11_10_2022

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University of Central Florida *

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4720

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Mechanical Engineering

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Jan 9, 2024

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Overwhelming Solution  Often when a game feels overwhelming, there is an inclination to cut things out o Less is more  If the game is well designed, then the answer is to not remove anything o If it ain`t broke  The key is to organize the experience so it doesn`t feel like too much at once o How do you eat an elephant? One at a time Making more feel like less  To make mechanical complexity feel more manageable, mechanics must be layered  Mechanical complexity should be introduced in layers: o Methodically o Intentionally o With a true knowledge of your game  Do you know your game? Meet your mechanics  Each of the mechanics should be considered in several regards: o Contextuality o Accessibility o Complexity  Difficulty  Precision  Accuracy  Each should be considered independently and also as a whole

Contextuality  How aware of the environment must a player be to effectively use the mechanic?  If the mechanic requires a high level of attention, then the game needs to be talking  Communication to the players must be clear, frequent, and distinct  The more extraneous cognitive load a game presents, the lower the mechanic`s potential successful dependency on contextuality Accessibility  How readily can the mechanic be used?  A more difficult to execute/access mechanic requires at least one of two things o A game that leans into strategic decision making o A player that ha a high capacity for contextual awareness  Choosing to make a mechanic inaccessible should come from one of two reasons o There is a larger need for other systems to be more readily available o The mechanic needs to be guarded from the player Complexity  How much must the player do, in order to execute the mechanical action?  Complexity ca be measured several connected ways o Difficulty – operational usage o Precision – effectiveness in consistent usage o Accuracy – effectiveness in correct usage  Each consideration can break an experience, but all of them are needed to pull it off Difficulty  What aspects must the player master to be effective?  Initiation vs Responsive dynamics o Initiation demands the layer know when to use the ability to begin a response chain, requiring system knowledge and contextual awareness o Response dynamics require the player have comprehensive contextual awareness, as the systems prompt reciprocal interaction  The player may take caution if risk of failure is relatively likely or costly

Precision  What level of predictability will the player assume in using the mechanic? (Bubble hit in Vermintide)  Using a mechanic that behaves erratically reduces the layer`s interest in using it  Using a mechanic that behaves perfectly consistently, reduces exploration  The demand of precision can be on the interaction as well as the usage of a mechanic Accuracy  How much grace is given to the player when they use the mechanic?  Timing o The reliance of the player on the proper tempo of observation and interaction  Does using a mechanic provide the player with a sense of intentionality?  Meaningful reliability Layering the system  If you know your game, then you can write an introduction to the player  What elements are mixed in with the mechanics? o Narrative o Levels o Learning Layering the narrative  Introducing a mechanic as necessary for the story imbues organization and purpose  If a character is understood, their actions are justified by the player  If something is innate to a character, it isn`t something to be remembered o It is understood  Organizing the narrative in a meaningful way, reduces perceived complexity Levels  Merely a container for gameplay  Levels compartmentalize the context and application of gameplay  Smaller chunks of exposure, in unique contexts, help comprehension o As well as contextualizing application Learning

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 Learning in a game is most easily broken inro three areas o Tutorialization – there a concept is introduced o Training – Where a concept is practiced and explored o Testing – where a concept`s mastery is evaluated a necessary  Mechanics should be at least trained before they are tested  It is generally bad form to tutorialize two different things back-to-back Blending by Pace  Don`t give the player too much to learn too quickly  Don`t starve the player for new content  Don`t assume a player is done learning a new toy before moving on  Consider the player`s emotional and attentive state (both before and after) Blending by attribute  Knowing a game means that a player should be wooed before complete exposure  Growing the volume of content exposure gradually is challenging  A choice must be made about associated or relevant mechanics Blending by Usage  A truly dynamic game gives players mechanics, when they want to have them  Non-arbitrary gating is hard to build, and easier to mess up  In a perfectly procedural game, an introduction of mechanics would be viable, but it generally ends with confusion or knowledge gaps Summary  A player shouldn`t feel overwhelmed  That doesn`t mean a game must be simple