Transcript Game Design and Tuning Workshop

Is this thing on?
Mechanics, Dynamics, Aesthetics
A Formal Approach to Game Design
Marc “MAHK” LeBlanc
April 2003
Game Design “Frameworks”
• Paradigms for organizing our understanding.
Game Design “Frameworks”
• Paradigms for organizing our understanding.
• Example Frameworks:
– The 400 Project
– Design Patterns
Game Design “Frameworks”
• Paradigms for organizing our understanding.
• Example Frameworks:
– The 400 Project
– Design Patterns
• Separate from the process.
Our Framework
• Organized around the designer-player
relationship.
• Grounded in a formal approach.
The Designer-Player
Relationship


Designer
Player
The Designer-Player
Relationship

Designer
Game

Player
The Designer-Player
Relationship

Designer
Creates
Game
Consumes

Player
The Designer-Player
Relationship

Designer
Creates
Game
Book
Consumes

Player
The Designer-Player
Relationship

Designer
Creates
Game
Book
Movie
Consumes

Player
The Designer-Player
Relationship

Designer
Creates
Game
Book
Movie
Painting
Consumes

Player
The Designer-Player
Relationship

Designer
Creates
Game
Book
Movie
Painting
Chair
Consumes

Player
The Designer-Player
Relationship

Designer
Creates
Game
Book
Movie
Painting
Chair
Car
Consumes

Player
The Designer-Player
Relationship

Designer
Creates
Game
Book
Movie
Painting
Chair
Car
Steak Dinner
Consumes

Player
The Designer-Player
Relationship

Creates
Game
Consumes
Designer

Player
The difference is the way that
games are consumed.
An Extreme Opposite Example:
A Theatrical Play
The “design team” knows:
• Script
• Lighting
• Acoustics
• Seating
• Intermissions
Games, on the Contrary
The designer doesn’t know:
• When will the player play? How often?
For how long?
• Where? With Whom?
And most importantly...
• What will happen during the game?
Obligatory Editorial
This lack of predictability is the essence of
play. It should be embraced, not eschewed.
A Formal Model of
“Game Consumption”
Rules
System
Behavior
“Fun”
The Player-Designer
Relationship, Revisited

Designer
Rules
System
Behavior
“Fun”

