Final Class Reflection

Before taking 247G, I thought about play as something spontaneous, almost “easy”. I thought to myself, how hard is it to think of some rules for a game, but it’s harder than I expected. Through this class, I saw game design as a technical, rule-heavy process. I also loved playful experiences, but I’m not a huge gamer, and I didn’t see myself as a game designer. This class changed that. Through 247G, I realized that play is a powerful language, and that designing games is as much about creating social dynamics and emotions as it is about systems or mechanics. I prototyped games I never imagined I’d make, from absurd party games to an escape room. I learned how to playtest with intention, give and receive critique, and iterate in a way that honored players’ experiences, not just my ideas.

A few key concepts stuck with me: storytelling and exploration. Exploratory play taught me that games can help players explore their identity, express vulnerability, and even change their behavior. Storytelling in this class taught me that it’s more complex than it looks. We can implement it through different narrative structures and let it to players’ imaginations. I implemented these ideas into my two projects. The first one, The Secret Society, is a social deception storytelling game where players take on hidden roles and respond to prompts, sometimes with secret agendas. Designing this game taught me how to balance vulnerability with mechanics. We wanted to create moments of emotional risk and connection, all within a fun, chaotic structure. Playtesting was messy, but it was also full of laughter, surprise, and moments where players said, “Wow, we’re learning so much about one another.” Through this project, I also learned that design is not finite. Sometimes, it’s about taking that leap of faith (changing our entire concept last minute, for instance). 

My other game, Last Dive, was a hybrid digital/analog narrative escape experience set in a doomed submarine. The player has limited time and guesses to escape, each choice bringing them closer to the surface or their death. Last Dive pushed me to explore environmental storytelling in a digital medium. As a designer who doesn’t know how to do 3D graphics and whose most powerful tool is an iPad, I learned that visual storytelling that be translated through image shift, but also other tools can make your story feel so alive, such as dialogue, little storytelling elements, or sound and music. 

One of the hardest lessons was letting go of perfection. As a designer, I’m used to details. Every button needs to be perfect, but I learned that sometimes games need to be unfinished (especially at those playtests). I had to get comfortable with awkward moments, confused players, and unexpected outcomes. That was scary, but it made me a better listener and a better designer.

I grew in confidence, not just as a designer, but as someone who understands how to craft experiences that bring people together. Next time, I want to continue exploring how games can surface identity, queerness, and memory. I want to push deeper into hybrid and narrative forms and keep designing for connection. As someone who has always viewed rest and play as forms of resistance and radical joy, I want to learn how I can deploy games to my communities to inspire these beliefs (maybe designing serious games).