Game Mechanics Game Mechanics Game Mechanics Game Mechanics Game Mechanics Game Mechanics

Home , Cutscene, Magic (game terminology), Permadeath, Saved game

Making the narrative theme fit the game system Advanced Topics in Game Design

Miikka Junnila @aalto.fi How to make the story and the game system work together? What games are built of? Two ways of creating the experience Ludonarrative Dissonance

• The fancy term to refer to the case when the mechanics of the game and the theme of the game don’t fit together • Can easily lead to the player’s immersion breaking • What kind of experiences do you have of this? Ludonarrative Dissonance Ludonarrative Dissonance Ludonarrative Dissonance Ludonarrative Dissonance

• Invisible walls • The game requires you to do something in a certain way, even though you can see an obvious other solution • The player fools around – ”Why is Commander Shepard repeatedly trying to jump over a barrel even though the cutscene told he is in a hurry to save the planet…” – Bastion ties this into the narrative nicely Death in games

• Death is a common feature in games – and usually breaks the narrative logic badly • The normal solution – reload a saved game / restart • Different ways to solve the problem: – Super Mario – many lives in a surreal world – Prince of Persia – Sands of Time – death is a mistake by the narrator, who is actually telling a story about the player’s actions – Bioshock – Vita chamber / Ultima 7 (resurrection is narratively explained through technology or magic) – Planescape: Torment – a crucial part of the story – Permadeath – works in certain genres, but of course restarting might make more or less sense narratively – Permadeath with multiple characters – story goes on even is someone dies (Heavy Rain for example) – Save The Date – breaking the fourth wall What games are built of? Game mechanics Game mechanics Game mechanics Game mechanics Game mechanics Game mechanics

• Game mechanics should fit the game system and the theme of the game, but… • …what if the theme suggests a game mechanic and it can’t be done? • …what if the game mechanic is necessary or interesting for the narrative, but has little or no meaning for the game system? • …what if the game mechanic is necessary for the game system, but doesn’t fit the theme? Game mechanics

• Game mechanics should fit the game system and the theme of the game, but… Game mechanics

• Game mechanics in multiplayer games – The social setting brings new meanings to game mechanics, that don’t explicitly affect the game system • Actions the players have no control of – Not really game mechanics, but narrative actions nonetheless – What the player character does in cut scenes, for example • Some game mechanics are partly or fully outside the narrative Game mechanics in multiplayer games Action the players have no control of Action the players have no control of Holding hands as a mechanic …and hugging – in God Of War Game mechanics outside the narrative Fallout 3 character creation – in-game Game mechanics outside the narrative Game mechanics outside the narrative Game mechanics outside the narrative Game mechanics outside the narrative

https://www.reddit.com/r/gaming/comments/27w67h/super_mario_64_speed_run_0_star_in_00641_legit/ Game mechanics in different game states Interface

• The interface tends to be an important part of the game system, but it may be difficult to justify it through the narrative • Information necessary for gameplay is still important to show to the player in many cases, as the player might not be able to do meaningful choices without that information – If the player doesn’t know how much health he has left, he can’t know when to use healing potions  Frustration – But can the information be given to the player in a way that fits the theme better? For example through sound? Interface

http://www.trustedreviews.com/opi nions/why-the-fallout-4-pip-boy- edition-is-a-huge-disappointment

The environment and the components

• The environment, the characters, objects, resources and the like should be built on the game mechanics and the theme • Both the theme and the game mechanic genre tells the player what is possible and what is not • It’s important to make it clear to the player what components and parts of the world are part of the mechanics, what things are there only to create atmosphere – Doors that can’t be opened, fences that can’t be climbed, characters you can’t interact with…a possible source of frustration Characters and their roles Meaning of the environment Goals

• Both the game mechanics and the narrative can offer the player goals – If the game gives you a very arbitrary goal, it is not as motivating as a goal that makes sense also through the theme – Levels and missions are a handy way of leading the player through a story, always enriching the game mechanical goal with a narrative meaning • Sometimes the player takes a narrative goal of their own from the theme that has nothing to do with the game mechanics • Achievements and stats can offer arbitrary bonus goals that have little to do with the game story Further reading

• Clint Hocking: Ludonarrative dissonance in BioShock http://clicknothing.typepad.com/click_nothing/2007/10/lu donarrative-d.html • Travis Pynenburg: Games Worth a Thousand Words: CriticalApproaches and Ludonarrative Harmony in Interactive Narratives http://scholars.unh.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1069 &context=honors Narrative means in Magic: The Gathering Game mechanics and interface in board games vs. digital games • Game mechanics have many layers – What the player does with the physical interface – What the player does in the digital interface – What the game character does • Guitar Hero makes the player do similar actions that the character does on the screen and what the actual gameplay is supposed to be • In board games, the game characters don’t really do anything, so it’s more about what the actions are called, and players are bound to throw the dice and move the plastic pieces and the like – Not always though, as trading in Catan is actually real trading • This can also happen in computer games, for example a revolution used to come from a menu in Civilization Board game vs digital game + interfaces Board game vs digital game + interfaces Board game vs digital game + interfaces Board game vs digital game + interfaces Analysis of The Settlers of Catan: Goal, conflict and uncertainty • The goal of getting ten points is pretty arbitrary, but most things that give you points have to do with becoming the strongest house on the island – Except for the already mentioned ”longest road” -achievement • The competition between different houses isn’t really explained in any way, so the conflict arises from the knowledge that it is a game • Uncertainty is present on different levels – Nobody knows what resources will be produced on any turn or when the robber will strike – The Development cards are unknown to the one buying it, and then to the others – Rarely do people remember exactly what resource cards their friends have in their hands – The expansion Seafarers of Catan adds a map with hidden terrain Genres Genre

• The game mechanics of a game are rarely totally intuitive • Boardgames usually have rules on paper, digital games have tutorials • Still, most digital games fall into a game mechanic genre, so that the rules of the game, the goals, even the interface are fairly familiar to experienced players already beforehand • Digital games falling into a genre are easier to start playing, and also easier to design Genre

• Apart from the game mechanic genre, the game can often also be put into a narrative genre based on the theme – Fantasy, scifi, war… • This does also give expectations to players about what the game will be like • There are certain game mechanic genres and narrative genres that seems to fit well together Genre Genre Narrative genres /game mechanic genres Assignment 1: Finding inspiration from surprising genre blends • Look at the previous slide, and think of 3 game ideas together with a pair, combining mechanic genres and narrative genres in surprising ways • Then we share some of the ideas Thank you!