Homage or Swipe? Inspiration or Rip-Off? On the Origins of Game Ideas

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Homage or Swipe? Inspiration or Rip-Off?On the
Origins of Game Ideas

• Richard Rouse III
• Lead Single Player Designer
• Kaos Studios/THQ
• www.paranoidproductions.com
• GameX Summit/MIT Gambit Game Lab, October 2009

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The HomageversusThe Swipe
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The Homage
Joe Shuster, 1938
Todd McFarlane, 1988
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John Byrne, 1980
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Fantastic Four (1982) by John Byrne
The Swipe
New Mutants (1990) by Rob Liefeld
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Ronin (1983) by Frank Miller
X-Force (1993) by Rob Liefeld
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Nomad (1990) by James Fry
Captain America (1997) by Rob Liefeld
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Nomad (1990) by James Fry
Captain America (1969) by Jim Steranko
Captain America (1997) by Rob Liefeld
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John Byrne, 1980
Bob Oksner, 1972
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Never draw what you can copy never copy what
you can trace never trace what you can photostat
and paste down. - Wally Wood
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Joe Shuster, 1938
Antonio Del Pollaiolo, 1475
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Inspiration
Rip-Off
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In games, we call it cloning...
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1993
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1995
1994
1996
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1998
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Nov, 1994
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June, 1997
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June, 1998
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2001
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2003
2006
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2007
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Game Idea Rule 1

• Take existing gameplay and transpose it to a new
  setting
• Evolve the mechanics as necessary to suit that
  setting

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Gears of War, aka Resident Killswitch
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Gears of War, aka Resident Killswitch
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Game Idea Rule 2

• Borrow novel mechanics from obscure games

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Game Idea Rule 3

• Dont steal your setting from another game

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The Sticky Bomb Problem
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The Sticky Bomb Problem
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Game Idea Rule 4

• Be careful borrowing an idea from popular fiction
• Doing supplemental research is important

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Where do you get your ideas?
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Where do you get your ideas?

• I make them up. Out of my head.
• Neil Gaiman

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Where do you get your ideas?

• Schenectady.
• Harlan Ellison

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• Ripped from the headlines

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• Ripped from the headlines

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• Ripped from the headlines

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AC-130 CoD4 Clip
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Game Idea Rule 5

• Get ideas from the documentary zeitgeist

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The Kids are Alright (1979)
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Game Idea Rule 6

• Obscure documentary sources are great too
• Corollary But real life is even better

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Game Idea Rule 7

• Real life is an ideal inspiration
• Every experience you have is an opportunity
• Taking an idea from real life makes it less
  likely someone has already beaten that idea to
  death

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• -

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• Enemies themed after execution methods

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• Enemies themed after execution methods
• Horrific events on the island based on events
  from US history
• Slave trade
• Witch trials
• Ethnic discrimination during WWII
• Mental institution abuses
• Capital punishment

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Game Idea Rule 8

• Have many and varied sources of inspiration

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Where do you get your ideas from?

• Other Games
• Other Fiction/Movies/etc
• Non-Fiction/Documentaries/etc
• Your Experiences/Real Life

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Where do you get your ideas from?

• EASIEST
• Other Games
• Other Fiction/Movies/etc
• Non-Fiction/Documentaries/etc
• Your Experiences/Real Life
• TRUTHIEST

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Where do you get your ideas from?

• EASIEST
• Other Games
• Other Fiction/Movies/etc
• Non-Fiction/Documentaries/etc
• Your Experiences/Real Life
• MOST TRUE

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Where do you get your ideas from?

• EASIEST ? Often this is OK
• Other Games
• Other Fiction/Movies/etc
• Non-Fiction/Documentaries/etc
• Your Experiences/Real Life
• MOST TRUE

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Where do you get your ideas from?

• EASIEST ? Often this is OK
• Other Games
• Other Fiction/Movies/etc
• Non-Fiction/Documentaries/etc
• Your Experiences/Real Life
• MOST TRUE ? As long as you have
• some of this

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Gameplay Setting
EASIEST

• Other Games
• Other Fiction
• Non-Fiction
• Real Life

MOST TRUE
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Gameplay Setting
EASIEST

• Other Games
• Other Fiction
• Non-Fiction
• Real Life

MOST TRUE
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Gameplay Setting
EASIEST

• Other Games
• Other Fiction
• Non-Fiction
• Real Life

MOST TRUE
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Gameplay Setting
EASIEST

• Other Games
• Other Fiction
• Non-Fiction
• Real Life

MOST TRUE
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Gameplay Setting
EASIEST

• Other Games
• Other Fiction
• Non-Fiction
• Real Life

MOST TRUE
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Gameplay Setting
EASIEST

• Other Games
• Other Fiction
• Non-Fiction
• Real Life

MOST TRUE
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Gameplay Setting
EASIEST

• Other Games
• Other Fiction
• Non-Fiction
• Real Life

MOST TRUE
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Gameplay Setting
EASIEST

• Other Games
• Other Fiction
• Non-Fiction
• Real Life

MOST TRUE
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Gameplay Setting
EASIEST

• Other Games
• Other Fiction
• Non-Fiction
• Real Life

MOST TRUE
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Comics Herge, Schulz, Eisner Also Frank Capra,
Charles Dickens
Comics Spiegelman, Moebius Also Orson Welles,
Virginia Woolf
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Comics Herge, Schulz, Eisner Also Frank Capra,
Charles Dickens
Comics Spiegelman, Moebius Also Orson Welles,
Virginia Woolf
In Games Sid Meier, Steve Meretzky, Shigeru
Miyamoto, Fumito Ueda
In Games Will Wright, Tetsuya Mizuguchi, Chris
Crawford, Dani Bunten Berry
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Comics Herge, Schulz, Eisner Also Frank Capra,
Charles Dickens
Comics Spiegelman, Moebius Also Orson Welles,
Virginia Woolf
In Games Sid Meier, Steve Meretzky, Shigeru
Miyamoto, Fumito Ueda
In Games Will Wright, Tetsuya Mizuguchi, Chris
Crawford, Dani Bunten Berry
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Comics Herge, Schulz, Eisner Also Frank Capra,
Charles Dickens
Comics Spiegelman, Moebius Also Orson Welles,
Virginia Woolf
In Games Sid Meier, Steve Meretzky, Shigeru
Miyamoto, Fumito Ueda
In Games Will Wright, Tetsuya Mizuguchi, Chris
Crawford, Dani Bunten Berry
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Gameplay Setting
EASIEST

• Other Games
• Other Fiction
• Non-Fiction
• Real Life

MOST TRUE
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Eight Game Idea Rules

1. Use existing mechanics with a new setting
2. Borrow mechanics from obscure games
3. Dont steal settings from games
4. Research is important
5. Get ideas from the documentary zeitgeist
6. Obscure documentary sources are also great
7. Real life is an ideal inspiration
8. Have many and varied sources of inspiration

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Gameplay Setting

• Other Games
• Other Fiction
• Non-Fiction
• Real Life

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Questions?
Slides available at www.paranoidproductions.com
Contact rr3_at_paranoidproductions.com
Hearty thanks to Dan Teasdale, Coray Seifert,
Amin Razi, Rob Fulop, Greg Kramer, and the GDW