The focus of my research will be to look at; visual graphics, gameplay, user interaction and replayability within casual internet games. This will be used to assist with creating a "Victorian Fairground" themed shooting gallery game to be played within the web browser (a casual internet game).
What is a casual internet game?
Developed for the general public and families, casual games are video games that are fun and easy to learn and play. The games are platform agnostic, meaning they can be played via the Internet, PC and Macintosh computers, Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo DS, Wii and even mobile phones and PDA. They’re nonviolent, arcade-style games that involve puzzles, words, board and card games, game show and trivia. Popular games are Mahjong, Tetris, Solitaire, Bejeweled, Cake Mania, Mystery Case Files, and Luxor.
What is the size of the casual games industry?
More than 200 million people worldwide play casual games via the Internet. In 2007, the world wide connected casual games industry had revenues in excess of $2.25 billion on mobile, PC, Mac and Xbox LIVE Arcade platforms.
Who plays casual games?
Casual games appeal to people of all ages, gender and nationalities. It’s estimated that there are more than 200 million players via the Internet. A majority of those who purchase casual games, however, are over 30 and female. In addition, casual games are usually played for a short period of time, from five minutes to 20 minutes – though it’s common for people to play for hours.
What’s the difference between casual games and enthusiast (core) games?
Think of Atari and games such as Pacman, Space Invaders, Frogger and Donkey Kong. Casual games have maintained the fun, simplicity, boundless creativity that characterizes arcade-style games. On the other hand, enthusiast games also termed core games, such as Grand Theft Auto, Doom and Mortal Kombat, have been developed using high-end technology that appeals more to younger audiences. Using movies as an analogy, casual games would be Friends or ER and enthusiast games would be Reservoir Dogs or Silence of the Lambs.
Where do I find casual games, and do they cost money?
Online, casual games can be played or downloaded free at many sites, including Yahoo! Games, Pogo, MSN Games, Big Fish Games, Miniclip, WildTangent and Shockwave. Some websites charge $19.95 per downloaded game others offer unlimited subscriptions for $10.00 a month and others supply advertising supported games. Casual games found online can also be purchased at retail stores as well as Wii, DS and PSP versions.
How many casual game titles are there?
Over 500 casual games are developed and launched on major web portals each year. Typically, the Top 20 games each year generate the majority of the revenue.
How much does it cost to develop a casual game?
Budgets for casual games downloaded on the internet typically range from 100,000 - 500,000 USD. Casual games can be updated to include other distribution platforms. According to the CGA's 2007 Market Report updating an online casual game for: iPod, mobile & PDA versions cost 20,000 USD, hotel room versions cost 10,000 USD, XBLA versions cost 230,000 USD and handheld versions cost 300,000 USD.
To state that casual internet games are quite popular these days would be an understatement. Just about everybody who has a computer and an internet connection is joining the bandwagon of those who swear by these games. People play casual internet games because they come with a whole lot of underlying benefits. However, the primary benefits are that they are easy to play and are very enjoyable.
One of the big problems is that it's hard to define what a casual game actually is. For a long time, what dominated our industry was 'Try before you buy' games. What was a casual game? It was a game with a Web version, and to download the full version, you paid $20. These days, casual games can only be loosely defined as those titles that are friendly to new/occasional users and are intuitive and accessible.
Source: http://uk.gamespot.com/news/6186207.html?tag=result;title;0
Casual Game Analysis
As discovered above, some popular casual games include Mahjong, Tetris, Solitaire, Bejeweled, Cake Mania, Mystery Case Files, and Luxor. I shall now compare and contrast a few of these games in an attempt of analyzing what works effectively and what works poorly; an extremely important stage in the production of any game. Although these are not shooters which my game will be, they are however casual internet games which will help give the key fundamentals of how they work and what they consist of.
Mahjong
Is an old 4-player card game which originated in China. Today a casual internet game version exists, more commonly referred to as Mahjong Solitaire. This version is 1-player and uses tiles as opposed to cards, featured below:
As you can see it's appearance is very basic - the trademark of a typical casual game. This particular game however wouldn't appeal to a younger age range, and casual games generally aim to appeal to all age ranges. Not only is the game not very exciting, but also not very straight forward - therefore in my opinion not particularly successful. From what I understand, a casual game should give you instant fun from the start and be easy to play, despite being repetitive after a while. However this is the view from as mentioned above, a younger target audience. I could see this game being more appealing to elderly players who could sit and think about the game play at their leisure as opposed to a shooter game for example which would be very fast paced.
