Author's Note
I didn't think about it until now, but I have a feeling Twilight would despise common core math.
Groundwork
Sunset lazed around in her computer chair. For the past two months, she had been typing out the final novel in her contemporary fiction series. With the book on the verge of completion, she was unsure where to go from there. Exhausted and stressed, she switched seats, exchanging the sturdiness of her work environment for the softness of her bed before picking up her PlayStation controller. She booted up the system, selecting her installed copy of Final Fantasy X. While grinding for spheres and gil, an idea formed around the internal gears of her mind. Movies, TV shows, books, and games based on an intellectual property were almost always released separately at different times.
"A book, game, and OST combo pack. Could be interesting."
A spark ignited. Sunset extracted her phone from her pocket and dialed Twilight's number.
Twilight scribbled away on her chalkboard, calculating an array of complex expressions, equations, and formulas relating to electricity. Just then, her phone began to vibrate in the pocket of her skirt.
"Hello?"
"Hey, Twilight."
"Sunset? Where have you been?"
"Home. I just finished the last novel."
"That explains it."
"You have a good computer, right?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"I want to make a game."
"An online game?"
"No."
"RPG maker?"
"Not exactly."
"Oh, boy."
"What's wrong?"
"You're talking about making a game from scratch then, right?"
"Yeah. When I thought about it, I figured we could release the books with a game and soundtrack."
"You do understand it's going to be more than a little tricky?"
"How tricky?"
"Coding a game from the ground up requires a decent understanding of algebra among other things."
"For real?"
"What kind of game is it?"
"It's a turn-based RPG. I was hoping for the graphics to resemble the late PS2 or early PS3 eras."
"We're gonna' have to add in a good amount of calculus too."
"Well, it's technologically assisted. I doubt it could be that bad."
"At their core, video games are altered versions of reality represented by code. Each calculation will represent object and character models, text for the story, general combat, damage output, character resistances, equipment boosts, character and object speed, points from mini-games, and currency values. What complicates the process is that the calculations have to be both correct and properly placed between the rest of the code."
"So it's essentially a puzzle combination of math and programming lingo."
"Exactly. If you're serious about this, I'll help you, but it's going to take devoted effort and commitment."
"No harm in trying."
"I'll be over tomorrow. Back up your computer files."
"You lost me."
"I'm going to build you a custom PC for programming. We're making the engine ourselves."
The next morning, Twilight knocked on Sunset's door. The redhead answered earnestly. What she wasn't expecting, however, was to see Fluttershy standing close behind.
"I brought Fluttershy with me. She'll need your input while I'm upgrading your computers components."
"Input?"
"We never really got around to talking about it, but her art skills are indomitable. She'll sketch out and label the details regarding the characters and environments. It'll come in handy when we're scaling the models to the correct size."
"You thought of everything, didn't you?"
"Did you expect anything less?"
"Nope."
"I'm gonna' be upfront with you - what I told you yesterday barely scratches the surface. Every symbol, letter, and number entered will serve a specific function. One mistake could set us back to square one. I'm just letting you know we can call it quits if it gets too frustrating."
"I'll see this through to the end no matter how pissed off I get. We need to bring back everything that made gaming fun."
"Amen to that. Let's get started, then, shall we?"
Sunset led her friends inside.
"You guys want something to eat or drink?"
"Could I have a cup of tea," Fluttershy asked sweetly.
"Sure."
Twilight disassembled Sunset's PC tower. Having already examined its specifications during one of her previous visits, the purple-haired intellectual knew exactly which parts were needed to improve its performance.
"So...Why do we need to code the engine, too," Sunset questioned.
"Pre-made engines are limited. With an original engine, we can program mechanics unique to the game."
"Makes sense."
"Go ahead and give Fluttershy the information she needs. This won't take too long. You already have a 64-bit system. I just have to replace the hard drives, the graphics card, and the memory."
"How much space will I have?"
"Eight terabytes."
"That's a lot of bytes. Not sure I could finish all those cocoa puffs."
"Funny."
"Comedy gold."
Sunset sat on the side of her bed. Fluttershy borrowed her computer chair.
"How many playable characters are there," the meek embodiment of kindness inquired.
"Seven."
"How many primary antagonists?"
"Technically ten, but two of them don't really play major roles in the story."
"What about stages?"
"Depends. Each stage has multiple phases."
"Let's start with the main stages."
"Nine: Earth, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto."
"Fascinating. Not many people talk about Pluto anymore."
"It ties in to the tone and mood of the story."
"How would you describe the tone and mood?"
"Balanced between hopeful and gloomy. It's kind of my own spin on the survival horror style."
"Sounds like you're experimenting with horror and RPG elements like Parasite Eve, but retaining the battle systems and narrative styles of Shadow Hearts and Final Fantasy," Twilight interjected.
"I wanted to take the exploration and religious themes further. That's why I wrote the books."
"I'm surprised you didn't think of formatting them into a game earlier."
"I wanted to, but I thought it would be too expensive. That's why I needed your help."
"Development is rapidly decreasing in cost. All it really takes these days is the know-how. That's where the biggest challenge comes in. Arithmetic, Algebra, Calculus, Physics: each subset of mathematics plays a critical role in a game's playability by sending digital signals to the system it's being played on. "
"Those signals are the game's code triggering specific mechanics."
"Now you're getting it."
It only took Twilight forty minutes to finish installing the new parts. In that time, Sunset was able to provide enough of a description for Fluttershy to gain a general idea of the universe she was trying to build.
"I optimized windows. This puppy should be a dream machine now."
"Hell yeah. That's what's up."
"Fluttershy and I will convert her drawing's scaling formula. In the meantime, I have a couple homework assignments for you. First, I want you to refresh yourself on the basic mathematical operations: addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division."
"That's it?"
"Not quite. There's a catch; you have to practice them the long way. Developers need to know not only how systems work, but why."
"What's my second assignment?"
"Send me the book files. I'm assuming you want the game to follow the story of the novels?"
"I do."
"We'll read and study them thoroughly to iron out any flaws. In the meantime, I want you to sharpen your math skills as much as you can. Start with long arithmetic and gradually progress through pre-algebra, algebra 1, geometry, trigonometry, algebra 2, pre-calculus, calculus, and so on and so forth. Math is a cumulative language that builds off the fundamentals. Once you understand the basics, you can integrate more layers of complexity and solve each problem with the least amount of effort."
"It all boils down to the same operations."
"Now you're thinking like a mathematician. I'll be on standby if you need help. Once you're able to solve complex equations and expressions without having to think too deeply about them, you'll be on your way to becoming a coding master."
"Talk about irony. On some level, I always figured I'd live an unimpressive existence and fade into obscurity."
"You've been selling yourself short for too long. You can do anything you set your mind to."
"Thanks, Twilight..."
