To create a project that provides reusable, substantial results, it must first be designed efficiently and thoroughly.
In any scientific project, there needs to be proper planning and research into the field of study in order to determine the usefulness and importance of the research being carried out. It would also need to be designed efficiently and effectively, reaching it’s maximum potential. Therefore, an investigation into a niche section of video games should be no different.
Arena games and rhythm mechanics have only been combined in one, large scale project before this investigation: Harmonix’s 2014 game Chroma. However, it never passed the testing phase, stopping at Closed Alpha. It went through iterations and changes due to tester feedback but was ultimately dropped as feedback overall was widely mixed. Therefore, no commercial product using this fusion of game genre’s has ever seen a full release.
My motives for this investigation in this field aims to find out if it is possible to change this, designing the first commercial release of it’s kind whilst also determining the effects on gameplay music, sound and rhythm have as a form of interactive gameplay within an arena environment. This knowledge can however be taken further into other genres at a later date.
Looking at Chroma and what can be taken from it
As the closest real world example of this investigation in action, Chroma will act as a pivotal source in researching how to design such a product. It is clear that an iterative design approach was taking, even during the Closed Alpha stage of development as there are Youtube videos of the game which show different GUIs, weapons and mechanics. The first video below shows off the game at an early stage of the Closed Alpha whilst the second is of gameplay later on after getting user feedback from those playing during this stage. Comments on the videos have mixed reactions, with people looking forward to the game however, the changes that were made on the premise of user feedback does not seem to sit well with all commenters (These can be taken with a pinch of salt but are more constructive than your standard Youtube comment, thus relevant enough):
Video courtesy of Youtube user: DangerSkew
Video courtesy of Youtube user: Aric Green
There are obvious and fundamental changes in both of these videos, with the first having a much more cluttered UI than the second as well as having much larger UI elements (this might also be user preferences). Notifications, such as the “Section 4 Change” statement goes along the bottom of the screen as a large element and clutters space, even if rarely used in the heat of the moment. Ammo counts are in different positions, as well as looking graphically different and the way in which the music is told, such as being in a chorus or a bridge section, changes from the large white diagonal blocks at the top of the screen to being a small bar with words explicitly saying which section it is in the later version.
It is clear then that a singular, initial design is highly unlikely to go ahead and make the best product. Iterative design, as is the case with professional design principles anyway, will be the best way to finding out the most reliable results. Does this mean it will make a good game? Not necessarily. It will however provide better results.
As a form of speculative desires from Chroma, the Youtube channel of FreeMMOStation.com about what could be done to make the game a much more unique and immersive experience for a game revolving so much around music, as opposed to just having the music and then making the game generic in nature:
By covering topics of music theory and how this could be implemented into the gameplay, such as making sounds when bullets are fired, making visually different bullets in the form of sound-waves (a la the Dubstep Gun from Saints Row IV). Multi-layering bullet sounds on top of each other to make new sounds if they both hit the same target at the same time was also another idea, making the music more alive; additive as opposed to subtractive.
There are many different ways in which this project can be approached however, there are issues in regards to timescale, team size and technical expertise. As Chroma would have been worked on for months by many people in the same environment who are likely to have had years of professional experience under their belt and I am a singular student, everything they have achieved is highly unlikely to be reached during the course of this project’s time frame.
Design Choices Using Chroma
Obviously, Chroma cannot be taken as it was and used in it’s entirety as this project. A new approach needs to be designed in order to find out potential answers. Therefore, analysing what I believe to be good and bad parts of Chroma will help shape testing and game mechanics from the get go.
For starters, the colourful approach to the environments, the bullets and elements regarding these (such as the jump pads around the maps) is a good place to begin. Audio sensory inputs work well on their own so long as they are clearly defined; no conflict of sound and high quality tracks. However, audio visual sensory effects work much better. As a bullet is shot, the music adds the sound as well as produces a great visual element. This enhances the impact each shot has on a player. Even if you don’t hear the sound, the visuals are there and vice versa. This is definitely something that needs to be considered.
The mechanics are fluid, for the most part. Instead of creating animations of anticipation or applying more realistic effects, such as gun recoil, the game takes on the nature of the genre as it should, in a fast fluid way. If the mechanics make game play bogged down at a core level, it will negatively affect the user experience, lowering overall satisfaction. Keeping any movement, shooting, animation etc. in a fast, fluid state will also be key to making a substantial game.
On the flip side however, there are problems I see with the design they set out with. In both states evidenced above, the UI has problems. In the first state, there were notes to the music to make paying attention to it more recognisable (as Harmonix had worked on Rock Band and Guitar Hero, they could easily do this) however it took up a large portion of the screen. In the second state, it became just a bar with a small box to represent the overall BPM of the song. In the Alpha state, it’s possible that this would have indeed been improved upon but it lacks a lot of visual use to the player. Why not combine the moving track from the first state, make it smaller and then implement it into the second state in a similar way?
An even bigger problem, specifically in the research I am conducting, make the game have all the music and sounds playing but what exactly does either of these things do? Does the music actually have any impact on game play? Does it change how it mechanically works from say, Halo or Quake? Does firing to the beat mean that players could do extra damage, for example, creating a new layer of challenge in becoming better at the game? The videos themselves won’t be able to show these technical areas off and as there is no information from Harmonix regarding Chroma anymore, this isn’t accessible. So as a form of interactive gameplay, Chroma drops and this is one avenue I will be looking at expanding upon, the effect interactive music and sound has on the overall game play and it’s mechanics, instead of just being there passively.
Overall Thoughts
Chroma works as a very useful case study of this unique fusion of genres and certainly provides a base framework for the research needed for this project. As the closest thing I have to work with in regards to the needs of the game, scrutiny needs to be taken both on the low and high levels of design and construction. By taking the elements that I personally consider to be strong or weak, I can form a more focused view of the scope and narrow down how the game will be design. In future posts on the design of this project, I will take a look at other elements and how other games have used them in order to create what I believe is the most effective implementation into designing this project.
Aaron Swiss-Hamlett 