Every project allows us to build on previous experience and try out new things. Trafalgar Origins was no exception, giving us the opportunity to evolve the multiplayer system used in 1066 as well as take our first big step into the muddy world of Facebook Connect.

Facebook integration was an integral part of Trafalgar Origins but was developed as a separate set of components that could be used by other Channel 4 indies in future commissions. We wanted to demonstrate by example, best practice with the heady ambition of it ultimately unifying how future Channel 4 projects integrate with Facebook.

This blog post is all about the learning from this process and the reasons behind the specific implementation of their new system.

Socialising the game design

Our biggest inspiration for single-player socially connected gaming was Trials HD. Being a firm studio favourite, it motivates play by showing your score in ...

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With game plays in excess of 14 million and numerous awards and nominations (SXSW, BIMA + BAFTA), we thought it time to write a post on how we made 1066. 

Getting started

1066 was our first project with C4 Education, commissioned to coincide with a two-part TV drama produced by the nice folks at Hardy Pictures. Keen to repeat their previous game success, C4 gave us a small chunk of development money to put together a game prototype in late September 2008.

C4 Education's brief was to develop a game that was both entertaining and educationally robust. The subject matter suited this brief perfectly, and working alongside Greg Jenner (the historical consultant) and Hardy's Art Department we collected historic and visual resources to act as reference for our early ideas.

Alongside this research, we also conducted some qualitative research with school children who helped steer us towards a blood-thirsty ...

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This year we had the honour of sponsoring Playful, a one-day event all about games and play. Organised by Toby Barnes and his team at Pixel-Lab, this year’s theme was ‘Cross Disciplinary Frolicking’.

Conway Hall was filled to the brim with great speakers, an eager audience and three gigantic tea urns pumping out tea and coffee all day. The day was jam-packed and I’ve written up some of my personal highlights:

'The Ashes'

I've met Tassos a couple of times and both occasions he has either talked about or has been watching cricket. His analysis of The Ashes as an ambient game experience for those watching, or listening to it was passionate and fun. He suggested the 'play' happened between the bowling and the overs and something we could all be involved in. It was a tough pre-lunch slot with enough mentions of cake to keep the ...

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I recently presented some of the planning documentation for our CDX game at SXSW. Thinking that this may be of wider interest, I've sifted through the archives and found the full set. 

Clearly these types of diagrams need context so I have summarised what each type indicates below. The best context is of course the game, which is available here (kindly sponsored by Adobe - Thanks guys!) 

Episode diagrams

Due to the limited budget the game is principally set in one location; Adam's Apartment. It acts as the game space in which four types of activity can occur; 'Conversations', 'Games', 'Tasks' and 'Explore'. A fifth, 'Interact', was identified as a non-led activity which would occur naturally at the end of each episode.

The diagrams show how each episode is constructed from these basic building blocks. Approaching it in this way gave us a clear sense of narrative pace and ...

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