Cake Hunter- Video

CAKE HUNTER- Exertion Game

*NOW YOU CAN HAVE YOUR CAKE AND EAT IT TOO*

Introducing Cake Hunter.

This game incorporates QR codes as well as embracing the new generation of phone applications. Downloading a 2D scanner app is free, and thus can be implemented easily into an exertion game. The aim of the game is to follow the messages

So how does it work? It’s a piece of cake.

First off QR codes are printed off and are put in various hotspots in RMIT. The codes look like this:

There are 10 barcodes altogether, each of which have an individual pre-set message when scanned via a 2d application on a phone…

So it would play out like this.

“Hey there’s a barcode on that wall!”

*Wipe out camera, start up 2D barcode scanner*

*Scanner reads barcodes and then shows the message embedded in that barcode*

-Message has a url linking to a jpeg image of where the next barcode is-

“Oh I know where that is! Let’s go guys!”

From here the game progresses in the same manner and eventually players will be lead to the final destination… Where there will be a delicious cake.

The premise of the game is to pitch two teams or two players against each other and push them to use both their knowledge of a location as well as speed.

Anyone with a web phone or iphone can play this game so it is easily distrubuted and accessible to play.

Escalatek Feedback

Definitely Exerting

Ok guys, Floyd has had feedback up for awhile now and I would like to raise ideas on how Escalatek in itself could be developed. Listed below are some issues raised during the night with my comments in italics.

• Exhaustion outweighs the fun Quite a fair criticism, though the escalators we were using were much faster than the average, we need to think of ways the game can have either easier standards (eg:we scrap the backwards feature and just make it a race on escalators, still fun and rebellious, although the nature of the escalator itself becomes a gimmick and loses its inherit exhausting features), we turn the backwards part into a smaller feature(eg:  going backwards is something that Player A can inflict on Player B at the expense of a number of Player A’s points) or we just create more novel experiences too
  
• Technology wasnt working This is my fault and I take full responsibility for it, I had lost the chain we were using for the buttons and adhocced some broken pencils for the buttons which I hadnt configured and tested well enough for feedback, I will be creating a smaller container for it and designing clearer and more responsive buttons.

• Technology is only used for scoring Lets fix this, I would love to hear some suggestions, I was thinking that if we had light up buttons for each player at each end and in the middle of each escalator we could put people on edge.. having to move to the next lit up button asap
• We still need a screen I am currently researching QR codes as a way of recording the game process so that all a plkayer needs is a web enabled phone

Anyway guys… got alot going on with the NWN2 mod.. I might leave the post now.. but any input would be appreciated

Escalatek- VIDEO

Escalatek- Explained *bits*

Intriguing, yes?

Who hasn’t gone up or down the wrong way on an escalator after a movie or something and thought, for some reason, that it was fun? The seemingly innocent act would be considered deliquency and just plain annoying to others during the day, when people are bustling around… and you were just fooling around! But deliquency is appealing, it’s in our nature to want to do things we shouldn’t. What if there was a way you could justify this foul play by involving wholesome things like… Health benifits and good old fashioned competition?

Say hello to Escalatek *escalators and technology!* Huzzah!

Escalatek is  a  game in which players MUST exert themselves to win. It is meant to be played on two escalators next to each other. Easy to find! Up and down!

The game consists of two players only… the concept of multiplayer would make things a bit crowded when playing.

The game incorporates the two players in a race involving a button/swtich system which calculates their points. A button board is positioned in the middle and in between the two escalators on a stable platform and players must hit a specific button when going up or down.

The implementation for the button board is a foldable keyboard and programming.

Pictures below! : )

-Cin

Escalatek *Post 2

Thought we could share some photos from our very productive working bee setting up our prototype scoring device.

The team upon goods being purchased

making a box for the keyboard

putting this together led to troubles, as when we tested the inputs.. many buttons were being pressed and creating a lot of hassle, hence…

Removing keys from the keyboard

Nearly Done

just checking that only one button is being pressed when the keyboard is pressed

designing some buttons(currently misplaced) from the keyboard scraps

Camouflaging the device as trash as to not draw too much attention from game outsiders using the escalator

Testing that the inputs work

The scorer prototype

NineForce – NineTube

NineForce – Ninetube

Tim here, presenting an idea he’s had since our team formed. Based quite strongly on the notions of exertion and hard fun. The rules are deliberately crafted for emergent behaviours to form, creating a variety of strategies that a player can take on.

