These notes were compiled by Dan Carl when he taught Intro to Computer Games as an Experimental class.

Is the game functional?

« Can players get stuck?

« Do the players need the designer’s help?

Is the game complete?

« Are there loopholes in the rules?

« Is it possible for the player to do something the designed never intended?

o Is Asteroids wrapping a feature or a loophole?

o e.g. In MPFPS, how do you handle “spawn point camping”?

o In Deus Ex, how do you handle “LAM climbing”?

o How do you deal with Player Killers?

Is the game balanced?

As we saw in Chapter 4, one reason people play games is because they are egailtarian. Life is unfare. Some people are born rich, a lot of people are born poor. America is something of a meritocracy, people can be rewarded for their achievements. No one is born to royalty, though some are born rich and we won’t debate politics here.

« Is your game a meritocracy?

« Do forces start out with equal strength? (300)

« Does one starting position give an advantage over others?

« Does one strategy dominate all others?