Tetris
One of if not the most well-known casual game ever made, Tetris can be found on many modern day devices such as mobile phones and iPod's by default due to it's huge popularity over the years. With the game being so basic and repetitive, it can only generally provide entertainment for short periods of time - but that is the idea. Perhaps the best feature of the game is how it poses a mental challenge - having to concentrate and react quickly to align the shapes correctly as fast as possible. It is this concentration factor which grips the player into the game - perhaps something to consider for my shooter style game.
Cake Mania
Next I chose Cake Mania for analysis as the style of this game is completely different to the above "puzzle" games. This kind of casual game is much more in depth, however still very basic in comparison to modern day console games. There are many games similar to Cake Mania that can be played through the social networking site Facebook, an example of which is the popular Farmville. These casual games are considered to be "time management" games where you have tasks which you can attend to at various time intervals, for example putting a cake in the oven and then taking it out to serve 20 minutes later. This style of casual game seems to be highly appealing to females who can spend long periods of time playing them whilst social networking for example.
Whether time management could be applied to a "Victorian Fairground" shooter game is a valid thought to take into consideration. The best feature of it is that the player will come back to play again once the time interval is over, not once but repeatedly. It also eliminates the issue of gamers playing the game constantly and therefore growing tired of it quickly - a very likely outcome with casual games due to them being so basic.
Casual Shooter Game Analysis
Having now had an insight into what some of the more popular casual games are like, it was now time to look more specifically for casual games similar to the one we intend on making; a shooter. With the title of the game project "Carnival Shootout" it made sense to start by looking for one with that same title. Unsurprisingly there were many games with that name and all of which looked very similar.
Carnival Shootout
The first I came across is pictured below and can be found at: http://www.king.com/games/action-games/carnival-shootout/?language=en_US.
Without even reading the instructions (which are clearly described at the bottom of the UI) it's obvious what you have to do. This is mostly due to the target reticule that the mouse cursor changes to, followed by targets appearing on the screen with target cross-hairs on. From a graphics perspective, they are very basic as found in the other casual games. However in this game the graphics are much cleaner and clearer - take Cake Mania for example, the graphics are more pixelated and fuzzy. A 3D element has also been attempted, but only noticeable in the waves.
As far as gameplay goes, the moving targets make the game interesting. They move rather smoothly yet quickly, making the player concentrate to hit the target on time. From analyzing the games so far, creating concentration is another key element to making the game more successful. The reason being for this is it grips the player into the gameplay due to it being a challenge. This also makes succeeding more rewarding having had to focus hard, especially if competing against others.
Having now written the final game synopsis, I have concluded that the set for the game will be western themed, with a choice of 3 possible locations;
- Desert Ranch (outdoor)
- Western Town (outdoor)
- Western Saloon (indoor)
Firstly, the Desert Ranch:
Source: http://www.akpool.co.uk/postcards/24074550-postcard-berlin-tiergarten-blick-in-die-wild-west-bar
Source: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-31749_162-20085464-10391698.html
Casual Game Analysis
As discovered above, some popular casual games include Mahjong, Tetris, Solitaire, Bejeweled, Cake Mania, Mystery Case Files, and Luxor. I shall now compare and contrast a few of these games in an attempt of analyzing what works effectively and what works poorly; an extremely important stage in the production of any game. Although these are not shooters which my game will be, they are however casual internet games which will help give the key fundamentals of how they work and what they consist of.
Mahjong
Is an old 4-player card game which originated in China. Today a casual internet game version exists, more commonly referred to as Mahjong Solitaire. This version is 1-player and uses tiles as opposed to cards, featured below:
Tetris
One of if not the most well-known casual game ever made, Tetris can be found on many modern day devices such as mobile phones and iPod's by default due to it's huge popularity over the years. With the game being so basic and repetitive, it can only generally provide entertainment for short periods of time - but that is the idea. Perhaps the best feature of the game is how it poses a mental challenge - having to concentrate and react quickly to align the shapes correctly as fast as possible. It is this concentration factor which grips the player into the game - perhaps something to consider for my shooter style game.
