Another new pirate

Captain Peg. I have not finished her yet. She needs hands and a peg leg.

New Pirates

Here is the dreaded BrownBeard the Evil! He is surrounded by a swarm of toadies with hooks for hands. BrownBeard cut off their hands to protect his evil secret. Mu ha ha ha.

4-24-06 Monday meeting

To do:

CC
– STMT add music and levels.
- Cannonball Design (powder monkey) Proof of concept to show to Randy

Barb - script/questions for Ghost ship to or from Randy

Matt
- Opening teaser rewrite. Tell the tale version
- Post new pirate characters to wiki.
- Dead cabin boys sketches.

Adrian
- Work on opening logo for Science Pirates.

Steve
- Review more music. Ask Tomilee for any suggestions.
- Talk to Sam Green to see if he would be interested in experimenting with music to make more cinematic.

Eli - add design documents to wiki.
--------------------------------
Opening Teaser:
- Remove the reference to the hooked handed pirates
- Don't use not mentioning Brownbeard's name, remove "you know who"
- Tell as a tale.
- Play up Brownbeard has placed the curse.
- Play up idea Brownbeard may have made a pack with evil forces
- Play up brownbeard turned on other pirates.

Opening logo:
- include buttons for new, open existing, credits and exit/quit.
- Logo will set mood for teaser.
- Funding blurb on credit and when exit pop-up a blurb screen.

Ghost Ship keys:
- Barb working with Randy to create script/questions.

Powder Monkey - Cannonball Design :
- Allow player to lock and unlock constants.

Progress with Randy on Ghost Ship Keys

In talking with Randy today, we decided the following:

To introduce the constant variable section, we should use an intro cut scene to show an experiment with more of a direct relationship... better something works the more it benefits and something that feels obvious and predictable, so that when the "wrong" conclusion is drawn, they can use intuition to realize the methodology was wrong.

Perhaps a vignette about trying to design a "fair test"
Sword sharpness for slicing coconut (muscle of pirate, size of sword, size of coconut) He wants to know what size of sword is best. Concludes that the little sword is best (because the obvious best big sword had a coconut that was too big and too wimpy a pirate that couldn't lift the sword. We want to use the phrase "fair test". The a big stamp that says "UNFAIR TEST"... Could be made more fair by using same size coconut, same guy swinging and different size sword... so the fair test is one where all the varaibles are the same but one...

or we ask... is THIS a fair test? is THIS a fair test? Conclusion is that if you don't for constants...

On the Constants Cave, we may want to focus on what is *different*, not what is *the same*.

he is going to draft some sample quesitons (like we did with constants) where the language is scaffolded and science terms are introduced last), as well as possible scenarios at the beginning...

Cave 1: constants: We ask what is different in the experiment. Then, "Which of these things change?" Then which stay the same, then which are constant
In Cave 2, independent varaibles: we ask,"What things change (both iv and dv). "What changes does the pirate make?" What *variables* does the pirate change?" then, "What independent varaibles are changed by the pirate?" Then, "What are the independent variables?
In Cave 3, dependent variables: we ask, which of these things are changing? (both independent and dependent) Which of these things change that are responding to the pirates change in the bait..." Then, what depends on the changes the pirate makes, then, what is the dependent variable.
In Cave 4: summary cave: 4 questions where they identify everything... gradual language. order: constant, iv, dv.

I'm going to take a stab at writing these questions, and he'll review. He'll also work on drafting the opening cut scenes once I send these quesiton.

We'll work on cabin boy dialog *after* these questions are refined and *after* we flesh out Powder Monkey monkey.

Possible gameplay element for final battle sequence?

Dungeon Escape! is a Flash-based game which might be a good style of gameplay for the final battle sequence with BrownBeard. Basically, it's just like the old Dragon's Lair laserdisc games Don Bluth did back in the 80's: animation with flashing cues to which you have to react quickly or bad stuff happens. I'm thinking that we could make the time delay before you succeed adjustable depending on how many times you've tried and failed to get through each sequence, and it would be made even easier by answering the post-test questions. In other words, answering the post-test questions correctly gives you more lead time before you have to click. Or perhaps, if you get a question wrong, it diverts you down a more difficult path that you have to pass through, or a path with less treasure, or whatever. Anyway, just an idea.

4-13-06 Meeting

Keep parrot on all the time throughout the pirates.
------------------------------
Ghost Ship Keys
Goal of Ghost ship: Identify IV DV & constant

Original thoughts:
How to present the questions:
For level one:
The pirates are fishing and want to determine what type of bait works catches the highest number of fish.
• In first cave what kind of things are changing. Don’t even mention the word IV/DV
• Have only a slot for IV
• Second what are you going to measure to see what makes a difference
• Each level one peg at a time.

