Maria Garcia's Journal Entries

[Maria Garcia]

I'll be posting all my journal entries right here

[Maria Garcia]

Name of Game: Trash

Game author: Unknown

Game Studio: N/A


Original Platform & control mechanism: The cards themselves are the platform, as they can be played in a vast variety of ways. The player is arguably its own control mechanism, as one should know how to shuffle them and there is no set way to place them on the table or on one’s hand really. As long as the game is being played correctly, everything’s fair game.


Control mechanism you used

We used two card decks, our mere hands and the table we were standing in.


Describe game play and mechanics

Thrash is played with at least two players, though it's more fun if it’s played with a larger group of people. Everyone gets a set of 10 cards, but the catch is that they’re put upside down on the table. The objective is to complete a set of 10 cards, from the Ace to the number 10, it doesn't matter the color or if its diamonds, clovers or otherwise. In each round, a player either draws a new cards or picks one from the discard pile to complete the set. Once a numbered card is put in its place, the upside down card is revealed, If this card is useful to the player (whether it being a Joker or a card with a number that the player doesn't already have) it can be re-played, repeating the process. If the card is a King, Queen, Jack or a number useless to the player, it’s deposited in the discard pile. The game goes on and on like this until someone completes the set, and then everyone else gets an extra round. Then, everything is reshuffled and the winner starts now with nine cards.


Describe strengths & weaknesses of art & design

Design-wise, the game is quite interesting. I think it is a unique way to play with a card set this way, because there is always a bit of luck in the mix- you never know what is going to pop when you turn over the card. The gameplay complements itself quite well, because ad the say goes, one’s trash could be someone else’s treasure, quite literally. The person before you could trash the very last number that you needed to complete your set, or you could accidentally help someone complete theirs by doing the same thing. The useless cards, while sometimes being a bit of a nuisance, balance the game by halting the gameplay in a clever way, so that the game itself doesn't end as quickly by being only numbers. The joker is amazing as well, because despite it having the ability to be any card, you never know whether it’s going to help you or if you're shooting yourself in the foot with its position on your set, comparing it to the cards you have upside down.


What made it fun?

I think the main 2 reasons why I had so much fun pkaying it were the people and the type of luck involved in it. I believe that Trash that kind of game that becomes more and more fun if more people join in- kind of like the great-grandfather of Uno, in a way. The way the player’s decision shape the game is what makes it enjoyable, and of course, in a longer playthrough the game is gonna get tougher and tougher for the winners, so nothing’s set in stone ever. Which brings me to the second reason: the type of luck this game deals with. It's very exciting to reveal a card of the set, because all of them are random, and the player itself chooses the order by putting them on the table in a certain way. You don't know if the order you chose will benefit you or not until you play, and it is a fun factor that i really value from the game. The combination of these two elements made the game highly enjoyable from my perspective, as no round will look the same as the last one- someone could flip all their cards first try, or the game could drag on longer because of one single card everyone is missing.


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

As I mentioned above, I do feel like some of this aspects are very present on more modern card games like Uno. The idea of a card game with simple rules but fun and replyable gameplay is timeless I believe, as there exist many more ways to play with the same deck of cards that feel unique to each other. Of course the game has to be balanced and I believe Trash does that very well, setting the stone to what would eventually become more and more complex gameplay mechanics and everything else that a game englobes. It is very interesting that, despite the fact that cards are an ancient method to play games and are even a game engine, they are still as relevant as they were centuries ago- and I’d even argue they're better than some of the more recent and not-very-polished games released in the last decade.


How would you rate this game? 4 Stars

[Maria Garcia]

Name of Game: Backgammon
Game author: Unknown
Game Studio: N/A
Original Platform & control mechanism: A distinctive board made for the game, 2 dice and 30 chips, half of one color and half of another color.
Control mechanism you used: We used the board that is very typically used for Backgammon, containing everything we needed to play.


Describe game play and mechanics
Backgammon is a very unique game. The playable area consists of elongated triangles in which the chips are located and moved throughout the game. The objective seems very simple at first, you have to successfully cross “to the other side of the table”, meaning that your chips have to make a u turn and end on either the far left or right side of the board. Each player is taking the opposite route of the other, though, so the starting point of one player is technically the ending point of the other one. To move the chips, you roll the dice and then decide which number to use in which chip. It is very recommended that a player has two or more of them in a single triangle, because that spot becomes “protected” and no enemy chip can be placed there. However, if there’s only one chip occupying a triangle, the enemy can capture it and go to jail, where you’d need to roll and land on a spot where you can actually land (this is why it’s important to protect as much triangles as possible!)

Describe strengths & weaknesses of art & design
I’d say the major weakness of backgammon would be how confusing it looks. I’ll admit, it kept me away from giving it a shot back when it was on the older versions of Windows. The board, while pretty and with a unique aesthetic, doesn’t really inform the player about much else about what is supposed to happen. You need someone to explain to you how the game works, even after figuring it out it might take a few tries to get it right. It also has a lot more obscure rules, kind of like a “blink it or you’ll miss it” situation because there are so many for so many more situations one might not have considered, but this is manageable as you don’t actually need to play with most of them. It’s genuinely fun, I just wish that it was more digestible and easy to get a hang of for younger generations like mine.