In comparison to Mahjong, Tetris is instantly far more appealing due to it being simple to play. It also looks more exciting, but that may be because it looks more modern with it's bright colors and futuristic fonts (which may not appeal to an elder target audience). From comparing just 2 casual games, it is already clear that the target audience will be an important factor in designing the game - despite casual games supposedly being appealing to everyone. It is extremely difficult to have a product which is appealing to everyone as there are opposites of people - something that one side may love, the other will hate and visa versa. A good example of a universal product range is Apple, focusing on neutral colors such as white, grey and black, with the use of an ordinary font. Applying this to a game however is not so easy, as demonstrated below:
Source: http://downloadsoftwarestore.com/software_images/59/41/00024159/Alien_Shooter-screenshot.jpg
Next I chose Cake Mania for analysis as the style of this game is completely different to the above "puzzle" games. This kind of casual game is much more in depth, however still very basic in comparison to modern day console games. There are many games similar to Cake Mania that can be played through the social networking site Facebook, an example of which is the popular Farmville. These casual games are considered to be "time management" games where you have tasks which you can attend to at various time intervals, for example putting a cake in the oven and then taking it out to serve 20 minutes later. This style of casual game seems to be highly appealing to females who can spend long periods of time playing them whilst social networking for example.
Casual Shooter Game Analysis
Having now had an insight into what some of the more popular casual games are like, it was now time to look more specifically for casual games similar to the one we intend on making; a shooter. With the title of the game project "Carnival Shootout" it made sense to start by looking for one with that same title. Unsurprisingly there were many games with that name and all of which looked very similar.
Carnival Shootout
The first I came across is pictured below and can be found at: http://www.king.com/games/action-games/carnival-shootout/?language=en_US.
Source: screenshot from link above.
As far as gameplay goes, the moving targets make the game interesting. They move rather smoothly yet quickly, making the player concentrate to hit the target on time. From analyzing the games so far, creating concentration is another key element to making the game more successful. The reason being for this is it grips the player into the gameplay due to it being a challenge. This also makes succeeding more rewarding having had to focus hard, especially if competing against others.
This leads us onto another possible key element - multiplayer. If gamers can compete against friends, especially through a social networking site such as Facebook then the game will be much more appealing to many, despite having poor graphics and repetitive gameplay. With the game being in the style of a "Victorian Fairground" shooter, the most feasible way of incorporating multiplayer would be to play simultaneously with each player having their own shooting range and the scores can be compared at the end of the games. Another way to go about it which could be more exciting would be to both be in the same shooting range and whoever has the most points at the end wins. This would really make the gamers concentrate as they would have to beat each other to the targets. The game should not be solely multiplayer though, if a gamer wants to practice or their friends are not online they should be able to play single player as well.
Urban Sniper 2
The next shooter game I looked into was "Urban Sniper 2" which is more of the typical casual shooter game you can find on the internet. I particularly like how you can zoom into the scene and zoom out again to get a better view of where the targets are located - it would be a lot more difficult if you had to stay permanently zoomed in. Zooming out also lets you see the destruction that you've caused - a very appealing factor to many gamers. This zoom in/zoom out feature has been pictured below:
Source: screenshots from game.
There are also additional objects to interact with besides the targets you are told to shoot at - such as an explosive fuel truck which drives through the scene which adds some variety to the gameplay. As with most shooters of this style there are also targets similar to what you are supposed to shoot at but friendly, such as civilians or soldiers on your side. Shooting these will cause you to lose points and adds to the concentration factor.
Something else to consider from this game is the level of violence to display in the gameplay. In this game, shooting at the target will cause an eruption of blood from the target - which may deter some gamers. On the other hand, some will love the gore, so it is important to select a suitable target audience for the game which will decide factors such as this.
Game Locations
Now that some valuable factors to consider for the gameplay have been established, it is time to move onto the location of game. With the game styled as a "Victorian Fairground" shooter, the backdrop should be static with the targets either moving across the screen or jumping out and disappearing again. For each round you complete you could move onto a different location (backdrop) to make progression worthwhile, for example desert, jungle, arctic etc. This will obviously depend on the game I decide to make - if it will be sci-fi then perhaps the inside of a spacecraft would be suitable, or a space backdrop. If the game is western then the desert or a wild western town would be the ideal choice.
Having now written the final game synopsis, I have concluded that the set for the game will be western themed, with a choice of 3 possible locations;
- Desert Ranch (outdoor)
- Western Town (outdoor)
- Western Saloon (indoor)
I therefore have gathered a selection of images for the 3 above locations to assist with initial designs and ideas, featured below.
