Taylor Rice
GAMES AND THE INCREMENTAL
COMMITMENT MODEL
AGENDA
Some Unique Aspects of Game Software
 Gameplay Elements and Media
 Potential Problems - Character Animation
 Can ICSM apply?
 Summary

SOME UNIQUE ASPECTS OF GAME SOFTWARE
Gameplay
Elements
Characters
Environments
Sound
Music
Sound Effects
Gameplay
Objectives/Goals
“Fun” Factor
UNIQUE ASPECTS OF GAME SOFTWARE

Each of those aspects could have an entire
presentation written about them.

For the purposes of this discussion, the focus will
be on one aspect:
Gameplay
Elements

Characters
What does all of the above rely on?
 Media/Artistic Assets
Environments
GAMEPLAY ELEMENTS AND MEDIA

Look at an example of a game being developed

Once again strictly from a GamePlay Element
perspective.
GAMEPLAY ELEMENTS AND MEDIA

The point of the previous slides?
Art is important!
 Utilizing the art in the game becomes critical to a
game’s success.


Which of those elements has a large amount of
development lurking behind it?

The characters!
 They
need both media for visual representation and
programming behind the scenes to animate them.
POTENTIAL PROBLEMS-CHARACTER ANIMATION

Many ways to animate – lets look at one:
Animation has many Frames
 A Frame has many pieces
 Pieces have a location within the Frame

Animation
“Fire Weapon”
Frames
Pieces
POTENTIAL PROBLEMS-CHARACTER ANIMATION

Artists are developing assets for use in the game,
and developers are relying on those assets to
create representations of characters.


Can be a volatile environment full of change,
uncertainty, and unforeseeable demands
Some examples of potential frustration:
New Characters requested
 New Animations desired
 “Realistic” interaction of characters with environment.

SO WHAT ABOUT ICSM?

How can ICSM be utilized so that the development
team and art team can work together and have
minimal friction in this volatile environment?

ICSM offers an Evolutionary Model for use in
environments with:
 Emergent
requirements
 Rapid Change
 The need for high assurance

That sounds like us! Lets take a look!
SO WHAT ABOUT ICSM? (CNTD)

ICSM Evolutionary Model:
New Environment Interaction
New
Running
Animation
Reliable
Character
Interaction
“Increments”
are Characters
SUMMARY

Gameplay Element Development is critical
when both designing and developing a game.
 Media
Assets are an integral part of the
development process.
 The development process can be volatile, with
many changes as the game matures.

When Developing the Gameplay Elements ICSM
can be used to help adapt to rapid changes.
 Specifically
the Evolutionary Model.