The Crystal Maze was a British gameshow set in the 1990s hosted by Richard O Brien (Retro!). Produced by Chatsworth Television, the gameshow was originally shown on Channel 4 between 1990 and 1995 and nowadays old repeats of the show may be seen on Challenge.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Crystal_Maze
Each show, a different team of six contestants (three male and three female) are led around the Maze by Richard O Brien around the different time zones. In each zone, the team play three or four games which take place in one of six chambers. Although the contestants work as a team, each game is played by one of the team members which are nominated to do so, who must enter the cell. The other team members must remain outside the cell, although they are usually allowed to help their team mate by shouting encouragement and suggestions. Completing a game correctly earns them a time crystal, which is worth 5 seconds towards the final challenge in the crystal dome.
Each game was given a time limit of between 2 and 3 minutes. Any contestant who failed to get out of the cell within the time limit (regardless of whether they had the time crystal or not) was locked in the cell. They could be released and play a further part in the show, but only if the team sacrificed one of the time crystals they would have earned in previous games.
Once all the time zones have been visited, each time crystal is converted into 5 seconds inside the Crystal Dome. where remaining team members aim to grab flying golden tokens (but avoid grabbing silver tokens) and post them through a letterbox. The performance in the Crystal Dome determines if a prize is won or not.
All the remaining members who haven't been locked in the cells would participate in the final challenge "The Crystal Dome" where they must collect as many gold tokens as possible, while avoiding collecting silver tokens. The tokens that the contestants collect in the Crystal Dome are posted through a 'magic letterbox,' each gold token is worth one point, and each silver token collected subtracts one point from the team's total score.
If the team manages to score 100 points or more, they would win the grand prize, which was usually an activity holiday for all the contestants who participated in the gameshow. if you scored between 50 and 100 points you would win a smaller prize, such as a day trip somewhere. If you failed to score 50 points in the final challenge then you wouldn't win a grand prize, but each player, regardless of what you would win, would take home a crystal replica, which proved you were on The Crystal Maze. After series 1, the minor prizes (worth 50-99 points) were taken out of the show, so you would only win a grand prize if you scored 100 points or more.
The Games
Each series of Crystal Maze used approximately 50 different games. Each game was categorised as either:
Physical - Emphasis on being agile, strong and flexible.
Mental - Basically, word-association and mathematical puzzles
Skill - Testing dexterity and marksmanship.
Mystery - Anything at all!
Some games were designated as "automatic lock-in" games. If a player attempts an automatic lock-in game and fails to perform some specified part of the task, or performs some forbidden action (e.g. touching the floor with any part of their body) then they are locked in at once regardless of whether they have obtained the crystal or not. The contestant has no choice as to whether they play an automatic lock-in game or not; they will always hope not to have to play one! Once a player has been locked in, the captain must choose whether to buy them out or not. This decision can be made at any time between two games, so long as there is time for some available team member to return to the cell where the lock-in took place, open the door, deposit one of the team's crystals and return to the rest of the team with the rescued team member. If the team captain is locked in, then the vice-captain takes over the captain's responsibilities. If both captain and vice-captain are locked in (which did happen once or twice) a replacement captain was elected on the spot.
http://www.ukgameshows.com/ukgs/The_Crystal_Maze
Have a feeling the Crash Bandicoot games could be heavily influenced by The Crystal Maze, because in the Crash Bandicoot games you obtain crystals at the end of each level, like as in the Crystal Maze gameshow. The settings and zones also seem to be very similar to those of the Crystal Maze.
Similar to Industrial Zone
http://www.bukisa.com/articles/593397_the-top-10-crash-bandicoot-games
Like the Futuristic Zone
http://www.mobygames.com/game/playstation/crash-bash/screenshots/gameShotId,304412/
A bit like the Aztec jungle setting
http://pixelatedgeek.com/2010/07/retro-gaming-reviews-crash-bandicoot-1996/
Medieval theme setting
http://hpzr.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=games&action=print&thread=5668
http://uk.gamespot.com/pages/unions/read_article.php?topic_id=26984218&union_id=18665
http://www.crashmania.net/?menu=3&page=mysteries-3
- What are the four different time zones in the Crystal Maze? What were the settings like?
