The life of Niamh

It has finally come to the point we have all been waiting for... THE GAME IS FINISHED. Im so happy o have completed my game "Past the Limits"... well i sort of completed it. I was able to to do the main parts that i was aiming for but due to the time shortage i had, i wasn't able to add a title screen and extra tracks. My game went vert well i think and i'm very happy with the outcome. It's a very enjoyable game to play. I added the second player and created waypoints for the opponent to follow in order to have an actual competition. Throughout this module there has been stressful times. especially tiring to remember to do the blog posts and weekend work on time while trying to balance the 100 other assignments we'd get at once. It definitely wasn't easy at all but we got there in the ned, we survived. For the most part minus the assignments, i found this module really enjoyable. I like following tutorials and seeing how games are made. i enjoyed being...

This week i found and watched tutorials on how to create and add an opponent to my game using a waypoint system. By adding the other car, The player can now fully see what the game will look like in the end and fully get a feel for the overall look of the game. When i first added the second car into the game, it only went around in circles so i had to change a few settings on it. I then started to add trackers on to the course which will tell the AI car where to go when it passes through them. In order to create the trackers for the car, i added cubes along the track and then wrote a script that will then tell the AI car to go to these points on the course. In order for it to work i then had to drag the script onto the mark01 cube which will then allow all cubes/ trackers to work. In the next tutorial i hope to add colour to both cars and hopefully add a opening title screen which will show the game name and which levels there are. "AI Car" https://www.youtube.com/watc...

In this weeks unity tutorials i continued on with the tutorials i was watching last week. This week i set up a finish and start line for the game. This will allow the players to identify what lap they are on and i will have it timed in with the overall stats and places on the board. I also added a lap time in the top right hand corner of the game. Under it i also added a best time feature. This will allow the players to try beat their best time and improve on their skills on the game. I want to combine these times and have them hooked up so they count up in real time. It will allow the players to try their opponents and try get a better time for the game and that level. Personal image of "Past the Limit"

This week i have been working on my game, especially the first playable version of "Past the Limit". Since the prototype last week I've updated my terrain and how the cameras work in my game.  In my terrain i've updated the walls surrounding the track to make it look like the player is driving in a rocky area and have also added a bunch of trees to the game to make it seem more like the country side that i was aiming for.  Currently the camera has been set to follow the car and no longer tumble and flip whenever the car hits the wall or flips over.  The car runs smoothly. Adding colour and enemies is still needed in my game and i have not yet completed that task. I'm still trying to fix the audio on my game. For the first playable game its at a good point and i will continue to work on it till i complete the full game. "Personal image from "Past the Limit"

Over the past 8 weeks now i have been working towards where i am now with my game and where am i want to be in a few weeks. At the start of the semester myself and my classmates made a schedule to stick to in order to complete the assignments on time to have our game up and running on time. I'm going to be honest with you right now, i haven't stuck to the schedule at all. Out of the 8 weeks i've been uploading these assignments and posting on the blog, i've stuck to the schedule once or twice. I've never been good at sticking to "study timetables". I don't dedicate enough time to them and thats my own fault, but saying that i've uploaded 97% of these assignments on time so i'm not doing too bad. I am happy with where my game is and how its developing but i still haven't figured out why there is no sound on my car (Tune in next week for the continuation of me complaining that theres no sound).  I like how my terrain is developing and where...

Over the past 8 weeks or so myself and my classmates have been giving each other feedback through blog comments on each others post. We'd either have informal comments or would use techniques such as TAG or WWW. For anyone who is reading this and is wondering "What in the hell is TAG and WWW?" ill let you in on a secret to get the best comments and feedback to others. TAG stands for Tell, Ask, Give. Tell the person what you like, ask questions about what they've said and give them some pointers on how they can improve. WWW stands for Wow, Wonder, What if. Let them know if they achieved any wow moments in their post. Wonder - ask questions if you're not sure about how something will work etc. What if - make suggestions on how to improve or change their game which will help them improve the best quality of game. For me personally, i've really liked these types of strategies to give and take in feedback that my classmates have given me throughout the weeks. The...

Over the past 8 weeks i've been reading and writing about articles that range from improving your learning mindset to the mechanics, dynamics and aesthetics framework. Over these weeks i've learned many new techniques and ways to work that i hope will benefit me in the future, in work and just in life in general. Overall the readings have been a good thing in my opinion. they made myself and others start to remember what reading is like, especially when you find a good reading that intrigues your mind and thoughts. My favourite reading so far was "Growth mindset". I found this to be my favourite reading over the weeks as it though me many things about myself and how i deal with work and development processes. Since this reading i've been trying to employ this mindset into my daily life. With projects recently i've been trying to push myself more to gather as much and work as hard as i can throughout the process as it will allow me to get the grade i'm ai...

