Category Archives: Games

You Have Unlocked an Achievement: Prognostication

February 24, 2010 – 2:09 pm

A while back, I wrote a post on Workplace Motivation and Game Mechanics, where I speculated on the efficacy of using game systems, like achievements, awarding points, high score lists, etc., to help motivate people in the workplace.
Last week at the DICE Summit, Carnegie-Mellon Assistant Professor of Education and Technology Jesse Schell gave a terrific [...]

By SeanMcTex | Also posted in Computers, Politics | Comments (0)

Ghost Killer

November 26, 2009 – 12:04 pm

Liam has continued to show interest in creating computer games. His latest effort is Ghost Killer, a straightforward game where your sole job is to avoid the bullets descending from the top of the screen. He created it (with a little help, though much less than for Cat Maze) in Scratch, MIT’s terrific graphic programming [...]

By SeanMcTex | Also posted in Family | Comments (1)

Pop Music and Vocal Range

October 27, 2009 – 8:55 am

This morning while walking the kids to school, I had Simon & Garfunkel’s “Only Living Boy in New York” running through my head and, since I have no filter between them, out of my mouth. As I reached for the low note at the end of a phrase, it occurred to me that the range [...]

By SeanMcTex | Also posted in Music | Comments (3)

XBox Live Gold and a Pet Peeve

July 24, 2009 – 8:55 am

WARNING: Nerdy, kvetchy, juvenile rant ahead. Those of a sensitive disposition may wish to avert their eyes. You must be at least 48″ tall to read this post. Pregnant women or visitors with neck or back problems should sit this one out. Please consult your physician before proceeding. Do not read while under the influence [...]

By SeanMcTex | Also posted in Commerce | Comments (2)

Planning Poker

May 19, 2009 – 3:40 pm

One of the things about writing software for a living is that customers are rarely happy when you tell them “It will be done when it’s done.” Even though development is fraught with uncertainty, it’s still incumbent upon us who practice this craft to be able to give people some idea of what kind of [...]

By SeanMcTex | Also posted in Computers, Work | Comments (1)

Workplace Motivation and Game Mechanics

April 22, 2009 – 1:53 pm

I manage a crew of about 5 programmers at work. During our performance reviews this year, I asked each of them how I could do my job as a manager better. One of them, in a bit of much-appreciated candor, said that motivation was one of his biggest challenges, and that he would be grateful [...]

By SeanMcTex | Also posted in Work | Comments (8)

Tabletop Roleplaying: The Nerdiest Post of the Year

April 7, 2009 – 2:59 pm

A few weeks back, Liam and I were up in Austin to bring a sick iMac in to the Apple store. After having spent an hour driving up and facing a similar return trip, it seemed silly not to poke around town a bit more before returning. I thought for a bit about what was [...]

By SeanMcTex | Also posted in Food | Comments (5)

Random Shiny Things

November 15, 2008 – 10:16 am

Jason Young mocked me recently for not having updated for a while, which, of course, hurt my feelings deeply. (Oh, wait, that’s right — I’m a guy, and therefore don’t have feelings. Sweet!) I’ve not been in a writing frame of mind lately, but do want to keep up with our family happenings. Some recent [...]

By SeanMcTex | Also posted in Curiosities, Family | Comments (0)

Sundries

March 31, 2008 – 3:59 pm

A few goings-on of late that bear mentioning:

Liam has started playing Little League baseball. It’s a load of fun, and significantly more action-packed than Major League, since stealing bases is allowed and the boys aren’t so hot at catching the ball. During the last game, which due to time limits was only 4 innings long, [...]

By SeanMcTex | Also posted in Curiosities, Family, Movies | Comments (2)

Emergent Game Design

December 27, 2007 – 8:00 pm

The traditional approach to designing a game with a narrative has been for the game designer to work like a movie screen writer: he creates a series of “scripted” events at various points in a game level which are followed from beginning to end, and which always occur in the same order whenever the game [...]

By SeanMcTex | Also posted in Computers | Comments (1)