In the article, 14 Ways to Get Breakthrough Ideas, there were many suggestions on how to create and work with ideas that one would think up. It is mostly just brainstorm ideas but I think if one already had an idea to work with, then this would be good to work with. I had trouble with working with it because I am not currently looking for an idea and I don’t really need one for right now.
The first suggestion that I would like to critique is number two, which is Immerse. It asks the thinker to put off some time to just think over ideas that they have. I do not think that this is an accurate way to create and refine ideas because creativity isn’t always there. I kept on thinking that when I needed to write a paper or make a video, it is almost impossible for me to say, “I am going to find an idea for this project!” and actually get it done. I find that I get most of my ideas when I shower, but when I shower to get ideas, I am usually blank minded. I think that getting ideas is usually a spur of the moment thing, and all you need is time.
The second I would like to criticize is number five: Fantasize. It asks you to think about a fantasy cure to your challenge. Though this may help for mechanical problems, I do not think that this could help for more creative venues. I actually tried this idea and all I could think about were things that just couldn’t happen or something that I would not do. I was trying to figure out a way to put my computer on the floor with out getting out of my bed (I have a loft) but all I could think about was putting a slide onto the side of my bed so I could slide it down, the I could slide down. I think that this could work for some people (the fantasize option, that is) but my mind is just so out there that nothing realistic would come from it.
The third I would like to comment on is number ten: hang out with a diverse group of people. I would like to say that I could never do this. It is a good idea in itself but I am just too shy and opinionated to mesh with people who are completely different than me. Also people choose who to hang out with based on how much they have in common and once you get that group, it is difficult to go outside of it. This might be in fear of rejection from the original group, or rejection from the new group. I was also thinking, if one would pick out a group of the most diverse people they know, I can see the chosen to be basically the same person. I know that there are more than two types of people, but when basing the chosen people off of what is completely opposite of yourself, then it would be difficult to get a diverse group of people.
I will use an idea that I had a while ago for my example. I was trying to think of a video game, just for the heck of it. I had thought of something after much showering, and mindless Hulu watching when I finally thought of an idea. It is a game that is for the younger demographic, most easily played on the DS. The main objective was to get off the island that you landed on. Though it was technically a free reign game, the character would be guided through out the island by a path and would be introduced to good and bad characters along the way. But the only problem was that I could not think of any characters. I knew that there had to be some sort of currency that would be traded through the main layer and a shop keep NPC but I did not know how get the money and how to introduce new tools into the game. At first I was thinking a chest would work but so many other games have used that mechanic that I wanted something unique. Well I thought back to the different memories that I had through out playing games and my life experiences.
Well I never thought that this would come in the form of Farmville. My mother is obsessed with that game. To the point where she calls up her best friend and they collaborate on how to get the most coin for their crop. Well I remember her saying something about how one of her animas seems like it doesn’t give anything. When I called her up to ask what the animals name was, she told me it was a treasure seagull, Which I immediately put into my game. So I think for this I used number nine. I used the current trends to influence my game. Though Farmville popularity isn’t what it used to be, I still think that it does have some good and simple ideas that can be implemented into other ideas. I also used the current trends on the way that I made my game. I remember that I first thought of this idea when I heard the new Legend of Zelda game was coming out and I took snippets of that and used it to influence my game. I also used the subtle guiding from the different first person shooters that I have come across.
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