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Game Tuning Workshop
Is this thing on?
Game Tuning Workshop
Game Design and Tuning Workshop
Orientation
Marc “MAHK” LeBlanc
GDC 2004
Game Tuning Workshop
Orientation Overview
Part I: Workshop Format
Part II: Outline Our Formal Approach
Part III: Formal Approach in Detail
Part IV: Tuning
Game Tuning Workshop
Part I: Introduction
In this part we will:
• Explain the workshop high concept.
• Describe the format.
• Introduce the faculty.
Game Tuning Workshop
About The Worshop
• This is the fourth year.
• Hands-on
• Focused on tuning.
• Grounded in a formal approach to game design.
• Intended to be open-ended.
Game Tuning Workshop
Things You Won’t Learn Here
• How to get a job as a game designer.
• How to write a design document.
• Where game ideas “come from.”
• How to get your game funded.
• How to use a level editor.
Game Tuning Workshop
In Other Words...
• It’s not about the Business.(Getting a job, pitching a game, getting funded)
Game Tuning Workshop
In Other Words...
• It’s not about the Business.(Getting a job, pitching a game, getting funded)
• It’s not about the Profession.(Writing documents, tracking bugs, using tools)
Game Tuning Workshop
In Other Words...
• It’s not about the Business.(Getting a job, pitching a game, getting funded)
• It’s not about the Profession.(Writing documents, tracking bugs, using tools)
• It’s about the Craft.(Making games that are fun)
Game Tuning Workshop
What You’ll be Doing
• Playing games.
• Analyzing games.
• Critiquing games.
• Modifying games.
• Refining games.
Game Tuning Workshop
A Few Ground Rules
• Please attend the whole thing.
• Collaborate, Share, and Encourage.
• Save the “meta-discussion” for the very end.
Game Tuning Workshop
Workshop Format
• Small-group activities. Main Exercises (3) Electives (choose 1 from 3 each day)
Game Tuning Workshop
Introducing the Faculty
• Myself
• Jonathan Hamel
• Robin Hunicke
• Frank Lantz
• Andrew Leker
• Steve Librande
• Art Min
• Harvey Smith
• Tim Stellmach
• Bernie Yee
Game Tuning Workshop
Part II: A Formal Approach
In this section, we present
• A formal framework for game design.
• A view of the designer-player relationship
Game Tuning Workshop
Game Design “Frameworks”
• Paradigms for organizing our understanding.
Game Tuning Workshop
Game Design “Frameworks”
• Paradigms for organizing our understanding.
• Example Frameworks: The 400 Project Design Patterns
Game Tuning Workshop
Game Design “Frameworks”
• Paradigms for organizing our understanding.
• Example Frameworks: The 400 Project Design Patterns
• Separate from the process.
Game Tuning Workshop
Our Framework
• Grounded in a formal approach.
• Organized around the designer-player relationship.
Game Tuning Workshop
The Designer-Player Relationship
Designer
Player
Game Tuning Workshop
The Designer-Player Relationship
Designer
Player
Game
Game Tuning Workshop
The Designer-Player Relationship
Designer
Player
GameCreates Consumes
Game Tuning Workshop
The Designer-Player Relationship
Designer
Player
GameCreates Consumes
Book
Game Tuning Workshop
The Designer-Player Relationship
Designer
Player
GameCreates Consumes
BookMovie
Game Tuning Workshop
Definitions
• Mechanics: The rules and concepts that formally specify the game-as-system.
• Dynamics: The run-time behavior of the game-as-system.
Game Tuning Workshop
The Designer-Player Relationship
Designer
Player
GameCreates Consumes
BookMovie
Painting
Game Tuning Workshop
The Designer-Player Relationship
Designer
Player
GameCreates Consumes
BookMovie
Painting
Chair
Game Tuning Workshop
The Designer-Player Relationship
Designer
Player
GameCreates Consumes
BookMovie
Painting
ChairCar
Game Tuning Workshop
The Designer-Player Relationship
Designer
Player
GameCreates Consumes
BookMovie
Painting
ChairCar
Pizza
Game Tuning Workshop
The Designer-Player Relationship
Designer
Player
GameCreates Consumes
The difference is the way that games are consumed.
Game Tuning Workshop
An Extreme Opposite Example:A Theatrical Play
The “design team” knows:
• Script
• Lighting
• Acoustics
• Seating
• Intermissions
Game Tuning Workshop
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?