Present the 4 experiment for IV DV
Guiding/learning:
Cave 1: identify what: constant only.

Questions 1: Fishing
(present as a riddle)
4 pirates have a bet to see who can catch the most fish.
They all
• Fish in the same fishing spot
• Fish for the same amount of time
• Same pole and fishing techniques
• Each use different bait.
• They catch different amounts of fish.

What is the same among the pirates
Cave 2 instead of the word same use constant
Are the constant variables?

Question 2: Plank:
What is held constant in this plank walking experiment
They all
• Use the same plank for each prisoner
• Use the same length for each plank
• Same spot on the sea
• The prisoners are all different sizes.
• Each prisoner makes different splash heights.

Questions 3: Raft building
What are the constant variables
They all
• All have same size piece of wood.
• All have same amount and condition of water.
• Same shapes of log.
• Each use different type of wood.
• Each wood supports a different amount of weight.

Questions 4: Sunscreen
pirates experiment make the most effective sunscreen.
They all
• Use different kind of sunscreens.
• Measure how much time Pete is in the sun before each section is burned.
• Use filthy Pete as their subject
• Put the sunscreen on his left arm
• Test lotion on a summer day with no clouds
• Test at noon
Barb to do: Refine & finalize Ghost ship questions with Randy.
------------------------------
Opening Teaser: use 2D Flash
Do not
• use Brownbeard perspective.
• talk to the player but as a storyteller
• Not whole dialogue in pirate talk except when to emphasis things
Do
• Like Katie’s first version: Narrator who has witnessed the whole thing
• Knows the pirate’s life.
• Make mysterious.
• Narrator is a storyteller.
• Barb has an example of audio “…who could ever love a beast like this”
------------------------------
Powder Monkey:
Interface:
Need to show how to lock each variable to show that it is constant
Each of the 4 main variables: cannon angle, gunpowder amount/brand, cannonball weight/ brand and cannon model/speed can be locked
For each variable will be options.
Angle various degrees, ie 25, 45 75, 90…
Gunpowder brand A, B, C, D
Weight, ie 10 lbs, 20 lbs, 40 lbs, 80 lbs….
Model, brand A, B, C, D…
Select and lock parameters each variable, except 1 variable. The parameter of the unlocked variable can be changed to test what happens. Continue to set and lock combinations to find what will work to hit the target.

Have 3 0r 5 ways to get target to make it easier for the player?
Create a protype of this game with no instruction for us to play to see what happens.

Levels: what makes it harder.
Could start them by using one variation at a time.
Does each variable have a set pattern.
What is the baseline mean for this game.

Hand washing Experiment:
• No more 1st mate player will speak directly to captain.
• A review of all past experiments/games
• All maps, dead cabin boys collected
• Parrot triggers the player to the hand washing experiment
• Graph have players create graph. Click on plate and plot on graph
• Need storyboard - Adrian will do

End of experiment Captain gives inspirational speech
Rename the ship from Misery to ___________ Need to come up with triumphant name of ship
------------------------------
Jokes
Katie will collect Jokes collect to use throughout when the whole thing flushed out.
These jokes will be used throughout.
------------------------------
To do:

Monday:
• Barb will present the IV DV samples to kids on Monday.
• Monday regular meeting:
• Katie Opening teaser
• Ardian Storyboard
• Establish name for ship Misery after experiment

Barb:
• Refine & finalize Ghost ship questions with Randy.
• Wed Talk to Mike on evaluation
Katie
• opening teaser script
• collect jokes
• check on copyright issues for jokes.
Eli
• Add design docs to pirate Wiki
• Work on Powder Monkey
• They will mock up the game – next ???
Matt
• Powder Monkey after STMT
• Experiment storyboard revise
CC
• STMT playable
• program Powder Monkey after the STMT & Ghost ship
Steve Music:
• go through our library CDs to see what we have;
• check permissions
• Where to get more if need
• Sounds we need:
o Opening teaser strong like the Muppet Movie.
o Victory
o General happy
o Action
o Spooky, danger,
o Science
o Passage of scenes
o Credits

Combined summary of the April 6 & 7 meetings:

Design Doc: in process of creating
• Cabin boys
• Super Tiki Monkey Temple (STMT)
• Powder Monkey: aka Super Fly Cannon and Snoobie Drink
• Ghost Ship Keys: aka IV/DV (independent/dependent variables) obstacle coarse
• Hand Washing Experiment
• Final Game:

