xaeascreates

[xaeascreates]

Trevino Self Reflection

https://youtu.be/vDmpoP4L4A8 

Self-Evaluation Write Up­

 In this analysis I wanted to cover how each course in the program had contributed to the final product of my capstone project. Mastery was a good course to reiterate being passionate about our area of study and have a good amount of grit to move forward even when there are setbacks. Computer Science was helpful for the fact that it let me get more comfortable with Android studio and some methodologies in mobile design and programming. Approaches to Game Design was fantastic for the very fact it started to help me think about dissecting other mobile games. Dissecting not only technical features and art aesthetics, but also UI layout for usability. Which goes into the next course Usability Engineering, with this course I was able to test a number of different layouts to optimize usability and it let me have some thought on just how I wanted each element of the user interface to be laid out in my capstone project.

Game Design Frameworks was quite helpful for the fact that I was able to experiment with some other game engines and coding languages I hadn’t been used to using for game programming. Such as JavaScript in Godot. Mobile Gaming business talked on quite a number of helpful points, which ultimately led to the decision of making my capstone project a single pay monetization type of application, as well as some resources for finding and interfacing with Stakeholders. Storyboard and Game Design helped with production time and putting together my documentation. Agile development covered some really good ways to manage a project, and this is where I started using Trello and the Scrum project management system, and this application wouldn’t have been possible without it. Mobile Game Dev I, II & Mobile game testing was used for not only production time but time to test different builds of my serious games with a number of different therapists to allow me to target and improve usability for the target demographic. As for advisor and faculty feedback it was really helpful throughout the entire program. I could also tell it was thoughtful and pointed toward helping make my application better and my documentation skills better too. As for things to improve on there isn’t much I can think of right away. Potentially the course layout across all courses. Having a similar layout across all courses might make the program less overwhelming to some students.

[xaeascreates]

Lingium Postmortem Audio/Video Presentation

This is the final Audio/Video presentation of my Capstone Project Lingium

[xaeascreates]

Mobile Game Testing Course

In all honesty using this course as another month of production with User testing too was probably a great choice. There was a really big hurdle I had to get over during these four weeks. That hurdle was getting encryption/decryption of the adolescent’s/user’s data when they’d go to one of the goals or get a word or phrase incorrect. It actually only decrypts the data when it needs to write the information then instantly encrypts the data again. This way even when someone goes out of the app and tries to explore the files it will be an encrypted file and the only way to get the file is if the user sends it to their email or creates a local file. The biggest thing for this hurdle was how to get encryption and decryption working correctly on an android device. I’ve worked with both encryption and decryption on the PC before but never for a mobile device.

               When I finally got to a spot, I thought it was going to work there was one small bug, and I just had to get past that and it would work. The popup boxes would actually freeze when it was trying to decrypt and write information to the file. I actually connected my test device wireless through adb and logcat. Then debugged it through there. It turned out it wasn’t reading the dat file for the encryption key information or the email information. After changing how that functions it works correctly now. Another hurdle was the wait times of the encryption and decryption of the application. To fix that I decreased some lengths and buffers and it works perfectly. The user testing consisted of mainly music therapists throughout the whole cycle and half of the users for the report were music therapists to see if this application really would be beneficial to adolescents with Childhood Apraxia of Speech. Overall I’ve learned a lot when it comes to making applications and how I can manage my time when creating these types of application throughout this course and the entire program.

[xaeascreates]

Mobile Game Development II

               This second part of the development of my capstone project I really had to dig down deep and work quite hard to keep making sure I’d met my milestone goals. The first two weeks of this course I made sure to refine my features and get in the placeholder assets needed for the first interactive story goal. Whereas the last two weeks were mainly used for user testing and that had opened up my eyes on a few things.

One I needed to pay more attention to fixing some bugs. Two was a new feature that would give audible help on words/phrases for all of the speech recognition words and phrases in all four goals. It was also really helpful seeing that the user interface was easy to learn and pick up almost naturally for the therapists. This next course I plan on digging even deeper in the therapist testing, and getting ready to add in the tutorials for the interactive story and the words/phrases.  Honestly this capstone project has been a really great idea, and there is so much I’ve learned and I’m still learning because of this project.

[xaeascreates]

Mobile Game Development I

So this was definitely an awesome yet intense course. It really puts into perspective the drive and want to get tasks done in a given set of time. There were some sprints in which I was getting my tasks done in quite the fast manner, but there were other times that it felt as if I’d almost bit off more than I can chew. Trello is a magnificent application that helped me keep track of these tasks, and what I had to get done in each of these sprints. 

I’d have to say that the most difficult weeks were week 3 and week 4 when it came to creating the user profile aspects of my capstone project. Though weeks 3 and 4 were probably the most fruitful. As I’d even created functions for encrypting and decrypting the user files that they were written in. Aside from the speech recognition part of this capstone and each of the goals being directed toward aiding in the symptoms of childhood Apraxia of Speech, I’d say that the profile features came along quite well. Especially with the reading and writing to the user profile, and the current user staying the same even after the application stops. 

