A downloadable exercise

"Build a Toy"

For your first project, you will be using P5.js to building a "toy" that we can "play" with. 

Let's define those terms with the help of game designer Jesse Schell:

  1. A good toy is an object (either physical or digital) we can play with.
  2. Play is manipulation that indulges curiosity.

With this in mind, we came up with some characteristics of a toy in our two sections:

  • Something a person can interact with
  • Behaves in ways that surprise, delight, or provoke us
  • Suggests how we can use it but does not dictate why
  • There is no "goal" for its use and it often has multiple uses
  • Allow us to imagine the object as something else ("pretend")
  • Appeals to our senses
Playful verbs to inspire you
TouchPinch/Pull/PushStretch/Squash
Grow/ShrinkKnock DownGrab
StealChaseRoll
SlideBounceThrow
Lift/DropStack/BuildCombine
ClamberFollow/FleeSqueak
Reactions (property change examples)
  • movement: direction, speed, motion type, "reactiveness", translation
  • shape: physical size, position, "weight", effect of "gravity",  transformation
  • affect on other objects: ex.: "fire ball melts ice block"
  • presentation: color, text, animation

Requirements

  • Created using P5.js and available to play with in the P5 Editor
  • Toy uses at least three concepts chosen from the Reactions lists.
  • Manipulating one object can affect something else on the screen
  • Hide at least one surprise for us to discover while playing
  • 200 word artist statement describing the process of coming up with the toy written as a in-code comment at the top of the project
  • Use in-code comments to give credit to any sources you used to help you build your toy

📆 Prototype due Sept 24th (share in class)

📆  Final due Oct 1 (post to Teams and be prepared to share in class)

More information