Game Tuning Workshop
Obligatory Editorial
This lack of predictability is the essence of play. It should be embraced, not eschewed.
Game Tuning Workshop
A Formal Model of“Game Consumption”
Rules “Fun”System
Behavior
Game Tuning Workshop
The Player-Designer Relationship, Revisited
Designer
Player
Rules “Fun”System
Behavior
Game Tuning Workshop
The MDA Framework
Mechanics AestheticsDynamics
Game Tuning Workshop
Definitions
• Mechanics: The rules and concepts that formally specify the game-as-system.
Game Tuning Workshop
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.
Game Tuning Workshop
Three “Views” of Games
Mechanics AestheticsDynamics
But they are causally linked.
Game Tuning Workshop
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.
Game Tuning Workshop
MDA is a “Taxonomy” for Models
• Knowledge of Aesthetics
• Knowledge of Dynamics
• Knowledge of Mechanics
• Knowledge of the interactions between them.
Game Tuning Workshop
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.
Game Tuning Workshop
Part III: MDA in detail
In this part, we discuss Aesthetics, Dynamics and Mechanics in detail.
Game Tuning Workshop
The Player’s Perspective
Mechanics AestheticsDynamics
Game Tuning Workshop
The Designer’s Perspective
Mechanics AestheticsDynamics
Game Tuning Workshop
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?
Game Tuning Workshop
Eight Kinds of “Fun”
Game Tuning Workshop
Eight Kinds of "Fun"
1. SensationGame as sense-pleasure
Game Tuning Workshop
Eight Kinds of "Fun"
1. SensationGame as sense-pleasure
2. FantasyGame as make-believe
Game Tuning Workshop
Eight Kinds of "Fun"
1. SensationGame as sense-pleasure
2. FantasyGame as make-believe
3. NarrativeGame as drama
Game Tuning Workshop
Eight Kinds of "Fun"
1. SensationGame as sense-pleasure
2. FantasyGame as make-believe
3. NarrativeGame as drama
4. ChallengeGame as obstacle course
Game Tuning Workshop
Eight Kinds of "Fun"
1. SensationGame as sense-pleasure
2. FantasyGame as make-believe
3. NarrativeGame as drama
4. ChallengeGame as obstacle course
5. FellowshipGame as social framework
Game Tuning Workshop
Eight Kinds of "Fun"
1. SensationGame as sense-pleasure
2. FantasyGame as make-believe
3. NarrativeGame as drama
4. ChallengeGame as obstacle course
5. FellowshipGame as social framework
6. DiscoveryGame as uncharted territory
Game Tuning Workshop
Eight Kinds of "Fun"
1. SensationGame as sense-pleasure
2. FantasyGame as make-believe
3. NarrativeGame as drama
4. ChallengeGame as obstacle course
5. FellowshipGame as social framework
6. DiscoveryGame as uncharted territory
7. ExpressionGame as self-discovery
Game Tuning Workshop
Eight Kinds of "Fun"
1. SensationGame as sense-pleasure
2. FantasyGame as make-believe
3. NarrativeGame as drama
4. ChallengeGame as obstacle course
5. FellowshipGame as social framework
6. DiscoveryGame as uncharted territory
7. ExpressionGame as self-discovery
8. SubmissionGame as pastime
Game Tuning Workshop
Clarifying Our Aesthetics
• Charades is “fun.”
• Quake is “fun.”
• Final Fantasy is “fun.”
Game Tuning Workshop
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 Game Unified Theory.
Game Tuning Workshop
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.
Game Tuning Workshop
What is an “Aesthetic Model?”
• A rigorous definition of an aesthetic goal.
• States criteria for success and failure.
• Serves as an “aesthetic compass.”
Some examples…
Game Tuning Workshop
Goal: Competition
Model: A game is competitive if players are emotionally invested in defeating each other.
Success: Players are adversaries. Players want to win.
Failure: A player feels that he can’t win. A player can’t measure his progress.
Game Tuning Workshop
Goal: Realistic Flight Simulation
Model: Flight dynamics match user expectations.
Success: Match a mathematical formula, or, Pass our “realism checklist,”
Failure: Counter-intuitive system behavior.
Game Tuning Workshop
Goal: Drama
Model: A game is dramatic if:• Its central conflict creates dramatic tension.• The dramatic tension builds towards a climax.