Story Outline: need to convey
In the Intro: Teaser (movie trailer) - Teaser to be about one minute
All the pirates including Borwnbeard think that it is a curse. Pirates think that Brownbeard cursed the ship. Brownbeard raids the ship and leaves the ship too pooped. Captain (Captain Peg?) only survivor and picks up a crew but are too pooped to do anything.
• Brownbeard is bad and the villain
• Only one pirate captain is left but they have been cursed
• Pirates are poopy
• Who will brave him
• Need 1 brave soul someone (you) to lift curse
• Maps to island/find Brownbeard/island/Lair
• Strong crew – break curse/solve mystery

In game conversation (dialog samples)
Pirate
• “It’s a curse, I tell you”
• That Brownbeard is really mean…
• Reveal existence of map

Dead Cabin Boy (DCB):
• It is not a curse, I think the problem is with hand washing, we can do an experiment to prove it.
• Hold the knowledge of the various scientific terms and items needed for the each game. (hypothesis, variables, …)

Captain
• You cabin boys are all the same – if you don’t think this is a curse prove it.
• We need to break the curse if we’ll ever beat Brownbeard.

Cabin Boy you (CB) & Captain conversation:
They talk each other through the door of privy.
• CB: I will wait until you are done…
• Captain: No I am always in the privy talk to me here.

(4-7-06) Update of the Dead Cabin Boys (DCB):
• More than 4 – not sure on how many yet but as many as it takes to explain story and help explain scientific items.
• Helps the player. The heads of Dead Cabint Boys can be collected for future reference.
• Explain some of the story

Journal: are we continuting to use the journal?
Roam around the ship and run into cabin boys (dead) explain that the ship isn’t cursed I have a thought on why this is happening.

Provisions Needed: will no longer be collected but provided to player.
• Scientist guide
• hot water
• Soap, towels
• Petridishes
• 3 or 4 map pieces
----------------------------------------------------------

STMT Super Tiki Monkey Temple: Game elements:

• Coins and Gems: Collecting coins and gems has to be in this game Eventually the coins and gems will be used for buying rank for the player.
• Map will this be included to be possible used to open the last game. Secret hiding place.
• Hints are free
----------------------------------------------------------
Powder Monkey: aka Super Fly Cannon, Snoobie Drinks:

• Create direct reactions.
• Baseline control game Set a base line.
• how to hold a variable constant.

Ed Objective:
• baseline needed, what it is
• Isolate variable at a time before combining.

Game Element
Barb: wants to the players to try and experience the difficulty with all the variables. If they aren’t getting the target they get help. They miss 4 times & they get help
• Hit the target by using the correct variables.
• Experiment with 4-5 variables to learn that each have an independent variable effect as well as combined effects.
• 1 out of 256 chances or 4 out of 256 chances to get right.
• Possible have different levels ????
• 1st level only use one variable ie cannon angle, size of cannonball...
• Just shooting a target at a distance to right ot left angles.

Variables: 4 for each variable
a) Cannon angle
b) Gunpowder amount/brand
c) Cannonball weight/brand – Various brands will be heavy, medium, light
d) Cannon model control speed

Barb will ask Randy to see if he sees any problems. For example intuitive.

Need to create a interface. Possible like the whizz ball interface??
View from side .

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ghost Ship Keys aka Iv/dv obstacle coarse:
http://cahedev.nmsu.edu/development/storyboards/pirateghostship/

Independent/dependent variable: goal to make kids comfortable with the vocabulary and identify between the two.

• Navigate through the Keys to answer the IV/DV questions to raise the ghost ship from the bottom of the ocean to retrieve the map.
• 3 at each of the 3 caves so there are 9 questions total.
• Each time the questions is answered correctly the ghost ship rises a bit more.
o Need to answer all the 3 sets (all 3 of the caves) of questions
o Only need to get 1 of the 3 questions in each set (caves) correct to move forward.
• Once the ghost ship raised the player either gets to bomb the ghost ship to get the treasure map OR don’t bomb just board the ghost ship?
• Hint given by parrots.
• Create a test version with 3 strikes out.

Solving puzzle questions to determin what is a independent or dependent:
Sail through rocks , come up to a cave and a question for the variable comes up. Each cave will have 3 questions/situations. Answer correctly and unlocks the answer for direction. Solve 3 questions in a row for practice. Get it wrong the sea monster pulls them go backwards. More monsters get you your ship gets battered. Have to get 1 of 3 to move on.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hand washing Experiment
Hand Washing storyboard

Treasure map – get all pieces
Refer back to Matt’s storyboard: ( Matt will redo the storyboard
http://cahedev.nmsu.edu/development/storyboards/piratehandwash)

Dialogue:
• Captain: what good is having the map when we are all too tired to go get the treasure.
• CB: I think I have a solution for that.
• Capt: Prove it

Educational Objectives:
• Can’t fail once entered
• Here they are executing the experiment.
• Creating an experiment
• Drafting hypothesis, iv-dv variables. The draft were to be created during the games. The Dead Cabin Boys help you through the draft. This needs to be introduced before the start the games. That is where the execute experiment.
• CB boys show up when things need to be taught

Experiment revision thoughts:
Remove the scientist
Does the sampling need to be explained or talked about. Fact you can’t do just once.
Remove the picking of pirates.
Pick first pirate back to whack a pirate cut to scene Dead Cabin Boys struggling get the pirate’s hand on the Petri dish (this will just be one still frame) Narration explaining what is going on.

