Platformer - iPhone Game Blueprints - page 193

• Stop robot : It is a static creature that looks like a striped pole with the Stop
warning sign and plays the role of an obstacle.
• Support robot : It is a creature that cannot move and plays the role of an
obstacle. It supports a platform above, so by removing such a robot from the
scene, the player can also demolish some parts of the level.
• Crane robot : It can move horizontally and looks like a crab, walking on four
legs.
• Welder : It is a dangerous robot that operates like the crane robot, but also
has a scorpion-like tail with an electrode at its end. It cripples the protagonist
stronger than the previous mentioned robots.
• Installer : It has humanoid anatomy, so it moves fast and in every direction. It
follows the main character and is harder to escape.
• Virus-affected CPU queen : It is the final boss of the game.
Recall the negative feedback paradigm? It tells the player that enemies become
stronger as the game progresses and acts like a training that player get while play-
ing. Only Stop robots and Support robots first appear, followed by Crane robots, and
finally come the Welders and Installers. It is important to note that not only does the
strength of a particular opponent play a major role but also the number of oppon-
ents. A Support robot can be weaker than the protagonist, but three of them fighting
together are much stronger. So, by introducing new types of robots and increasing
their numbers on the screen, a game balance can be adjusted to a specific difficulty
level.
It is also important to not forget the asymmetrical balance: opponents should not
be exactly equal to the protagonist. Some of them should move slower, but have
strongerweapons,whilesomeotherscanrunquickly,buttheirarmorisstronger,and
so on. This how fighting sequences should be made to ensure that they are more
catchy, because players must use different tactics to attain victory. Apparently, it is
hard to develop an accurate and universal formula that can help to calculate the dis-
tribution of a character's features; thus, many real playtests are needed to ensure
that the values are correct.
Also, it is difficult to create a new design and look for each new type of enemy. But
there is a simple trick that many developers use: regular enemy characters can be
declared as more stronger units by saying that they are armored . In this case, only
some minor changes in their image are made to designate that they are wearing
some armor.