Dra
ma
tic
Te
nsi
on
Narrative Time
Conflict Resolution
Climax
Game Tuning Workshop
Goal: Drama
Success: A sense of uncertainty A sense of inevitability Tension increases towards a climax
Failure: The conflict’s outcome is obvious (no uncertainty). No sense of forward progress (no inevitability). Player doesn’t care how the conflict resolves.
On to Dynamics...
Game Tuning Workshop
Understanding Dynamics
• What about the game’s behavior can we predict before we go to playtest?
• How can we explain the behavior that we observe?
Game Tuning Workshop
Formalizing Game Dynamics
RulesInput Output
State(Player)
(Graphics/Sound)
The “State Machine” Model
Examples: Chess, Quake
Game Tuning Workshop
Models of Game Dynamics
• Again, no Grand Unified Theory
• Instead, a collection of many Dynamic Models.
• Dynamics models are analytical in nature.
Some examples…
Game Tuning Workshop
Example: Random Variable
This is a model of 2d6:
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Chance
in 3
6
Die roll
Game Tuning Workshop
Example: Feedback SystemA feedback system monitors and regulates its own state.
Room
Too Cold
Too Hot
An Ideal Thermostat
Thermometer
Controller
Cooler
Heater
Game Tuning Workshop
Example: Operant Conditioning
• The player is part of the system, too!
• Psychology gives us models to explain and predict the player’s behavior.
Game Tuning Workshop
Where Models Come From
• Analysis of existing games.
• Other Fields: Math, Psychology, Engineering…
• Our own experience.
On to Mechanics...
Game Tuning Workshop
Understanding Mechanics
• There’s a vast library of common game mechanics.
Game Tuning Workshop
Examples
• Cards: Shuffling, Trick-Taking, Bidding
• Shooters: Ammunition, Spawn Points
• Golf: Sand Traps, Water Hazards
Game Tuning Workshop
Mechanics vs. Dynamics
• There’s a grey area. Some behaviors are direct consequences of rules. Others are indirect. “Dynamics” usually means the latter.
Game Tuning Workshop
Mechanics vs. Dynamics
• There’s a grey area. Some behaviors are direct consequences of rules. Others are indirect. “Dynamics” usually means the latter.
• Dynamics and Mechanics are different views of games.
Game Tuning Workshop
Mechanics vs. Dynamics
• There’s a grey area. Some behaviors are direct consequences of rules. Others are indirect. “Dynamics” usually means the latter.
• Dynamics and Mechanics are different views of games.
• Dynamics emerge from Mechanics.
Game Tuning Workshop
Interaction Models
• How do specific dynamics emerge from specific mechanics?
• How do specific dynamics evoke specific aesthetics?
Game Tuning Workshop
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
Game Tuning Workshop
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.”
Game Tuning Workshop
Part IV: Tuning
In this part we will:
• Define tuning.
• Present a formal approach.
Game Tuning Workshop
What we mean by “Tuning:”
Tuning is an iterative process.
Test Analyze
Revise
Game Tuning Workshop
We’re not limited to:
• Parameter tweaking
• “Fiddling with knobs”
Game Tuning Workshop
MDA in the Tuning Process
Aesthetic Models help us:• Articulate our goals. • Point out our game’s flaws.• Measure our progress.
Dynamic Models help us:• Pinpoint our problems.
Both kinds help us:• Evaluate possible revisions.
Game Tuning Workshop
Learning From the Tuning Process
Between iterations, we re-evaluate:
• Our goals.
• Our models
• Our assumptions.
Sometimes we need to revise our own thinking as well.
Game Tuning Workshop
The Tuning Process
Before we start:• Know our aesthetic goals.
While we iterate:• Aesthetic and dynamics models guide our way.
Between Iterations• Learn from the process.
Game Tuning Workshop
Time for Coffee...
After the break, go to the classroom that matches the color of your poker chip:
Blue C1
Red C3
White C4
Game Tuning Workshop
Part V: Some Common Themes
Here are some themes you’ll see throughout the workshop.
Game Tuning Workshop
Theme: Dynamics and Fantasy
• Our game dynamics have meaning within our game’s core fantasy.
• That meaning may or may not be compatible.
• In order to remain faithful to our subject matter, dynamics and fantasy must be in alignment.
Game Tuning Workshop
© Steve Jackson Gameswww.sjgames.com
Game Tuning Workshop
Theme: State Space and Design Flexibility
• The state space of a game is the set of possible states the system can be in.
• The larger the state space, the easier it is to make changes.
• As we modify our design, we can expect the state space to grow.