Production 3

Document if, how and what you learn through game play. Consider learning beyond textual "content" or school (educational) assessments toward a more expanded understanding of learning, including practical skills, and what happens when players are navigating environments and challenges

Agon is defined as a category of games "in which equality of chances is artificially created, ... which hinges on a single quality (speed, endurance, strength, memory, skill, ingenuity, etc.), [is] exercised" (Caillois, 1959, p. 131). It is also described as a genre which "leaves the champion to his own devices, to evoke the best possible game of which he is capable, and it obliges him to play the game within the fixed limits, and according to the rules applied equally to all, so that in return the victor's superiority will be beyond dispute" (Caillois, 1959, p. 132). These two passages well describe the format of typical strategy games. In the case of Tower Defense Simulator (TDS) on Roblox, levels of difficulty and modifiers create tiers appropriate for player experience. Much like other tower defense games, the early waves of matches in TDS start out with a standardized budget and relatively easy to beat hordes of enemies, seldom overwhelming with even the most beginner level of towers (image 1). image 1 - TDS early game

Advancing through the first few waves, stronger enemies, bosses, and larger hoards emerge which require some degree of skill and ingenuity, or memory for those who are very experienced and frequent players of the game. While also conforming to Roblox's two-tiered model of free and freemium, TDS offers several purchasable coin (in-game currency) packages, and mid to high tier towers that would normally require a lot of gameplay, allowing users to optionally skip the normal progression system (mirroring real life's advantages of money in a capitalist society). While consumables such as grenades and airstrikes have been added in recent years, victory of matches still largely requires skill and input from the player. It is here that TDS conforms to Caillois' notion that "it obliges him to play the game within the fixed limits, and according to the rules applied equally to all, so that in return the victor's superiority will be beyond dispute" (Caillois, 1959, p. 132). An example of consumables and in-game virtual currency is displayed below (image 2). image 2 - TDS spin wheel for consumables and virtual currency

In TDS, players experience a multi-faceted game involving elements of strategy, co-operation, competition, and planning. Despite being advertised as a game, certain elements such as tower type (single target high damage, multi target low damage, and support towers) can teach players that a purpose built/designed object can be better than an all-purpose or general object, as is often reflected in household cleaning supplies or tools. Furthermore, the placement footprint can teach users math skills in optimizing usage of space with circular footprints. Whereas squares or triangles can easily be optimized by placing them directly besides or on top of one another, optimized circle placement requires careful placement in a triangular or honeycomb-esque format - such that a circle overlaps the horizontal plane where two other circles meet side-to-side. Practical application of this includes circular coin puzzles where one may be challenged to fit 16 pennies within a quadrant, or stacking of round produce in a grocery store in a pyramid formation. Lastly, game mechanics of virtual economy, range, and targeting enhance gameplay and add to skill building whereby real life aspects of financial planning (including depreciation and resale), field of view, and assignment of manpower mirror real life applications. Bad and seemingly bad (but actually good in relation to the range/coverage of a support tower: bottom row of green towers) tower placement is depicted in the image below.

image 3 - An example of bad and seemingly bad but good (lower row of green towers) in TDS