Syobon Action, also known as Cat Mario, is famous for its levels designed. In this game, traps are everywhere because anything can be a trap. Some traps force us to think outside the box. I tried to use the experience I got from Mario when playing this game, such as Mushroom is a reward to make you stronger, and I failed a lot.
Also, a lot of game settings are counterintuitive and unpredictable. For example, when you jump, there may be a block or an enemy popping up suddenly to block your way:
Syobon Action is a game that “systematically disrupts every convention of 2D platform gameplay”
– Ian Bogost Game Critics and Game Designer
Overall, I found the game interesting and challenging. I love this game as much as I hate this game. I will make my game be something similar to this to ‘torture’ others.
Video games have been with us for decades. It also spans the gamut of platforms, from arcade systems to home consoles, and then to handheld consoles and mobile devices. In the 1950s, early computer scientists use games to test the limits and potentials of their programs. In October 1958, Physicist William Higinbotham created the first video game: Tennis for Two (1958).
In 1972, with the launch of the first commercial home video game console, the Magnavox Odyssey, the humble television set became more interactive. Because of the development of technology and the spread of televisions and interactive game consoles, more and more video games became our fathers’ and mothers’ friends. Some famous games popped up in this period and established multiple genres for the game industry, including but not limited to Maze Wars (the first first-person shooter game, 1974), Adventures (the first text-based game, 1975), and Akalabeth: World of Doom (first role-playing video game, 1979).
I can recognize several familiar characters that were born from the 1980s to the 1990s: Mario (1985), Sonic (1991), and Lara (1996). Furthermore, I liked to play games launched with Windows, such as Solitaire (1990) and Minesweeper (1989). Then, of course, in the 2000s, the stars are MMO (Massively Multiplayer Online) games. I still remembered my mom blaming my brother for forgetting to have dinner when playing World WarCraft (2004). Strangely, I thought Angry Birds (2009) was invented early than 2009 because I feel it has the same age as Pikachu (1996).
The smartphone puts a game-playing computer in almost every person’s pocket, while online video streaming fuels the growth of Esports.
Video Game History Timeline
I cannot agree more with this sentence. During this pandemic, my friends and I regularly play Drawful2 (2016) online while using twitch to recruit strangers. We had a lot of fun.
Since we play games a lot, I believe we are also a part of video game history. Because I always use my brother’s steam to purchase games (he will pay for everything), I would like to share our steam game list:
I really enjoyed the entire journey to review the history of video games, which refreshed my knowledge in a variety of fields and deepened my understanding of games.
We must now address the question which motivated our initial reconnaissance: what are the fundamental elements common to these games? I perceive four common factors: representation, interaction, conflict, and safety.
I find this quote inspiring because I’m interested in the factors of game design.
This image from Understanding Comics shows the relationship between image and concept.