What made it fun?
The main thing that made it fun for me was that you need to strategize your every movement, whether you like it or not. All of the pieces are in a set position, so one must think ahead on which pieces are worth moving at the time. I particularly enjoyed executing that one strategy that consists of occupying all of the enemy territory so that they would have a hard time escaping jail. It’s a game that makes you think, think and think. 15 pieces is a lot, and unlike chess they’re indistinct of one another and in different places. And to top it all off, the mechanic of not needing to attach both of the dice rolls to one specific chip makes the game much more interesting. Ideally you’d want to move two chips to the same distance, but this isn’t very common overall. I, for example, tried my best to make a “safe place” for my chips to fall in at the very start and it’s what worked for me, but again, there are many more ways to play a game and someone else could prioritize on the jail mechanic to be much more brutal about it all.

Now that you’ve played it, Why would this game be considered influential? How does it fit into the evolution of games?
I’d say it’s a complicated game for people who like complicated games, and I very much respect that. Today we have much more modern games that don’t really require much to set up if at all, but Backgammon is very unique in a way I can’t quite describe throroughly. I can definitely see the appeal: it’s a game with one-of-a-kind game mechanics that, with the perfect partner to play with, becomes a very exciting game all things considered. I guess it is very similar to chess in that regard- to outsiders it might feel very boring to see moving pieces on a board but for the people in it it’s like you’re transported to another world.

How would you rate this game? 3.5 Stars

[Maria Garcia]

Name of Game: Chess
Game author: Unknown, Though it was invented circa 600 AD.
Game Studio: N/A


Original Platform & control mechanism: An 8x8 tiles checkerboard with various pieces, representing a small army.


Control mechanism you used: The same as the intended.


Describe game play and mechanics
Chess is a game heavily reliant on strategy and knowing exactly what to do at the right time. The main objective of the game is to “capture” the opposite king by attacking him with one or more of your pieces, leaving zero wiggle room to escape. The uniqueness of the games is how versatile it is to help you achieve this: each piece moves slightly different than the other and while it seems unimportant at first glance, it is a core factor on any game. For example, both of your bishops can only move diagonally and each one of them are assigned to the black and white boxes specifically, which means that losing one of them could potentially cost you the entire game. It is a very complicated game with lots of alternatives to play and different ways a game can end, but you have to know how to not screw up in the process which can be especially challenging for new players.

Describe strengths & weaknesses of art & design
I believe chess’ greatest strength is also its most major weakness. While it may seem pretty simple at first, if you really want to have a chance at winning against someone who has more experience to you, you have to pay the absolute most attention to every possible move on the board and how to turn the tables on your own favor. Again this looks easy at first glance, but the possibilities are endless; there are even some plays that can end your game in as little as 2 or 3 turns if you’re not cautious enough with what you’re doing. In a way, I feel like this alone can detract a lot of people to enter because it might make them feel “dumb” for not knowing any better, and the strictness of the same rules that make the game so enticing are those who estrangle anyone who can’t or doesn’t wanna plan every single of their moves.

What made it fun?
Honestly, I think that the fun comes with who you’re playing with, much like any other board game. I had a lot of fun with the partner I was assigned to, and while I was more experienced they tried their best and I respect that. I have very fond memories of this game back from when I was in elementary school, but most of them come from the friends I played chess with. I know that might be a seemingly dumb statement because Chess is better played when both participants are at their fullest and analyzing the board as much as possible, but honestly, I just play to have fun, not to win. In this way, I was able to bond with the game in a much more positive light than what it would’ve been if I was forced to play it just for the sake of it.

Now that you’ve played it, Why would this game be considered influential? How does it fit into the evolution of games?
While I personally am not an avid fan of the game, I can definitely see why it got as popular as it is even now. It’s fun, its rules are simple at core but incite a critical thinking of the board and every playthrough can be deeply analyzed, which seems to attract a lot of people who enjoy the competitive and critical part of the games they play. I am really glad that it’s still standing and growing a wider community around itself thanks to the internet, it is a very unique piece of art by itself.

How would you rate this game? 4 Stars

[Maria Garcia]

Name of Game: Space Invaders
Game author: Tomohiro Nishikado
Game Studio: Taito Corporation

Original Platform & control mechanism: Arcade machine
Control mechanism you used: My own PC, with the arrow keys and the space key.


