Scratch Game Design

Scratch Chase Game Instructions: Arrow keys to move  Scoring:15 points to win

                 Scratch Platformer Instructions:Arrow keys to move  Object: Get the balloons

                                                                                   

In GT we created a game of chase in Scratch. User experience influenced my game by affecting the character I would have chase the other which is a dog chasing a cat. I thought the people using it could make a connection with what is happening. User experience affected my platformer also by the sprites I chose. I figured someone trying to grab the balloons they lost is something everyone would understand.

My chase game has multiple features. It has a point system where you score a point every 3 seconds. You can also lose points by getting touched by the dog. I also have a timer to show you how much time left till you gain a point. The sprites are a dog chasing a cat. I chose this because I thought it was a classic scenario. The background is a beach because I thought it would match the sprites and the action in a game.

My best code in my platformer was when I made the code that if the balloon's Y position equaled something that it showed another balloon. I had never used this piece of code before and when i found out how to use it properly I was really happy. My most difficult bug was when I couldn't get any of my jumps to work and my balloons were really glitchy. Then my friend Nick said " Are they in forevers". It turned out I didn't have certain stuff in forevers so it didn't go correctly. When I played it again It worked fine.

If you want to create your own games click on the link below:
Scratch

Invention Commercial

Title: Invention Commercial Label: GT Portfolio
I: Describe your team’s main goals for this assignment
B: Explain the best “team moment” during production
C: During post-production editing, who did what & why
Embedded Vimeo, SS Commercial Plan & Results

My team's main goal for this assignment was simple. We decided to create a faster way of transportation. We decided it would be built in the water so there is more space to build. It is also made to be a way hospitals can bring patients to them quicker which could result with their life being saved. We called it Hydro Travel because hydro is another name for it's location the water and you use it for traveling at high speeds.

The best team moment we had during our production was figuring out what to do for the entertainment. We were editing the film we already had when we went to go re-film a part that was cut off. While we were walking to get our plan Andrew did his Arnold Schwarzenegger voice. Then an idea struck me. I said that we should have him say "Get to the chopper" but it wouldn't be there so he would need to use our invention, Hydro Travel.

While we were editing everyone did everything. Some times I was editing, sometimes Will was editing and so on. While someone else was editing the people on the sidelines also had a job to do. They had to make sure the video would turn out good. The way our video turned out except for the fact we didn't explain how it works and at the end there wasn't a need for them to go into the capsule. Also I didn't like the fact that the lego men were floating and gliding on the ground.

Composition Scavenger Hunt

In my GT class we are doing a project on composition techniques. The composition technique that is most important to me is leading lines. This is the most important to me because without leading lines the audience may not be focused on the character or main object. They may be focused on extras or the background. If this happens the audience watching might miss an important event. You can see what leading lines is in the video at the top of the screen at the 20 second mark.

The most difficult composition  to me technique is rule of thirds scenery. Here are some reasons why. You would need to have a certain position where you have scenery in one third of the film. You would also need a spot to have something happen. I can use it more by not using it to film the sky but by using it for film at eye level.

My teammates were Andrew and William.William had glasses but now uses contacts and was behind the camera most of the time except for group shot. Outside of school William mows lawns and plays tennis and soccer. Andrew was the one with gel in his hair and is in the screenshot below. Outside of school he plays soccer and acts. While we were editing we assigned things. I was the person who edited the shots with Will doing it sometimes. Andrew was assigned to the transitions and text layers. Will picked the music and helped with transitions.

Cracking the Code

Hey this is James, hope your fall break was great. Were back in school and in GT we are learning coding. I think that everyone should learn at least the basics of coding. Then if someone is interested they will look further into it learning more advanced things. I believe this because if people get interested in coding they may look further into working with technology.  This may lead to the invention of more advanced technology.

My first experience with programming was a game we played in GT class. The game had three different themes to it. One was Angry Birds where you were the red bird going to the pig, another was Plants vs. Zombies where you were a zombie going to the sunflower, and the last one was the squirrel from Ice Age going to the nut. In the game you had to put a combination of blocks to move the character to the target. There was block where if something was to the side of you or ahead it would do a certain action. After you finish all 20 levels you got a certificate which congratulates you for completing a hour of code which is on my blog.

If I could design any program or game I would design a game that is kind of like Mario that has a Pokemon theme. You can throw Poke balls to catch Pokemon that can help you along the way. You can collect coins to upgrade the level of poke balls. The controls would be basic (Arrow keys and spacebar). The boss levels would be legendary Pokemon.

