article – Matheus Pitillo

September 29, 2012 — Comments are off for this post.

Game Reverse Engineering: SOTC

Game Reverse Engineering: Shadow of the Colossus
Also submitted to VFS GD25 Critical Analysis Class

Article Summary
This is an analysis of Game Reverse Engineering based in the game Shadow of the Colossus (PS2). This article was also used as one of my assignments in Critical Analysis Class at Vancouver Film School - Game Design Program 2012. This assignment was also written by Hirad Harandian, Jose Gonzalez, Michael Plouffe and Quin Henshaw. With this analysis we not only given the breakdown of the mechanics in Shadow of the Colossus, as we also showed how these mechanics works and what it does for the game itself.

Published by Matheus Pitillo in Game Articles

Tags: article, Controls, game design program, Game Mechanics, Game Reverse Engineering, GD25, Matheus Pitillo, Mechanics, PS2, Shadow of the Colossus, SOTC, vancouver film school, VFS

December 16, 2011 — Comments are off for this post.

The power of Webgames

Game Development:
Home productions of Flash Games that became hits
Also published in EGM Brasil #73

The column Game Development have the intention of presenting to you readers, that Brazil is also within this network gaming creations with both more complex tools and games with greater highlights, as well as easily accessible tools - plus fast, simple and dynamic.

In this edition we will talk about the production of homemade games made in Flash, the opinion of a student who is in the business and also about games that have become successful and adapted for other platforms.

From Web to Consoles
Currently there are several sites that offer to us the possibility to play games developed in Flash or Shockwave. These games are known as Webgames. Some of these games don't stand out much, having low numbers of visits and little or any interest by the public. Other stand out a bit more, getting more public attention and is best seen. But there are also those who can "evolve" to a bigger step.

The game Alien Hominid is a great example of that. The title began as a Flash Game on NewGrounds website. His concept was based on some classic 2D shooters like Metal Slug and Contra. It was so successful that eventually launching a full version and turbines for various consoles, including PS2, GameCube, Xbox 360 - Live Arcade - and Xbox. And from a "simple" Webgame - he and some other games - turned out to be playable on the most famous consoles.

Original Publication in EGM Brasil Magazine

It is everywhere
Ok, maybe I'm exaggerating a little. But at least in much of the online universe we can see many traces of Flash. Interfaces of sites, opening animations, cartoons, online tables, business demos, Webgames, Advertasing Games...

Starting with Advertasing Games - simple games that want to spend the advertising message of a product - such as the goal of these Webgames are one, to disclose the product, most of the time these games are placed on their sites and are made in Flash, because most of them are lightweight and thus access to visitors is much easier. But that doesn't mean that the Shockwave is also not always present there. We could say that both can be found in the objectives of creating sets of large companies. An example is the national company Devworks Game Technology. The Devworks is focused on developing games. The company produces for various platforms, as well as offering entertainment, activities for the use of games in marketing, training, etc. Devworks has produced several games for advertisers who want to increase the visibility of their ads, both with creations in Flash, and Shockwave - in this, bringing more quality. Currently Devworks is the company with the largest customer base of Games in Brazil. Customers include Nestlé, Nokia, Oi, Disney, Coca-Cola etc.

"Our main product is Gametrack, which was produced in Flash and Shockwave" - says Marcelo Carvalho of Devworks Game Technology - "The advantage is that these games are faster to produce and have a good compatibility with the machines that will run , also does not need to install. There are some disadvantages of course, they do not allow very complex games, such as 3D games with high definition. The gaming performance can also fall short in some cases, but in general it's fine to go a long way programming in Flash and, even more in Shockwave, because it has 3D built-in and the performance of lingo script is fairly good".

Another example of company that follows the same path is Atrativa. It offers direct access to a public that can be handled interactively and segmented like no other communication vehicle. Atrativa have a higher mean retention of Internet users. There are more than 30 minutes per visit. The company employs forms of advertising that harness the Internet's potential to maximize the results of your marketing campaign and achieve their goals.