Player
The MDA Framework
Mechanics
Dynamics
Aesthetics
Definitions
• Mechanics: The rules and concepts that
formally specify the game-as-system.
Definitions
• Mechanics: The rules and concepts that
formally specify the game-as-system.
• Dynamics: The run-time behavior of the
game-as-system.
Definitions
• Mechanics: The rules and concepts that
formally specify the game-as-system.
• Dynamics: The run-time behavior of the
game-as-system.
• Aesthetics: The desirable emotional
responses evoked by the game dynamics.
The Building Blocks: Formal Models
•
•
•
•
•
No Grand Unified Theory
Instead, lots of little models
Models can be formulas or abstractions.
We can think of models as “lenses.”
Discovering new models is an ongoing
process.
MDA is a “Taxonomy” for
Models
•
•
•
•
Knowledge of Aesthetics
Knowledge of Dynamics
Knowledge of Mechanics
Knowledge of the interactions between
them.
Properties of Good Models
We want our models to be:
• Formal (i.e. well-defined).
• Abstract (i.e. widely applicable).
• Proven (i.e. known to work).
On any given game, we expect to use several
different abstractions, not one big one.
Part III: MDA in detail
In this part, we discuss Aesthetics, Dynamics
and Mechanics in detail.
The Player’s Perspective
Mechanics
Dynamics
Aesthetics
The Designer’s Perspective
Mechanics
Dynamics
Aesthetics
Understanding Aesthetics
We need to get past words like “fun” and
“gameplay.”
• What kinds of “fun” are there?
• How will we know a particular kind of “fun”
when we see it?
Eight Kinds of “Fun”
Eight Kinds of "Fun"
1. Sensation
Game as sense-pleasure
Eight Kinds of "Fun"
1. Sensation
Game as sense-pleasure
2. Fantasy
Game as make-believe
Eight Kinds of "Fun"
1. Sensation
Game as sense-pleasure
2. Fantasy
Game as make-believe
3. Narrative
Game as drama
Eight Kinds of "Fun"
1. Sensation
Game as sense-pleasure
2. Fantasy
Game as make-believe
3. Narrative
Game as drama
4. Challenge
Game as obstacle course
Eight Kinds of "Fun"
1. Sensation
Game as sense-pleasure
2. Fantasy
Game as make-believe
3. Narrative
Game as drama
4. Challenge
Game as obstacle course
5. Fellowship
Game as social framework
Eight Kinds of "Fun"
1. Sensation
Game as sense-pleasure
2. Fantasy
Game as make-believe
3. Narrative
Game as drama
4. Challenge
Game as obstacle course
5. Fellowship
Game as social framework
6. Discovery
Game as uncharted territory
Eight Kinds of "Fun"
1. Sensation
Game as sense-pleasure
2. Fantasy
Game as make-believe
3. Narrative
Game as drama
4. Challenge
Game as obstacle course
5. Fellowship
Game as social framework
6. Discovery
Game as uncharted territory
7. Expression
Game as self-discovery
Eight Kinds of "Fun"
1. Sensation
Game as sense-pleasure
2. Fantasy
Game as make-believe
3. Narrative
Game as drama
4. Challenge
Game as obstacle course
5. Fellowship
Game as social framework
6. Discovery
Game as uncharted territory
7. Expression
Game as self-discovery
8. Submission
Game as surrender
Clarifying Our Aesthetics
• Charades is “fun.”
• Quake is “fun.”
• Final Fantasy is “fun.”
Clarifying Our Aesthetics
• Charades: Fellowship, Expression, Challenge
• Quake: Challenge, Sensation, Competition,
Fantasy
• Final Fantasy: Fantasy, Narrative, Expression,
Discovery, Challenge, Masochism
• Each game pursues multiple aesthetics.
• Again, there is no Grand Unified Theory.
Clarifying Our Goals
• As designers, we can choose certain
aesthetics as goals for our game design.
• We need more than a one-word definition of
our goals.
What is an “Aesthetic Model?”
• A rigorous definition of an aesthetic goal.
• Serves as an “aesthetic compass.”
• States criteria for success as well as possible
modes of failure.
Some examples…
Goal: Competition
Model: A game is competitive if:
• Players are adversaries.
• Players have an ongoing emotional investment in
defeating each other.
Some Failure Modes:
• A player feels that he can’t win.
• A player can’t measure his progress.
Goal: Realistic Flight Simulation
Possible Models: Our flight dynamics are
realistic if:
• They match a mathematical formula, or,
• They pass our “realism checklist,”
Failure Modes:
• Counter-intuitive system behavior.
Goal: Drama
Model: A game is dramatic if:
• Its central conflict creates dramatic tension.
• The dramatic tension builds towards a climax.
Dramatic Tension
Clima x
Conflict
Resolution
Narrative Time
Goal: Drama
Failure Modes:
• No dramatic tension.
• Tension does not increase towards a climax.
On to Dynamics...
Understanding Dynamics
• How can we predict and explain the
behavior of the game-as-system?
Formalizing Game Dynamics
Input
Rules
(Player)
Output
State
(Graphics/
Sound)
The “State Machine” Model
Models of Game Dynamics
• Again, no Grand Unified Theory