The last week was also aimed toward squashing any bugs that may have made the application unusable and unplayable. In addition to finally getting the rest of the user writing implemented into the application. The next steps is adding in the place holder assets, testing the application with therapists and users, and making sure to not only optimize the game as its assets are being added, but also tweak the application to the feedback the users give when testing the application. 

[xaeascreates]

Story Board and Game Design

The Storyboard and Game Design class has taught and helped me out a great deal within just the month. It’s taught me to be more thorough in my mockups, and how to break my ideas and production into an understandable modeling language not only for myself but my teammates as well. When working in groups. During focusing more on my prototype, and the main features of my application I was able to not only see, but fix some very large bugs in my application that was game breaking to the goals. The technical design document also helped me in nail down some avenues to approach when getting even more the production cycle of my capstone project. With more in depth research I was also able to pinpoint some potential setbacks that I will need to be conscious about moving forward in this program. Thanks to this course I look forward even more to the production and outcome of my capstone project.

[xaeascreates]

Mobile Gaming Business Mastery Journal Post

How does business and marketing affect the design and development of a mobile game?

           This question can be very broad, as there are a lot of things that business and marketing depending on business plan, and budget. Without a proper budget some corners may need to be cut in order to get the product shipped on time. The same could also be said about a proper business plan. Not only could features and mechanics be cut due to not having a good business plan, but also the aesthetics and details of the different aspects of the game. Without good marketing there could be a lack of motivation which could cause issues with budget, scheduling, and even the whole foundation of the application.

How does the proposed revenue model affect game design?

           Methods of monetization can affect many things of the game design process. Depending on the method of monetization some mechanics, and even aesthetics of a game could be designed specifically to be put behind paywalls for the user. Depending on the revenue model, some aspects of the design of the game could be affected either for the better or worst. Sometimes developers could leave out some content that could also be marketed as DLC. Other things that could be affected with a free to play, microtransactions type of revenue model is the use of stamina. This way the player can only play so many rounds or levels, before they either need to wait to play another level again or potentially pay to play more rounds.

How can you be sure you are developing a game that people will want to play?

           This is a great question! Not only will my game provide a great experience for its target demographic. Not only will it provide a good experience for the user, but it also is a device and tool that has the ability to help those who this application is intended for.

What is involved in game development other than coding and artwork, and how does this affect your development budget and schedule?

Some of the things other than artwork and coding that goes into game development, is community, business plans, and project management. Without a good business plan, deadlines might not be met, causing a project to go overbudget. This would not be good for developers, and more specifically stake-holders. It’s also good to have a community as this can motivate stake-holders, investors, and those that are working on the game. A good flow of project management can keep everyone on schedule and meeting deadlines either on time or potentially early. This also means

What do you need to do in order to convince an investor or publisher to fund your game?

           Good documentation not only for the project, but business plan, a functional prototype, and solid information are just a few things needed to give a good presentation to be persuasive enough to convince an investor or publisher to provide additional funds for my product. One of the most important things I need though to convince investors and publishers is not to be so hard on myself, and just be confident.

How do you think what you have learned in this class will affect the way you approach your capstone project?

           At first, I was thinking of an all in one application to assist in the aid of treatments in adolescents with different developmental disabilities. This way I was going to create a website that would deal with selling the disabilities individually, but now I’m going to make individual applications for individual developmental disabilities. This way I no longer need to worry about websites or databases. The method of monetization is now a single paid application. As for community there were a few other avenues I had not thought of in previous months which I plan on pursuing after the project is at least in mid production.

[xaeascreates]

Agile Course Reflection

How well did you utilize your time in this course?

           I think I did a really good job with time management in this class. Not only was I able to cover the material in class, but I’ve made some really big strides in my prototype. In addition, I got to spend a lot of this class documenting and figuring out more about my capstone project. As well as get all the narrative recording finished for the first goal in the Childhood Apraxia of Speech disability. The technical Software specifications allowed me to also get a good handle on how I plan on breaking up each part of the project in bite sized iterations to keep production and development alive.

What have you learned / achieved in this course?

           One of the very awesome things I’d learned is more about monetization and where I want to not only go with this current project, but other forms of monetization I might implement in other projects. I’d not known anything about the V-Model before either and think that the process is interesting. There was also some really great information on agile sprints that I had not thought of. It has also covered some terms and definitions that I’d know of previously, but needed a better understand of too.

How does the material you learned in this course relate to your thesis / Capstone Project? **

           The material I’ve learned in this class makes me more confident in my project, how I plan on managing my project, and presenting an elevator speech. The startup/flow canvases have really helped me pinpoint why I’m working on my capstone, what problem it intends to solve, and potentially how to capture and attain the interest of my target audience.

What steps have you taken in your capstone adviser process this month, and what was the outcome of that interaction? **

So far, the interaction is really good. I’m much further in my prototype and ideas. My advisor also likes the progress I am making. Not only am I furthering the development of my prototype, but I’m creating more solid documentation, and creating a solid foundation for my capstone project.

