Download Chapter 8 - WPHS

Chapter 8
Reverse Engineering and
Professional Reviews
Objectives
• Explain intellectual property as it relates to video
game development.
• Analyze various aspects of a game, such as
rules, gameplay, and longevity of design.
• Describe techniques used by the video game
industry to analyze games.
• Conduct a critical review of a video game.
• Compare the plot, interactivity, and reward
system of commercial video games.
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Reverse Engineering
• Reverse engineering is the process of
deconstructing an existing game to understand
how it works
• Competitors will purchase a new technology item,
take it apart, and see how it works
• This reverse engineering is done to quickly
understand the unique selling point (USP) of the
competition
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Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.
Reverse Engineering (Continued)
• A copycat game is one that has gameplay similar
to another game on the market
• As a substitute product, the game would satisfy
the same need or want of the original
• Characters within a game are copyrighted
• This means they cannot be used without
permission
• If you copy a game too closely, you will be guilty
of copyright infringement
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Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.
Reverse Engineering (Continued)
• Intellectual property is something original from
someone’s mind or intellect—an original creation
• Intellectual property is protected by copyright laws
• Copyright protection also applies to the game
discs
• It is illegal to copy a game disc, DVD movie, or
any other commercial media without permission
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Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.
Reverse Engineering (Continued)
• The most critical legal standing is ownership
• When you are hired at a game design studio, you
will likely be required to sign a contract
• That contract will lay out the rules for what the
company owns and what you own
• A work-for-hire contract states
– What you are expected to produce
– The starting and ending dates of the work
– What you will be paid
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Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.
Reverse Engineering (Continued)
• A confidentiality agreement is a contract that
states you cannot share any information about the
company or its products with others
• A noncompete agreement is a contract that states
you cannot create work that competes with the
company
– While you are employed by the company
– For a certain period of time after you leave
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Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.
Reverse Engineering (Continued)
• Under US copyright laws as soon as a creative
work is in tangible form, it is automatically
copyrighted
• Misusing or making unauthorized copies of a
copyrighted work is called copyright infringement
• Piracy is theft
• An artist or game designer may want to protect
work by making it hard to copy
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Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.
Copyright Note
Goodheart-Willcox Publisher
© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc.
Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.
Critics
• Critics are people who evaluate a game to
provide a summary and opinions about the key
elements of the game
• A good critic will have a strong background in
gaming and programming to help understand the
new game
• Consumers often rely on game reviews from
critics and friends when deciding whether or not
to buy a game
• The five-star rating system is an easy, visual way
for customers to see what a critic thinks of the
game
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Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.
Critics (Continued)
Goodheart-Willcox Publisher
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Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.
Bias
• Bias is an intentional slant in one direction
• With bias, a critic will over-emphasize the positive
(or negative) attributes of the game
• An unbiased review is one not influenced by
outside sources, such as the game manufacturer
• Unbiased reviews are the best source of
information for consumers
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Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.
Key Game Elements for
Evaluation
• Each element of a new game is evaluated by the
competition and critics to see if it establishes a
USP
• The quality of rules is how well the rules are
explained to the user
• If the rules are not well defined, a player will
quickly abandon the game, feeling it is pointless
or just too hard
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Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.
Key Game Elements for
Evaluation (Continued)
• The user interface is how the player interacts with
the game world
• Intuitive controls are devices that take no
explanation of how to use them
• If a player has to press multiple buttons to create
a single move, that is difficult to remember and
not user friendly
• Navigation is how the player moves in the game
world
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Key Game Elements for
Evaluation (Continued)
• The player must be able to navigate each level in
the game world
• In some games, navigation aids are provided to
the user
• Performance is how well the game operates on
the game system
• If the game does not operate well, the player will
likely not play the game
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Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.
Key Game Elements for
Evaluation (Continued)
• The gameplay is what the user experiences as
the game unfolds
• Gameplay is what keeps the player entertained
• The artistry of a game is its visual appeal
• The settings and backgrounds should be artfully
created and set the mood for the game and levels
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Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.
Key Game Elements for
Evaluation (Continued)
• Longevity is the length of time something can
continue to be used
• For a game, this means the length of time the
game is popular and makes money for the game
design company
• The player interactions are what the player is
doing and how the items and characters the
player engages respond
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Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.
Key Game Elements for
Evaluation (Continued)
• Plot is the main storyline of the game
• From start to finish, the game should develop a
plot and stick to the story until resolution
• A reward is something positive provided to the
player, such as an increase in score, added lives,
or more powerful tools
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Linear Sequence
Goodheart-Willcox Publisher
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Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.
Review Your Knowledge
• Do you rely on game reviews from critics or
friends when considering whether to buy a new
game? Why or why not?
• Which of the ten key elements do you think would
be the hardest for critics to evaluate? Which
element would be the easiest to evaluate?
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Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.