Comments on: Parallels between the MDA framework and the revision process. http://theautumnalcity.com/criticism/parallels-between-the-mda-framework-and-the-revision-process/ Gaming from a writer's perspective Mon, 08 Mar 2010 17:06:33 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: Travis Megill http://theautumnalcity.com/criticism/parallels-between-the-mda-framework-and-the-revision-process/comment-page-1/#comment-99 Travis Megill Wed, 10 Dec 2008 13:34:59 +0000 http://theautumnalcity.com/?p=279#comment-99 Thanks for reading! Check out Man Bytes Blog for a lot more information on the MDA. Corvus talks about it a lot, and is more focused on game design than I can be without any experience in it. Thanks for reading! Check out Man Bytes Blog for a lot more information on the MDA. Corvus talks about it a lot, and is more focused on game design than I can be without any experience in it.

]]> By: Travis Megill http://theautumnalcity.com/criticism/parallels-between-the-mda-framework-and-the-revision-process/comment-page-1/#comment-98 Travis Megill Wed, 10 Dec 2008 13:33:44 +0000 http://theautumnalcity.com/?p=279#comment-98 I think it's pretty well illustrated in Anne Lamott's essay, "Shitty First Draft." You have to get something down on the page before you can actually figure out what your real idea is. Of course it may change completely along the way, but even if the basic idea stays the same you probably don't know what you've got until it's out of your head. One of my biggest revelations recently was that my first draft is not any kind of gospel. The decisions I made as far as perspective/setting/characters, etc. are not in any way inspired, and if I actually want to tell a good story I might have to change those elements that I just kind of assumed when I first started writing to get something on the page. As far as the framework goes, I think it can be loosely applied to other things, but it is specific when you read it. As you can see on Corvus' post about it in the comments, I was having some trouble with his comparison of grammar to mechanics. Most of my disagreement was my lack of understanding of games and/or the framework itself, but I think it's specific enough that it doesn't easily translate to everything you can think of. Then it would probably be less useful for game design specifically. I think it’s pretty well illustrated in Anne Lamott’s essay, “Shitty First Draft.” You have to get something down on the page before you can actually figure out what your real idea is. Of course it may change completely along the way, but even if the basic idea stays the same you probably don’t know what you’ve got until it’s out of your head.

One of my biggest revelations recently was that my first draft is not any kind of gospel. The decisions I made as far as perspective/setting/characters, etc. are not in any way inspired, and if I actually want to tell a good story I might have to change those elements that I just kind of assumed when I first started writing to get something on the page.

As far as the framework goes, I think it can be loosely applied to other things, but it is specific when you read it. As you can see on Corvus’ post about it in the comments, I was having some trouble with his comparison of grammar to mechanics. Most of my disagreement was my lack of understanding of games and/or the framework itself, but I think it’s specific enough that it doesn’t easily translate to everything you can think of. Then it would probably be less useful for game design specifically.

]]> By: Rachael Webster http://theautumnalcity.com/criticism/parallels-between-the-mda-framework-and-the-revision-process/comment-page-1/#comment-97 Rachael Webster Wed, 10 Dec 2008 03:54:06 +0000 http://theautumnalcity.com/?p=279#comment-97 Very useful framework - thanks for this write-up. Very useful framework – thanks for this write-up.

]]> By: Ben Abraham http://theautumnalcity.com/criticism/parallels-between-the-mda-framework-and-the-revision-process/comment-page-1/#comment-96 Ben Abraham Wed, 10 Dec 2008 03:20:03 +0000 http://theautumnalcity.com/?p=279#comment-96 In one of the first lectures I attended this year, our lecturer talked about the act of creating through writing. I think it's similar to what you described at the beginning - starting off with one idea and just by writing it out, ending up at a completely different one that you never intended. Often I actually like my 2nd ideas much better than my first. I like how closely the MDA framework relates to more than just games and I wonder what that says about the framework itself. In one of the first lectures I attended this year, our lecturer talked about the act of creating through writing. I think it’s similar to what you described at the beginning – starting off with one idea and just by writing it out, ending up at a completely different one that you never intended. Often I actually like my 2nd ideas much better than my first.

I like how closely the MDA framework relates to more than just games and I wonder what that says about the framework itself.

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