• Instead, a collection of many Dynamic
Models.
• Dynamics models are analytical in nature.
Some examples…
Example: Random Variable
Chance in 36
This is a model of 2d6:
2
3
4
5
6
7
Die roll
8
9 10 11 12
Example: Feedback System
A feedback system monitors and regulates its own state.
Room
Thermometer
Heater
Too Cold
Too Hot
Cooler
Controller
An Ideal Thermostat
Example: Operant Conditioning
• The player is part of the system, too!
• Psychology gives us models to explain and
predict the player’s behavior.
Where Models Come From
• Analysis of existing games.
• Other Fields: Math, Psychology,
Engineering…
• Our own experience.
On to Mechanics...
Understanding Mechanics
• There’s a vast library of common game
mechanics.
Examples
• Cards: Shuffling, Trick-Taking, Bidding
• Shooters: Ammunition, Spawn Points
• Golf: Sand Traps, Water Hazards
Mechanics vs. Dynamics
We need to acknowledge mechanics and
dynamics as distinct concepts.
Dynamics emerge from Mechanics.
Interaction Models
• How do specific dynamics emerge from
specific mechanics?
• How do specific dynamics evoke specific
aesthetics?
Example: Time Pressure
• “Time pressure” is a dynamic.
• It can create dramatic tension.
• Various mechanics create time pressure:
– Simple time limit
– “Pace” monster
– Depleting resource
Moving Forward…
Let’s hope the future brings us:
• A rich aesthetic vocabulary.
• A eclectic library of game mechanics.
• A catalog of formal models: Aesthetic,
Dynamic, Interaction
In other words,
“Formal Abstract Design Tools.”
The Three Musketeers
...and the Dynamics of Drama
Rules for Three Musketeers
• Players take turns moving one of
their pieces. No diagonal moves.
• Musketeers move by capturing a
nearby enemy.
• Cardinal’s men move to a nearby
empty space.
• Cardinal wins if the Musketeers are
in the same row or column.
• Musketeers win if they cannot
move.
Starting Board
Discussion Questions
What’s a good strategy for the Musketeers?
For the Cardinal?
Discussion Questions
What are the aesthetics of Three Musketeers?
In other words, what’s “fun” about it?
© Steve Jackson Games
www.sjgames.com
Discussion Questions
When does the “dramatic climax” of the game
occur?
Discussion Questions
Can we prove that the game halts?
Discussion Questions
1. What is the maximum number of choices
the musketeer player can have on his turn?
Discussion Questions
1. What is the maximum number of choices
the musketeer player can have on his turn?
2. How many first moves are there?
Discussion Questions
1. What is the maximum number of choices
the musketeer player can have on his turn?
2. How many first moves are there?
Discussion Questions
1. What is the maximum number of choices
the musketeer player can have on his turn?
2. How many first moves are there?
3. How many last moves are there?
Discussion Questions
Choices
What does this graph look like?
Time
Choices
Discussion Questions
Time
The Dramatic Arc
Climax
Falling
Action
Rising
Action
Time
The Dramatic Arc Pervades
Game Aesthetics
•
•
•
•
Challenge: Obstacle/Triumph
Discovery: Novelty/Mastery
Submission: Toil/Reward
Competition: Equality/Supremacy
So Games are Stories, Right?
So Games are Stories, Right?
• Rather, Play and Narrative intersect.
So Games are Stories, Right?
• Rather, Play and Narrative intersect.
• The Dramatic Arc is the point of
intersection.
So Games are Stories, Right?
• Rather, Play and Narrative intersect.
• The Dramatic Arc is the point of
intersection.
• Drama is more “primal” than narrative.
So Games are Stories, Right?
• Rather, Play and Narrative intersect.
• The Dramatic Arc is the point of
intersection.
• Drama is more “primal” than narrative.
• Games don’t tell stories, they are stories.
Drama in Detail
Drama Requires:
• Dramatic Tension
• Rising and Falling Action
Drama in Detail
Drama Requires:
• Dramatic Tension
– Uncertainty
– Inevitability
• Rising and Falling Action
Dramatic Tension
• Uncertainty: The outcome is ambiguous
• Inevitability: The outcome is imminent.
Drama in Three Musketeers
• Uncertainty: Search tree complexity
• Inevitability: Depletion of the Cardinal’s
men
(consider “pushing” variant)
Other Sources of Uncertainty
• Negative Feedback (“Crash Team Racing”)
• Rising Stakes (“Jeopardy”)
• Limited Information (“Warcraft”)
Other Sources of Inevitability
• Non-reversible processes.
• Non-renewable resources.
• Perception is important.
Denouement in Games
• Games need to resolve their tension.
• Some resolution happens outside the game.
• Many digital games build in post-game
resolution.
That’s All!
• Drama is a central play aesthetic.
• Drama is structured tension.
• Several different dynamics evoke
uncertainty and inevitability.
Questions?
www.algorithmancy.org
(www.monkeyjump.com)
[email protected]