| Video game design is undergoing a dramatic shift. | | | | become an integral part of game making and |
| It is transforming from a creative pursuit that has | | | | game design. You will be able to tell an application |
| a lot of work involved to a creative pursuit where | | | | “I want a castle. No, make it bigger. Good, |
| the work is handled by the computer. This is the | | | | now put stained glass windows. Now I want a |
| goal and impetus of game making; to get closer | | | | character that is a big muscle bound hero. Etc. |
| to the creative process, harnessing creativity, | | | | …etc… |
| while leaving the mundane tasks to the computer. | | | | When voice recognition is perfected and becomes |
| And the computer does this so well. | | | | ubiquitous we will have crossed an important |
| There are three different realms of game making | | | | threshold in technology. No longer will we as |
| that I will adventure into. And I will make some | | | | people have to learn the language of computers. |
| exciting predictions as to where we are headed. | | | | Computers will have learned ours. And this will |
| The Language of Computers and People | | | | have a dramatic impact on game making. |
| The first realm of game making advancement lies | | | | Algorithms of Growth |
| in language. And what I mean by this is that when | | | | Another very exciting area of development when |
| you are designing a game you have to | | | | it comes to game making is the area of self |
| communicate with a computer. You have to tell it | | | | teaching and self growth. Games will be able to |
| what you want to see in the game and what you | | | | take small amounts of information and guidance |
| want to happen in the game. This began with | | | | that you provide and grow themselves in ways |
| programmers writing out long lines of code in a | | | | that you want, and also in unpredictable but rules |
| programming language. This language was | | | | based ways that you design. The computer |
| something that took many hundreds of hours to | | | | gaming world is already making big advances in |
| learn. In effect, people had to learn the computers | | | | this area and some good examples of this are the |
| language. But, as computers advanced things | | | | Sims games where the world grows on its own |
| changed and the Graphical User Interface came | | | | but under your guidance. A game soon to be |
| into the forefront as a much better means of | | | | coming out that very much takes this self-growth |
| communication between people and computers. | | | | into mind is the new game called Spawn. As a |
| Now you could use your mouse and navigate on | | | | game designer you will be able to dictate a set of |
| the screen to get things done without knowing | | | | rules and watch as your game grows. |
| any computer language at all. And this also applied | | | | Interfacing with people |
| to game making. Now there are applications that | | | | The potentially most exciting aspect of game |
| are almost exclusively drag and drop. You can | | | | design comes in the advancements of interfaces. |
| build worlds and insert items, objects, models, and | | | | As computers move toward the creation of |
| behaviors into the without doing any coding. | | | | virtual 3d worlds that are free of the monitor so |
| Okay, so what is next in the world of language | | | | will game makers become free of them. There |
| and game making? It lies in the golden fleece of | | | | will come a time that game makers actually see |
| the computer world: “Natural Spoken | | | | three dimensional models of their games as they |
| Language”. Software companies have been | | | | make them. You will be able to reach right into |
| chasing after the goal of making computers | | | | the game world and move things around, stretch |
| totally hands free for a long time now. And while | | | | objects bigger, squeeze them smaller, and paint |
| there are lots of voice recognitions software | | | | them different colors all with a stroke of your |
| programs out there they don’t perform well | | | | hand. This freedom will tap directly into the power |
| enough yet. But we keep moving forward and we | | | | of our eyes and take game making to heights |
| will get there. And when we do the technology will | | | | never even imagined. |