A Good IP VS a Bad IP

For reasons I have not yet mentioned, I have rejected quite a few intellectual properties to use as part of the project through the course of the semester.

But why? I know I went into this slightly when I spoke about the process of my design, but I will go into more specifics here.

I couldn’t find any good source material
The first issue, and one that almost threatened to end my going forward of the two Dr. Seuss levels is that I can’t locate anything to learn about it.
I was fortunate that my first level, Batfink, had several videos available on YouTube, and for some of them, such as the gingerbread man, I knew of already and used online sources to refresh my memory.

It doesn’t make a good game
The most important element to make me disregard a level is if it doesn’t make a good game.
This is what is currently threatening ‘Spot The Dog’, as a level design for this consists of a very simple hide and seek game.

The mechanics aren’t obvious
While I spend a lot of time looking for a mechanic to make the game work, sometimes there just isn’t anything that will turn the medium I’m working with into a workable game.
An example of this would be if I were to try to base a game on Eastenders. Apart from chit-chatting, threes not a lot of scope for a game.

Its not particularly unique or exciting
A problem I’ve noticed, and have now been avoiding, is that several of my levels began to become very similar, or be identical to pre-existing games.
If something is not very interesting, It will go straight on the scrap heap.

I don’t like it
Ok, so it’s not a good reason, or even very mature, but if I find that the IP is not something I want to work on, I won’t.
Obviously, this is a practice that won’t join me in the games industry (and part of the reason I’m using IP’s is to work on other peoples projects.) but for now, I am happy to be a little self indulgent and ignore IP’s I dislike.

You’ll notice these are all reasons for rejection, this is because I have a long list of IP’s, and am forever discovering more with potential, and this process is more about weeding out the turds than it is finding the perfect IP.