Portfolio Project 6

User Generated Content (UGC)

User Generated Contents is another huge tool used by developers to add more value their games. It’s a lot different from Downloadable contents (DLC) because it’s provided in a different way and its affects consumers differently. It also provides a different gaming experience as oppose to DLC.

User generated contents are less common and hardly added in games but are as equally valuable as DLC. In fact games with user generated contents often considerably gain a lot replay and lifetime value because they allow players to make their own content which in turn has other knock on affect that makes the game so valuable.

User Generated Contents (UGC) and Downloadable Contents (DLC) are not the same thing and do not function the same way. Games with UGC allow players to create their own contents within that particular game. It can be to build or customise a character, create a new level or map and so on. DLC are mainly provided in a way that you play addition contents of a game that is normally acquired through downloads. Whereas User Generated contents (UGC) are tools placed within a game that allows you create your own contents. These tools can be level editors, map editors and customisable items, customisable characters, customisable emblems or avatars, gameplay mods and so on that are built within a game usually gained upon the release of that game.

User Generated Contents (UGC) are not provided as much as Downloadable Content (DLC) because they are not typically created for every game genre. You would mostly find a DLC for any type of game but UGC are mostly found on certain type of games. One of the main reason is because UGC are not suitable or adequate to have in most games, they are less frequent in the vast library of games we have today because they are just not suitable for certain types of games. The games that mostly have User generated contents are usually casual, family, puzzle, strategic and plat-former games.

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Minecraft A typical example is Minecraft, which is a casual game where you mainly have to dig (mine) and build (craft) a large world out of different kinds of 3D blocks. This is one of the most popular and most successful game that has UGC. Its success was purely based on the content creation and creativity of players. One of the main reason why it became such a success was down to the fact that it allowed players to building things in a large scale. This allowed players to create extraordinary amount of contents. One of Minecraft users actually spent two year building a city comprised of over 4.5 million blocks. This just shows how valuable UGC can be and because it allows you make things using your own imagination, games that include them usually end up becoming so valuable and vastly praised. As of now over 70 million people have played Minecraft and the game itself has sold over 4 million copies worldwide. This just underlines how successful a game can be with the implementation of User Generated Contents (UGC).

Another great UGC game is LittleBigPlanet 3, which is a casual plat-former game exclusive to PlayStation. The popularity of the game is also down to the content creator included in the game, which allows players to make their own levels and share with others of the LittleBigPlanet community. The content creator is what made the series so valuable. The first LittleBigPlanet game was such a success that it reached an astonishing 6 million user generated games, which meant that for over 4.5 million users that played the game, over 6 million contents were created. This just shows how a game like LittleBigPlanet with a content creator can gain so much just by having UGC tools that exploits the creativity of players. The ability to create your own Levels, designs them, and customise your characters, which can then be shared around the community is the main advantage that made the game so special. This not only extends the replay value of a game, but it also gives players a creative outlet to make levels and share them around the community.

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LittleBigPlanet and Minecraft are just two example of the few UGC games that have proven that user generated content can have such an impact if a game was to have one. Although the concept hasn’t been adopted in many games it’s still an astonishing tool to have because it’s intensively creative. It allows players to gain another level of enjoyment, which adds to their gaming experience.

To go in more details, Trails Fusion is another great example of how UGC is used in a game. Trials fusion was released for in 2014 and featured a “Create” mode that has a track editor called “Track Central”. This is the Content creator where players can create their own tracks and rides. It features many tools, objects, and other variations for player to create tracks, customise characters, bikes, and other items. The game also offers the option of uploading and sharing your creations with others within the Trials Fusion online community.

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The following just underlines the main elements of User Generated Content (UGC):

- User Generated Contents are not the same as downloadable contents - They are any kind of content that a user creates in a particular game - They are in-game features rather than downloadable contents (DLC). - They differ from Downloadable Content (DLC) because DLC are contents that add to a game, which cannot be edited to the extent of UGC. - UGC allow players to edit and create things out of their own will and imagination, these contents usually depend on the type of game and the tools provided. I.e. a racing game can have UGC tools that allow you to create a track or vehicles were as an action adventure game may allow you to customise weapon and characters or even create levels. - UGC are often accompanied with an upload to community or share option whereby the user created content can be shared and played by other players. This is an online outlet that allows contents to be shared with other people. This allows players to play other people contents. - Most games that feature UGC mostly have a “Creation Centre” or “Editor” mode where you can access the UGC tools and features. It can be a “Level Editor” like in LittleBigPlanet3 or “Map Editor” like in Far Cry games, or a “Track Editor” like in Trials Fusion. - These contents remarkably extend the lifetime of a game LittleBigPlanet 3 whereby players can continuously create content out of their own will and creative to play them, this in-turn keeps them playing for much longer.