"Personal image of "Past the Limits" This week I started to make my game "Past the Limit". I'm not going to lie, i dint want to at first but once i got into building the terrain i started to enjoy creating this other world and racing game. So far i've built the terrain and added some features to it, in order to create a realistic and exciting environment for the game. What worked? So far most things have worked for me. The tutorials i'm following are very descriptive and helpful and allow me to really get into the designing and functionality of the game. Ive been able to add textures to my game and create the ground and track for the game. Ive also added rocky mountains in order to create an exciting/fascinating race course for "Past the limit". I've also added the main race car to the game. This will allow me to test the track as i continue to develop the game. "Past the Limits" terrain What didn't work? ...

This week i looked at tutorials based around my game "Past the Limits". I watched the first two tutorials on car racing games by Jimmy Vegas. The first tutorial covered  "The Basics"  of creating a car racing game and the second tutorial covered  "Textures and Car imports" . This allowed us to import real looking cars and making them drive. It gave me an overview of what the game will go like.  The first tutorial was rather simple as a good few of the things covered in this video i had seen and learnt from the other tutorials when i first started learning unity and how to implement and design the scenery and how to create dips and bumps in the terrain. Jimmy Vegas also showed us how to use the camera and how to click into the game. It was a good refresher in the basics.  The second tutorial was also quite simple and also included parts that i had already seen and learnt from the previous tutorials. In this tutorial, i was show how to import text...

This week I finalised most of my GDD in order for it to be easier for people to understand where i want to go with my game "Past the Limit". "My GDD" Here is the link to my  DunDoc .

In this weeks tutorials, I learned how to create wind and fix lighting, fade screens and create a more realistic looking environment eg. Adding a house.  As these tutorials develop during the weeks, ive become more invested into them which i know will come to benefit when developing my game fully and adding the key elements and design. In the first tutorial of this week we are shown how to add a skybox. By adding a skybox we can manipulate the sky and colouring of the game depending on the type of mood you want to set in your game. This is very helpful if you want your game to take place at dusk or dawn. It'll add atmosphere to your game. Jimmy Vegas also shows us how to create a wind zone that will give the game a more realistic look to our game and how to pick a speed that will allow for realism but also wont let it get warped by the speed. In the second tutorial Jimmy Vegas showed us how to create Fade screens in our game. This will allow for a better looking game when creat...

This week i read an article that talked about how productivity applications can learn from games. The article was called  "Building a Princess saving app"  . In this weeks reading, we dived into the process and importance of decision making within a game.  What i found the biggest help while reading this article was the steps you may need to consider in order to create a cozy game and by steps i mean the "ingredients" of cozy aesthetics. The ingredients for cosy aesthetics are as follows: 1. Abundance - food/warmth 2. Smooth transitions  3. Protection and support - environment or characters 4. Focus - eliminations of interruption 5. Familiar setting 6. Refuge and escape  7. Welcome entity   8. Seasons  9. Ritual - repeating actions. Id you make the decision to have these cozy aesthetics in your game, it will allow a player to reframe their mindset, relax and continue with the game. It gives comfort to the player and i pers...

For the Game Design Document we used a website called "Dundoc". It was a very handy website to use as it defined each section and separated them into categories which made it a bit easier to do. The Game Design Document is a highly descriptive document of the design for the video game. Even though the dundoc gave us the template, it was still quite hard to know what to write. most of it was written then and there and many will have to be added and removed throughout the process. I wasn't sure on a good few of them and i hope that will change throughout the process. "My Dundoc page" https://www.dundoc.com/project/4780

Unity Logo https://www.geekshangout.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/unity_feature-950x640.jpg This week we looked at three unity tutorials, "design hud" , "weapons" and how to create layers and clippings. The first tutorial was on how to create a hud. In this tutorial Jimmy vegas shows us how the raycast can help integrate and use a UI to see actions within the game. He teaches us how to write the script that will help us take an object and make it disappear when a button is pressed. I liked this tutorial as i think it will help many people in their game if they are creating a maze or daily life game. The second tutorial i watched was on weapons within a game. In this tutorial, we are shown how to contain a weapon in a cube and then animate it. Its contained in a cube, in order to rotate it properly and make it look real. It also showed us how to use the animation tab in unity. It wasn't too bad to follow but i did need to rewind at some parts just to tr...