Firstly, the Desert Ranch:
Secondly, the Western Town:
Lastly, the Western Saloon:
After collecting the above images and taking into consideration which would work best in the shooter game, I'm leaning more towards the town. This is because of all the cover places the opponents could be behind (such as windows, walls, carriages etc.), which would be more limited at the ranch or in the tavern.
The decision will not be made however until some design ideas have been sketched out, as modifications could be made to all of the sets to make them more suitable.
Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures
I found the following inspiration whilst playing a game at home in my free time, not intending gathering research. Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures is a web browser MMOG I recently tried out which consists of dozens of casual games, some of which are free to play. The others require a monthly subscription to be granted access to play, one of which is a shooting range game exactly like the game we intend to make. Besides being Star Wars themed, it was the usual simple shooting gallery game but with one game mechanic I had not yet came across or thought about - scoring higher points from critical hits i.e. headshots. Not only could you hit a critical hit on particular points on the targets, but you could build up a critical hit score consecutively. Doing so would give you a lot of bonus points, ideal for gaining the upper-hand in a multiplayer shootout.
Also, the game is practically identical to one of my original ideas; the sci-fi theme with holographic targets. This concludes that it was a good decision to go with the western/sci-fi theme instead, which is also more interesting and wider appealing.
Film Analysis
With the choice of my game now decided, it was very easy to find a relevant film to analyze and gather knowledge from; Cowboys & Aliens.
First off, was it a success? Having not seen the film yet I can only gather information from the trailers and reviews, the first of which I have found on CBS News; "Cowboys and wha'?" may be the reaction of many out there to the latest summer blockbuster to mosey its way into theaters this weekend. Not for Jon Favreau though. For the director, known for his big-budget "Iron Man" comic book adaptations, the notion of melding a true-blue Western with an out-of-this-world sci-fi flick was too intriguing to pass up.
The result is a cleverly orchestrated, masterfully executed blend of an old-fashioned Western combined with an alien invasion that plays as naturally as mom's homemade peanut butter and jelly sandwiches - loaded and completely satisfying. The film was well received by fans at its Comic-Con world premiere and is expected to make a killing at the box office.
Many other reviews and reports on the film also praise the idea of a western mixed with sci-fi, although some claim that this genre is nothing new to films and has been done before - as shown below;
The sci-fi western, like any other film genre, has seen its share of the good, the bad and the ugly. While it's too early to tell whether Cowboys & Aliens will be keeping company with Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef or Eli Wallach, it's not too soon to round up some of the other sci-fi westerns and corral them into their respective categories.
Source: http://www.denofgeek.com/movies/992929/cowboys_aliens_and_the_good_the_bad_and_the_ugly_of_the_scifi_western.html
Whether it has been done before or not is irrelevant to the research - but what is relevant is that the genre can be successful. It does however raise a question though which would indeed be relevant - has western sci-fi been done before in a shooter game? This was what to look into next.
Western Sci-fi Games
After the question was raised whilst researching the Cowboys and Aliens film; has a western sci-fi game, particularly a shooter been done before? The answer is yes, although different to how I intend on making mine. Firstly, the game most similar that I could find is called "Wild Guns", released in 1994 for the "Super Nintendo Entertainment System". The game's setting is in the wild west where the player has to confront various enemies including robots (the source of the science fiction element) pictured below:
As I mentioned, my game mechanics I have planned will act very differently to those seen above in Wild Guns, for starters the player's avatar will not be visible, only their weapon. I shall also be incorporating the in and out of cover system which is clearly not featured here. One element of this game I do like the look of however is the UI - being a casual game, it should not be too detailed and should only contain what the player needs to see; which is exactly what the one above does. It will most definitely be a good source of inspiration for my UI when the time comes - it was an element I had not given much thought about until now.
As far as graphics are concerned they actually aren't bad considering the game came out in 1994. The game displays elements of 3D and 2D, as already seen in many casual games - which is probably the route which I will go down for my shooter, if not fully 3D. I would however like my graphics to be cleaner - as mentioned before in the research on other casual games. Cake Mania was the other game I came across with pixellated graphics - an effect which really makes the game look poor quality and out dated. I envision smooth, vivid colors which blend unnoticeably between shades for the graphics in my game.
