10 by 10 room

A Threadless-designed shirt by Dan Solis. Go vote so it becomes real!

“Why design an RPG? There’s plenty out there, make do with those.” Is that a valid point?

Troy has the answers.

Looking at the descriptions of the 2006 IGF Student Showcase Winners, I can’t help but think that college design departments are where the most interesting electronic games are emerging from (cross ref. Katamari Damacy). I don’t know if a new trend towards experimentation and play will ever break through the layers of risk-adverse corperateness (aside from Nintendo, where it currently rules the roost: the DS, the Revolution), but, in the meantime, I’m going to download a couple of these and enjoy them.

Ooooo, Cloud, yum!

From Fair Game: I will not abandon you does not equal nobody gets hurt. Meguey’s talking about games, but also really talking about social commitments in challenging situations.

Guerilla DJ, to those building that better mousetrap.

YOU CAN’T DO IT. Stop trying. The new Audio Innovate AEM-100 mixer is another attempt to cram as many features as possible into a tool that really doesn’t need them. Maybe I’m a minimalist at heart, but more than 50 knobs, buttons and faders seems a little like overkill if you ask me. Speaking of shitty interface design, the Urei 1601E isn’t much better. I’m all for technological innovation, but DJs are used to certain things – one of those is where certain buttons are placed on the mixer. Stop over thinking it. Let’s concentrate on new mixers that sound great, are sturdy and reliable and utilize features that would actually be helpful (let’s start with an LED light at the top of every mixer made, eliminating the problem of a dark DJ booth – it’s so simple, it’s almost genius).

Compare: John Harper’s new diagram

Once I had this diagram, I was able to see all the parts, and begin assigning authority and game tasks to each part. Who says what the Situation is? How does a Scene relate to Situation? Who says when a Scene begins and ends? Who says when a conflict begins and ends? How do you know when a situation is “resolved” and how does that resolution supply material for the new Situation? All that kind of stuff.

Contrast: FEMA strategy

“This chart, clearly depicting the agencies responsibilities in the event of a disaster….It begins with a response to a disaster, leads to recovery, mitigation, risk reduction, prevention, preparedness…(dramatic pause) and ends up BACK IN DISASTER!…In truth, FEMA did exactly what they said they were going to do.” – John Stewart

“When you tie into real world desires, you strengthen the power of your risk / reward schedules dramatically. Guitar Hero is an addictive game, far more than its Simon-style mechanics suggest. The title fills a real psychological need and that gives the design impressive power over its audience.” – Lost Garden’s review of Guitar Hero.

The author point out how this game is designed for major appeal to the casual gamer. (Of couse. Who doesn’t like to rock?)