VJ14 Day2 GRUVI

8/10/2019 VJ14 Day2 GRUVI

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Game Design Workshop

Taller de Diseo de JuegosJonathan Hamel@jhameltime


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Welcome Back!

Designer

Mechanics AestheticsDynamics


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Turns + hit points + actions

BETRAYA

MDA in SiSSYFIGHT

Equality Scourge

Competition,

Random Attacks

Cooperation,Team Attacks


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Definitions

Mechanics: The rules and concepts that formalspecify the game-as-system.

Dynamics: The run-time behavior of the game-a

system.

Aesthetics: The desirable emotional responsesby the game dynamics.


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Iterative Design Process

Playtest

AnalyzeModify

Fail fastFollow the fun


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TODAY

A deeper dive on the components of MDA

An exercise about making players care about N


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Schedule

14001800 again today


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Game Design WorkshopMDA in Detail

Credit to Mahk LeBlanc (Riot)


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Games as Feedback Loops

State

Measure

Decide

Alter


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Two Kinds of Feedback Mechanics

Negative: We give the losing player a bonus (blue she

Positive: We give the winning player a bonus (speed b

Resulting dynamics: Stabilizing force vs. Snowball effe


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Dynamics & Aesthetics

Where does Drama come from? Conflict creates dramatic tension

Tension builds towards a climax


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Tension is a Function of Uncertainty

A game is as tense as it is close

Tension = f(closeness)


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So These Are Related!

Feedback systems can govern closeness,therefore tension.

Thus they can be a useful tool for influencing d


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Dynamics


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AestheticsDynamics


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Important Distinction

Feedback mechanics are a useful toolfor influencing drama

in a competitive environment.

NOT your racing game is bad if it doesnt havefeedback system.


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The Problem of Applicability

Not all tools are hammers.

Not all problems are nails.

We need a language for describing problems.

Solutions are not value statements.


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Understanding Aesthetics

We need to get past words like fun and game

What kinds of fun are there?

How will we know a particular kind of fun whe

it?


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Eight Kinds of Fun

Sensation game as sense pleasure

Challenge as obstacle course

Association as social framework

Narrative as unfolding story

Fantasy as permission to pretend

Expression as soapbox

Discovery as uncharted territory

Submission as mindless pastime


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Clarifying Our Goals

An aesthetic vocabularly helps us describe the problems we want to solve.

We need more than a one-word description of o

goals.


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Some examples

Formulating an Aesthetic Model

For each aesthetic goal: Write a formal definition

List criteria for success

List modes of failure

Serves as an aesthetic compass

These are often reusable


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Goal: Competition

Definition: A game is competitive if players are emotioinvested in defeating each other.

Success:

Players are adversaries.

Players want to win.

Failure:

A player feels that he cant win.

A player cant measure his progress.


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Goal: Drama

Definition:

A game is dramatic if its central conflict crea

dramatic tension.


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Goal: Drama

Success: A sense of uncertainty

A sense of inevitability

Tension increases towards a climax

Failure:

The conflicts outcome is obvious (no uncertainty)

No sense of forward progress (no inevitability)

Player doesnt care how the conflict resolves.


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Goal: Pirate Fantasy

Definition: A pirate fantasy conforms to the genconventions of pirate movies, and permits the p

engage in certain kinds of anti-social pirate beh


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Goal: Pirate Fantasy

Success: Empowerment

Independence

Greed

Treachery

Prey upon Weak

Failure: Vulnerability

Compassion

Generosity


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Aesthetic Models are a Vital Tool

Its hard to solve problems we cant describe. To ourselves

To each other in a collaborative environment


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Understanding Dynamics

Behavior is separate from rules.

The same behavior can emerge from many diff

rules.

We can create Dynamic Models


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Dynamic Models Help Us

Explain the behavior we observe Predict behavior before it happens


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Feedback System is One Example

Negative feedback loop(Stabilizing force)

Positive feedback loop

(Snowball effect)

State

Decide

Alter


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2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Chanc

ein36

Die roll

The Science of Probability

This is a model of 2d6:


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The Science of Psychology

The player is part of the system, too! Psychology is the science of understandingand

predictingbehavior


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The Science of Psychology

Operant conditioning Variable schedules of reward produce persistence

Behavioral economics

Cognitive load consumes the same part of the brain

use to make sound judgements Empathy theory

Expressions of vulnerability can encourage empathy


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Understanding Mechanics

Knowledge of Mechanics is encyclopedic Play lots of games


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Understanding Mechanics

Cards Shuffling, Trick-Taking, Bidding

Shooters

Ammunition, Spawn Points, Health

Golf Sand Traps, Water Hazards

Basketball

Passing, 24 second shot clock (90*60)/(112*2


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It's not so much about this

Mechanics Dynamics Aesthet


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This is where design happens


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Game Design WorkshopRiver Xcape

Credit to Jeb Havens (Google)


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Overview

RivrXcape simulates the plight of ten people

escaping across a raging river.


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RivrXcape(tm)- The Basic Game Rules

Ten people are caughtin a section of ragingriver between twodeadly waterfalls.

They must get to safetybefore they are sweptover the edge.

The goal is to get asmany as possible to theriver bank on the right.