Describe game play and mechanics
Space invaders is a very simple game. You are a space machine that can only move left and right, and you’re provided with 4 shelters and the ability to fire missiles at the 55 aliens (5 rows of 11) right above you. These aliens can move left, right and also down, but they do so at an incremental speed. There are various types of aliens; the first two rows will give 10 points each if defeated, the third and four rows will give 20 points and the very last row will give 40 points. There is also a mystery ship that will give out a lot of points if you manage to shoot it- unfortunately I couldn’t, so I can’t give the exact number. All of these enemies shoot back at you and will destroy your shelters overtime, so it is best to eliminate them as quick as possible. The game is endless though, so once this is done a new “horde” of aliens will appear, restarting the process.


Describe strengths & weaknesses of art & design
I’d say that for Space Invaders, its simplicity is what helps it shine. The gameplay is very easy to understand and at first one would think that by defeating the first round of enemies the game would end, but it isn’t the case. A new stack appears and suddenly you’re fighting for your life again. The alien’s designs are very charming as well, they’re cute but very menacing, which I honestly find very iconic. Every iconography is made to represent exactly what you need to know, and it greatly helps to understand the gameplay regardless of your age or your cultural background. However, I will say that as a casual player it’s common to fail after the first or second horde, as the little shelters to wear down overtime and will disappear eventually the longer you play. But it is meant to be an endless game, so I will personally give it a pass on that one.


What made it fun?
I believe that Space Invaders is such a well though game that I just can never not play it when available. It’s simple to understand, fun to play and despite me dying relatively quickly, I just keep coming back for more. I have very fond memories of me playing this game way back in elementary school, when I had a class related to computers and the educational program installed on them came with its own version of this game. The aliens are very cute, which got my attention when I was very little, and the gameplay got me absolutely hooked. It would take us very little time to start doing small competitions on who would get the highest score in Space Invaders once we started playing. It is simply just that addictive, it keeps your attention in very clever ways with no fancy graphics needed. Space Invaders is just that of a perfect game for me. It’s just so iconic.


Now that you’ve played it, Why would this game be considered influential? How does it fit into the evolution of games?
I think what contributed the most was its endless nature- you get hooked playing it and you kind of want to get more and more far into the game. I wasn’t around when arcades were popular but I can definitely see how and why this game was popular within them, I can even imagine the craze they would’ve had (just like me!) when they first discovered it. It’s charming, it’s simple, it’s addictive- but not in the way some media is nowadays. The cleverness of making a great game definitely shows even decades later.


How would you rate this game? 5 Stars

[Maria Garcia]

Name of Game: Centipede
Game author: Dona Bailey, Ed Logg
Game Studio: Atari

Original Platform & control mechanism: Arcade Machine
Control mechanism you used: My computer and my mouse.


Describe gameplay and mechanics
Centipede’s gameplay is simple yet a bit complicated. You need to shoot a moving centipede who is moving down the screen towards you, kind of similar to Space invaders and Galaga but with its own special spin to the mix. Every section of the centipede can be shot and when you do, it splits in two and each segment now takes a different path. This goes on and on until all the segments have been defeated. There are also spiders that will jump on you, and what I can assume are fleas who suddenly drop from the ceiling of the level later on. Every time a centipede segment is shot dead it spawns a mushroom in the map. This also happens whenever you lose a life. These mushrooms take a while to destroy but will clutter the map very quickly if you don’t take care of them relatively fast, and they’ll also make the centipede’s path a lot shorter.


Describe strengths & weaknesses of art & design
At first, when I booted up this game, I was a tad confused on how I needed to do what I was supposed to do. And while I quickly figured out how to shoot the centipede sections, what would happen if I did and where should I be shooting them exactly, all the bits and pieces of everything happening so quickly overwhelmed me on my first playthroughs. Mushrooms kind of seemed to appear out of nowhere and when I finally got somewhat far, a new silly noise indicated me that there was yet another critter on the screen I needed to be aware of, which is always fun to see it seems. Despite all of this, with a bit of practice I could go a bit further into the game. It’s very replayable, and despite having a respectable difficulty curve, I can definitely see the appeal.


What made it fun?
I think all the fun I had comes down to the gameplay and how well thought out it is. Despite my complaints about it, it is a very fun game. The fact that there can be suddenly a lot of things on the screen threw me off real time at first (seriously, the way the mushrooms generate it’s weird, I’d have them spawn way less frequently and not as many as in the actual game), and the fact that everything just happens quicker and quicker just means skill is what you need to master this game. A skill that I don’t really have. And despite this, I did have a real lot of fun. I think I can pinpoint a reason for each and every one of the deaths that occured on my runs and that’s something I really appreciate from Centipede. Most of them came from the fact that I didn’t smash the mushrooms fast enough, so everything would clog overtime and make things more difficult for me. But that was a choice I made unconsciously, which in turn made things worse. The fact that the game is “fair” on that regard, despite seeming random on other parts, is what made it fun and enticing to me at least.


