ProjectProposal-KevinLam
From CS 160 Fall 2008
Mix'Aholic
Contents |
Introduction
Hosting a party but not sure what to mix for your guests? Surprise your friends by playing Mix'aholic and learning how to make their favorite drinks!
Target User Group
Aspiring bartenders, cocktail drinkers, and sophisticated college students alike will enjoy this fun, practical game designed to help you build your memorization skills while learning cocktail recipes.
- Bartenders will discover new and exciting recipes
- Cocktail drinkers can learn how to make their favorite cocktails in the comfort of their homes. Also, cocktail connoisseurs can impress their friends with their new found cocktail expertise.
- College Students - It's a little known fact that college students consume unsightly amounts of alcohol. But that amount is mostly in the form of beer and cheap drinks. So why not stir up the party by adding a sophisticated squeeze to the drink menu?
But best of all, Mix'aholic is intended for anyone who wishes to develop her memorization skills. People ages 21 and over will have the added benefit of learning cocktail recipes, whether they choose to apply that knowledge or not.
Problem Description
Do you have difficulty ordering drinks at a bar? Have you ever hosted a party and weren't sure what drinks to offer your guests?
Mix'aholic is intended to help familiarize players with alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks by putting the player behind the bar. By playing the game, players will learn about new drinks and moreover, what goes in them. It is also a fun way to test your ability to memorize names and formulas.
Mix'aholic will also serve as a tool to help bartenders memorize cocktail recipes. The game would be played in addition to getting real world experience in mixing drinks but is a good starting point for anyone who is new to the art of bartending.
Problem Context and Forces
The ability to store, retain, and retrieve information is critical in cognitive development. However, traditional memorizing techniques such as using flash cards are uninteresting and more often than not the learning process becomes tedious. One way to make memorizing more fun is to put the content in a different context, one that excites the learner and connects with the content. With that in mind, Mix'aholic will attempt to appeal to cocktail connoisseurs and drinkers alike by placing the learning experience in a bar setting and having the player mix his or her own drinks! Of course, the game is intended to be an educational tool and cannot take the place of mixing real drinks.
Existing Solutions
Reference cards or cheat sheets are commonly used in bars to assist the bartender in making a drink. As far as reference materials go, nothing can replace the use of flash or reference cards. Flash cards are easy to carry, easy to flip through, and most importantly editable. However, using cards isn't necessarily the best way to start learning cocktail recipes.
Land Securities, a real estate investment company, has developed an entertaining game entitled "The Right Mix" (http://www.liquidlight.co.uk/our-work/clients/land-securities/the-right-mix/) that lets the player mix any drink of her choice and in return gets feedback on how to improve the drink. Although "The Right Mix" is addictive, it doesn't satisfy the need described above.
Disclaimer
In no way shape or form shall the game encourage the consumption of alcohol. Furthermore, it is the responsibility of the player to follow safe, legal drinking practices.
Solution Sketch
The basic method of playing Mix'aholic is that the user is given a cocktail name and must fill out a reference card for the drink with the right ingredients and proportions in a set amount of time. Players will be rewarded points for each correct entry and must acquire a certain number of points to progress to the next level.
Different modes of play can be offered, including:
- a multiplayer challenge
- "Name that drink!"
- and the ability to create your own drink.
Also in consideration is allowing players to unlock "secret" drinks after completing certain levels. This will serve as a type of reward system in the game to further entice players to continue playing.
Layout
The proposed layout of the game is shown below:
After being presented with a drink name, players will be asked to select drinks from the shelf to fill in the reference card in the foreground. Once the drink is mixed, stirred, or shaken the game reveals whether or not the player has put together the right recipe. A hint option will also be available on the screen to assist players.