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RivrXcape(tm)Each Turn

Phase 1: Rapids (Roll 2d6) First, check for sixes. If you roll anysixes, push EVERY Meeple down onespace and then immediately re-roll thesixes. Repeat this until neither dieshows a six.

Then, for each of the two dice, pushall the Meeplesin that columndownone space.

Any Meeple that falls offthe bottom of

the board is dead. :-(dd

Phase 2: Move Towards Safety! You can now makeup to X total moves, where X is equal to the final die roll totalfrom Step 1 Each moveconsists of moving one Meeple one spacehorizontally or vertically. Each Meeplecan only make a maximumof two movesin a turn. Meeples cannot move intoor throughother Meeples' spaces. A Meeple that moves ontoone of the two brownriver bank spaces is safe. :-)


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Play until ~15:00

Try to complete three full games Write down how many people survive each gam


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General Observations About RivrXcape

A


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Whats fun about RivrXcape?

Can we get more specific than fun/not fun? How did you feelwhen you played?

Challenge: Tactics, Problem Solving

Drama: Narrative Arc, Forward Pressure

Responsibility: Oh no! moments


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Exercise Goals

Make the player careabout the individual peop Each time you play, count how many survive

Tune the game so about half of them die each t

Half the people die, but the player

should just care a lot more


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The GRUVI Model: Why Do We Care?

Getting players to emotionally attachto virtual agents

Grateful

Relatable

Useful Vulnerable

Investment (-ful)

Credit: Jeb Havens, Google/YouTube


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Grateful

The player feels directly responsible for the agents happiness

Thankful Reactions

The agents clearly express their thanks to the player for actions taken

Attributes Happiness

The agents attribute any happy moment or action to the player

Humble The agents show respect for the players ultimate authority, as they know th

never survive without you

Proactive

The agents go out of their way to try to show appreciation to the player, even


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Relatable

The player can project his or her own mind and thoughts onto the age

Transparent

The agents give clear and frequent feedback, and the player can easily see

Emotional

The agents are happy and playful at times, and sad and downtrodden at oth

Social The agents interact socially with others of their kind

Predictable

The agents make fairly simple choices, for reasons that are clear to the play


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Useful

The player derives important benefit from the agents

Powerful

The agents have especially powerful (often unique) actions, such as skilled or effi

resources, or the creation of especially cool structures or events

Renewable

The agents will continue to work as long as they are kept alive and happy

Adaptable The agents can learn, or otherwise have their behavior modified by the player to r

conditions

Resilient

The agents will actively try to keep themselves alive and avoid danger (rather tha

down like an automaton)


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Vulnerable

The player sees that the agents need him or her to survive

Mortal

The agents can die

Short Sighted

The agents wont make optimal decisions on their own

Hunted

The agents have some form of enemies they need protection from (predators, dis

environment, etc.)

Periodically Fragile

The agents are especially fragile at certain times or in certain situations (when sic

winter, at night, during a life-stage metamorphosis, etc.)


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Investment (-ful)

The player can spend a lot of time and energy on the agents

Sacrifice

The agents have a significant cost to create, nurture, and grow

Future Potential

The agents take a while to be especially useful, focusing the player on the agents

future

Support Structure The agents have recurring needs that require the player to mold the surrounding

(both natural and economic systems) to meet on a regular basis

Multiple Cycles

The agents operate and grow according to longer-term cycles that the player mus

upkeep to (age, seasons, day/night, reproductive, etc.)


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The GRUVI Model: Why We Care

Virtual Agents

Vulnerable- Mortal

- Short Sighted

- Hunted

- Periodically Fragile

Useful- Powerful- Renewable

- Adaptable

- Resilient

Grateful- Thankful Reactions- Attributes Happiness

- Humble

- Proactive

Investment- Sacrifice

- Future Potential

- Support Structure

- Multiple Cycles

Relatable- Transparent

- Emotional

- Predictable

- Social


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Beta Test at 5:15 pm

Make sure your rules are written down.


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Beta Test

Send 4 team members to 2 other tables as beta

2 people stay behind to teach the rules

Test until 5:30


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Discussion

Lets compare solutions.

What different approaches did we take?

5:50


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Game Design WorkshopClosing


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Turns + hit points + actions

BETRAYA

MDA in SiSSYFIGHT

Equality Scourge

Competition,

Random Attacks

Cooperation,Team Attacks


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MDA in Context

The game industry is full of both aesthetic modeprescriptive aesthetic lenses


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Marc LeBlanc

Sensation game as sense pleasure Challenge as obstacle course

Fellowship as social framework


Fantasy as permission to pretend Expression as soapbox




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or my version

Sensation game as sense pleasure Challenge as obstacle course

Association as social framework


Fantasy as permission to pretend Expression as soapbox




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Jason VandenBerghe


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g

Novelty

ChallengeStimulatioHarmonyThreat

Jamie Madigan, et al.


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(Immersyve)

Thi i h d i h


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This is where design happens

T k


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Takeaways

Game mechanics create dynamics when set in Game dynamics have emergent aesthetics

The designer can choose those aesthetics

Through iteration we refine both the aesthetics

clarity with which they emerge from the game

T k


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Takeaways

Aesthetic models are reusable Dynamic models come from science

Knowledge of mechanics is encyclopedic

Th k


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Thanks

Slides and materials will be posted for downloa @jhameltime

Documents

VJ14 Day2 GRUVI