Now that you’ve played it, Why would this game be considered influential? How does it fit into the evolution of games?
I think the influence from Space Invaders definitely shows for this one, but even then, spaceship games have been nothing but prominent as far as we’ve seen in class. Despite this, Centipede is a breath of fresh air with its mechanics, and even with its aesthetic; it’s very cute! Sure, not as cute as Pacman, but it definitely has its charm, and the color choices are really cool for a game. Plus, I think the nature of the gameplay just kept players returning to try and beat their highscores for the very same reasons I kept playing it on the first place: the way you lose is more often than not a negligence on the player rather than something RNG related, which in return makes one wonder if with enough skill, a new high score can be attained. It’s simply addicting, it tickles my brain in a very special way that modern games haven’t achieved yet and I can’t quite comprehend.


How would you rate this game? 4.5 Stars

[Maria Garcia]

Name of Game: Aquattack
Game author/studio: Interphase
Original Platform & control mechanism: ColecoVision
Control mechanism you used: An emulator on my pc

Describe game play and mechanics
Aquattack is a very simple yet entertaining game where you’re a tiny yacht who needs to avoid all the crazy stuff on the map. To move you use the arrow keys, but the screen also kind of moves by itself. Using the arrows just means you’ll waste the very precious fuel that is provided to you and if that happens, the game ends. The safest option is to just let the water move you and use the mechanic occasionally. As for enemies, there were a lot in this game, too many that i couldn’t really keep track of all of them. There are ground enemies that you can shoot, but also helicopters that you need to avoid, but also the ground terrain can be very messed up at times.

Describe strengths & weaknesses of art & design
This is literally one of the first games I’ve played for this class that I have absolutely no idea what to make of it. I’m not really sure what it tries to be, as I can definitely see the inspiration that previous titles had on the mechanics of the game. It doesn’t really help either that the audio cues are minimal and the visuals don’t really help either to make up what is supposed to be happening and what should I avoid exactly. Even playing it a couple of times I couldn’t really get any more fuel, and I didn’t know if there was any way to get any extra to begin with. I just wish things were more clear to understand for new players.

What made it fun?
I think it’s just the fact that I’m having a lot of fun with the genre of “silly retro videogame where you are a little guy and you are allowed to shoot stuff”. Feeling like I was on a chase mission on a tiny yacht was fun, and despite the poor visuals I had fun trying to avoid everything I could just to live a little longer (at least my first attempts of course). I can definitely see that they tried something, I just think it may have flown over my head. I really wish I could’ve enjoyed this one more than I did.

Now that you’ve played it, Why would this game be considered influential? How does it fit into the evolution of games?
I can definitely see the attempt at recreating the successful arcade machines in a device you could have at home. I feel like the people who thought about it may have been a little too ambitious with this idea, though, because I have a hunch that the technology to make this possible wasn’t really there yet. And of course, when you have more people out there with the availability to make games, the less of them are going to be good or a novelty. They’re gonna be just “games”.

How would you rate this game? 2 Stars

[Maria Garcia]

Name of Game: ET
Game author/studio: Atari/Howard Scott Warshaw
Original Platform & control mechanism: Atari 2600
Control mechanism you used: En emulator on my pc.

Describe game play and mechanics
The gameplay is actually very tricky. Apparently you need to get parts of the name of ET, scattered throughout the map, using ET’s abilities to traverse it. You need to avoid the… Doctor roaming the map, because if he catches ET he’ll put it in some kind of jail, where any progress you’ve done is undone. This is all made even more difficult with the fact that, every time you move, a number that initially was 9999 descends, and it does so very quickly when you use ET’s abilities. The objective of the game seems to be just the part of collecting the letters, or at least that’s how I understood it. There are more characters, particularly a man and a kid, but I honestly have no idea what the man actually does and whether he’s harmful or not. The kid, however, resurrects ET a finite amount of times (i don’t know how many though), granting an extra 1500 “steps” to the player.

Describe strengths & weaknesses of art & design
The game is very poorly designed, and horribly executed, if I’m being 1000% honest. I had a rough time figuring out what kind of game I was playing in the first place. The “holes” in the map are horribly designed and the way to get out of them is very archaic, and the controls can’t be more clunky, I had a horrible time trying to fly towards the surface. The directions provided are useless as well, as half of the time i didn’t really know where to go. There were also little icons that instructed me to do something I wasn’t quite sure how to do in the first place. In short, it’s just a very poorly design game all around, as my concerns aren’t unique- I can definitely get the complaints this game had when it came out.


What made it fun?
I’ll also be very honest here. It was very silly. ET’s sprite is very goofy and does not look like him at all. I had a “it’s horrible, i love it” moment playing this game in general- I had to look up a walkthrough of the game on Youtube to even begin to understand what was I playing, and unlike more modern games where one could understand how the game works through someone else playing it, I left out with more questions than answers. But I was super determined to get an answer out of them just because I was playing like this goofy, pathetic creature (no offense!!). I quickly learned a trick that got me out of the holes like 60% of the time, and that motivated me to play a bit further. I could not finish the game sadly, but honestly I just had a lot of fun with every moment where I wondered what the hell had just happened or what the hell was I supposed to do.


