The Art of Storyboarding

Before you start developing a game, you should consider the kind of game that would work well on mobile phones. As a game developer, it will be extremely easy for you to let your thoughts flow towards creating side-scrollers or isometric and complex action and puzzle games for your portfolio of Flash Lite games.

Remember, however, that you are dealing with Flash on mobile devices. These devices have limited processing power and memory—the Flash Lite player rendering is not as powerful as that of Flash Player on desktop computers. So, it is always best not to take risks with games that are too difficult and instead stick to a design that is simple and intuitive.

Getting a Handle on Your Concept

Before finalizing a concept, you should abide by the following:

• Keep it simple. Select a simple game that enables you to explore the strengths of Flash Lite—a (scalable) vector environment.
• Consider your target devices. Mobile devices differ in screen sizes and color resolutions. A build of a game should provide acceptable performance on all target mobile devices.
• Consider the processor speed of the device. Remember that your mobile device is not a computer; therefore it is not possible, in most cases, to convert a Flash desktop game easily to the mobile version.
• Consider the Flash Lite syntax limitations. Flash Lite 1.1 is based on the Flash 4 engine; advanced ActionScript code will not work on mobile devices.

Keeping all of the above in mind, your audio-visuals must be great, and in sync with the game. After all, Flash has to live up to its reputation!

Thinking About the Storyline

With your basic concept flushed out, try developing a gripping backstory for supporting the gameplay. However, be sure that the backstory is not the focal point of your game; it should be created only if it is applicable to the game.

For example, the idea of Cryptic Capers came from an old Java game called Tilt Maze that used simple blocks (see Figure 2). The gameplay was so addictive and not at all outside the realm of what one can do with Flash Lite. So we created a simple backstory of an Egyptian explorer trapped in a pyramid with mummies and other such enemies to support the game (see Figure 2). This backstory blended really well with the gameplay. Of course, a story like this would not have been possible if we were developing a game like Tetris or Mahjong.

Figure 2. The Java Tilt Maze game (left) and Cryptic Capers (right)

When a story is ready, you need to work on developing the gameplay. It really doesn't matter if your game is easy or difficult. All that matters is that it should capture the player's imagination, involving him or her in the experience. You should work towards creating a game that leaves the player with the feeling of "I want more!"

You should also create a storyboard for every important screen of your game, so that you have a rough visual idea of your final product. Keep an open mind for changes when it comes to your storyboard; changes might occur during the course of development. These changes could relate to the game view (top view, side view, isometric view), gameplay, game characters, levels, obstacles, game animations and so on. If your storyboard is rigid, you will be bound by every idea you have written down, and thus will not be able to create a good game.

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