Well designed paper towels.

Why are these good?

Because they're designed with respect to their surroundings.  The packaging takes into account their usage location, namely, the bathroom.  The box is designed to fit upside down on a towel bar and dispense from there.

Now, say what you will about disposable culture and the usage of paper products as compared to cloth towels, but the box design of this product is pretty damn neat.

Paper towel holder

I have mixed feelings about paper towels laid out like this.  They don't suffer from the over packed dispenser problem.  Nor do they require special equipment for restocking (e.g. specially rolled paper, prepackaged packs of paper towels).  On the other hand, they do tend to get messed up rather easily, and water can get on multiple paper towels, making more of a mess.

But, on the whole, they're less of a headache for the customer, which is a good thing.

What's good about this spatula?

The benefit of this spatula that stood out to me was the nub on the back.  It's not a hand guard, but rather a resting spot for the spatula when it's not being used.

Example below, as stolen from YuppieChef.  (Yes, that is a spoon.  But the same design was applied to the spatula as well.)

Spatulas in and of themselves have evolved quite a bit, and I like this little bit of outside the pot thinking.  I'm usually wondering where to put my utensils when I'm not using them.  This answer is elegant without a lot of extra doohickeys to make it work.  Doohickey is a technical term.

Airblade hand dryer

Terrible paper towel dispenser location.

Do I really need to go into why this is a bad design?

Fine.

• Awkward positioning.
  
• Pool of Water amassing behind the faucet, resulting in...
  
• Wet Paper Towels.
  
• No Clearance for pulling down, or out, resulting in...
  
• Wet Paper Towels.
  
• Typical issues with paper towel dispensers being packed too tightly, resulting in...
  
• Ripped Paper Towel Shreds.

Need I say more?

Paper Towel Dispensers

I like to look at things and wonder about how I can make them better.  It's almost always easier to improve on a design than it is to create from scratch.  I think it has something to do with the constraints and a designer's desire to push against those constraints.  When a designer is given carte blanche, it's almost too much freedom.  That's probably why rapid iteration works so well.  A designer given so much freedom NEEDS to make some really crappy designs right off the bat, so that they can immediately take a knife to it.  Granted, as time goes on, good designers can minimize the amount of time they're in "crappy phase" but there's always some time there.  

Anyhow, moving onto the point of this post.  Here's the scenario.  You're in the bathroom, doing your business.  You finish up on the toilet, head over to the sink because you're not evil.

Wash wash wash, sing Row, Row, Row Your Boat discreetly to yourself, and all that goodness and then you turn to grab a paper towel and see this:

So what's wrong with this? Well, it depends on the criteria that you use for evaluating paper towel dispensers.  There's nothing wrong if you're looking for a very basic paper towel dispenser.  minimal upkeep, non-intrusive, it dispenses paper towels for Pete's sake, and it does it fairly well.

So for those that just skim for outlines and bullet points, here's the good:

1. Minimal upkeep.
2. Non-intrusive
3. Keeps towels dry, clean, and out of the way until needed.
4. Functional

So that's the positive, but this post is labeled, "It Can Be Better."  So here's the issues I saw with this when I interacted with it.

1. At the start of the stack, the paper towel is not readily accessible.  You have to reach up into the slot to grab the first sheet.  Reaching into anywhere in a bathroom just reeks of being unsanitary.  But after that first pull, it's all good.
2. When the stack gets low, paper towels have a tendency to rotate and then they fail to have the sheet jut out of the opening, which leads to more reaching and pulling.
3. Near the end of the stack, it's easy to pull more than one at a time, sometimes causing the towels to fall on the ground in a clump.  Wasteful.
4. Some people like to reach in and pinch a bunch of towels at once.  Human nature, maybe, since those paper towels don't dry all that well.  But in pinching, sometimes it'll upset the delicate interlacing that the paper towels are packaged in that allows for the next piece to pop out.  It essentially leads back to problem one.
5. These can all be subcategorized into the issue of accessibility.

Now the goal is, find an existing design or create a paper towel dispenser design that is better.

Okay, so we can redesign til the cows come home, but let's set down some ground rules.  For it to be a better designed paper towel dispenser, it should solve all the above problems, but not violate the 4 positives above.  If it doesn't, it might be better in one way, but at the detriment of the 4 ways that are meaningful for our audience and purpose.

So how do we increase accessibility without compromising our positives?

Scott Pilgrim vs The World Game

From the maker of Kings of Power 4 Billion %

Scott Pilgrim vs The World Game Trailer

But it's published by Ubisoft, which probably means they'll have their Draconian DRM.

Loved

Loved

Revisit: Russell, Come Home!

Been thinking about Game Challenge #1: Russell, Come Home!

Here are some proposed changes to the game. 

Reduce number of players from 3 to 2.  Russell and Parents play on the same team now, collectively referred to as the Family Team.

Score is based on a countdown.  Start at 10 points, counts down every time a tree is planted.  That score is given to the Family Team once Russell makes it home. 

Game is played in two rounds, with Player 1 as the Family Team and Player 2 as the Environment.  After the first round, Player 1 and 2 switch teams.

Humble Bundle Piracy

The Humble Bundle was a way of donating money to charities and getting 5 great indie games.

The downside is that even with the ability to pay as little as a cent, the games are still be pirated.

http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/05/humble-bundle-gives-pirates-what-they-want-gets-ripped-off.ars

But two quotes of note from the article:

Rosen lays out these reasons, saying that Wolfire doesn't plan on doing anything to thwart those who pirate the games. "When considering any kind of DRM, we have to ask ourselves, 'How many legitimate users is it OK to inconvenience in order to reduce piracy?' The answer should be none."