Now that you’ve played it, Why would this game be considered influential? How does it fit into the evolution of games?
I can definitely see how brutal the hatred for this game was. Considering that games like Pacman, Space Invaders or Donkey Kong had already come out by then, it feels very underwhelming to play something that feels like it went 2000 steps backwards, even with the hardware limitations and everything. Then again, as far as I read, they gave the developer 5 weeks to produce this from scratch. I can’t imagine how crunch he must’ve been, especially after my experience with the GGJ, where even with all the resources we have nowadays, a week felt like too little time to produce a fully fleshed game. I guess it just shows how the industry and Atari were approaching the business a little too fast, not giving time to their game devs to fully flesh out their creativity just to meet holiday season… Which honestly seems a little too similar to what is happening nowadays. I don’t really know how to feel about that :').

How would you rate this game? 3 Stars

[Maria Garcia]

Name of Game: Karateka
Game author/studio: Jordan Mechner
Original Platform & control mechanism: Apple II
Control mechanism you used: En emulator on my pc.

Describe game play and mechanics
The gameplay for this one is actually very digestible. You are a karate master who needs to defeat the evil king Akuma to get your princess back. The game feels kinda like Street Fighter, in the sense that you need to plan out your movements and how you’re gonna roll your punches to the various enemies Akuma is going to throw at you (yes, he literally just throws them, I’m guessing he just comes at you as the final boss). But unlike Street Fighter, you’re playing on your own and it’s your duty to defeat all of the enemies to traverse the game.

Describe strengths & weaknesses of art & design
I really enjoyed the game’s graphics, it’s impressive to think about how early a game like Karateka could be achievable at the time. The movements feel scarily accurate and the animations are very cool to see. It’s hard to think about how the game was conceived while Jordan was in college (like us right now!). However, the gameplay loop does feel really slow-paced, which got my attention dwindling until I decided to stop playing after noticing I’d get a couple of the same enemies over and over again. While the fights look cool, I wish they could play out faster (again, like Street Fighter). The game is also very easy to wing if you just mash the W button over and over again like a maniac, which I of course did. Overall, the premise is great, I just feel like it could’ve been executed a bit better.

What made it fun?
I think it was very fun to imagine myself playing this on its respective era. Of course my mind and my attention span is completely destroyed by newer, faster-paced games, but I found a moment of peace to try and puzzle out how to play Karateka and the experience was worth it. It’s a very silly game all things considered, and I definitely enjoyed mashing my keyboard trying to pretend I truly was a Karateka master, and of all the games, I think this one is the one I could put more progress into.

Now that you’ve played it, Why would this game be considered influential? How does it fit into the evolution of games?
I think it’s very important to highlight the PC games as well as the console games. I’m sad I didn’t really learn anything about these whenever I ventured to doing my own research on videogames, maybe because they’re considered like a different category of the genre. Nevertheless, I am very happy to be able to still experience this little relic of time, I may not have made it justice but I can sure appreciate its beauty as an early horde fighting game.

How would you rate this game? 3 Stars

[Maria Garcia]

Name of Game: Microsoft Decathlon
Game author/studio: Timothy W. Smith
Original Platform & control mechanism: IBM personal computer
Control mechanism you used: En emulator on my pc.

Describe game play and mechanics
Microsoft Decathlon is (and feels) like a mega collection of 10 fun sport minigames, just to make you feel just like you were a professional athlete running a real decathlon. You can practice all of these events before the real deal, in any order of course, before participating in the actual thing. Every game has its very own gameplay mimicking the actual sport, but being 10 it does take a little while to run through them all for the first time. Every game is a little unique though, and overall all of them are very fun to try on their own. At the end of every discipline the game will tell you how many points your performance gave you and of course, the objective is to get the most of them as possible, so the idea of mastering each and every discipline is enticing on itself.

Describe strengths & weaknesses of art & design
As I mentioned before, all of the disciplines are at least somewhat recognizae from each other. For example, in the ones involving running xx meter, you either did a portion, a lap or a couple laps, and even the gameplay is sloghtly different (for example, in tha last one, you're required to traverse the field and try your best not to bump with anything). The iconography used is delightfully accurate, very cute and to the point; there wasn't any point of my playthrough in which i felt confused about who i was supposed to be. Also, the instructions were amazing, because to make me, a person who does not play any sports at all understand what I was supposed to do, is a huge point for Microsoft Decathlon. And even if you failed, the graphics showed you exacly how and even a text would appear implying what you could do better.

What made it fun?
Honestly, I am hugely impressed this was my favorite game out of the bunch. I thought it was gonna be hard to beat a cool magic ball, but here we are. Ecen though i dislike sports, I found myself replaying my favorite disciplines of this game over and over, trying to find ways in which I could improve my skills. I think the simple graphics and the efficient feedback loop was what made it extra fun for me, because i immediately knew what i did wrong. The emulator also worked fantastically, as there was seemingly no delay between my keys and the game. But I think what I liked the most was the 'death' messages i got when i failed any of the disciplines. The sheer irony and sillyness of them made me chuckle literally each time- they're very clever, I must admit. It was as if the very game itself was watching me throw and was judging me for it. I really love when games do that.