"Index cards on all four corners" http://www.thegamesjournal.com/articles/DesignConsiderations.shtml The first article i read was called " "Design Considerations" " written by Greg Aleknevicus.  In this article Greg teaches us about the importance of doing something right instead of wrong. They both cost the same. The first thing we are told is that its best to use contrasting and striking colours when creating games but also to bare in mind that many people suffer from colour blindness so its not easy to tell which will suit best. Ive learned not to use orange and red as player colours as they are very similar and hard to distinguish even for people without colour blindness. Greg also talks about the FAQs page online. Its very important to have this in your webpage for your game and it will allow your company to interact with the customers and will keep customers happy, knowing that you are willing to answer their questions. In this article Greg also ...

The name of my game is "Past the Limit". It's a first person driving game where the aim is to beat all competitors in races, in order to win prizes such as new cars and money and become the best in the world. The background for my game comes from the desire to drive fast and show others how powerful the cars the driver owns are. It comes from the perspective of a car mad person who wants to compete in the best competitions in the world and have the title of 'world champion'. In this game, you are the driver. You are the racer. Each race will have one or two laps. The first player to pass over the finish the line will be crowned winner of the race. The more races you win the more money, cars and power you gain. Over time you will build up your reputation and have players want to challenge you for your goods. If the other competitors cross the finish line before you, the game will immediately finish and you will not finish the race and will not gain any prizes. ...

For this Unity Tutorial, it should me how to create a clock that shows us the real time by spinning around like a normal clock. The tutorial showed me at first the basics, how to create a clock face by first creating a cylinder and the flattening it.  It went on to show us how to create a number/block for every hour and to space them properly. I really liked this tutorial, it was different from the others that we've done these past few weeks. It was great to learn something different then just the normal terrain. I found the script part to be quite difficult as it is something new and will have to get used to it and study it for when it comes to creating my game. The script was quite difficult in some parts. Although i followed all the steps, i still managed to not get it working correctly, i tried to redo some steps but i could not find the problem in the script. I will continue to try improve my unity skills by following more tutorials and script writing videos. Im looking ...

This weeks reading was quite difficult to get through at points, i wont lie to you. The whole idea of mechanics, dynamics and aesthetics in gaming is completely new to me and would never have considered them when it came to gaming really.  Ive never thought to much into detail about games till this module. The MDA Framework by LeBlanc, Hunicke and Zabek was very confusing at points, in my opinion. I found it very difficult to keep up with what was being told to us and hard to fully understand it. There was points that i had to read a few times in order to try grasp it. Im still not fully sure on what MDA is and how it works and maybe it'll take me a while to fully comprehend it but ill keep reading up on it as i know its important for creating fully developed and functional games. For the second reading, i wasn't able to open the videos on my laptop for some reason, so i wasn't able to get the full experience of the powerpoint. Which was not ideal and caused a good b...

My main idea that i've decided on for my game is a Car racing game/competition. Ive decided to do this game as i'm intrigued in how one would come about making this game. In my last post about game ideas, i stated that i watched a tutorial on it and id like to create one. Ive continued to watch piece of the tutorial series and have come to the conclusion that its something i really want to try my hand at. I would hope to create a game that has people entertained for a while and that will allow two people to play but maybe thats pushing it as it is only my first game. I want to create a car racing game that will not only look good but will also function very well as thats the most important aspect of the assignment. To understand and create a working game. I've searched for this different videos on people talking about how to build a car racing game but the best ones i've found are from Jimmy Vegas . He keeps his language simple and is easy to follow. Most of the other...

Today I looked at articles that showed me hoe to GIVE feedback compared to last week when I looked at articles that showed me how to TAKE feedback. The first article i looked at was called " "What kind of messages help kids grow?" . I was first drawn to this article due to the title as i have a six and three year old sisters and I want them to grow up as best as they can and to develop a healthy mindset. In this article the author Deborah Farmer Kris, states the importance of a parents words for kids aged between 1-3. Deborah states that these years shape the way kids will think in the future. She says to use "process praise" instead of "nice job" and to use the word "Yet" when a child says they can't do something. For me, this article was very eye opening and interesting. I never really thought that the praise i give my sisters could affect their future mindset. This article has allowed me to see how i can help my sisters develop a gr...