Dead Cabin Boys may address the 4 questions of setting up the experiments – Barb will ask Randy
Song about bacteria
According to Randy wants the experiment based on observation. Cabin Boys will deliver small chunks of information. Cabin Boys will be the observer so the player doesn’t have to do al the observations.

Collect Dead Cabin Boys skulls – interface skulls of the collected Cabin Boys & the Cabin Boys explain the observation of the experiments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Interface for overall game:
Along the bottom show the things that need to be collected:
Gems & Coins needed to advance in rank. Player can buy his rank.
No longer collect the experiment stuff: Petri dish, soap, paper towels, water. These items will be provided.

Dead Cabin Boys skull collection–
When Cabin Boys skulls are collected, the head isn’t on the ghost body anymore. When you come across a Cabin Boys for the first time the parrot says: It is good to take him with us he seems to know a lot of things.

Exit button

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Final Game
Have them wrap up story and use what they have learned from previous lessons.
Pirate aspects:
• Need sword fight
• You or Captain fighting
• Walk the plank
• Player becomes captain?
• 2 ships rope swinging

Possibly:
Sword play Brownbeard talks about an IvDv situation and you have to tell the captain which is iv, dv to get a hit.
Cannonball

Collect data of the players on final game play to see what they learned. Keep score of final game and place their rank (the captain’s list). Having them enter on captain’s list track the records.

How to do final game: maybe like a questions and answer or multiple questions. Series of scenes of final battle and in between cut scene to a question.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To dos:
• Storyboard Ghost ship Keys - Adrian
• Storyboard Powder Monkey – Gerritt
• Storyboard Hand washing Experiment - Matt
• Pirate wiki or way to post pirates files – CC
• Rough mock up of Powder Monkey by next week - CC
• (I need to add yesterday’s notes to blog)
• Have Randy define the bacteria song one liners
• Bottom bar of whole game mock up – next week Matt make it as flash and not 3D
• Get opening teaser – need all the games flushed out in order to write the teaser.
• Experiment storyboard
• Final game
• Barb talk to Randy define bacteria song ?

Next Week:
Storyboard refine:
• Ghost ship
• Powder Monkey
• Experiment
• Opening teaser

Narration pieces for in betweens how to get from game to game and to the experiment

Need to revisit to figure out:
• How to earn map?
• Better name for han wash experiment
• story for final game
• Journal - are we not doing the journal
Is the Captain's name Peg?

Barb will contact:
• Barb: Mike Timms to help on evaluations
• Barb: evaluations?
• Barb/Katie: cabin Boy dialog
Island name for the pirates:
Island of the lost pirates:
Agar island Isolation reef island. Solitude Desolate Quarantine
Infirm Privy reef Landing Archepelago Cape Distressed Wretched.The Straits of distress
***Isle of misfortune *** like this one the best

Brownbeard lair: need to come up with name

Pirate Retreat: 4.7.06 To Do Items

TO DO'S:

Matt:
Storyboard for Experiment
Bottom Bar mock up

Adrian:
Storyboard ghost ship keys

Gerritt:
Storyboard powder monkey

CC:
Pirate Wiki or way to post pirate files

Barb:
Have Randy define bacteria song one liners
Contact Mike Timms for research
Contact Randy for evaluations questions

Barb and Katie: Cabin Boy Dialog

Barb, Pam, Elizabeth:
Design Documents

Katie
Opening teaser

Teaser Elements:
1 minutes or less
She is the only survivor, captain needs crew from Brown Beards captured pirates stranded on the island.

NEEDS TO BE IN Script:
Brown Beard is bad
Pirates think they are cursed
Pirates of poopy
Need someone (you) to lift the curse
Get Map to find Brown Beard
This is the only pirate ship left
Add monkey's pirates

Island Names:
• Isle of Misfortune
• Brown Beards Island (Can use a new name)

FOR NEXT WEEK:
Define Ghost Ship Keys
Powder Monkey
Experiment
Review Opening Teaser:

RETREAT TIME NEXT WEEK: APRIL 13th 8:30 - 2:00