Are you ready to move on to the next phase of the approval process?

I’m really close with finishing the GDD I need to work on the resolution of the third goal in the prototype, then I’ll be able to completely finish the GDD and move onto the next step.

[xaeascreates]

Usability Engineering Reflection

               For this course there is honestly a lot to reflect on, but I want to keep it brief and to the point. This month’s course was all about usability, and how to test the applications and designs we make. In order to make the applications and products more usability to who they’re intended for. Not only that, but this course went into different methods, and techniques on how to improve the user experience during usability testing.  During this course, it also became even more clear just how much the psychology of human beings is during the creation of almost any tool, or thing goes into the hands of the users. Overall this course has made me even more intrigued and interested in wanting to learn more about the sciences and psychology of User Experience and Usability. While highlighting just how important it is going to be not only during the conception of my capstone project, but also during it’s final stages into being a commercial ready product.

[xaeascreates]

Game Design Frameworks Reflection

Overall, I think I’ve managed a good amount of my time on this course and exploring what I want to do for my potential capstone project. Aside from stepping out of my comfort zone and trying new frameworks and programming languages for game development, I’ve started learning the importance of unit testing and just how much time can be saved with automation. I’ve also grown more interested in trying to use Godot and get better at using this framework. I’ve been interested in using different technologies of mobile devices and the materials covered in this class have also been quite helpful in letting me explore some of them. Augmented Reality being one of major interest. Learning more about these technologies has been helping me narrow down my potential capstone ideas, and just what I want to base my thesis/capstone one.

As for steps I’ve taken in the capstone adviser process this month I’ve generated two more potential ideas, and I’ve e-mailed and reached out to all potential advisers with my ideas to no avail as of yet, but I won’t give up. I’m not yet ready to move onto the next phase, but when I am I’ll do my best to not only catch up but give it my all doing so.

[xaeascreates]

Approaches to Game Design - Self Reflection

Ultimately, I think I did use my time wisely as I spent much more than the advised time on all of the material that we were given. In the end, I’m really happy that I’d gotten to take this class. In all honesty there was quite a lot of writing, but the research made it just as fun. As for the things I’ve learned from this class, it’s a bit difficult to say where to start. I guess the best place would be at the beginning. I’d learned just how important it is to build an enjoyable experience and not just for myself. After detailing what type of experience, we not only want game mechanics but make sure these mechanics are balance to make the game more enjoyable for the player. Though there may be some things that I’d already known they reiterated on just how importing they are when approaching game design. For example, just how important aesthetics can be for the atmosphere of the game, game-world, and player. One of my favorite chapters from the reading was how the player is connected to the game world through the interface, and how detailed the chapter goes into making a smooth/juicy interface so the player can better connect with the game world.

User-Centered design is a topic I’d really not covered that much until this class either. After doing some research on it, and seeing how it can be used first hand definitely allowed me to see how this can be helpful when generating or creating games. The hero’s journey is also helpful in creating some games with a much more in-depth narrative. Bite sized narratives that the player experiences through connecting emotionally for games is potentially one framework that I will utilize in my upcoming capstone project, and thesis. These are just some of the main things I’ve picked up from this course, as trying to express all of the things presented in this class, would be quite long winded and would never get to the point

[xaeascreates]

Approaches to Game Design Bibliographies.

https://agdtrevino.tumblr.com/

[xaeascreates]

Computer Science for Engineers Reflection

               I honestly believe the Computer Science for Engineers class was quite helpful and insightful toward my goal in attaining mastery in my field. I made sure to have an ample amount of time for each of the projects and discussions. As well as give myself the time and resources to better understand and grasp some of the concepts that I might have not heard of or seen before. I’d primarily learned how to better utilize both algorithms and data structures. One thing I had problems with was writing the algorithms down on paper, but I’m starting to improve much more. I’ve also started to really like using Android Studios API and might continue working with the IDE outside of class. In programming and technical design algorithms and data structures will always be an important element so I could definitely see myself using some if not all of the things learning in this class in future classes. Since my capstone project is not turn based but AI based I plan on creating and designing a number of different behavior trees for certain sets of AI, so I plan to not only use what I’ve known but the other techniques I’ve learned in this class when generating my non-player characters. Aside from my capstone project I will also use the minimax algorithm for some of my smaller turn based projects too.

[xaeascreates]

Refamilizing myself with the sorting Algorithms today. After sorting and searching it’ll be on to some Pathfinding Algorithms! 

[xaeascreates]

Inspirational Quote

Every age has its storytelling form, and video gaming is a huge part of our culture. You can ignore or embrace video games and imbue them with the best artistic quality. People are enthralled with video games in the same way as other people love the cinema or theatre.

- Andy Serkis

Serkis S. Video Games Quotes. BrainyQuote. Retrieved from https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/andy_serkis_628295?src=t_video_games June 19th, 2018.

[xaeascreates]

My Mastery Timeline part 1

[xaeascreates]

Mastery Timeline Part 2