Compulsion and fun
I’ve been doing some thinking about compulsion and the notion of fun. Most people would admit that the goal of a game is to entertain, usually summed up in the word fun. To have fun. When building a game, we refer to the intangible ‘fun factor’ of a game. We also talk about a game’s ’stickiness’, i.e. it’s ability to have the players come back for more after they’ve left the game, or better yet, to stay in the game for extended periods of time. For myself as a player, and other player’s i’ve talked to, a game’s stickiness is often involved in the fun. A game that keeps me coming back, I naturally assume it’s because I enjoy it. But is that really the case?
Analysis versus “Movie Reviews”
The “Rules of Play” by Katie Salen & Eric Zimmerman has been my book of choice this week. Getting through all six hundred pages by the end of the week may be a lot for me, but it’s been interesting so far. I’m going to avoid my usual opinion at thirty thousand feet because they made an interesting point in the book which resonated with me. They discussed actual analysis versus the typical “Movie Review” critiques of video games. The game review culture has almost completely neutered the critical analysis of video games.
Dominos, the tippy kind
It seems to me that the version of dominos where you spend the whole afternoon standing these little blocks on end only to watch them topple over at the end of the day is a much overlooked game when trying to study game design. The multiplayer varient of matching dots is more likely to be looked at given the more sophisticated rule set. But dominos, the tippy kind, has a genius simplicity.
Monk Versus Soldier: Agency
Monk was walking through a mountain pass, enjoying the summer breeze and the blue skies above him. The wind felt good against his warm skin and the trees around him swayed creating a texture to the sounds of the day. Monk considered his stomach and began pondering how to prepare the fish he was going to catch when he heard the clinks and grunts of sword play. They came from nearby, most likely, around the next bend. The draw of action and spectacle overcame his humility and desire inner piece, he was after all a monk in training. Monk tightened his belt, drew up his robes to free his legs and threw a smirk on his face as he ran down the path towards the ensuing fight.
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Light writing
Finally, after much time avoiding it, I went outside and took a few photos. Here’s a few.
Great people will make a great game
Once upon a time, as a bright eyed and over eager developer, I thought I could make a hit game all on my own. If I worked hard enough, learned all about every aspect, then I could make the bestest game in the whole world. When someone wiser than me said “You need a great team to make a great game” I said to myself it was just a catch phrase and they just hadn’t seen how awesome I was. I can’t even describe how wrong I was. I mean, if there’s a bright centre of being right in the universe, then I was the thinker it’s furthest from.
Your First Ten Games Are Going To Suck
So get them out of the way. Shigeru Miyamoto said that in “Design Secrets of the Sages” or he did roughly, I’m most likely paraphrasing. So while I’d love him to be wrong, he’s most likely right. So what should I do about it?
Reading list for game designers
While there are few texts on game design considered to be canon, there are many books that I would consider to be helpful to the both aspiring and established game designer. I intend for this list to be living and to update it as I discover new ones.
With a foot and a half of snow in Vancouver, who needs enemies.
Without a doubt, the best thing to happen to Vancouver this year was a foot and a half of snow in December. It is simply awesome. We are now part of Canada. I’m sure it’s happened before but not that I can remember. But now I want it gone.
