Amazing Machine
Dr. Wrinkle's Amazing Machine
Amazing machine is designed to be a creative game where players are trying to make bizarre machines while at the same time improving their math skills. The game will:
- allow players to feel creative
- teach/train players math while having fun
- give players a more creative view of math, where solving the problem is about creating the right function (or string of functions)
Core Gameplay
The point of amazing machine is for the player to construct one machine out of a string of the following 2 core components:
- gadgets that each have a specific purpose and unique input/output (i.e. mathematically, they take an integer as input and return an integer as output, or, in game terms, a gadget that takes logs and turns them into hats). These do not perform math operations, all they do is take input and return output. to the player though, they do take one object and turn it into another. All gadgets have a specific numerical input and output but their actual object input and output will be variable.
- widgets that connect to gadgets and other widgets. The input and output of widgets is completely dependent on the output and input of what it is connected to. Basically, widgets just apply math operators to their input which affects their output. For example, lets say there are two gadgets, one which outputs an 8 and the other with takes a 3 as input. These two gadgets could be connected by a "-5" widget which will take the output value 8 from the first gadget and convert it to the input value 3 of the other. It should be noted that widgets do not affect the "object" they took as input, they just pass the onjects from one gadget to another. Only the integer value associated with the object is changed.
Every unique combination and ordering of the gadgets will produce an entirely new product, like a machine that turns logs into 1 dozen chickens, or a machine that turns tires into giant stone statues. This is the thing that will make kids want to play the game: to see what kind of crazy machines they can make.
The Play Area
The on screen area is made up of 2 main sections:
- the work bench, where the player sets out and connects up all the gadgets and widgets.
- the tool box, there all the individual gadgets and widgets are laid out.
There are 2 buttons on the screen:
- "Build" which attempts to build the current machine. If there are less than 2 gadgets, there is no ending gadget, or the gadgets are improperly connected by their widgets (i.e. the math between two gadgets doesn't work) then the build will fail and the player will be told/shown why.
- "Run" will light up if the machine builds successfully. When pressed, the machine will begin to run through to the end and once the end result is made the player will be praised and asked if they want to continue working, start a new project, or quit.
The player can choose to lay out all their gadgets first and then connect them later, or go one step at a time from gadget to gadget. Both the work bench and tool box should be scrollable areas so the player should always have room enough for their machines.
Game Flow
At the start of a game the input/output values of the gadgets and the functions associated with the widgets are randomly generated, so that the math is different every time while some of the gameplay may not. The player must first lay down their starting machine and then decide which next gadget to use. every 2 successive gadgets must be connected by at least one widget, and so the order in which the player lays down gadgets doesn't matter so long as they are connectible by widgets. The player continues this until they lay down their final gadget and hit the "Build" button, their amazing machine builds fine, and they run their amazing machine. The player may then chose to start a new machine, continue working on the current, or quit the game.
The Math
The math in Amazing machine is simple integer + - x / math. It would be interesting to have a hard mode that dealt with rational numbers, but for the time being, the simple version will do. All the player will have to do is figure out which operations to use to turn the output of one machine into the input of another using the provided operations. This should provide little to no challenge to students experienced with math, moderate challenge to students currently learning this math, and great challenge to students inexperienced or just starting this kind of math. The recommended age for this game is 5-12
The Win/Lose state
The player wins by creating a functioning machine. This is not an end-game by any means. The player may continue working on their current machine or start a new one at any point. As far as losing, if the player cannot figure out the math necessary, then they will be shown how to do it (time permitting). If the case comes up where it is impossible to complete with the widgets remaining, then the player will be notified. If the situation comes up where it is impossible to complete because of the randomization, then the randomization will be dropped. In fact, the first prototype of the game will probably use static attributes for the widgets/gadgets. As stated previously, the major goal of the game is for players to have fun and be rewarded for doing math.
Community Feedback
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