As the weeks go by and we've started to do more work in Unity and with the tutorials, i've become more invested in the module and how it works. I've grown an interest into game development and design and how to show certain things in unity. For this weeks tutorials on how to improve graphics and how to create a Raycast and cursor, i found them very helpful and interesting. In tutorial 004 "improving Graphics" I really enjoyed making my landscape look more realistic.  I thought the whole section about adding trees and grass to be very helpful as a "building life" game was one of my ideas so its handy to know how to create them. What i did find difficult about this tutorial was creating a dip in the landscape. My laptop did not let me create one so adding the water didn't really work out as well as the tutorial showed me. But i also enjoy the benefit of being able to create an object that plays sound once the character walks through it. i think its a...

"character development" -Lee Sheldon http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/197601/sponsored_respecting_and_.php The first article i read was  Postmortem: Pinball-RPG hybrid 'Rollers of the realm' . I thought this article was very useful for getting an idea on how to talk about the process of the game development and i liked the way it split it up into what went right and what went wrong throughout the project. It showed me its just as important to show what went wrong as it is to show what went right. It will allow them to reflect on it in the future and not let them make the same mistake. They also broke it down into sub-sections which allowed us, the reader to follow what they were talking about more easily.  I enjoyed the part about audience testing. They got most of their information about target audience and what people found difficult to understand about the game and they were able to change it directly instead of guessing it. The second article i read was...

Feedback is information about reactions to a product, a persons performance of a task, etc which is used as a basis for improvement. I recently just read two very interesting articles on feedback and how it helps a person improve on issues but also why it can hurt us. 'Rejection' -Dawn kim https://ideas.ted.com/why-rejection-hurts-so-much-and-what-to-do-about-it/ The first article i read was called  "Why rejection hurts so much - and what to do about it"  by Guy Winch.  I really enjoyed this article because we've all experienced rejection in our lives, whether it be small or big it affects each and every one of us. In this article Guy Winch gives us three steps we should take in order to reject rejection and not let it hurt us as much as it would. It tells us not to self critique ourselves, know our worth as human beings and to boost our social connection with friends and family which will help boost our confidence. I agree with this article as we cant let n...

The following are my top four ideas for my game project. 1. Obstacle course game. For this game, i was imagining a game that involves running and dodging obstacles that are being thrown towards the character or that are on the ground. The character could have to jump over the objects that are underneath them. I am interested in doing this type of game as many of the games i've played when i was younger were games like this, for example Temple run or subway surfers. these games are mostly used on apple phones or ipads etc. I feel as though id be more interested in doing a game app so to speak as its what i'm used too.  Link to tutorial 'Driving and racing tutorial' https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQ5GJPlAGS4 2. Car racing game My second idea is for a car racing game. A competition game. Car racing/ competition games are always entertaining to play. It brings out the competitive side in everybody. Ive researched tutorials on Youtube on how to create a driving a...

'Unity logo' https://www.udemy.com/unity-master-video-game-development-the-complete-course/ I was a bit apprehensive about going into this assignment, maybe because it was our first real look at what we will be doing with unity and how to create actual games and it wouldn't just be writing blogs anymore. When i first started watching the tutorials i got very confused which is understandable, i never even heard of Unity until we started this module so of course id be lost using it. The tutorial videos were very good. They explained how to use unity really well and at a good pace for us beginners. Once i got into the tutorial videos, i was able to understand the directions and how to place an object into the scene and how to move it arrow on the x,y and z axis. He showed us how to position a object dead centre on the scene and how to stop a character or another object from passing though objects by applying the box collider to the scene. I discovered some of the languag...

"understanding games - Kongregate" http://www.kongregate.com/games/pixelate/understanding-games-episode-1 From all the reading material on our website, these games/readings were the best ones. I found that these mini informative games where the easiest to understand. The use of plain english and competitions to get the beginner to understand what game design is and why it's used was very clever and beneficial to both parties. 'Pulling the plug' - Lewis Pulsipher Non digital teaching and learning In this reading Lewis Pulsipher, breaks down what happens when beginners learn using non-digital vs electronic games. He states each step in bullet points and then goes into detail about why non-digital learning is better. He shows that if you start on non-digital its very easy to change a mistake where as with electronic it has to be done through coding and could take days, even weeks to change one minor fault. He tells us that people go into . game making wa...