My Humorous Monologue

As you know from my previous posts, my GT class is making a joke with B-roll shots. During this project I have learned how to edit B-Roll and monologue and put B-Roll over my monologue. I learned how to import film from a camera directly into an event box. I learned how to adjust the timing of film and how to take out certain parts. The last thing I learned was how to add my film into a server.

During editing we learned what pad is. Pad is the extra time at the beginning and end of the video. It is added so no words are cut off. Padding your clips is crucial because if something is cut off while you are filming and you didn't notice you wouldn't have that part fully. If part of a video wasn't there the video wouldn't be good.
 
While we were making our comedic film I encountered some weaknesses and strengths. One of my weaknesses was that I didn't really more advanced stuff because I wasn't here while we learned it.One of my strengths that I encountered was that I was very good at was. Things I could improve on is checking the timing on my film. I think I got a 2 because I was outside of the timezone on my video, that is why I gave myself a 2. It wasn't till after class that my friend told me that since I was absent I could have given myself a 3.

The template I followed while filming my monologue and B-Roll

The statistics after the voting from the vote form. SO close to a 3.

Comedy Writing

Title: Comedy Writing Label: GT Portfolio
I: Why is sense of humor an important character trait?
B: Describe 5 tips for writing a humorous narrative.
C: Explain your comedic monologue & why it’s funny.
Visuals: One 5 Shot Laughing Photo Booth .GIF

At my GT program we have a project where we are writing a comedic paragraph. A sense of humor an important character trait because it would make the comedic writing project easier.It is also important because it can make someone happy when they are sad. It is important because it can make you a fun person to hang out with. The last reason that a sense of humor is an important character trait because it can make life better.

In this paragraph I am going to tell you five tips on writing a humorous narrative. The first tip I have for you is that when you are trying to come up with your joke you can take something from your daily life and make it funny. The second step I have for you is you can make it funny with voice inflictions or funny faces. The third tip is when writing your humorous narrative is to make it directly for the audience. The fourth tip for you when writing your humorous narrative is what you are doing when you're saying you're joke plays a role in if people will laugh or not. The fifth tip is that you can be sarcastic about things to make them funny.

My comedic monologue is funny because it is being sarcastic on how great school is. It is also funny because at the end it is saying that if I never had a break from school I wouldn't make it trough the week. My joke also has a part where I say the work follows you home from school (homework) and the work is on a skateboard. This was not my first idea but my teacher told us how being sarcastic can be funny. If you could see my visuals I think it would be little funnier.

Motivational Poster

In the Gifted and Talented [GT] at my school we are making Motivational posters and here are some of the requirements. We need to have two text layers, one with our Personal Quotes and on with our Manifesto.We also need to put 3 symbolic images and 1 portrait. That's just the layer requirements, we also have design requirements  Our design requirements are kerning,a triadic color scheme, we need visual balance, a blending option for our text layers, and adjustment layers for our images.

This paragraph is going to have the steps of me making my Motivational poster. The first step in  making my Motivational poster was writing the text that would be in my poster. The next step was copy and pasting my personal quotes and manifesto in a Photoshop document.Next I put my personal symbols into a folder in finder. Lastly I dragged the photos into Photoshop and arranged them to achieve visual balance.

The biggest challenge in making my Motivational poster was kerning.It was very frustrating,hard,and time consuming. I can improve on kerning by planning on what to do.I could also think if I have time to do it. I also learned at the very end that you could just make things very big and put it in pillar like structures. I am pretty sure that we will be doing a lot of kerning and now I know a easy way to do it.Below are pictures of my text layers,photo arrangement, and both put together.

Manifesto

Hi my name is James Kessler and if you want to learn interesting things about me continue reading.One interesting thing about me is that I can touch my nose with my tongue. I have been in the newspaper twice. I also have hair on the back of my head that I can never make stay down. My favorite color is black and I have one brother, one sister, and a half sister.   

This paragraph is going to be a creative 2015-2016 manifesto. Get the job done.Never give up.Do your best work.Live life to the fullest.Try new things.Spend time with your friends.Have fun.Be the best you.Don't give up.Never stop trying.Family is the most important thing in life.Be kind to others.Never stop living.Live in the moment.Be positive.Never be negative.Perfect isn't real.Be creative.Use your imagination.

The manifesto in my blog is for a gifted and talented program at my school. The ways my manifesto relates to my readers because it explains how to live a good life. It also explains that to live a good life you should be nice to others and to be your best self.