Closer and more accessible
To create Webgames, and for sale of services, promotion of products and even for production of home games. This is how Flash and Shockwave is taking over more and more ground in this field of Game Development. "We used a lot the softwares Flash and Director in our first year course in terms of programming." - Says Rafael Schleder, a student of Technology in Digital Games at PUC-SP - "With Director we realized that we could use our 3D models we've produced during the year of the terms of 3D modeling and put them in our games, enabling us to create projects more differentiated, having just a sufficient knowledge of programming. And in the end we realized that even with these tools that are always present with easy access, we can also create games very interesting. "So, here's a tip for those who are thinking of entering the area and don´t want to burn many neurons.

[box type="info"]Shockwave Vs. Flash

First of all, games in Flash and Shockwave are the same thing? No! Many tend to confuse these two software, which although they can do almost the same, they have some very different details. Most of these differences are directly related to the origin of the two file formats. To create Shockwave files, it uses the Director to generate files in .DCR, and to create Flash files, the format is .SWF that is generated by the programs Flash, FreeHand, Generator, among others.

The main differences are:

Flash files load faster than Shockwave files;
Shockwave is more versatile. We can create more complex games with more details of animation, 3D content and more interactivity. While Flash is only able to create 2D games;
There is a greater variety of file types with Shockwave. You can import a Flash file to a Shockwave movie, but the reverse is not possible;
More than 90% of Web users have the Flash plugin, which makes it more accessible and more knowledge of the public, while just under 60% have the Shockwave plugin installed;
The program for creating Flash is much cheaper;
Flash is an open source format. Anyone can see how it works and is open to changes. The Program Director uses a compiled file, which makes hard possible modifications.

[/box]

[button type="icon" icon="paper"]Written by Matheus Pitillo.[/button]

Published by Matheus Pitillo in Articles, Game Articles

Tags: Alien Hominid, article, Atrativa Games, Brazil, Devworks Game Technology, EGM Brasil, Flash, Game Development, Marcelo Carvalho, Matheus Pitillo, Rafael Schleder, Shockwave

November 12, 2011 — Comments are off for this post.

Time Machine

The mythology of Chronos in the World of Games
Also published in EGM Brasil #72

Time is an essential factor in our lives. Many try to escape the hours, ignoring the fact that by every moment we are getting older. The common concept of time is indicated by intervals or duration. According to the theory of relativity, time has been considered as a fourth dimension of the space-time continuum of the Universe.

It's not hard to find the concept of time control introduced in games. There are many game characters that keep trying to achieve their goals, by manipulating the time. But after all, in mythological terms, where did all this came from?

Titan or God?

Chronos and Cronos are not the same “person”. In Greek mythology, Chronos was the personification of time. Often confused with the Titan Cronos, especially during the Alexandrian and Renaissance Period. According to the Orphic theogony, Chronos appeared in the beginning of time formed by himself. It was a being who had three heads: a man, a bull and a lion. He was represented as a man who ate his own son, in which we could understand the idea that it is impossible to escape time. We would all sooner or later be "consumed" by it.

Another explanation for this representation was the confusion with the Titan Cronos, who also ate their children for other reasons. In the case of Cronos, the youngest of six major Titans, son of Uranus, reigned among the Gods during the period known as the Golden Age. A prophecy said that he would be beaten by one of his sons. Thus, fearing that the prophecy came to fruition, he began to devour his own children when they were born.

Original Publication in EGM Brasil Magazine

Time Control
Having total control - or not - of time, here it is a list of characters who faced this challenge during their adventures:

1) Prince of Persia
In the trilogy of the game, using the power offered by the Dagger of Time, the player has the ability to control time allowing the Prince to kick a few seconds, undoing some inaccurate movement; freeze time, by leaving the enemies and the action in slow motion; see part of his future, and also make their movements faster than their enemies.

2) Chrono Trigger
One of the most popular RPG games, Chrono Trigger fits a lot of the aspect of time travel. Crono and his friends must visit six different eras in order to repair everything that was messed up at other times, and so bring order back to the continuity of life of each one. They travel through the ages using Epoch – a time machine – or the portals that arise during the game. At this time the characters have to perform various events and challenges.

3) TimeShift
In TimeShift the player must travel through an alternate timeline, using their powers of chronological manipulation to save all. The game aims to reach a new category in shooter games: a game in four dimensions, the fourth being the tracking of time. As in Prince of Persia, players have the ability to put the time in slow motion, freeze enemies, or jump back in time to be able to conclude that something has gone wrong.

