Oblivion Mod: a thesis project testing gameplay preferences

[Mirabelle]

Oblivion Mod, for gameplay preferences thesis project: Mirei of Estrel

I am a professional game designer with over three years experience working in the industry, and I am currently pursuing my Master's of Interactive Technology with the Guildhall at SMU, from where I graduated with a certificate in 2005. I completed this level/ mod project using the Oblivion editor to test gameplay preferences in an actual gameplay setting. Below you'll find a feature list, a general description of the mod and its objectives, download info, key facts, and screenshot links. The level is accompanied by a survey taken after you have completed the level to record what choices you made while playing and what you enjoyed about the experience.

If any of you are willing to play my thesis level and then take the survey, I would greatly appreciate it. And I do really think you'll enjoy playing the mod. The level lasts 30 minutes to 1 hour or so, depending on your play speed, and the survey takes 10 - 15 minutes. The installer is downloadable here: www.jennifern.net/mirei and the survey for after you’ve played it is here: www.jennifern.net/survey.html

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Mirei of Estrel features:
- 45 - 75 minutes of gameplay
- almost 400 lines of dialogue
- branching dialogue trees that affect gameplay
- heavy focus on player choice
- heavy focus on alternate paths and alternate solutions
- some non-linear quests
- mod created by a professional game designer
- completion survey (takes 10 - 15 minutes, after you play the mod) so that you can share what you want in a game experience
- survey results and conclusions will be shared with professional and aspiring developers, and the general public

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Here is a short description of the mod and its objectives:

Mirei of Estrel is a standalone experience, completely set apart from the main world of Oblivion. Mirei is a 35 year old herbalist, outcast from the nearby village of Estrel. She is forced to confront her troubled past when several village girls go missing and she sets out to discover what happened. There are multiple paths to resolve the mystery of the missing girls and many opportunities to explore Mirei's past and her relationship to the villagers. I have concentrated heavily on branching dialogue, non-linear quests, and player choice to create an opportunity for varied play experiences.

This mod’s purpose is to create an enjoyable gameplay experience that also tests gameplay preferences as they diverge across demographic lines. It is accompanied by a survey taken on completion to document the player’s choices in the level and what they did and didn’t enjoy about the experience. I have demographics and general gaming questions at the start of the survey which are meant to break up the players into smaller categories, i.e. favorite genre, hardcore vs. casual, age range, gender, consoles owned, etc. The idea is to see how preferences trend when looked at against the demographics and what-kind-of-gamer-are-you questions.

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Key Facts
- You must have Oblivion to play this mod.
- You do not need Shivering Isles or Knights of the Nine to play this mod.
- This mod comes with a save file. You start the experience by loading the save file.
- This mod comes with both an installer and a zip file for those who prefer a manual install.
- Do not play this mod with your normal characters and don’t leave it running in the background once you are finished playing it.
- Also, please read the ReadMe before you play! There is some important information in there.

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Screenshots

Mirei of Estrel #1 (http://www.jennifern.net/images/MireiScreenshot1.jpg)
Mirei of Estrel #2 (http://www.jennifern.net/images/MireiScreenshot2.jpg)
Mirei of Estrel #3 (http://www.jennifern.net/images/MireiScreenshot3.jpg)
Mirei of Estrel #4 (http://www.jennifern.net/images/MireiScreenshot4.jpg)
Mirei of Estrel #5 (http://www.jennifern.net/images/MireiScreenshot5.jpg)
Mirei of Estrel #6 (http://www.jennifern.net/images/MireiScreenshot6.jpg)
Mirei of Estrel #7 (http://www.jennifern.net/images/MireiScreenshot7.jpg)
Mirei of Estrel #8 (http://www.jennifern.net/images/MireiScreenshot8.jpg)
Mirei of Estrel #9 (http://www.jennifern.net/images/MireiScreenshot9.jpg)
Mirei of Estrel #10 (http://www.jennifern.net/images/MireiScreenshot10.jpg)

[Returner]

Sounds cool I'll give it a try this weekend.

[JazGalaxy]

Sounds cool I'll give it a try this weekend.

I'd advise any budding game designer to forego paying attention to any survey on what people want and instead just make games you want to play.

Gamers don't know what they want. They say they want what they won't play (How many gamers pined about virtual reality 10 years ago only to reject the wii because it makes them move around too much?), and say they won't play what will be the next big gaming trend (How many people made fun of fake instrument games when they were in the arcade ten years ago?).

[Mirabelle]

I'd advise any budding game designer to forego paying attention to any survey on what people want and instead just make games you want to play.
Hi JaxGalaxy, first let me say that I am not a budding game designer. I have been working in the industry for several years and shipped multiple titles.

Gamers don't know what they want. They say they want what they won't play (How many gamers pined about virtual reality 10 years ago only to reject the wii because it makes them move around too much?), and say they won't play what will be the next big gaming trend (How many people made fun of fake instrument games when they were in the arcade ten years ago?).
But if you gave those late-90s people some fake guitars and let them rock out to some late-90s music, they would have given a pretty accurate assessment of how fun music games can be. That's why my project consists of a gameplay scenario and follow-up survey questions specific to the content of that scenario.

