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Thursday 6 March, 2008
Gamelog entry#1
SUMMARY
In Mario Tennis, the player competes using different characters in a tennis match. Each character has different talents and patterns in which they play. You can have up to four players playing and you can go into tournament mode.
GAMEPLAY
My emotional state was content while playing this game. I wasn’t too stressed, but since it went back and forth, I also had to stay on my toes and anticipate the game. The challenge was very simple and very basic, but it still allowed me to stay interactive. I also developed a competitive edge, just like in a tennis game. I always wanted to be ready so I didn’t miss the ball. The game was also really easy to pick up on. I could be a competent player and enjoy the game with little experience, unlike a real tennis match where I would have to spend hours practicing to master technique.
There wasn’t a really big narrative, because it was just a tennis game so the players didn’t need to characterize a whole lot, but they did show unique emotions from each other when winning or losing. The game didn’t keep me completely entranced. When playing, the challenges didn’t seem to change much unless I played a new player. So I could get bored if doing the same thing over and over, and I could easily leave the game, but it did keep me occupied. I actually played in a tournament that got progressively harder each level.
Gamelog entry#2
GAMEPLAY
On my second trial, I played in a ring match. This was a new challenge for me, and it kept me interested. I was more intense when playing this because my opponent was difficult to beat, but at the same time I could keep up with him and we had long rallies. I also didn’t want to lose because I would lose all the rings. You have to hit the ball through rings that add up. This challenge caused me to be more focused and very competitive towards the computer character.
The game was fun to play, especially with the rings. They added a new challenge, but at the same time, you kept the fundamental challenge of beating the opponent. The rings just added to make the game more fun, and in a way competitive, because I did not want to lose the rings. I also think the game would have been different if more than one player were playing, and this, like Super Smash Bros, would have made it more interesting with a social interaction. I believe it would have been more fun as you created a sense of camaraderie and rivalry in your magic circle that would have intensified game play. While playing in the ring challenge, the game became very addicting as the opponent was challenging enough that I didn’t want to stop until I beat him. This kept me interested and locked in the magic circle.
DESIGN
I believe this game can somewhat be compared to pong with the ball being served and received. Some innovative elements include the ability of the contestants to move up, down, left, or right on the court surface, the 3D environment, and changing ball movements. These elements make it a more enriching experience than a simple pong game. It is more challenging, yet easy enough to learn, to play. This is very much like a tennis match without all the physical technique and skill training. The 3D environment is very interesting and makes it very lifelike, but the camera angles are still difficult and don’t completely flow. Sometimes it’s hard to keep track of where you are in the heat of a match.
When playing in tournaments, the level matches seem to get harder as you advance. They are all still the same and hold the same rules. The game provides the challenge of receiving and hitting the ball to beat the opponent. The game keeps this interesting by adding rings you must hit it through. When collecting rings, the game creates conflict, because you lose all your rings if you lose the rally. This keeps the intensity up and gives you something to fight for. The game uses a 3D environment to create space in the game world. Unlike pong, you can play this in your 3D world and the ball has more dimensions to go in. Because the game is in a tennis stadium, the tone of the game world is fun and exciting while competitive and challenging. The game looks just like a tennis match on tv and adds to this tone.
Although I did not play this mode, the game fosters social interactions because you can add controllers and play with multiple players with and against each other. If I could change something about the game, I would fix the camera angles, and I would always have the player you are on the close side always. For their reward structure, I wanted to defeat opponents, and get to the top during tournaments.
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