4) Onimusha 3
Maybe this game does not fit completely in control of the time category. However, it is hard not to put it in this list, because like it or not, Samanosuke travels 500 years forward swapping places with the French military Jacques – polygonal version of the actor Jean Reno – who ends up in the past. And it is this incredible journey through time and space that forms the plot of the game. Some of the puzzles are based on this difference in time, with certain events of the past influencing the future.

5) The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Link couldn't get out of this. Unlike the other protagonists, the hero does not use time machine or any dagger to control it. Already possessing the three main artifacts and performing the “Song of Time” with the Ocarina that Link receive from Zelda, the door to the Sacred Realm is open. There the hero finds the Master Sword, a sword able to banish all evil from Hyrule. The moment Link tries to wield the sword, his spirit is imprisoned for seven years. Thus, holding or placing the sword again into the Holy Kingdom, he goes or returns seven years. By traveling through time, Link learns more about the Hyrule of future and past.

6) Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time
With the help of Professor Elvis Gadd, Mario and Luigi use a gadget that makes the two journey into the past. There they are faced with the baby version of themselves and have new adventures together. Thanks to black holes that the player finds from time to time in the game, Partners in Time is set in the past and present of Mushroom Kingdom and the passage between these two periods are frequent.

7) The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
This time Link has only 72 hours to save the world. The gameplay unfolds over these three days when the moon is approaching the city of Termina. Link must use the Ocarina to keep track of time and being able to “revive” the last three days again, while gaining enough skills to defeat the villain Skull Kid and the powerful Majora’s Mask.

[button type="icon" icon="paper"]Written by Matheus Pitillo.[/button]

Published by Matheus Pitillo in Articles, Game Articles

Tags: article, Chronos, EGM Brasil, games, Matheus Pitillo, Time Machine

October 25, 2011 — Comments are off for this post.

From Comics to Games

Game Development:
After all, who is Roko-Loko?
Also published in EGM Brasil #76

Roko-Loko, a rocker character who left comics and ended up in the Brazilian gaming world is the creation of cartoonist Marcio Baraldi, who showed his talent in the first pages of the Rock Brigade Magazine, soon becoming a great success.

For those who don't know, Roko-Loko and Adrina-Lina are the creations of characters completely original directed to the Rock Universe. "I relied on Brazilian rockers, who are more spontaneous and "lokos" (crazy) on the planet. Until then the rocker public didn´t had a character to represent them", says Baraldi, completing "cartoonist had no real rocker character created before, who really had to do with the World of Rock." The success and recognition was so great that the character Roko-Loko just "won" three books, a doll and T-shirts, until he was into the first game of a Brazilian character for teens, titled: "Roko-Loko no Castelo do Ratozinger".

Original Publication in EGM Brasil Magazine

The birth of the Game
The suggestion of moving the comics to the World of Games came from a conversation with Sidney Guerra - friend, programmer and designer of Baraldi's site. With the idea accepted, Baraldi stumbled the game creation. "Sidney has always loved the Roko HQs, beyond the fact of be rocker and addicted to games. He drew that Roko will look good on a platform game, very colorful, dynamic, in the 80 years style. I ran into the project. I wrote the game story and did all the drawings. So Sidney and Richard Aguiar, a computer programmer, produced the game", emphasizes Baraldi. "We did the whole product with only three people! Since Roko-Loko was a rocker character, we called the band Exxotica, who made an amazing soundtrack. Everything was really perfect!"

With all the success of the game, was released a REMIXED version that extended the game with two new bonus levels, and brought a special development for this DVD edition, containing documentaries and Game Making-ofs. Because this version for PC ended up winning a Gold Disc and Triple Platinum by 400 thousand copies, Roko-Loko opened doors and expanded also for Mobile Games.

"It´s great when things go well! I invested a lot in Roko-Loko, because I get it that the kids adore him and he is a character that has potential for many different media and products. It is as if he were my Mônica or my Menino Maluquinho."

[button type="icon" icon="paper"]Written by Matheus Pitillo.[/button]

Published by Matheus Pitillo in Articles, Game Articles

Tags: article, EGM Brasil, Game Development, Marcio Baraldi, Matheus Pitillo, Roko-Loko

October 3, 2011 — Comments are off for this post.

