anyone can enjoy without being bombardment with companies trying to take your money. I understand the developers need to make money and its why players tolerate the Ads. However, too many Ads for just doing simple actions, to play, to win, or just taking up the space will eventually kill a game. I appreciate how Under dark will only use Ads if the player wants something in return. This plays with the previous idea that the game allows other options to advance quickly than pay the pass.

How would you rate this game (1-5 Stars (5 stars good))
I would rate Five stars

[benvaz722]

Name of Game: Super Mario Galaxy Game author (If known) : Shigeru Miyamoto
Game Studio: Nintendo

Original Platform & control mechanism

Wii and its associated remotes

Control mechanism you used
Would the experience have been different using the original? How?

I used a switch. I played the with the original and there is fun around having to shake the remotes when playing. It could still be done on the switch but it is easier to play on handheld mode.

Describe game play and mechanics:

The game paly is a 3d platformer and puzzle game. Like most Mario worlds type of games, the game play is focused on visiting different levels and collecting stars in order to proceed to other levels. Each level is able to be replayed so that the player can find hidden stars, allowing the level to be viewed at a different perspective. However, what makes Super Mario Galaxy different is its gravity mechanic allowing Mario to circle around these planets providing more 3d depth and fun puzzles that use this mechanic. Mario is able to move through obstacles well through a better polish locomotion system that allows Mario to flip and summer sault. The way the nun chucks controllers are used is by having the left controller as the main control and the right to be used to collect star bits or launch them towards enemies. Using two separate controllers allows the game to be also multiplayer.

Describe strengths & weaknesses of art & design

The game cartoony design allows the developers to not be constrained to the boundaries of real life. This is especially important as the game relies on galaxies that are extremely creative and logically it doesn’t make any sense. Of course, Mario and the other characters are polished and more updated. The Lumas design are a simple concept executed perfectly. They are stars shape and some how also round with large black eyes… just adorable. Rosalina character design looks ethereal with her being one of the tallest characters and depicted with a shine around her, yet still looking like a believable princess. What I liked most is the boss character designs. For example, the first boss the player faces (Dino piranha) is a fun take on the piranha plant. The character is large, and the player has to use the mechanics they learned to defeat him. The tail of dino is designed into the character but is also used as a mechanic to defeat him. Overall, it’s a nice-looking game with so much creativity.

What made it fun?

What made the game fun is its puzzle platformer. The puzzle platformer function is the bed rock of the entire game. If the gravity mechanic wasn’t figured out and polished, then there wouldn’t be any Super Mario Galaxy game. Next is how the designers build the galaxies of the different levels using the gravity mechanic. Some of my favorite worlds are the water worlds that allow the player to pop up on different sides like a floating bubble. Or worlds that spin and that player must counteract to jump across gaps. Using space, they allow Mario to doge asteroids or go inside different planets in order to pop up on the other side. The fun designs and colors of the characters stimulate the brain with excitement and players chase around collecting shiny star bits. Finally, I think Nintendo mastered the sharable aspect of what makes a game. My sisters and I would have fun as she would help me pass levels by shooting down enemies and collecting bits. I would do the same in return. Once one died then we would switch places. Limited games forced us to learn how to share so we all could share in the enjoyment.

Now that you’ve played it, why would this game be considered influential? How does it fit into the evolution of games?

Growing up, the story of how Super Mario Galaxy was developed was always brought up as a fun fact about the game. In every video I saw there was a mention on how the idea grew. I find it interesting how a tech demo in the game cube was the inspiration of the main mechanic. I remember being amazed about how Nintendo space world demo was that idea that started a great game. Miyamoto saw this and wanted it to make an expansive Mario game from it. The game became one of the most successful WII games selling 12.80 million world wide. The game even spun off into a sequel that addressed the only issue that players had with the game. The game main mechanic as difficult to predict and it frustrated players. I’m glad the Nintendo was able to fine tune their game with a sequel. Another great thing about the game is how much content you are getting for the price of the game. Miyamoto want to make sure it was expansive and it did feel like there was so much to do. There were so many levels and with in each level contained more stars to find. All in all this game is going to continue to bring great memories for generations.
How would you rate this game (1-5 Stars (5 stars good))
I would rate Five stars