Jeffery Rosen understands that games are a service, a luxury.  Inconveniencing paying customers should not be the solution.

"A lot of these people don't just pirate the game, they take pleasure in spreading the pirated links to their friends or anonymous buddies for fun," Rosen told Ars. "They just don't care, and if you can't get someone to pay a penny in this case—will they really pay full price for a game?"


And here we have a the key point.  Piracy isn't about the game, it's about the meta-game of distribution.  When looking at Game Theory, a key thing to consider is Utility, the motivation of the player.  In this case, the player is the consumer, and the motivation is to distribute the game, as opposed to acquiring the game.

It's like looking at griefers in games, whose motivation is not playing the game, it's in aggravating the opposing players.

If classic games were made today.

From Zack Hiwiller via Kotaku:

If SMB was made today.

Makes me think of Achievement Unlocked, which pokes fun at Achievements.

Game Challenge #1: Russell, Come Home!

I have not forgotten about the game!

But in case you have, YJ posted the following art assets as the first game design challenge for me, constrained by her art choices.

So here's the game rules, at least the first iteration.

The title of the game is: Russell, Come Home!
There are 3 teams: The Little Boy, the Parents, and the Environment.

The goals of the 3 teams are as follows:
The Little Boy wants to stay out as long as he can, without getting trapped or without running into his parents. If he stays out for 7 turns, he wins.
The Parents want the boy to come back as soon as possible. If the Little Boy comes back before 7 turns, they win.  Alternatively, if he runs into them, they win.
The Environment wants to trap the little boy from going home.  If the Little Boy is trapped, he wins.

The way turn order is determined is that the cards that is drawn determines whose turn it is.  The cards are shuffled and drawn from the top.  The cards are placed in a discard pile after being used.  When the deck is empty, reshuffle all the cards in the discard pile and draw again.

  The environment plays the Tree, Fly Trap, and Clouds.  The Little Boy plays on the Blank card.  The Parents play on the Ladder.


The cards are played as follows:

Tree: The Environment places a tree anywhere on the game board except for the Little Boy's position.  That Tree is now permanently placed there.  There can be an unlimited number of trees.

Fly Trap: The Environment places a Fly Trap anywhere on the game boards except for the Little Boy's position.  The Fly Trap disappears after a turn.

Rain:  The Environment moves the Rain from it's current space to any adjacent space. The Rain Cloud forces the Little Boy to lose one turn each time the Little Boy enters a space that has a Rain Cloud on it because it takes longer for him to travel through that space. 

The Ladder can be placed anywhere on the map by the Parents and spans across three spaces on the board. This makes any unpassable terrain passable.  Only one Ladder is in play at a time.  Placing the Ladder in a new location removes the previous placement of the Ladder.

The Blank Square lets the Little Boy run to an adjacent space in a direction they choose.

Starting positions: The Little Boy starts at the top most row (the row farthest from the green row).  The Environment places a Tree anywhere in the game board.  The Parents place a Ladder on any valid space.

Notes:
Yes, I do realize that there's a 3:1:1 turn advantage for the Environment.  That should ideally bring some sort of urgency for the Boy and his Parents.

So I found out from YJ that the two creatures at the bottom were intended to be bullies, not parents.  I think I could have guessed that from the fact that they're identical (meaning that neither of them are decidedly matronly or fatherly), but I think I'm carrying a lot of baggage.

There's a thought to make the teams into the Family vs the Environment.  In which case, the Family wins more points for staying out longer.  Perhaps it's played twice, with the players swapping sides.

No chance to play test yet, just a first blush pass.

Viricide

A shooter of the style of Geometry Wars, but it fleshes out that 4th part of the diamond, the story.

Play Viricide

I Can Hold My Breath Forever

While I work on YJ's challenge, here's a little something interesting to play. 

Play "I Can Hold My Breath Forever"

Project 1 - art assets

Yes, the first challenge for Russ is here!

Here are the rules:

1. Use all assets on the given page. Size and duplicates of the assets are allowed.

That's it!

Now go make a game outta these things!

:P

SuperBrothers: Sword and Sworcery

Beautiful i-Phone game...coming soon!
Click here to view the trailer

Also, an interview with the gamemakers :)
Click here to view the article: Less Talk More Rock

Nerve Jangla

These characters are so cute, they remind me of YJ's characters. :)

Play Nerve Jangla

Challenging Stage

This looks like a Tron 2 tie in, but it's a good bit of trivia.  I think you can get something promotional if you get them all.  I got about 30 before I realized I should have logged in.

Challenging Stage

I Don't Even Game

Heh, the name says it all - it's an entertaining game....even if you don't game :P

Click here to play I DON'T EVEN GAME

Alice in Wonderland, a casual game

I wonder if this game is any good...

Click here to play Alice in Wonderland

Creeper World

A game for Russ to check out :)

A tower defense game!
Click here to play Creeper World!

A Series of Meaningful Choices

This is the inaugural post of this blog. Now, whether or not Sid Meier actually said the quote, or some derivation of it is moot. This blog is about gameplay and games, however you want to define them.

Postings linking to interesting games and useful articles will appear here, but this is also a space for a project that YJ and I will be doing.

Games can be defined by being comprised of 4 parts: gameplay, art, story, and technology. On a weekly basis, YJ will create art for me. I have no idea what the pieces will look like, but my task will be to come up with rules and make a game that revolves around a theme defined by the pieces or something taken from Jesse Schell's Deck of Lenses. If the game is served by a story, then we'll come up with one. Mercifully, these being analog games, the technology side will probably amount to a printer and scissors.