Now that you’ve played it, Why would this game be considered influential? How does it fit into the evolution of games?
I'd say sports games are particularly prominent in any platform somehow, so i am not that impressed of the appeal the game had on its prime. What sticks out for me though is how unserious the fail quotes are- up until now, games have been this sort of alternate reality in which you can go into and forget that you exist, in a way. There is no aknowledgement of the player, or the player itself gets transformed into an iteration that the game can understand. However, this silly Decathlon game actively makes fun of you. It points out how bad you are, albeit sarcastically. I firmly and trully believe this little game is the prime example of the beginning of games starting to chew the 4th wall, something that will later become more relevant. Besides that, the mechanics were so on point i wouldn't doubt that any subsequent games involving these disciplines (like the Mario and Sonic Olympic Games for example) used this one as a tangible example of it being programmed/represented in a game.


How would you rate this game? 3.5 Stars

[Maria Garcia]

Name of Game: Tetris
Game author/studio: Alexey Pazhitnov
Original Platform & control mechanism: NES
Control mechanism you used: An emulator on my pc.

Describe game play and mechanics
Tetris is a very simple yet engaging game where the objective is to arrange all the pieces that the game gives you individually to try and clear lines with this same shapes. You don’t really know what the game is gonna throw at you, so you have to be clever and plan ahead the space a piece is gonna occupy. This is made easy by the ability to rotate the piece that is falling before it falls into place, so that one can visualize where it might fit best. When enough lines have been cleared or enough points have been earned by it, the game initiates a new level with a new color palette for all the pieces. These shapes also fall faster to the ground, so it becomes trickier and trickier to think any movement ahead.

Describe strengths & weaknesses of art & design
Tetris is such a magnificently well designed game that it’s just timeless. Yes, it’s very simple, especially this much earlier version that doesn’t contain many sound cues or cool visual effects. But the gameplay is still engaging. I did find it a bit slow at first, since there’s only one button to spin the piece and the feedback overall wasn’t the best, but once I got the hang of it everything went smoothly. I cannot see myself playing this specific version anytime soon, but for the time and age this came out I can definitely see the appeal on older generation, as for them it might’ve been even more fast-paced then what I think (i, as a zoomer, unfortunately got my brain fried by newer iterations of tetris.).

What made it fun?
I love tetris. It might seem counter-intuitive, but i play it to ease my mind and forget all the stress or the hardships of my life from time to time. I am a very casual player, so I don’t really aspire to clear as many lines as possible- I just try to find a hole to fill with the piece i’m given, and that’s enough for me to fill my dopamine levels. I think that its simplicity and its accessibility is what made the game so popular. In Mexico, back when I was a little kid, bootleg consoles with 9999 variants of tetris (that had many other games, but the first one was tetris and i didn't really know how to change it) were on the rise, and of course i had one of these growing up. It was a blast, even though i barely knew how to hold the console. It’s a game that has been with me throughout all my life, and I have a deep connection with it.


Now that you’ve played it, Why would this game be considered influential? How does it fit into the evolution of games?
I’d say Tetris managed to become popular thanks to its ability to be reproduced massively. I’d even argue it’s some kind of modern chess game considering its availability, I’d even argue it even is a modern card game considering how many ways you can play in some of the newer instances of the game (for example, there’s a site called tetr.io where you can even play in multiplayer, and the solo gameplay has various modes to try out). It’s incredibly easy to understand, yet hard to master, but the bar to get there is not excruciatingly high, so more casual players can easily play Tetris for a couple sessions and genuinely have fun. it’s a masterpiece of a game, truly.

How would you rate this game? 5 Stars

[Maria Garcia]

Name of Game: Sonic the Hedgehog
Game author/studio: SEGA
Original Platform & control mechanism: Sega Genesis
Control mechanism you used: An emulator on my pc.

Describe game play and mechanics
Sonic the Hedgehog is a very simple yet amazing game where you control a blue colored hedgehog that happens to run very fast, on its quest to defeat Dr. Robotnik and its robot underlings. The mechanics are simple and even avoidable at times if you catch the momentum of things at the right times. Sonic's physics can be a little wonky at times but it's all part of the charm- he's the fastest thing alive after all. Every stage has 3 levels, and on the third there's always a boss waiting at you at the very end that you have to defeat. Sonic's "health" is measured by the rings the player collects throughout the maps and if he gets hit, all of them will scatter around the floor, though if he doesn't have any left he'll be defeated. There are also minor buffs throughout the maps that the player can bump into to gain its benefits, and there's even a secret game loop that kicks in if the player has 50 rings or more: secret special stages that will grant the player one of the 7 chaos emeralds to hopefully turn Sonic into its Super form at the end of the game.

