I look back with fondness on the days when I would get home from fifth grade, throw my backpack on my bedroom floor, and rush to the family Mac to open MicroWorlds EX Robotics. No words could describe the joy in opening up a fresh project, racing to create whatever game idea had been bouncing around my head all morning.
The Microworlds software was a simple toolset, but at that age it offered everything I could ever need. I started off with simple clickthrough games, then moved to Pokemon ripoffs, and finally arcade fighting games. There was a great joy in seeing your ideas become real creations, which I could show friends and family. And I loved playing my own games—after all, I knew myself best. As time went on, though, I always wished I could do more. The games I made never reached the complexity and richness they possessed in my imagination. I lacked the skill and knowhow, and the software was limited. Those dreams stayed dreams, and after some time I stopped logging on to Microworlds.
Today, the most uncanny thing has happened. I have begun to feel that joy again. Only after taking this class and making my first game on the Unity software, do I feel like I am capable of manifesting the game ideas which still bounced around in my head.
This new capability is in large part due to the wealth of knowledge imparted by CS247G. From our weekly sketchnotes to fascinating lectures from Christina and the teaching team, this class has been the first time I’ve ever given direct thought and attention to topics like onboarding, game balancing, the 8 kinds of fun, Bartle’s player types, and MDA. It was also the first opportunity in a long while for me to experiment around with sketching and drawing, which I seldom practice.
It was not a straightforward path to where I am now, however. Working in Unity for the first time was like a roller coaster ride, where I experienced frustrations, growth, and countless errors along the way. At first, I was shocked at how complicated everything was. Creating a 2D game in Unity was a significant step up from the drag-and-drop and simple programming in Microworlds all those years ago. I had to familiarize myself with the intricacies of Game Objects, sprite sheets, and even code in C# for the very first time. But throughout it all, I saw a light at the end of the tunnel. I saw a functional RPG that looked (or at least, came close to) the way I had imagined it in my head.
Now, armed with new game creation tools, I’m sure I will continue to make games—if not for others, just for my own personal enjoyment. It is an incredible thing to be able to realize the ideas which otherwise would remain trapped inside our own heads. And that is a gift that Christina and the teaching team have given me.