For me personally, i find time management a very hard thing to manage. Although i could make a "study plan" and try my best to stick with it, it never seems to happen. I always stray far away from it and do it on days when i should be doing something else. I think for this class in particular it will be a little easier though. Thankfully we have the class calendar which will allow me to keep up to date with assignments and we have the time plan which does suit my college times and work times. I will be able to manage it more then other modules i think. "3 steps to recapture time" http://sheownsit.com/3-steps-recapture-time-joynicolem/ The first article i read was "3 steps to Recapture time" by Joynicole Martinez. Her article speaks about how successful women redeem and recapture time and get more done but with less stress. I found it very useful as it broke down three steps to recapture time in a easy and understanding way. "Four question...

The technology tools that will be using seem to be very good. We are already using blogs to write about what we've learned and i think its a great idea. It allows me to remember things better instead of just attending lectures and leaving straight after. Book marking is a great idea too. I've already bookmarked my blog account and the cdmonline website. I find it very handy! "Technology tools" http://www.teachhub.com/7-technology-tools-every-educator-should-use I'm looking forward to using image editing and doing Graphic creations. I think it will come in handy in the future. Especially if i want to go into the Web based working sector.

After reading about the upcoming assignments, they don't seem to be too bad. I was expecting a lot worse, i'm not going to lie. The assignments and the way this course is laid out is actually really good and i enjoy it. It's a lot more easier to handle and delve into compared to other modules that i have. These assignments will allow us to get back into reading, which i'm excited for because in other modules we don't do a lot of it, which is sad. Im looking forward to starting the unity assignment also. I'm interested in learning about gaming and what comes with it but i'm also a little hesitant because its not something id normally do in my spare time or something id even think about doing at all. "Challenge yourself" https://www.slideshare.net/amruta46/make-your-work-interesting The growth mindset and the Wikipedia trails are definitely the ones that catch my eyes when it comes to doing any extra credit. When i first watched videos about ...

If you had asked me yesterday "what is growth mindset?" I probably would've looked at you funny and asked what the hell you were on about.  I wouldn't have known   who Carol Dweck was either. But after watching the three videos, i understand it. I understand why the research has been done and why she wants to get her research out there because it is interesting and holds a-lot of true facts that everyone should hear. Growth vs Fixed Mindset http://info.thinkfun.com/stem-education/carol-dweck-growth-mindset-in-education While watching the videos, i was trying to think about where id be on the fixed-growth mindset spectrum. i started thinking back on my time in secondary school and how i dealt with different classes. i started remembering how in most of my classes my mindset would be fixed. i would only do what i could, id never really challenge myself in school. i think its because i didn't really like school, i never really enjoyed having to do subjects tha...

Hi, My name is Niamh Smith. I am 19 years old and a second year creative Digital media student in the Institute of Technology Blanch. This post is just a little bit about me. I've been playing football since i was seven. its my passion. i currently play for HomeFarm F.C and i am hoping to play for the college team this year. I enjoy listening to music especially rap and RnB. My favourite song right now is "Bottled up" by Dinah Jane Hansen. she was once a member of Fifth Harmony until they broke up last year. They were my favourite group. My portfolio website- home page I've recently been reading a book called "The outsider" by Stephen king. It's about a young boy whois found murdered and assaulted in the woods. It follows different characters and their perspectives at times but mainly focuses on the lead detective and how he works the crime and finds the killer. There is so many twists in it so when i think its one person, something else happens ...

WORKSHOP 01 In this first workshop of year two, we discussed what we liked about last year and what we could improve on this year. We did this individually and in groups, sharing what we had thought about. i realised that i had to improve on time management, concentration and stress. i seem to get stressed very easy, especially when it comes to college. The second exercise that we did in this workshop was to describe in plain english how the traffic light system worked.  This topic was entirely new to me. i had never heard of this type of challenge before and it was a lot harder to figure out then i originally thought. for one, i don't drive so asking me to try to understand when lights changed, i was already at a disadvantage and i also am not very good with communicating my thoughts. This exercise really made me see how bad my communication skills and inability to express my thoughts actually are. It's definitely something i have to improve on majorly this year. 'He...

My favourite video game to play is FIFA. I've been playing since i was a kid as i grew up a football fanatic and still play it to this day. In 2017, FIFA introduced women nationals teams to the game and it was the best thing they did. Throughout the years the graphics and controls have become smoother and nicer to play.                                               The cover of FIFA19 featuring Cristiano Ronaldo https://pt.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ficheiro:FIFA-19-foto.jpg Here is an example of the graphics and how realistic they look this year.                                          Neymar Jr. in Fifa19 https://www.flickr.com/photos/158561476@N06/43805913852

My first post in "the life of niamh ". Testing 1,2,3