Describe strengths & weaknesses of art & design
1991 Sonic's strong point is its aesthetic, I'd say. It's a very distinctive game and right at the first level you can get a deep feeling of the world that Sonic is living in. Both the environment design and the character design are very strong, and even though Sonic doesn't talk you can physically feel his attitude thanks to his sprites. And even though the story itself takes its time to reveal itself, it's there, and everything in the game is there to help you understand it. Despite being a very fast game, there's also a lot of ways to finish a level, despite the progression of the game itself being linear. You can play it slowly or bulldoze through everything in your path, and although there are sections of some levels that will force you to do one of these things sometimes, it doesn't feel like it most of the time. And on top of it all, the special extra levels to collect the Chaos Emeralds offer an extra layer of replayability and a little more difficulty for more amateur or casual players.

What made it fun?
Everything. Literally everything, from top to bottom, every second of the game was amazingly fun. I love this game so much, so I will allow myself to make a very biased opinion here. Of course this isn't my first time playing Sonic 1, but I will say that I am absolutely not an expert at the gameplay style that SEGA introduced in this game. But even then, my then 11-year-old little brain was flabbergasted at the speed Sonic could go, it made me feel special. Sonic 1 offers a very fun challenge for both children and adults alike, as you're trying to control this little blue ball that does not seem to want to stop whatsoever. I'd say the art style was what caught my eye at first, its bright color filled my brain with dopamine and made me want to explore more of that 16-bit world. And even though i am not the most skilled Sonic player (it took me a solid year or two to finish the game and all thanks to the fact that the iPad version of the game allowed saving states), i absolutely love this game. It marks the rise of a franchise that is so very close to my heart, that I can't help getting a bit emotional over it.

Now that you’ve played it, Why would this game be considered influential? How does it fit into the evolution of games?
Of course this game would be hugely influential. Despite not being the first title SEGA had ever published ever, its success was so massive that Sonic ended up becoming the main mascot of the company. That's huge! And not only that, but its success also brought a bunch more games of the same hedgehog with even more characters and storytelling. Despite, Sonic's franchise and lore not being as famous as Mario, but managing to put up a real, tangible battle of what once was the big N and the giant, only enterprise of the videogame industry at the time is something that I believe deserves bragging rights. Sonic's cinematic universe is at full swing at the moment and its popularity has only been rising, so of course SEGA had to have done something for the hedgehog to click with so many people, both back in the day with Sonic 1 on the Genesis and in newer generation, whether it is with ports of the original thing, iterations like the more recent Sonic Mania and Sonic Superstars, or even the newest games of the franchise. I am proud of being a fan of the franchise and very relieved that Sonic didn't fall into obscurity after all these years.

How would you rate this game? 5 Stars (if i could i'd rate it more.....)

[Professor Watkins]

Graded to here.

[Maria Garcia]

Name of Game: Super Mario Kart
Game author/studio: Nintendo
Original Platform & control mechanism: SNES
Control mechanism you used: An emulator on my pc.

Super Mario kart is the very first iteration of the mario Kart Saga that nintendo released. The gameplay is very simple: at its core, its just a racing game with various characters from the franchise that you can actually control and race with (Mario, Luigi, Peach, Koopa, Bowser, Toad, Yoshi and DK Jr). The game can be played solo or with another player, and there are three speed modes you can try and race with. There are three cups with 5 races to try, and if you end up clearing every one of them on first place, you can unlock a secret one (i didn't get to that point though :c). In the races there are special items that you can get via collecting boxes on the ground with a ? sign, the prize/item is random and there are various types of them. Coins on the ground can also be collected (though i did not know what's their purpose if i'm being honest... i just liked to collect them lol). There's also a battle mode where you and other player can throw items at each other, where both have three "balloons" that you need to pop from the other person to win. But basically, if you have player Mario Kart at any point in your life, you know how to play this game.c

Describe strengths & weaknesses of art & design
This game is so undeniably cute it's almost illegal. From the very start, the main menu screen is a pretty yellow with ocasional scribbles that just made me smile when I saw it. The 2d sprites of every character are so cute that i just couldn't stop seeing them on screen, and I also loved how 3d they look! Like, of course they need to look like that, because the game is trying to mimic 3d graphics with 2d sprites, but the accuracy is so stunning to me. I also need to mention and write my pure love for the not-so-mini map on the bottom of the screen. THE LITTLE SPRITES ARE AMAZING. They're so small and if anything happened to them I will cry. Now, being a bit more serious, I think I stared at them too much that I often lost track of the actual game on the upper part of my screen, which was a bit difficult to traverse when almost everything is on the ground. Overall, though, it's a very decently designed game, art-wise.

What made it fun?
Mario kart is just fun by default. I was thrilled to have experienced the very first iteration of one of my childhood games, the game is just so well designed that it's amazing to play. Sure, I was horrible at it, but that's a given with every Mario Kart game I touch. I did notice this one was a little too difficult though, like the NPCs were catching up to me more frequently than on later iterations of the game. Also, the drifting mechanic was a bit too wonky at times, making me accidentally bump into a wall or into the abyss. But I didn't care honestly, I just laughed my ass off and moved on, but I think it kinda comes with the philosophy I take whenever I boot a Mario Kart game - I am just here to race with Yoshi, to see the pretty map Nintendo has built this time, to find out where I'm gonna slip up next and to hopefully win a race or two!

