Own Your Skills

In September 2017 I gave a talk at the Pacific NorthWest PHP conference (PNWPHP). "Using PHP and JavaScript to Design a Better Board Game" The board game I discussed was Strengths and Troubles.

Meet Pup, the PHP-Women elephant I was given at the conference.

This fall that talk morphed into an article for php[architect] Magazine. "Rapid Prototyping a Board Game with PHP" was published in the October 2018 issue.

Recently, I was interviewed by the magazine for a php[architect] podcast episode. You can listen to the podcast here PHP Architect Podcast Episode 14. If you're not a PHP geek you may want to click here to hear my interview only. They really let me go on and on. My interview runs about 28 minutes.

Own Your Skills

One reason programming is so deeply satisfying is that it's creative. 

The fact that programmers are creative is lost on most non-coders. There was a widely held idea that our main job was to add a line to a form for a bank or other client. Graphic artists are supposed to be the creative ones. The app explosion demonstrates programmer creativity although many believe that's just about making millions.

My main point in my presentation, the article and the podcast is that having skills like PHP, MySql, JavaScript and HTML5 or any other languages allow you to be creative on your own personal projects. 

Suppose a skill you possess is knitting. Do you wait around for a paid knitting gig? No. You think about the striped socks your girlfriend's been wanting and get to work.

To quote Simon Sarris' final comment in the code for his HTML5 Canvas Tutorial,

“// Now go make something amazing!” 

Scenes from a Playtest

Recognizing strengths and skills is a first step toward goal setting.

 The first game in the  Goal Quest Games series is Strengths and Troubles. 

For more about these games see my earlier blog Goal Quest - Strengths and Troubles or visit www.goalquestgames.com.

These photos from a playtest of an early prototype of Strengths and Troubles

show what it's like to play.

Our thanks to Elizabeth Sims, playtest photographer and all participants.

This playtest was last fall. During many playtests we got suggestions and ideas for improvements. 

Strengths and Troubles is now in production!

Goal Quest - Strengths and Troubles

Goal Quest is a planned series of tabletop games currently being created by my sister, Janet Mott-Snider, and me, Marcia Burrows. Janet is a CPSS (Certified Peer Support Specialist) living and working in Michigan. The individuals she serves are on Medicaid and have mental health diagnoses as well as addiction issues. I'm a professional game designer living and working in Florida.

While serving as Community Teaching Assistant for the online class in Game Design presented by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, edX 11.126x in May 2016, I wondered if there were elements of Janet's challenging work that could be enhanced with a custom game. So, Janet enrolled in the class with me to study the course materials about game design. And together we started brainstorming, theorizing and dreaming of games for recovery.

One of Janet's important functions is to use her specialized training to encourage individuals to set life goals. Currently she helps people set goals using a multi-page form. Our plan is to gamify that process so that it's engaging. After all, the point of playing a game is FUN!

We hope our games will help overcome reluctance in approaching the life-enhancing yet challenging activity of goal setting.

Just as people have different learning styles, there are various methods to approach setting goals. An individual could read a book about goals, listen to a lecture about goals, watch a video, fill out a form, write in a journal, talk with a Peer Support Specialist, to name a few. We want to present an additional method: Games about goal setting!

Strengths and Troubles

Recognizing strengths and skills is a first step toward goal setting. So the first game in the Goal Quest series is Strengths and Troubles.

Used in a playful and flexible way, Strengths and Troubles can help focus thinking and discussion about strengths.

Here's a description of the game:
Walk the path of strength by showing your strengths and overcoming troubles with wellness tools.
You'll win by making your way from strength 1 to strength 100!

A game for one to four players. The Strengths and Troubles game board was inspired by the ancient game Snakes and Ladders.
Strengths and Troubles adds two decks of cards to the board game. You'll move your token from space 1 to space 100 by rolling a die, drawing cards, sliding down, and climbing up.

We're developing The Goal Adventure (working title) as a second game to follow Strengths and Troubles. We plan The Goal Adventure as a game of exploration.

You can follow our progress at the Logical Game Studio Website.