GAME STUDIES: FINAL COMPILATION / GCD61504

22/9/2025 - 28/12/2025 / (Week 1 - Week 14)

Aricia Man Yi Xuan / 0375026

Game Studies / Final Compilation / GCD61504

Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media

Google Drive Link

TABLE OF CONTENT

4. Reflection

INSTRUCTIONS

Fig.1.1.1 Module Information Booklet

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FINAL COMPILATION

WEEK 1 / Project Briefing + Group Forming

This week, Ms. Noranis briefed us on the module information booklet and introduced us to the Principles of Game Design (Fig.1.1.2). We formed our group in class and play board games to develop idea further.

Fig.1.1.1 Playing board game in class / (Week 1, 23/9/2025)

WEEK 2 / Brainstorming

This week, Ms. Noranis introduced us to the topic "Balancing Fun and Educational Elements in Game Design". Later on, we created to developing the game proposal, where we decided on a school and GPA theme and brainstormed possible mechanics. We also thought about potential names for the game, which called "CGPA 4.0!". We also discussed when to visit a board game cafe to experience similar games and learn how different mechanics create enjoyment in gameplay. At the same time, we purchased base card decks from Shopee so we can prototype our own cards next week.

Fig.1.1.2 Discussing proposal / (Week 2, 30/9/2025)

WEEK 3 / Cafe Visit

This week, our group went to a board game café (meeples) to explore and play different types of board and card games. We gain inspiration and understand various gameplay mechanics, including how cards are designed and how interaction happens between players. During the session, we found one particular game that had a similar card design and mechanic to our school-themed CGPA game idea. This helped us understand how card categories can be organized and how to make the game more engaging.

Fig.1.1.3 Playing session & card references / (Week 3, 10/10/2025)

This card game called "The Malaysian Dream", which was very similar to our own idea, as both involve collecting cards to reach a goal and using action cards to affect other players. The use of character cards with special skills is also quite similar to our Identity Cards in the GPA-themed game. Our plan is to apply these ideas to refine our Action Cards and Identity Skills, and start building our prototype deck for playtesting.

WEEK 4 / Playtesting

Today’s lecture focused on "Playtesting and Interactive Design", where we learned about the design thinking process, basic iterative process, and iterative process with context.. The lecturer explained how playtesting helps designers understand player experience, adjust mechanics, and refine the rules for better interaction. After that, we were assigned a new Exercise 2: Non-digital to digital — evolution and remediating this game".

Class Activity:

After the lecture, we continued working on our board game development. We started to design the game cards, including identity, subject, action, adventure and GPA cards, and preparing for playtesting. We played through our prototype to observe how the game flows and how players interact with each mechanic. Once the playtesting session was done, we explained our game concept and progress to the lecturer. She provided feedback on how we could improve and we refine the interaction design to make gameplay smoother and more engaging.

WEEK 5 / Final Discussion

This week’s session was conducted online via Team's chat, but our group decided to meet physically in a study room for discussion. During the discussion, we conducted playtesting of our CGPA 4.0 card game using the prototype cards we prepared. Through the playtesting session, we noticed several areas that needed refinement, we then made adjustments to make the game more engaging.

After the playtest refinements, we updated and polished our presentation slides and also discussed the overall flow of the presentation and assigned each member their respective speaking parts for next week presentation.

Fig.1.1.4 Playtesting / (Week 5, 21/10/2025)

WEEK 6 / Presentation

Game Studies Group 2 / (Week 6, 28/10/2025)

Click here to view in Canva: [here]

This week, every group give a presentation of their card game in class. After that, we revised our card game and conducted playtesting again within our group. We changed some the GPA points in the "Action Cards" to a higher grade so it can win faster. Finally, we manage to control the playing time within 40mins.

WEEK 7 / Official Playtest

This week, we conducted a playtest with new players from other groups. We played with group 5 and we also played their game. After the playtest, we provided feedback to them and also received feedback from them. Then, we revised our game mechanics because there's still lots of issues:

Playing time is too long (about 40 min+)
Game is difficult to win
Some adventure cards are unclear / instructions are confusing

Fig.1.1.5 Playtesting with new players / (Week 7, 4/11/2025)

WEEK 8 / Revised Gameplay
This week, we conducted another playtest after making revisions based on feedback from Group 4 last week. The changes we implemented include:

Removed identity cards to simplify gameplay.
Removed related subject rules and added more subjects so that every player has a fair chance to collect the same subject sets to win.
Added new skill cards to introduce more strategic elements.
Redesigned some action cards, giving them a structure similar to Monopoly Deal’s “Collect Rent” cards, but adapted for GPA collection.
Updated the winning condition: players can now win either by collecting 3 complete sets of modules or achieving a 3.0 GPA.

Fig.1.1.6 Playtest / (Week 8, 11/11/2025)

After several playtest, the game felt more fun and faster to win, taking about 25 minutes for 5 players.

WEEK 9 / Playtest with new player

This week was self-directed learning, but our group decided to go to school and do the playtest with new player. We invited our friend to play our game and gave us feedback.

Fig.1.1.7 Playtest / (Week 9, 18/11/2025)

WEEK 10-12 / Playtest with new player

This week was self-directed learning as well, but our group decided to go to school and do the playtest with our friends.

Fig.1.1.8 Playtest / (Week 10, 25/11/2025)

WEEK 13 / Self-directed

This week our group go to school library discussion room and finalized our card game, and discussed about the final presentation.

WEEK 14 / Online Final Presentation

This week we recorded our final presentation via Zoom and upload the submissions to Teams.

GAME MECHANICS REVIEW

Fig.1.1.9 Game Mechanics Review

Iterative Playtest Report Link: click [here]

FINAL PRESENTATION SLIDES

FINAL PRESENTATION VIDEO

YouTube Link: click [here]

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FEEDBACK

Week 2:

Specific Feedback: Your idea was cool, the school theme and CGPA mechanics is interesting. There was a similar concepts have been done by seniors before, where the school-themed card games were designed more as a guides for new students to Taylor's University. For your project, every card in the game should have a clear purpose or reason, so the gameplay feels meaningful and balanced, rather than just randomly adding for fun. You guys can play a similar board game next week to gain more ideas.

Week 4:

Specific Feedback: I think y'all game was a bit too serious, try to include more humor scenarios like scenarios that won't happen in real life, think what funny things happen and what are the result.

Week 6:
Specific Feedback: I think the playing time is a bit too long, and the CGPA collection feels too slow. I think it would be better to increase the CGPA gain so that players can progress and win faster. Overall, not bad.

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REFLECTION

Experience:

Working on the card game project with my team was a meaningful and enjoyable experience. I met a lots of new friends and even those who are not in our members. Throughout the project, we brainstormed ideas together, discussed game mechanics, and tested different versions of the game. I was involved in sharing ideas, refining rules, and helping with design decisions. During the progression, we communicated well and adjusted our ideas to reach a better outcome.

Observation:

During the teamwork process, I observed that communication is very important. I think we should active in sharing ideas in a teams as I observe some were quieter and needed more encouragement to express their thoughts. I also noticed that testing the game multiple times helped us identify problems such as unclear rules and unbalanced gameplay. Through observation, I learned that listening to feedback and being open to changes is necessary to improve the overall game experience.

Findings:

From this project, I learned to create a card game. Also, having a good idea, teamwork, testing, and continuous improvement are important. Playtesting helped us discover issues that we did not notice at the beginning. I also learned how to compromise, respect different opinions, and work more effectively in a group. Overall, this project improved my teamwork skills, problem-solving ability, and understanding of game design.

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Aricia Man Yi Xuan (0375026)

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