Things I have learned while trying to create my own game

Belle1997

I married a beast and found my prince
Joined
Mar 19, 2004
Messages
4,523
First I want to say a very good congrads to all that create and run their games well.

I realized how hard it really is and it takes skill and patience. But I wanted to post so others thinking of making a game could learn from my mistakes :)

Well I did my first soft opening last night and here is what I learned.

All my mistakes so others can aviod them.

1) When working on a lap top make sure that when you plug in the cord that the power bar button is turned on. This was my first big mistake amd never recovered fro there.

Here I was running my first round and it says low battery I check yes I have it plugged in. So I ingnore warning bad very bad mistake. My computer stopped working and went into hibernation. Somehow my power button on power bar was turned off.

Took forever to get back on.

2) Remember to place a teleporter where you sit to get back into room whe you dc. Forgot this and took longer to get in because I was in the line.

3) Be prepared for back up ideas. I found that my trivia questions were taking too long. So I changed part two of my game with wdwr advice. To speed it up.

4) When changing game remember before opening to change the lite keys to match the knew part. Ended up typing part too rules out and not being the best typest under pressure was finding it frustrating.

5) Try them (the lite keys first) to see if they really work. Make sure they are activated.

6) When using lite keys try to find phases that can be used to say more than one thing.

7) Print out lite key list trying to remember order later in game can get frustrating.

8) Do not panick when things do not work out the way you first thought. When I panick I can not type correctly and then I get upset that I am not running my game well. Slow down type slower in the end it saves time than having to rewrite over because dictionary does not recognise.

9) When using lite keys and typing quick yes or no answers with it you can get the "20 seconds you are typing to fast warning." And sitting there for 20 seconds while trying to run a game seems like an enternity.

10) Make sure you have enclosed yourself properly so you can activate turnstile from where you are sitting. I had not totally enclosed myself in, so my turnstile would not work. Chaos just choas.

11) Remember to stock up on prizes before opening each session of the game. Takes too much time to restock during a game.

12) if you are having problems ask for help. One player did not understand what he needed to do next. Players where teeling him what to do and he was confuse. One player actually got down and show him. So if you know a player has played before and understands the rules ask them to help show the confused player what to do. This would have saved me a lot of typing, time and confusion. And confusion on the new players part too.

13) Most important do not give up. After last night I felt like such a failure. Because it did not go smoothly or anywhere near planned. But I thought about all that I learned and am going to try again until I get it to work. I just need to build some confidence. It took me forever to be able to play pirates and never thought I would ever earn my fireworks pin. So why should creating a new game be any easier. Practice and confidence and with some luck my game will work.

14) Thank you are disers who came out and tried my game. You were all patient and polite. Please come out and try my improved better and faster game. Your support is greatly appreciated :)
 
I feel your pain. Until you run a game you have no idea how hard and stressful it can be.

What bothers me the most are the very rude players waiting for their turn.

I can only take so much and then close the game for a few days.

Let me know when you game will be open as I would love to stop by.
 
Things I have also learned:
-The less you rely on players to do stuff, the better.

For example:
Sucessful game: Who wants to be Rich (like Who wants to be a Millionaire) game, you just have to ask one player a question. They have to answer. Not too hard.

Unsuccessful game: Disneyland Squares (like Hollywood Squares). I had to get the "celebrities" to all sit in the tic tac toe board, change their clothes to the appropriate color, not move, not leave, not crash, pay attention....too difficult.

-Post instructions on the Room Description and Photos around the room
But try to make the instructions easy to understand.

-Try to place the waiting line so the people who are waiting in line's "Speech bubbles" won't interfere with the game.
People tend to blather incessantly, so plan for it.

-If you are going to do a trivia game, make sure you can type your questions in "VMK" speak. Also, make sure they are correct and not ambiguous. Also make sure you are a fast typer!
 
Thanks for the helpful hints!

Is there any furnishing that allows players to walk over crates? I know the small pirate treasure rug fits perfectly onto a single crate. Are there any other items that do the same? I think I got a small pirate treasure rug on the quest, though.

Thanks.
 

#2 is very helpful. You just have to know sooner or later you'll dc while running your game. I've had problems where I had to move a rope so I could get back in, then someone will invariable follow me and bypass the line. Then you can't put the divider back until they return to the line, but in the meantime more people follow them. Ugh! That's one I learned the hard way.

Another suggestion is to build the queue out of ride parts if you can, to reduce line cutting. Trying to deal with the "boot player_x, she cut!" "No I didn't!" "She did too!!!" "Ur mean!" "NO u r cheater" etc. really detracts from the game experience...
 
Oh my yes! It's very stressful!! There were a few things I knew I wanted
to do when creating my game, and you discovered a couple of them!

Here was what I knew I wanted to do:

1. Just as bopper stated in another post, I used ride pieces to form my ride
queue. I later learned from a horrible mistake (had to go boot crazy)
that I really need a chair before the turnstile to slow people down!

2. Re-entry door when I crash. I had put a doorway in my room so that
I didn't have to try to enter through the main line. My back door has
saved me a few times.

3. Dedicated EXIT. I wanted to keep my room clear after each round, and
the exit teleporter helps a lot. I even made my teleporter boot people to
a main public room by placing it at the doorway of the connecting room,
with ride pieces forcing you out. (Be sure to block the sides, to be sure
nobody gets stuck.) Otherwise, when people refuse to leave, I just
boot them.

4. Short keys. Or "lite keys" as Belle said. I set them up in the order I
wanted, and they saved me from typing incessantly. I still have the problem
of getting the "Typing Time Out", but I try to pace myself to prevent it.

5. Keeping my cool. It's really hard to be patient with rude players, and
when someone calls you "mean" when they aren't good sports when they
lose. I also need to repeat an "are you there?" warning to players who
don't move before I boot, to give them fair warning. Any players that
say they are "afk" get a warning that the game does not stop to wait for
them.

6. Keep it simple. The games I hate have 10 (or more!!) photos on the
wall explaining the game. I love games that are easy to play just by
watching what others do (and having only a few rules).

I also buy my prizes ahead of time, just like Belle said, because it does
take time to shop. When I have my game open for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, I'd
give away about 15 chairs.
 
Thanks for all your responses I think this thread is helpful for anyone who wants to try building a game. The biggest thing I forgot was to KISS. :confused3
Keep
It
Simple
Stupid

Yep there was me way to much detail. So Have managed to put entire game in room description as suggested. So players know what to do. Thanks for the suggestion of the chair to slow down the line noticed this was a problem too.


So I will be ready to try again. Tonight around 8:00. Thank you for all your support Disers it means a lot. Wil post when game is starting :)
 
Hi,
This may be a dumb questions but what are lite keys.
Thanks!
 
Short keys (or lite keys) is a "macro" program that replaces a certain keystroke pattern with other text - very useful when you want to type something over and over again.

So, i could type "##1" and out would come "Welcome to my game. Instructions are on the wall"

"##2" could be "If you do not enter, I will have to boot you"

Etc.

This thread tells where to download a program gives some more info :
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1051596
:thumbsup2
 
UNCCLaw said:
Thanks for the helpful hints!

Is there any furnishing that allows players to walk over crates? I know the small pirate treasure rug fits perfectly onto a single crate. Are there any other items that do the same? I think I got a small pirate treasure rug on the quest, though.

Thanks.


A tiki rug fits perfectly on 4 crates.
 












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