A comprehensive model of a cooperative role-playing game Jože Rugelj, Sanja Jedrinović, Mateja Bevčič University of Ljubljana, Slovenia TABLE OF CONTENTS TERMINOLOGY ............................................................................................................................................................ 4 INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................................................................... 6 THEORETICAL BACKGROUND ................................................................................................................................... 7 1. THE CHARACTERISTICS OF GAMES ..................................................................................................................... 7 1.1 CLASIFICATION OF GAMES ........................................................................................................................................ 8 1.1.1 THE GENRES OF GAMES ............................................................................................................................................................................. 8 ACTION GAMES .................................................................................................................................................................................................. 8 ADVENTURE GAMES ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 8 ACTION ADVENTURE GAMES ........................................................................................................................................................................ 8 ROLE-PLAY GAMES ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 8 STRATEGY GAMES ............................................................................................................................................................................................. 9 SIMULATIONS ..................................................................................................................................................................................................... 9 PUZZLE GAMES ................................................................................................................................................................................................... 9 1.1.2 MASSIVELY MULTIPLAYER ONLINE GAMES ......................................................................................................................................... 9 2. GAME-BASED LEARNING ...................................................................................................................................... 9 2.1 GAMES AND LEARNING .......................................................................................................................................... 10 2.1.1 GAMES ON THE BASIS OF BEHAVIOURAL THEORIES OF LEARNING ........................................................................................ 10 2.1.2 GAMES ON THE BASIS OF CONSTRUCTIVIST THEORIES OF LEARNING ................................................................................... 10 2.2 SERIOUS GAMES IN PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICE .................................................................................................... 11 SERIOUS GAMES DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT ................................................................................................ 16 3. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................................... 16 4. GAME DEVELOPMENT METHODOLOGY ......................................................................................................... 17 4.1 SPECIFICATION ......................................................................................................................................................... 17 4.2 ANALYSIS ................................................................................................................................................................... 17 4.3 DESIGN ....................................................................................................................................................................... 18 4.3.1 CHARACTERISTICS OF ROLE-PLAYING GAMES ................................................................................................................................ 18 4.3.2 LEARNING GOALS AND GAME TECHNIQUES ................................................................................................................................... 19 DECLARATIVE KNOWLEDGE ........................................................................................................................................................................ 19 4.3.3. RPG DESIGN PROCESS ............................................................................................................................................................................ 21 TOPIC MATTER, GAME UNIVERSE AND GAME PLOT ......................................................................................................................... 22 Story Choice ............................................................................................................................................................................................... 23 The Mission Statements ........................................................................................................................................................................ 24 Setting Context .......................................................................................................................................................................................... 24 Setting .......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 24 Game Module ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 26 Creativity ..................................................................................................................................................................................................... 26 GAME MECHANICS ........................................................................................................................................................................................ 27 Game System ............................................................................................................................................................................................. 27 Meaningful Choices ................................................................................................................................................................................. 28 Resolution Systems .................................................................................................................................................................................. 28 Currencies ................................................................................................................................................................................................... 29 CHARACTER PROFILES .................................................................................................................................................................................. 29 Character Options .................................................................................................................................................................................... 29 2 Nonplayer Characters and Mobs ........................................................................................................................................................ 30 Dividing Responsibilities ........................................................................................................................................................................ 31 LEVEL OF DIFFICULTY .................................................................................................................................................................................... 31 TIMEFRAME FOR A SINGLE GAME ............................................................................................................................................................ 32 NUMBER OF PLAYERS IN A TEAM ............................................................................................................................................................. 32 ACCESSORIES AND MULTIMEDIA AIDS ................................................................................................................................................... 33 Accessories ................................................................................................................................................................................................. 33 Multimedia Aids .......................................................................................................................................................................................