Now that you’ve played it, Why would this game be considered influential? How does it fit into the evolution of games?
I think the fact that Mario Kart is such an easy game to pick up is what makes it so iconic. I can already imagine friends gathering around a SNES making small tournaments with the game to see who's better at it. Of course I experiences the much more modern and sophisticated multiplayer aspect of the franchise with Mario Kart 8's online multiplayer option or the offline multiplayer switch experience, but the fact that the feeling of Mario Kart racing was conceived all the way back in 1992 and yet it still feels very much relevant and exciting even with a much older version of the game amazes me. Nintendo trully had a gem in their hands and they really knew how to make the most out of it I believe. I am just so impressed at how familiar the game was to me and, even if I have played it thousands of times before, even though this is a more archaic version of the beloved gameplay I already knew beforehand, it managed to entertain me and to steal many smiles from my face.

How would you rate this game? 4.5 Stars

[Maria Garcia]

Name of Game: Vib-Ribbon
Game author/studio: NanaOn-Sha
Original Platform & control mechanism: Playstation
Control mechanism you used: An emulator on my pc.

Describe game play and mechanics
Vib-Ribbon is a very unique and quite interesting rhythm game for the original playstation, made entirely out of vector graphics. You play as Vibri, a rabbit that has to jump and traverse through multiple obstacles using just four buttons (L,R,DOWN and X). As every rhythm game, the goal is to get as most points as possible by nailing every note (in this case, pressing the correct key or keys to traverse the according obstacle. The game is very lenient and actually lets you fail a couple of times before losing. After a few fails, the entire game will start wobbling and Vibri will turn into a frog, and subsequently into a worm/snake for your last attempts. If you start to do good though, the game will let you revert into your previous form and the lines will slowly return to normal. The score can be seen at the very top, though it's a little weird to figure out, as it seems that every note you get right adds a line to one of the many polygons lined in a circle above the screen, where they start as two lines and slowly turn into a triangle, a rectangle, a cross and so on.

Describe strengths & weaknesses of art & design
The game is so very unique in every way. Despite vector graphics having been used before in arcade games, Vib-Ribbon does them in a very silly way that makes the game look unique. I think the idea of the lines wobbling more and more with each mistake adds a lot of personality to the game. Vibri is very cute themselves, the character design is just flawless and their many forms are full of personality as well! The interface, while very rudimentary, serves its purpose just right, which I very much appreciate. One fun fact about the game is its ability to read cds you have at home with music on it to create a level for you to play, scanning 8 seconds ahead and putting in obstacles whenever a beat comes up (as far as I understood when I looked up about it). I unfortunately couldn't try this, but I have seen many videos of it being done and it honestly looks very fun to try out!

What made it fun?
It's a very silly game, that's all, honestly. I remember having seen it a couple of years ago on youtube, and the aesthetic of the vector graphics really caught up my attention! Of course i didn't really know how they where made or what made them look like that (now I do!), but it all seemed really funky and cool to me. Needless to say, I had somewhat of a Vib-Ribbon phase there, oops. Now that I actually got the chance to play it, I must say, the controls are... Certainly a choice the developers made. It didn't really translate well to my keyboard and I ended up using both of my hands, which apparently was indeed how it was supposed to play because the devs wanted it to feel like you we're playing the drums? Silly. Another thing I must mention is the awkwardness on some of the note placements, which is present in some sections on the songs I played. I get that we're kinda talking about some of the very first rhythm games here, but it threw me off at times to be honest. Though, I completely understand it must be because of the technology behind all the cd-reading thing, so I will give it a pass. But overall, the entire experience was what made it fun, honestly. It's a very different game and I must praise it for that.

Now that you’ve played it, Why would this game be considered influential? How does it fit into the evolution of games?
First of all, the fact that the game still makes use of vector graphics and makes the most of them is just mind blowing to me. As I have mentioned many times in this entry, this game can literally generate a level for you, out of thin air (and a cd with some good old tunes you may have laying around at your home). How amazing is that? Of course it will lack some accuracy, but the fact that it was possible to be done all the way back to when the game came out is certainly an achievement to look at. Also, I have read that more modern indie rhythm games have taken inspiration from somewhere in this game, either sound effects or something else, and I thing that alone really settles how iconic Vib-Ribbon is. Plus, Vibri is just so god damn cute. A little vertex-made rabbit that hops to the music but can also change form and its lines literally wobble but it's a readable design even with very limited graphics? That's peak character design and I nothing can prove me otherwise. In conclusion, while it may be a simoke game and not very flashy and colorful as its counterparts in this era, Viv-Ribbon has such a special charm that it still shines to this very day.

How would you rate this game? 5 Stars