Since the whole idea behind my project is to let gamers explain their reactions to specific gameplay elements and choices in my scenario, I really don't think our positions are all that different. If you want to provide any constructive feedback after completing my mod and the survey, though, I'd be happy to discuss the topic further. :)

[baz]

Sounds really cool, I did my post-grad in the human computer interaction lab, and a bunch of my mates were making mods for games in order to test various hypothesis.

If my computer hadn't committed hari-kari I would indeed by trying it out.

[drakkarim]

i'll give this thing a try over the weekend, been meaning to go back into the game and do the expansions.... this'll get me to look in that direction again.

I'd advise any budding game designer to forego paying attention to any survey on what people want and instead just make games you want to play.


i'd say that's a financial risk someone "not established" in the field cannot afford to take. nor are they likely to get financing either. i think you have to have 'rep' before you get trusted enough to get to make games "you want to play" as opposed to games "they want you to sell" :)


Gamers don't know what they want. They say they want what they won't play (How many gamers pined about virtual reality 10 years ago only to reject the wii because it makes them move around too much?), and say they won't play what will be the next big gaming trend (How many people made fun of fake instrument games when they were in the arcade ten years ago?).

i like the wii 'thing', although i'm still wondering whether there'll be a huge lawsuit down the line for aiding in the spread of carpal tunnel syndrome :)

i still make fun of fake instrument games though.

[Johan]

I think this is an interesting concept for a study. Unfortunately, having just started Oblivion (I've only been in three 'dungeons' so far), I'm about 200 hours away from messing with any mods (other than the leveling mod I installed to fix the borked world-leveling system in the game).

Good luck!

[ldi222]

I plan to give this a try and take the survey.

[Stormwatcher]

I think this is an interesting concept for a study. Unfortunately, having just started Oblivion (I've only been in three 'dungeons' so far), I'm about 200 hours away from messing with any mods (other than the leveling mod I installed to fix the borked world-leveling system in the game).

Good luck!

But it's a standalone mod. It has nothing to do with Oblivion quests and stuff other than using the engine.

[Arnold Darkshner]

Gamers don't know what they want.


Not true, games like WoW, WAR and Counter Strike are the direct result of responding to what gamers want. This is a very generalized and innacurate statement.


They say they want what they won't play (How many gamers pined about virtual reality 10 years ago only to reject the wii because it makes them move around too much?), and say they won't play what will be the next big gaming trend (How many people made fun of fake instrument games when they were in the arcade ten years ago?)


Hardcore gamers reject the Wii because it is kiddie, the games have little depth and the graphics are about five years behind the times. You give me a game where I can use a lightsabre 1080p and I will spazz out like any soccer mom playing Wii Sports.

[Mirabelle]

I just looked over some of the most recent surveys! Thanks to all new players and survey takers!

I also wanted to say that I am seeing some really impressive gaming insight on display in the answers to the write-in questions at the end! I knew this was a good place to come for opinions! ;)

But it's a standalone mod. It has nothing to do with Oblivion quests and stuff other than using the engine.

Hi Johan, Stormwatcher' statement above is correct. You should be able to play my mod with only a very cursory knowledge of Oblivion controls. It doesn't actually impinge upon the Oblivion story in any way. I have actually had a few friends over to test that had never even played Oblivion, and with a bit of coaching on what buttons did what, they were able to complete my mod without a problem. Hope that info helps!

[jsera]

This mod looks like fun. I'll be sure to check it out this weekend if I can get the time and answer the survey.

[Blog]

Will I be able to run this without deactivating my current mods, and could they cause conflicts with Mirei?

[Mirabelle]

Will I be able to run this without deactivating my current mods, and could they cause conflicts with Mirei?

Hi Blog, when you use the express installer, it will ask you if you want to deactivate all of your current mods. If you say yes, it will uncheck them for you automatically. If you say no, it will just complete the installation minus that step.

I can't say for sure whether leaving your other mods on will have any effect on Mirei. I didn't do any testing with other mods running, and of course, I don't know what mods you are using. Um, my guess is that it will probably not break it, at least not fatally. All the locations and quests and triggers and such are custom content. The area that I could see being open to possible conflicts is the dialogue. All of my custom dialogue is new, but you may see some inappropriate greetings, since I used standard Oblivion fare for that. (Still, if you see anything really wonky, then it is quite possibly a conflict.)

So, I would still recommend turning them off, but if you aren't willing to do that, then give it a try with them on. I'd be interested to hear how it goes, if you do try it. ;)

But, in any case, remember to deactivate Mirei once you are done playing it, so that it doesn't have any chance to conflict with your normal games.

Good luck!

[drakkarim]

went through the mod and answered the (ton of) questions :) nice story, would make for a great full size mod i think.

made me want to play through oblivion again :)

[Mirabelle]

went through the mod and answered the (ton of) questions :) nice story, would make for a great full size mod i think.

made me want to play through oblivion again :)

Wow! Great compliment drakkarim! Thanks!

Anyone else given it a try, yet? Thoughts?

[Trazzlo the Magnificant]

Wow! Great compliment drakkarim! Thanks!

Anyone else given it a try, yet? Thoughts?I haven't tried it yet, I only got the game recently and, like Johan, thought I wouldn't be able to help much.

I will try to install it and play through it, but we are heading out of town Friday so might not have time.