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Understanding theUnderlying Patterns:

Teaching Scientific Thinking through Building Games

Dr. Magy Seif El-NasrSimon Fraser University, Canada

Dr. Tony MaygoliNew Media Research and Education, Canada, Canada

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Website ishttp://www.gamedevcamp.com

•Delivered Workshops since 2004 for High School and Middle School kids (11 total workshops)

•Taught 13 courses on game design at College Level

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•Managed by NMRAE: New Media Research and Education

•Delivered Workshops since 2004 for High School and Middle School kids▫Penn State University (US)▫3 Schools Puerto Vallarta (Mexico)▫Simon Fraser University (Canada)▫Vancouver, BC (Canada)▫Laguna College of Art and Design (US)▫Willamette University, Oregon (US)

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• In this talk▫Scientific thinking through workshops▫Scientific Game Design▫Workshops

Science Starts With Critical Thinking

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•Learning by doing•By building games they learn:

▫ Science of game design▫ Psychology▫ Mathematics▫ Art▫ Physics

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Play

Fostering Creative and Collaborative Skills

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Concept Design

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Concept Development and Critique

Game Design and Programming Process

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Critique

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Few courses that I have been teaching:Math Finance

Physics Business Chemistry Real EstateCritical thinking StocksGuitar ForexBass guitar Kung fu Piano KarateKeyboard BudoMusic theory Judo Painting Kendo Poetry Swimming Calligraphy Chess Cooking BadmintonRenovation Game designESL Early retirement

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Few Important Facts and Conclusions:

Teacher Knowledge

System Student

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Few Important Facts:

Science is NOT tangible for studentsWe (teachers) have no LEVERAGE

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What do we teach them?• Critical Thinking • Math • Geometry• Physics• Programming• Storytelling• Art•

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Mathematical Thinking: Math, Geometry, Animation

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-x

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?,?300,464

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ROOM

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?

x1

y1

d=√(x12 + y1

2 )

Move the dog step by step in the game for the distance (d)

a

b

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ROOM

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ROOM

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v = g * t

velocity v of a falling object from the falling time point

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The tools and Programming:In 400-level college classes: •Wildtangent (1)•WarCraft III (2)•Unreal Tournament 2003/4 (10)

For high/middle-school Workshops: •WarCraft III (4)•Game Maker (5)•RPG Maker (1)

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Computer Science: ProgrammingStatementsVariablesConditionalsFunctionsLoopsEvents

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Computer Science: Parallel processing, event programming, Object Oriented Programming

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Arts: Architecture design, map design, visual composition, lighting, camera movement, etc.

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Scientific Principles of Game Design

5 Principles

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• Game Mechanics:▫Operant conditioning▫Creating drama▫Directing attention▫Navigation▫Preparing the users for interaction

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Skinner (Operant Conditioning): The process of learning behaviors from the

environment through consequences.Positive reinforcementNegative reinforcementPunishmentChaining and shapingReward schedule systems

reinforcement is the chances of increasing probability of behavior occurrence.

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C. Fabricatore. 2007 . Gameplay and Game mechanics design: a key to quality in video games. Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.

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Game Designers use the same techniques to teach the player what to do in game environments

Game Level Designers use Variable Ratio for rewards

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• At the beginning: things are easy, “you make level 2 in about 5 kills.”

• By the time you make level 3 half an hour later, you understand the system

• Gradually, it takes longer and longer to get to the next level. It is the rewards that motivate you to continue “trivial tasks are no longer rewarded. The one-click reward disappears, and is gradually replaced by rewards that take more and more clicks to get. And suddenly, some of us find ourselves clicking away for hours in front of a forge or jewellery kit.”

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• Uses random ratio schedule. “Both melee and trade skill points increase after a random number of attempts. You know you won’t get skill points unless you practice the skill, but you don’t know how many attempts it will take to get another skill point.”

• “A completely transparent experience points system would be a fixed ratio schedule because you have a very good grasp of how many more solo kills it takes to gain a level.” – would that work?

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Creating Drama in Games (Le Blanc):•Drama is tension, created through conflict•Conflict in games is created:

▫Uncertainty of outcome: you don’t know if you are going to win or who is going to win

▫Inevitability of resolution: you know there is an end

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Systems for producing Uncertainty

•Feedback systems▫Negative: make score between players

closer to zero▫Positive: make score between players as

large as possible

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Systems for producing Uncertainty•Escalation: more points towards the end

(e.g., Jeopardy) •Hidden energy•Fog of War (not everything is revealed)•Decelerator: an obstacle that slows

player down late in the game•Cashing out: reset to zero, e.g. rounds in

fighting games

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Systems for producing Inevitability•Ticking clock

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Industry InvolvementIncrease Motivation and Knowledge Seeking

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For Camps hosted in cities away from Vancouver, we bring professionals to talk to kids through skype

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“making the experience immersive, sounds lighting, everything. I also have a much greater respect for the difficult process of game design/creation”

“Coding and style of coding because nothing works if you can't code correctly”

“How to program and produce something in a group”

“Game design concepts in general”

Science Ends With HUMANITY

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Questions?Dr. Magy Seif El-Nasr: magy@sfu.caDr. Tony Maygoli: tony@nmrae.com