Targeting Cross-hairs
Below are some examples of cross-hairs to give me a source of inspiration for my game. The main difference between cross-hairs is the level of technology - ranging from a simple cross to sniper scopes with distance readers. The most suitable for the western theme would be a more simple style - as the western rifle does not have a scope.
Damaged Structures
The following images are to assist with creating the final design of the set - the western saloon which has came under attack by alien invaders.
The first image helps to display how much debris would be created from such an explosion to a structure - so in the case of the saloon this could include chairs and tables among the rubble. The other 3 images help to describe the cracks and edges formed which will assist with making the set that bit more believable in the game.
Character Creation: Alien
As stated in the initial design ideas post, the following 3 main aspects need to be researched in the form of reference images to assist with creating a developed character. These include alien physiques, space jumpsuits and futuristic rifles.
Firstly, the alien physiques;
I particularly like the green head featured in the first image - it gives the impression that the enemies are insane and will stop at nothing to destroy you. Therefore to match this style of head to a body, the 2nd body (3rd image) would look more suitable. The 1st body is far too skinny for such a large head and would look too disproportionate.
Secondly the space jumpsuits;
Source: http://f87w.deviantart.com/art/Alien-Suit-Space-Combat-155070231?q=gallery%3Af87w%2F9044617&qo=2
The above two images have been specifically selected for particular elements that I want to include on the alien character. The first image describes the space jumpsuit/armor idea that I had in mind, so the overall shape will be very useful to use for inspiration. The second image again has some useful shapes, but most of all describes a cloak built into the back of a spacesuit - an important element of the character that I want to create.
Finally, futuristic rifles;
(Image removed due to copyright).
The weapon is relatively unimportant as it will only be a small part of the character. I therefore want it to be simple, yet to look like it belongs to this alien race. With this in mind I particularly like the third image - especially the stock at the back which is different to most weapons we have here. The first image resembles our Earth weapons too much (despite the setting being western) so players would relate it to humans and not an alien race. The second image isn't exactly what I had in mind but it does have some appropriate elements which I could apply to the third image, such as what appears to be an ammunition source below the barrel.
Western/Old Fashioned Rifles
As with my previous designs, images are required for reference and inspiration - this time for the player weapon. With the player being a western cowboy or cowgirl, the typical weapons of the era would be rifles, shotguns and revolver pistols. Out of these weapons I have chosen the rifle as I find it most suitable for countering these alien targets, especially if they're at a distance.
It did not take long to find a good example of the rifle I had in mind - the famous "Winchester" rifle. It's shape is relatively simple which is ideal, and fits it's purpose perfectly. Considering I want to keep the western theme, no modifications will be necessary to the weapon as it is exactly as it should be. I will however make reference to what weapon it is in the game to show that it is not of my own design.
User Interface
As mentioned in the Initial Designs post, I need to gather some successful examples of UI's from shooter games for inspiration. In particularly a countdown timer and/or a point scorer would be most beneficial as they are the key elements of my UI. Styles and colours also need to be looked into, ensuring the western theme is continued.
A typical FPS UI would look simular to this - relatively small icons which give the most important game information;
As mentioned in our game we need a countdown timer and a point scorer, both of which can be found in examples below;
Source: http://www.intomobile.com/2009/04/23/follow-up-silent-scope-for-iphoneipod-touch-plays-well/
As you can see for casual games the UI's are very simple, in the case of the 2 above the information is purely numerical figures - this may be the best route to go down to avoid ruining the great image the game currently has.
The alternative is to have a western themed UI, which has already been found in previous research into relevant games - "Wild Guns". Not only is this UI western themed but it also has the exact elements relevant to my game - the countdown timer and the point scorer; below.
Not only does this UI have the relevant information that my game needs but it also has some other interesting features such as the name/logo of the game aswell as the player's avatar and health. For my game a health bar is unnecessary as the enemy are not allowed to fire at the player, but an avatar could be an option as the game is 1st person and a character is not visible. The game name could be appropriate but as I previously mentioned I would not like to ruin the intense atmosphere the game currently projects by causing other distractions on the screen. I therefore think that the best route to go down is to merely display the relevant numerical values of the point score and the countdown timer - this should be in a vibrant colour against the background as shown in some of the examples above which will make the figures clear and easy to read - but not too vibrant that they detract the player's eye from the scene.
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