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- The benefits of User Generated Contents (UGC) are that:

Ø They allow players to gain a lot in a game by getting more involved and using their creativity to make extra contents for a game. Ø It makes games more interesting and more enjoyable because you’re making better or otherwise exceptional content that the developers couldn’t have thought of. Ø It provided an alternative of play or a better gaming experience, the ability to create and share your own content brings a hall new dimension of playing which in- turn boost players gaming experience. Ø It provided an extra style of play whereby players create their own content that can lead to a completely new style of play and a new game as oppose to the original game. Mario maker is a perfect example of how a game with UGC makes a game more interesting than it was without. The new Mario maker is a new version of the Super Mario Bros games, which has a level editor that allows you create your own levels. Ø This also shows that UGC can take a game that you might have played for a few hours and extend it to something you can enjoy for years to come. Ø It can substantially increase the sales and value of a game due to vast amount of contents created and shared by users. Mario Maker

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- The main drawbacks of UGC are that:

Ø From a developers point of view, it allows player to make more interesting things than what they can offer, which gives players more credibility as oppose to the developer, even though they made the game. Ø The tools allowed or provided are often limited or not great enough to exploit the creativity of players. Ø There’s also a lack of moderation and control, whereby it allows players to do what ever they like and this often leads to player creating offensive or undesirable contents. Ø The UGC tools in certain games don’t often provide enough space for player to create contents that they want or on a large scale.

- Although this might not be a drawback, User Generated Contents generally differ depending on the games or genre.

Ø Racing games with UGC would usually have a content creator that allows players to customise their vehicle, their WWE 2K15 character or to create routes or racing tracks. Ø Fighting games with UGC would typically have a level editor that allows players to create their level or the game might have a character customisation that allows players customise or create their own character, as well as letting you make you character have different abilities and attributes. These are often found in WWE 2k Games and Fight Night boxing games Ø Action or Adventure games with UGC mostly have level editors or map editors that allow you create contents on a larger scale like in Far Cry games or Minecraft. In addition, most action, adventure and role playing games often include UGC tools that allows players to create little things like emblems, or customise characters and avatars as well as customising items such as weapons or armours.

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To conclude, user generated contents allow users to create and manipulate games in their own way, it opens up an endless world of possibilities, which is why UGC undoubtedly makes games better and more interesting. Although there aren’t many games out there supporting UGC, there are still few games that would remarkably benefit from the concept.

Take F1 Race Stars example, it could have undoutbably had user generated content features that allowed players to create their own tracks and karts. The game was first released in 2012 and was based on the 2012 Formula One Season. It is made with the similar kart-racing style of games like LittleBigPlanet Karting or ModNation Racers. It is designed with circuits that resembles real F1 racing circuits but it including kart racing features like loops jumping, pick up items, speed boost, short cuts and speedy runways including many different F1 Race Stars weaponries used to damage other drivers like in Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing. The game has an outstanding resemblance with LittleBigPlanet karting, as they are both kart-racing games. As part of the LittleBigPlanet series, LittleBigPlanet Karting has a user generated content features that was fully adopted from ModNation Racers, both developed by United Front Games. The User Generated Content (UGC) used in both ModNation Racers and LittleBigPlanet karting could have also been added in F1 Race Stars. These games have a profound similarity whereby they adopt the same system, features and style, from small characters, fast kart vehicles, speedy tracks, jumping platforms, pick-ups and many sort of weaponries. However if F1 Race Stars had embrace that motto of “play, create and share” like LittleBigPlanet Karting it would have been a much better game and much more valued than what it is now. In addition, LittleBigPlanet Karting is a much and has a better reputation than F1 Race Stars mainly due to the fact that it embraced that creative outlet (UGC) from LittleBigPlanet series, which made the game more interesting, unique and enjoyable to play. It had more acclaims than F1 Race Stars because the UGC features included in the game made it much more creative and interesting than it is without UGC. This allowed it to have a bigger impact among the community and it shows how much of an impact LittleBigPlanet Karting has as oppose to F1 Race Stars that hasn’t got UGC. The similar sort of UGC used in LittleBigPlanet Karting could have easily been included in F1 Race Stars and when you play F1 Race Stars, you can easily imagine it with UGC when you think of LittleBigPlanet Karting or ModNation Racers. This would have made the game more successful and interesting.

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The User Generated Content (UGC) tools used in LittleBigPlanet Karting and ModNation Racers basically allowed players to build racetrack environments. These made both games more enjoyable to play and if F1 Race Stars had adopted these tools, it would have also made the game more interesting because it would have given players a better reason why they should play the game.

LittleBigPlanet Karting ModNation Racers ModNation Racers has a (Creation Station) UGC feature that includes a “Track Studio”, a “Mod Studio”, and a “Kart Studio” which allows you to create racing environments with background themes, editable terrain, adjustable road paving’s as well as a steamrollers thing to make tracks. Similarly, LittleBigPlanet Karting has a UGC feature called “Track Creation” which has editing tools found in LittleBigPlanet games and ModNation Racers, that allows you to build your own tracks, design unique power-ups and customise your characters and karts.

If F1 Race Stars had these UGC tools to create tracks and customise characters or vehicle, the game would have been more interesting and desirable to play. Players would have had the possibility create an endless amount of UGC games, which would have made the game so valuable and popular.

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