Fundamentals of
nd
Game Design, 2 Edition
by Ernest Adams
Chapter 9: Gameplay
Objectives
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Understand the basic principles that a
designer should follow to make games fun
Explain how the hierarchy of challenges
requires players to complete atomic
challenges, sub-missions, and missions to
accomplish the ultimate goal of winning the
game
Define intrinsic skill required and stress and
discuss how these factors contribute to the
difficulty of the game
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Chapter 9 Gameplay
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Objectives (Cont.)
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List challenges commonly used in games
Define actions in the context of the game
world and describe how actions are selected
to meet specific challenges or serve other
functions in the game
Discuss the arguments in favor of and
opposed to supplying a saving mechanism
and explain the most widely used methods
for saving a game
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Chapter 9 Gameplay
3
Making Games Fun
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Execution matters more than innovation
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The chief reason a game is not fun is that it
contains elementary errors
Aspects of game development that contribute to
fun:
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Avoiding errors; basic craftsmanship is most important
Tuning and polishing is second
Imaginative variations on the game’s premise is third
True design innovation is only 5% of the source of fun
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Chapter 9 Gameplay
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Making Games Fun (Cont.)
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Finding the fun factor:
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Gameplay comes first
Get a feature right or leave it out
Design around the player
Know your target audience
Abstract or automate parts of the game that aren’t
fun
Be true to your vision
Strive for harmony, elegance, and beauty
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Chapter 9 Gameplay
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The Hierarchy of Challenges
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Hierarchy from lowest to highest
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Atomic challenge
Sub-mission
Mission
Complete the game
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Chapter 9 Gameplay
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The Hierarchy of Challenges
(Cont.)
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Informing the player about challenges
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Games tell the player about explicit challenges
Players discover implicit challenges on their own
Explicit instructions are given about the victory
condition and lowest-level atomic challenges
Intermediate-level challenges
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The most interesting games offer multiple ways to
win
Recognize and reward victory achieved no matter
how the player achieves it
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Chapter 9 Gameplay
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The Hierarchy of Challenges
(Cont.)
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Simultaneous atomic challenges
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Overcoming several atomic challenges at the same
time increases the difficulty
Common way of doing this is to bombard the
player with enemies
Other games (such as management games)
present more complex interrelated simultaneous
challenges
The more simultaneous atomic challenges a player
faces under time pressure, the greater the stress
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Chapter 9 Gameplay
8
Skill, Stress, and Absolute Difficulty
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Intrinsic skill required is the skill needed to
overcome a challenge in an unlimited amount
of time
Stress is the effect of time pressure on the
player’s ability to overcome a challenge
Absolute difficulty is skill required plus time
pressure
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Chapter 9 Gameplay
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Commonly Used Challenges
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Physical coordination challenges
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Variations
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Test speed and reaction time
Test accuracy and precision
Test intuitive understanding of physics
Test timing and rhythm
Test ability to make combination moves
Reduce time available to increase difficulty
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Chapter 9 Gameplay
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Commonly Used Challenges
(Cont.)
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Logic and mathematical challenges
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Formal logic puzzles
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No outside knowledge required
To increase difficulty, increase the number of objects and
the ways they can be manipulated
Players normally get all the time they need to solve
Avoid puzzles that can only be solved by trial-and-error
Mathematical challenges
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Games require players to reason about probabilities
Make educated guesses with imperfect knowledge
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
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Commonly Used Challenges
(Cont.)
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Races and time pressure
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Be first to accomplish a goal
Can be combined with other types of challenges
Time pressure increases stress on the player
Factual knowledge challenges
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Direct tests of factual knowledge usually occur
only in trivia and quiz games
In other kinds of games, all facts must be present
in the game or you must make it clear in advance
that outside knowledge is required
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Chapter 9 Gameplay
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Commonly Used Challenges
(Cont.)
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Memory challenges
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Test ability to recall things seen or heard in game
To make it easier, give players longer to memorize
and test them soon after they have done so
Pattern recognition challenges
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Test ability to recognize visible, audible, changing,
or behavioral patterns
To increase difficulty, make the pattern longer,
more intricate, or more subtle
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
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Commonly Used Challenges
(Cont.)
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Exploration challenges
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Spatial awareness challenges
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Test ability to learn and navigate
To decrease difficulty, provide a map
Locked doors
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Any obstacle that prevents the player from proceeding
until he disables it
Avoid unmarked switches far from the door
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
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Commonly Used Challenges
(Cont.)
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Exploration challenges (cont.)
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Traps
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Device that harms the avatar when triggered
Fun comes from outwitting the trap
Mazes and illogical spaces
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Every place looks alike and player must discover
relationships between the areas
Can be implemented as logic or pattern-recognition
puzzles
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
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Commonly Used Challenges
(Cont.)
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Exploration challenges (cont.)
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Teleporters
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Mechanism that transports player to a new location
To make the challenge easier, make the teleporter
predictable and reversible
Finding hidden objects
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Sometimes hidden in reasonable places player can
deduce from clues
Sometimes hidden in obscure ones
Easter eggs are special rewards in particularly obscure
locations
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
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Commonly Used Challenges
(Cont.)
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Conflict
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Requires direct opposition of forces, some of
which are under player control
Conflict challenges can be broken down into:
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Strategy
Tactics
Logistics
Survival and reduction of enemy forces
Defending vulnerable items or units
Stealth
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
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Commonly Used Challenges
(Cont.)
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Economic challenges
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The behavior of resources creates economic
challenges
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Accumulating resources—this can be wealth, points, or
anything valuable
Achieving balance—this can be a more interesting
challenge than simply accumulating resources
Caring for living things—challenges the player to meet
the needs of each individual
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
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Commonly Used Challenges
(Cont.)
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Conceptual reasoning and lateral thinking
puzzles
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Conceptual reasoning puzzles require reasoning
and knowledge to solve a problem
Lateral thinking uses extrinsic knowledge in
unexpected ways
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
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Actions
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Actions for gameplay
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Most actions are intended to meet challenges
Games offer fewer actions than challenges to limit
size of user interface and animation costs
Most actions can address more than one type of
challenge
Define actions
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Based on player’s role and actions to overcome
challenges
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
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Actions (Cont.)
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Actions that serve other functions
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Actions not related to challenges include actions
for:
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Unstructured play
Creation and self-expression
Socialization
Participating in the story
Controlling the game software
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
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Saving the Game
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Reasons for saving a game
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Allow player to leave and return later
Let player recover from mistakes
Encourage player to try alternate strategy
Consequences for immersion and storytelling
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Harms immersion
Reduces tension
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Chapter 9 Gameplay
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Saving the Game (Cont.)
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Ways of saving a game
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Password to restart a level
Save to a file or save slot
Quick save
Automatic save and checkpoints
Always allow players some way to save and
reload
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Chapter 9 Gameplay
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Summary
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You should now understand
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Gameplay is the heart of a game’s fun
Challenges can be organized into a hierarchy
Skill and stress determine absolute difficulty
Commonly used challenges test different skills
Few actions can be used to overcome many
challenges
Players should be allowed to save and reload
© 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.
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