There are four different time zones in the Crystal Maze; Aztec , Industrial, Futuristic and Medieval.
Aztec - A sand-covered floor flanked by ziggurats on either side and a totem pole.
Futuristic - A space station filled with neon lights and electronics.
Medieval - A castle with wooden timbers and stone carvings.
Industrial - A wasteland of dirty metal doors, disused oil barrels and security fences.
In later series, Industrial was replaced with Ocean - a sunken ship called the S. S. Atlantis. The maze cost something in the region of £250,000 to build and was approximately the size of two football pitches.
The Aztec zone contained lots and lots of sand (22 tonnes, to be exact) and exotic rainforest plants. Also had a river running through it, and lots of ancient stone buildings, with totem poles. Kind of like an ancient jungle ruin setting, as in Disney's Jungle Book.
http://www.mikefenton.net/page51.htm
http://www.boblishman.freeserve.co.uk/thestory.htm
Set in a shiny space-station, the Futuristic Zone housed bright strip lighting, long walkways and a computer which talked to you. This zone had a higher quota of automatic lock-in games than the others, as the doors to the games would only slide open by entering a four-buttoned code to open the door.
The games here were more scientific, with chemicals needing to be moved, robots driven around set mazes and even a game where the contestant was put in a room with a massive spider's web, hinting that the space-station was a zoological or biological one.
http://www.mikefenton.net/page51.htm
The Medieval zone was probably the darkest of all the settings in the Crystal Maze, with creaking armour, screeching owls, cobwebs and cold stony walls. Creepy!
http://h2g2.com/dna/h2g2/A618932
http://www.mikefenton.net/page51.htm
The Industrial zone was full of greasy oil kegs, wire mesh and dirty metal doors. Closer to the present period, there wasn't really anything special about the Industrial Zone like the others. Again, a lack of normal studio lighting, but this was replaced by light shone through green filters and an awful lot of orange sodium lighting to give the effect of a post-nuclear time period.
http://h2g2.com/dna/h2g2/A618932
http://www.mikefenton.net/page51.htm
The Ocean Zone was set inside a sunken ship, known as the SS Atlantis, which many felt it reminded them of the Titanic. The interior of the ship had lots of broken and tilted cruise ship furniture, which contributed to the sunken ship theme. The games were generally all water-based or set in a room with loads of boilers, and any contestant unlucky enough to get wet was sent away to the main boiler room to dry off.
http://h2g2.com/dna/h2g2/A618932
http://www.mikefenton.net/page51.htm
A map was displayed onscreen while watching The Crystal Maze, which showed you which zones the contestants were heading, while they were travelling around the maze.
Map used during series 1-3
Map used during series 4-6
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Crystal_Maze#The_Zones
- What is a UI (User Interface)?
A user interface (Or UI) is basically a controller, something that connects a user and something they want to use, in this term, usually a computer program or something modern, hi-tech and digital. This also refers to commands and menus in computer programs and games.
User interfaces are extremely important, one of the most important aspects of any program or game because it determines how easy it is to use a program and get the program to do what you want. This is also a very difficult task to achieve.
There are lots of different types of user interfaces. A basic interface contains a set of commands or menus which help the user to connect to the program.
A command driven interface is one in which you enter commands, so for example you would press the control buttons without selecting command options onscreen. This usually occurs in most console games, although sometimes there may be a tutorial at the start of the games which goes through the controls, but even then you shouldn't have to select a control from the screen unless the regular gameplay in the game is the same.
A menu driven interface is one in which you select command options from various menus displayed on the screen. This would often happen on computers and some PC games, and also appear on the menus for most games, and even on mobile devices.
These are usually represented by text, onscreen graphics, or icons, although sometimes it might not be clear about what they are at first, but are usually user friendly and easy to use. They also don't require remembering what a lot of different buttons do on controllers. However, they can be time consuming if there are a lot of menus to go through compared to command driven interfaces, where you can get to the desired option more quickly.
Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs) are very similar to menu driven interfaces, except that they are strictly represented by pictures or, in technical terms "graphics" hence the name Graphical User Interfaces. GUIs are very easy to use for beginners as they have an image to indicate what they do, which makes it much easier to use, especially for people with learning difficulties such as dyslexia. Also, GUIs are arguably more interesting because they are always illustrated.
However, they use a lot of memory, so they could act a lot slower compared to a command driven interface. They also can be irritating for experienced users who may wish to go through many options really quickly.
GUIs have become common on personal computers (PC's).
A powerful program with a poorly designed user interface has little value.
http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/U/user_interface.html
http://www.teach-ict.com/as_a2/topics/user_interfaces/user_interfaces.htm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/ict/software/5userinterfacesrev2.shtml
- What makes a good user interface?
A good interface makes it easy for users to tell the computer what they want to do, for the computer to request information from the users, and for the computer to present information that's easy to understand for the user. Clear communication between the user and the computer is how a good UI design should work.
A clear interface helps prevent user errors, makes important information obvious, and makes the interface easy to use.
Good UIs should also be consistent. A consistent interface allows users to apply previously learned knowledge to new tasks. Effective applications are both consistent within themselves and consistent with one another.
The best interface designs are simple. Simple designs are easy to learn and to use and give the interface a consistent look. A good design requires a good balance between maximizing functionality and maintaining simplicity through progressive disclosure of information.
The user should also be able to control everything that goes on in the program/game, and the machine should respond immediately and effectively.
Users should also be able to notice immediate changes when they tell whatever it is they're trying to do to act, which should also be what the user intends to happen. This allows users to feel that they are in charge of the computer's activities. For example, for a game, you want the controls to be accurate to what is happening in the game, and for whatever it is that is being controlled (like the character) to act immediately and appropriately to your actions on the controller. Good UIs should keep the user informed and provide immediate feedback. This feedback would also need to be appropriate to the task. All of this should also make the interactions pleasant to use and not frustrating
All users of machines make mistakes. Their actions should be able to be made reversible if necessary. A good interface needs to provide facilities for the user to explore, play around, make mistakes and undo them, in a trial and error type of system. This applies to the undo action when doing projects on the computer, or a retry system on a video game (such as lives, and checkpoints)
http://uw714doc.sco.com/en/SDK_vtcl/vtclgN.style_goodui.html
- How do we make a user interface friendly for people with dyslexia?
Dyslexia comes from the Greek language meaning 'difficulty with words'. It's a symptom of a number of different information processing disorders in the brain. Because there are so many different possible underlying problems dyslexia is hard to closely define because it affects people in many different ways. However, the basic problem is a difficulty learning to read, spell and write, despite adequate intellect and teaching.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/physical_health/conditions/dyslexia2.shtml
Typical ways to help people with dyslexia operate user interfaces, can be to use sounds, colours and symbols instead of letters to guide the user through instructions or interactive features. This will allow basic commands to be operated without the user having to read sentences on a screen, which could be a problem for some dyslexic people. These features are particularly used with games controllers for the Playsation, Xbox and some handheld consoles. For example the 'X' on a playstation controller replaces the word 'accept' or 'enter' and the square can be to 'attack', 'fire' or 'jump' which makes it easy for the user to operate games or applications whatever their level of disability.
- How do we make a user interface friendly for people with colour blindness?
Colour blindness or colour vision deficiency is the inability or decreased ability to see colour, or shades of colour, under lighting conditions when colour vision should not normally be affected..
Use of black and white shades in graphics, and different fonts in screen displays, basic command text and backgrounds, will help people with colour blindness as the eye and brain only has to process information that is monochrome or black and white. Also, more complex commands or instructions can use different fonts to help the user distinguish between diffent features of the interface.
Good graphic design within the user interface, avoiding using colour and colour contrasts to express information, not only helps colour blind people, but also aids understanding by normally sighted people. Such design methods can also combine black and white words, symbols, and images to create a visual representation of ideas and messages.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_blindness#Design_implications_of_color_blindness
Most computer and console keyboards use black and white on letter and function keys as do text boxes on interactive gameplay which are also monochrome. These are good because they are not reliant on colour to distinguish between the different control buttons, just icons, shapes and letters.
- What makes a bad user interface?