Beginning of the game

(Two Player Mode)

• Two players link up their stations across the net or a LAN network at an Arcade.
• The two station’s foam tubes are pulled back/pushed out by the station’s pressure sensitive hydraulic pumps to being midway out and then locked for the countdown.
• Each of the Hydraulic Pumps are tuned to the opposing players pressure sensors and after the countdown, each tube will pull back with the same force that its pushed, what ends up happening is that when both players are pressing in synch against tuned tubes, a battle of strength ensues.
• I was thinking of two modes, one where each players tubes are tuned to their opposing station’s mirror tubes and one where the tube synchs are allocated randomly. The latter mode would keep developed strategies from Mode 1 under constant revision

(Alternate Ten Player Mode… to be elaborated on further should this idea be used)

• Ten Players link up
• This time though each of the tubes is tuned using a random algorithm to an individual tube , giving each player nine different opponents. This mixes things up and will definitely have players minds ticking over as they try to prioritise tubes to be pushing and defending against.

Scoring

• Each players score is kept private but displayed to them and them alone, so it is the responsibility of the player to keep track of the score of their opponent. When you read the Winning and Ending conditions you will see how this brings elements of risk and luck to the ten player game
• A player gets 30 points every time  they lodge their opponents tube in the backing board behind them, the board registering the lodge.
• During the first 5 seconds it is lodged, every second it remains adds the count of seconds to the score(eg: 3 seconds adds 3+2+1 to the score, 4 second adds 4+3+2+1 etc)
• After this period the score increments by 5 a second until the opponent dislodges it

Ending The Game

• The game is Ended once a player has lodged all nine of their tubes at least once into an opponents backing board.
• The Winner of the game is the player with the highest score.

Why I think this fits the criteria very well

• Its a game that requires exertion, you will be in a way wrestling with your opponents, although with the complexity these simple rules create, it is a game that is fun as well.
• As well as being physically exhausting, Nineforce demands concentration as the players must make constant decisions eg: “I need to dislodge tube 3 but if I do I will lose all my progress with tube 4″, ” tube 5 is there waiting for me  to end the game, now how many points do I think they have?”. These intellectual demands distract the player from the amount of energy they are exerting.
• Creating a mock up of this would not be too hard as we could use a large sheet to conceal one of us pressing back against pool tubes in a frame easily made from goods under $100

Weaknesses

• a lack of a handicap system that can be genuinely measured without potential for cheats to exert a minimal force during handicap qualification, a handicap system is not neccesarily needed but it would allow for the natural differences in strength to be dealt with

An idea for a game!

Today on the train a random idea occurred. The general concept is racing around a course, shooting targets with paintball guns (or like..nerf guns if cost is an issue :S) as quickly as possible. That’s the basics.

To go into more depth. There are two teams, each with the same layout of the course,  the same amount of targets and the same goal; hitting all the targets as quickly as possible. The twist is that since the two courses are symmetrical so are the status of the targets.

For example if Team A goes in first hitting the first target they see before Team B does, that target will go down making it unavailable to hit for Team B thus earning Team A a point. This gives the players a sense of interaction between each team as essentially the targets are shared and can only be hit by one team. The goal is to hit more targets than the other team all the while racing to the end of the course. Seeing the targets getting ‘hit’ by the other team will drive people to run faster, thus exerting themselves and driving them to be the victor.

This is a visual look at the game:

(Mind the bad diagram, I’m using a mates computer at the moment and I don’t have my good graphics tablet) This displays a person from each team at the same point in the course. But Team B has hit the target before Team A has. The makes Team A unable to score a point by hitting that target. So it becomes a big race to see who can hit more targets, the fastest.

Tell me what you all think.

-Will

Stuff and things

Hey guys,

So tomorrow we have to bring forth a concept for our game, I’m thinking we should brainstorm some things tonight + tomorrow and whichever idea sounds the best at the time we can pitch to the class. However I don’t think we have to stick to that game concept throughout the whole semester… if we think of a better idea of course we can do that instead!

I really like the idea of some kind of scavenger hunting game (Stephs idea) or some kind of general hunting game that is spread over a big area. But how can we incorporate technology into this, and what would make people REALLY want to play it. I guess it would have to be the objective that would really drive a scavenger hunt kind of game.  **Sorry Steph I just read your comment in the first post, you already figured out a way to incorporate technology- my bad! I like that idea of making a website and sticking clues up there and things, maybe we could make it an exertion game by setting up a certain item or something at a location and it would only be there for a certain time thus, a time limit= exertion..? Maybe?**

Personally I’ve been really struggling with ideas… The things I think of either require way to much programming or would cost way to much >.> Haha.

I dunno, some crazy idea I had was making a massive scale rpg with clues and things spread across the city or something, and it would sort of be like a Zelda game in the sense you could only progress once you finish off a riddle or puzzle… and the puzzles and things could have sounds for when you pick the write one or the wrong one.

Anyways, has anyone else got any ideas?

Cynthia

Go team!

Ok well this is The Rainbow Rambos blog.

So let’s get started on brainstorming ideas for this game guys 😀 I’ll probably post stuff whenever I have a chance and feel the need to (I don’t have an internet connection at home at the moment… 😦 ) so yeah.

-Will