Sidhe: The people of the Fairies

The Celtic Culture in Folklore
Also published in EGM Brasil #71

With each new edition of EGM Brasil, we realize is more difficult to choose a different theme and still interesting to fit in the Origens section. Usually we choose a theme, "find" its origin and then we show in each games they are more present. This time the choosen theme was the Celtic Culture: your legends, rituals and folklore.

And how we will not have so much space to compare with a lot of games which could be present in this subject, nothing is more fair to reveal the one which has more spotlight in the Celtic Culture legends. We are talking about the game Folklore.

Original Publication in EGM Brasil Magazine

The Sidhes
At first, the word Sidhe - pronounced Shee - meant the hills or mounds of earth, who people believed that was home of mystics people, like fairies or elves of other traditions. Later, the Sidhe were recognized as the very name of these people. It was believed that they were descendants of the Tuatha De Danann - Ancient divine heroes of Irish mythology. In popular practice the Sidhes were often revered with offerings as a kind of ritual, to prevent them cheated on something. And in return they could give to mortals protection, healing and even teaching some of his skills.

The Sidhe are often described as very beautiful people, although some can also be scary. There were several species of them, like "Sluagh Shide", which were represented in Irish folklore as spirits that moved through the air like flocks of birds that might be the dead cursed and still restlessly. At this point we can observe the first relationship with the game Folklore. In every Kingdom of the game, we can find creatures - which are known as Folks - that directly represent what would be the Sidhe of Celtic Culture. Two examples are Cait Sidhe and Cu Sith - enchanted cat and dog, respectively.

Another reference appears in the game is the "Cliff of Sidhe". Present in the Village of Doolin, where is the story of the game, the hill gets its name from the village and is where almost all the game's mysteries start to reveal. Another famous legend of Celtic folklore, which is also presented in a moment of the game, is the "Legend of Faery Prayers". The Legend have said that if a mortal prays for a fairy for nine consecutive days, in the ninth day, one of his desires would be accomplished.

In Warcraft you can find a reference to Celtic Culture. The Banshees are one of the existing species of Sidhe. They are seen as fierce guardians of their homes and fight courageously in the game.

Samhain
Samhain - pronounced Sou-ein - celebrated on 31 October in the Northern Hemisphere and on the 1st of May in the Southern Hemisphere, is known by many names, but perhaps the most famous is Halloween. In short, Samhain was a ritual related to all the important things that happened during the changing seasons. It was the end of the Summer and beggining of the winter. Celtic tradition held that on the night of Samhain, the veil that separates the Material World from the Spiritual World found itself thinner, and the contact with the dead became easier. In that single night, the gates of the Sidhe, with connection between the two Worlds are open and not human or fairy require passwords to enter and exit.

This is how the two main characters in Folklore able to access the Underworld at the outset of his journey. Ellen and Keats reach the Village of Doolin exactly in the day of Samhain. And without knowing the right Celtic myths, Ellen ends up going through to the Netherworld in search of answers. She did not realize all that was starting to cause between these two worlds since then.

The Christian version of Samhain is the All Saints Day - 1st November - which was introduced by Pope Boniface IV in the seventh century, to replace the pagan festival. For years and years of our lives, the man has accumulated a number of concepts about what life was like after death. At the time that these concepts are so strong and constant, it is believed that they eventually materialized in the form of a New Kingdom in the Underworld. This is the concept that revolves around the game Folklore. Mixing a little reference to the Bardo Thodol - Tibetan Book of the Dead - with the game Folklore and Celtic Culture, we understand why every Kingdom of Folklore is a different place than before. At the moment men believed that the other side of life were a Paradise, the Kingdom of the Fairies was born. While others thought that even after dead, the war between the society prevailed, was borned then the Kingdom of Warcadia. And for those who long ago lost faith on the existence of somewhere after death, there is the Kingdom of the Endless Corridor. That is, each group of people who focus on one thought of how it would be the World of the Dead, it generates a new Astral Kingdom, or in other words, a New Kingdom of Netherworld habitable. And it is for those Kingdoms that our characters need to go in the game.

"For all the hillside was haunted
By the faery folk come again
And down in the heart-light enchanted
Were opal-coloured men".

[button type="icon" icon="paper"]Written by Matheus Pitillo.[/button]

Published by Matheus Pitillo in Articles, Game Articles

Tags: article, EGM Brasil, folklore, Matheus Pitillo, PS3, sidhe