There are many bad user interfaces out there, many more than people would wish to exist, which can make working on computer devices hard. You can easily tell if a user interface is bad from the following traits, and should NOT be what UIs are about:
Complicated: UIs should not be too complicated. this can cause UIs to be very confusing for people not used to the program, who need the UI to be as simple and as user friendly as possible.
Inefficient: If UIs make a program do something you don't want it to. Users should always be in control of the programs, and this is why these things should not happen in UIs.
Confusing: UIs must be kept simple so they are user friendly for beginners, and should not contain complicated instructions for how to use the UI. If a user has to learn lots of complicated techniques which can be hard to remember for a lot of people, people could start to lose interest in using the UI, because they would be putting more effort into learning how to use an UI than the creator of the UI did to create it. As a small, friendly and wise bear said, and I must admit I relate so much to this, "I am a bear with a very little brain and big words bother me." The same applies for most things.
Unresponsive: Users would want programs to work immediately on their command. If a user has to wait for the interface to respond, this costs valuable time and can also be very frustrating.
Unclear: Users will need to know what they're doing with a program, with simple controls, and will need detailed, yet simple and relevant instructions for how to use the program. If a user can't grasp how to use an UI, this could also frustrate them and put them off learning how to cooperate with a program.
Irrelevant: People must be given the correct information when using UIs and must be as clear and simple as possible. not only can irrelevant information be annoying, but also time consuming, and can also take up unnecessary memory that the program could use for other things.
Unnecessary: Lots of things can be considered unnecessary when it comes to UIs, from going through lots of menus, to unwanted information. These things must be avoided when it comes to UIs. People who make UIs must make sure to keep the program simple and only provide the information that is needed without digressing.
Time Consuming: Most people who use UIs want to get things done as soon as possible, going through with little options as possible. If an UI takes a long time to respond, then people will get frustrated with the program, which will make them lose interest in the program.
Unforgiving: Users are bound to make mistakes from time to time, especially beginners, who aren't used to the UI. If a UI does not have a back tracking or recovery system, such as an undo button, or 'back' button, it will affect the usability and accessibility of the UI. Being able to undo and redo your work on a UI is essential.
http://www.sapdesignguild.org/community/design/golden_rules.asp
- What can Weapons and Pickups be in games? How do they work?
A large number of video games nowadays contain at least 1 weapon or pickup, not just in first person shooters, but in any game at all, such as using items which can hinder opponents in racing games such as Mario Kart (which also has a very good pickup system, I might add.)
Pickups in games are pretty much anything that can be 'picked up' by the player in a game that is usually used to your advantage. Features such as health, new weapons, tools and ammo are all examples of pickups.
Weapons in games are also very diverse, because they can be pretty much any man made object that helps you to fight enemies, from more modern weapons such as laser guns (in a sci fi themed game) to a more old fashioned weapon such as a bow and arrow. Each weapon should have their own qualities and advantages/disadvantages, such as weapon strength, ammo and rarity. For example a really good and powerful weapon would probably be really rare and have a low ammo count, compared to a common weapon, which would do standard damage and have a standard ammo count.
Usually weapons would be either contained in boxes, or ready on the floor to pick up. The player should be able to walk up to the weapon, and press a button if necessary, (which can sometimes pop up in a small icon onscreen to give the hint of which button the player should press) and the weapon would be theirs, ready to use. If a player tries to pick up a weapon that is already theirs, sometimes nothing would happen, and sometimes the ammo from that weapon would be added to the current ammo count of the weapon.
The weapon controls should be limited to one button to fire and also, in FPS games, the angle of the weapon would be controlled by the player as well usually by an analog stick or motion controls. This makes the whole shooting experience seem a lot more real.
(this was all in my own words, from my own knowledge of what I think is correct, just hope it is)
- Equality and Diversity in gaming.
Equality is about ‘creating a fairer society, where everyone can participate and has the opportunity to fulfil their potential whatever their nationality, gender, religious beliefs, ability or disability, and doesn't discriminate against these qualities.
Diversity literally means difference. When it is used as a contrast or addition to equality, it is about recognising individual as well as group differences, treating and valuing people as individuals, and placing positive value on their diversity.
