This week I'm trying to finish my design for my educational video game about the cell cycle. I'm reading, Game Design Workshop by Tracy Fullerton to help me accomplish this task. This is an amazing book that gives a detailed description of the formal structure of games and gives you writing exercises to complete that help you fully understand these elements.
I'm currently on chapter three and reading about premise in games. According to Fullerton, premise establishes the action of the game within a setting or metaphor. And he further states that without a good premise, many games would be too abstract for players to become emotionally invested in.
Based on these readings I've decided to change the premise of my game from a student trying to get to school on time, to a student trying to get to school to help sneak their friend out of detention. I think this premise is more appealing to an inner city high school student.