Macrofacet

All checklists from the course, on one page

Every one of the five steps ends in a checklist. They are gathered here so you can print the lot and keep them beside the computer rather than reading from a screen while you work through them.

How to use them

These are paper checklists, not controls. The boxes are drawn with the stylesheet and nothing happens when you click one, because this site stores nothing about anybody — no cookies, no browser storage, no account. If you want to record what you have done, a pen is the intended instrument.

Work through them in order. The five lists are cumulative in a mild way: the hardware lines from the Step 2 list are what you compare against a requirements list later, and the spending rule from the Step 3 list is what you apply when an offer appears during the Step 4 first session. Skipping ahead is possible but makes two of the later items harder to answer.

Not every item will apply to you. If nobody under 18 will play, several lines in the Step 3 list are not relevant; strike them out rather than worrying about them. If your connection is not metered, the data items are informational. A checklist you have edited to suit your situation is more useful than one you have followed literally.

The items are written to be answerable with a fact rather than an opinion. "Write down the installed memory in gigabytes" has a right answer that takes a minute to find. That is deliberate: a list of judgements is a list you will put off, and a list of lookups is one you will finish. The judgement calls are concentrated in the Step 3 list, where they belong, and even there the hardest one has a short default — zero dollars is a complete answer.

If you are doing this with other people in the household, print two copies and do the Step 3 list together. The spending rule is the item that causes arguments later if only one person has seen it, and it takes about five minutes to agree while nothing is installed and nobody is mid-game.

Keep the sheet after you finish. The five hardware lines from Step 2 are useful any time you ask anyone for help with any software, and the review date from Step 3 is the only item on these lists with a deadline attached.

Each checklist below is also at the foot of the step it belongs to, where the reasoning behind it is set out: Step 1, Step 2, Step 3, Step 4 and Step 5.

Before you read any further

  • Write down which computer you intend to use, and whether it runs Windows, macOS or a Linux distribution.
  • Find out roughly how old that computer is.
  • Check how much free space is left on the drive the computer starts from.
  • Decide the maximum amount in Australian dollars you are willing to spend on any game in a month. Zero is a complete answer.
  • If a person under 18 will play, note their age.
  • Agree with yourself when you will read Step 1.

Step 1 checklist — what these games are

  • Write a one-sentence definition of a collection RPG in your own words.
  • Say the four parts of the loop out loud: fight, collect, improve, attempt something harder.
  • Name the game you are considering, and sort it into one of the three payment models.
  • If it is free to begin, note the question you have to answer later: what the household rule about spending will be.
  • Decide honestly whether a daily-tasks rhythm suits your week.
  • Note which computer you expect to use.
  • If anyone under 18 will play, note their age.
  • Confirm you understand that this site is paid a commission on the one product it names.

Step 2 checklist — your computer

  • Write down your operating system and its version number.
  • Write down the full processor name, including the model number.
  • Write down the installed memory in gigabytes.
  • Write down the graphics hardware, and whether it is integrated or a separate card.
  • Write down the free space on the system drive, not the total space.
  • Check whether the connection you will download over is metered, and what data your plan includes.
  • Look for a published requirements list from the vendor; if there is none, note that rather than assuming.
  • Confirm you installed nothing in order to complete this step.
  • Decide which machine you will use, and note where in the home it sits.

Step 3 checklist — ratings and spending

  • Search the Australian Classification Board database for the title and read the entry itself.
  • Read the consumer advice line, not only the classification marking.
  • Note whether the advice mentions online interactivity, and decide what that means for your household.
  • Check whether the vendor publishes odds for any randomised rewards; if not, write down that it does not.
  • Write your monthly amount in Australian dollars.
  • Decide the payment route, preferring one with a fixed balance over a stored card.
  • Agree a one-day wait on any purchase.
  • Put a review date in the calendar one month out.
  • If the player is under 18, confirm no payment details will be stored in their account.
  • Bookmark the ACCC and Scamwatch pages.

Step 4 checklist — registering and installing

  • Register the account to an email address you will still control in three years.
  • Use a passphrase of several unrelated words, used nowhere else.
  • Store that passphrase in a password manager or somewhere sensible on paper.
  • Turn on any additional sign-in verification the vendor offers.
  • Read the full domain in the address bar before saving any file.
  • Note how you arrived at the page: typed, followed from the vendor, or from an advertisement.
  • Read every installer screen and clear anything you did not come for.
  • Write down where the game was installed.
  • Let the launcher finish its first update without interrupting it.
  • Complete the tutorial without entering payment details.
  • Apply your one-day wait to any offer that appears during the first session.
  • Note the date you installed it.

Step 5 checklist — settling in

  • Confirm the recovery email address is one you will still control in three years.
  • Turn on additional sign-in verification if the vendor offers it.
  • Confirm the passphrase is recorded somewhere other than your memory.
  • Find the block and report functions this week, before you need them.
  • Decide what personal details will never be given in chat.
  • Write down the finish time at the end of every session for two weeks, then add them up.
  • Check update data use if your connection is metered.
  • Keep an eye on free drive space as updates accumulate.
  • On your review date, compare actual spending with the written rule, using receipts.
  • If the rule was exceeded, change the payment mechanism rather than the resolution.
  • If you stop: remove stored payment methods, cancel anything recurring, uninstall the game and the launcher.
  • Decide separately whether to close the account; that is the one that concerns your data.

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