Game designers have to take account of equality and diversity issues in order for games to appeal to as wider range of potential customers as possible, and to allow everyone the opportunity to participate in this exciting media. Typically equality and diversity in gaming usually covers language, where games are available in a number of countries native language and where game characters can be both male or female with black or white skin. In some cases characters may have disabilities such as being blind.
In game play controllers and functions are designed in such a way to be understood by a wide variety of people and countries. The use of symbols and colours also allow people with a wide range of abilities access gameplay.
http://www.faculty.londondeanery.ac.uk/e-learning/diversity-equal-opportunities-and-human-rights/what-is-equality-and-diversity
- What info is needed in a first person shooter game?
First person shooter games (or FPS games) are games where you control weapons that are usually projectile, such as a gun or a crossbow, which is viewed from the eyes of the character you are controlling, usually the main character in a game, hence the first person part of the FPS game. During gameplay, you would not often see the character in general, unlike most action/adventure games, unless they would appear in a cutscene.
Most FPS games should include the following information:
Rotating around the X and Y axis: This needs to be controllable so you can control how the weapon aims up, down, left and right. If you couldn't move your weapon in these directions and if it just stayed still, you probably wouldn't hit many targets and if the targets can attack you back, your character could get hurt. Most FPS games should let you manage the sensitivity of the rotations of your weapon.
Brightness: If a game has very dark surroundings, or has a very dark setting to start with, it will be very hard to see what you are doing in the game if you don't have the brightness setting up high. This will help you to see targets and details a lot more easily. You can always turn the brightness down if the level is too bright or if you want to make the darkened surroundings more challenging for yourself. This also helps with relating to all skill levels, so beginners will be able to increase the brightness on darker stages, and more experienced players may choose to have a darker setting to test themselves, so everyone's happy, I guess.
Weapon variety: In most FPS games, you will need different weapons to get through different stages of the game. Guns may be great for shooting faraway targets, but a different weapon may work better for close combat with targets and obstacles, such as a knife or a sword. Sometimes you may just even want to fight with your fists! Guns may also be dangerous to the character if used in close combat because a bullet may bounce off a target and into the player, causing them to lose a lot of health.
The controls also need to be similar for each weapon, and weapons should also be switched out easily, quickly and effectively. Some weapons can have button shortcuts in some games, so by pressing a button, you can get equipped with a different weapon.
Maps: In FPS games it is important to know where you are and where you need to be. Knowing your way around any FPS game is essential, so you know where all of the good places to take cover are so you don't get hurt. These hiding spots should also be good to shoot from and be reasonably hard to find. Things like ducking behind barrels, hiding behind walls, anything it takes to keep your character safe.
Points system: It's good to know if you're doing well, and a points system can really contribute to this. Points systems have really been enhanced in this day and age by a lot of games having online leaderboards, which are often separated into different categories, such as Friends, Local, National, Continental and Worldwide, so you can see how well you fare off against not only your friends, but the whole world, from the comfort of your own home.
Ammo/Reload: Not all FPS games have this, but if you run out of ammo, you need to either find some quickly, and/or reload as quickly as possible. If you need to find some ammo, there should be lots of different places in the game where you can pick up ammo, and you should be up and firing away immediately. Also, the best weapons are usually in the hardest places to get to, and are usually the most rewarding.
Health: As with ammo, you should be able to pick up health if it's low. No doubt you're not at all likely to go through a level, both in single player and multiplayer (both local and online) unscathed, so gaining health when it's low is essential to the player, especially beginners.
http://vgstrategies.about.com/od/basicgamingtipstricks/a/shooterbasics_2.htm
-How do UIs work in games?
Usually in games, UIs would affect every aspect of the game and how you would do things in the game, such as what all of the controls do. They also have to be productive and relevant to the game and have to do what's expected of them. UIs affect everything in a game, from the menu options to the controls of the gameplay. Players would want the UIs to be responsive, so they feel like they're actually playing the game and not waiting for things to happen, and UIs also play a major role in whether a game is enjoyable or not. In my opinion, the most important part of a game is how it works and that the gameplay is easy to grasp and is responsive.
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