Constitution of Video Game

After relearning about video game development, gamedev for short, I stumble with few things. To clarify the about definition to make clear term, video game is form of play in digital medium that works like video and you can move around or do things inside it. Not much different in term of phyisical play like chess, hide-and-seek or any game your ever play, it just happend inside video that play in screen and you can interact with it.

Visual and audio may sound as part of constitution that build a video game, but there anything else that we miss ? Yes, story and mechanics. Believe or not, every game has the story, just like every novel has moral message or story B.

Lets think about Dota 2 as example, it maybe just 5 vs 5 real-time strategy with quite complex mechanic and fierce setting of gameplay. Are there story behind it? Like what is Dire and Radiant name comefrom ? and Why Mirana dubbed as princess and Marchie as her sidekick ? .

Without story, video game maybe works as toy or puzzle like 2048, Osu or Tetris. It may have diffculity and goal but lacks of progression but still a game. That why this type of game commonly used as e-sport, because the difficulty and challange like who the fastest defeat opponent or defends the teritory, it still fun and engaging.

What I trying to say is that heavely invested mechanics of gameplay still procure story to make it works to giving immersiveness of experiences of play, even in minor part. In play of game there sort of obstacle, progression and goal to make experience of play reach the person who play or with naughty word, captivating the player.

The investment either mechanic or story being consideration of the game designer to procure what type of game. Like visual novel, maybe use simple mechanic but story side become strong point of play or Tower defense game like Plant versus Zombies that focus in mechanic of plant shooting that become main feature but also giving story about defeating the Zomboss to giving sense of urgency to progress the game to next level.

To make it short, game have constitution that need take in account:

• Story, how to make the world you interact make sense or supporting the real reason of character in world game.
• Visual, This the frontline of your game, what player see and what your idea representated in game.
• Mechanics, How player able to do things in game, walking, sleeping or working.
• Audio, To enhance all above constitution giving sense of realism/experience, like you have sound click when taping in mouse that also in game mechanics. To inform player what interaction have been done.

In my opinion story rich game maybe the best part to start game development, since it have low complexity of mechanics (safe you a ton of coding works in that) but should investing in story. For story, I have tips : You could make game for fan-art, the story and the character already there, just need some tweaking and seasoning to make story bit spicy.

Let me show you an example. I pick a character from game called Blue Archive, Kazusa. She was a member of After-School Sweet club that have hobby eating desert. Let make game about "Kazusa's Sweet Shop" or "Kazusa Sweet Conquest".

The idea is she start cafe that serving sweet desert but there an obstacle that her cafe not have complete menu about sweet and the material to made it, so this is the challange, a sweet shop simulator game.

To make game have sense of progression, set story about Kazusa mission to share any sweet that her have tasted and make reason After-School Sweet still exist depsite its member already graduate.

If you confuse about the mechanic you could see how gameplay inside ? Think of dinner dash from game house. It serve customer menu by your walking like crazy to customer table and kitchen counter top. The story is moving from one area to another after certain level like Millenium, Abydos, Gehenna. Natsu and Airi work in kitchen, Yoshimi at Cashier. The rest I leave to you. Ok, that the idea, You're welcome.

Everything has been said before, but since nobody listens we have to keep going back and beginning all over again. - André Gide