Do we take shelter? Discussion with the game designer

Goals:

This week we will welcome Martha Attridge Bufton back for a second class to discuss her experience as a game designer, her game design process and constructive feedback on Do we take shelter?

In our Obsidian folder on Teams, you can find a new sheet in the Game Design folder entitled, "Game Playtesting". This note lays out the kinds of questions a game designer should ask when entering into playtesting. Your goal is to think of yourself partly as playtester, partly as game designer, and try to think about how your experience can offer insight into the gametesting experience.

Types of Questions to explore after a game playtest

From Fullerton, Game Design Workshop, 4 ed., p. 286-7

• Overall, what were your thoughts about the game?

• What were your thoughts about the game play?

• Were you able to learn how to play quickly?

• What is the objective of the game?

• How would you describe this game to someone who has never played it before?

• What would you tell them?

• Now that you have had a chance to play the game, is there any information that would have been useful to you before starting?

• Is there anything that you did not like about the game? If so, what?

• Was anything confusing? Please take me through what you found to be confusing.

Read/ Watch/Listen

Schiffman, James R. “Early Design Challenges in Developing a Reacting to the Past Game.” The History Teacher 53, no. 2 (2020): 239–53. https://www.jstor.org/stable/27058581.