Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
message” before. McLuhan meant that the attributes of the chosen medium for
communication are more important than the actual signal. He was exaggerating
for dramatic effect, but he had a point. The medium you choose reveals a lot about
your intended message even before you send it. People have beliefs and prejudices
about media that are quite independent of the actual message. For example, writing
a book makes us look more authoritative than making a film would.
The strength of games as communication media is that they allow
interactive
communi-
cation, both between the designer and the players and among the players themselves.
In a game, the audience is actively involved with the signal. This has advantages
but, as we will see, also makes communicating with games harder, or at least differ-
ent, from communicating with topics or ilms. Many of the people who commission
and pay for serious games—a serious game designer's clients—still think in terms of
broadcast media. They're used to thinking about presenting data rather than giv-
ing the audience something interesting to do. While games retain some elements
of classic broadcast media, they are also crucially different. Some messages are well
suited to be told through games, but others are best mediated through other forms.
sometimes it is better to make a Film
Films communicate certain types of messages more effectively than games can. if you
have a particular story that you want to tell and that story is long, is detailed, and leaves
little room for interpretation or experimentation, film will be much more effective.
Games are a medium that needs active participation by its audience. When a player plays
a game with a story in it, he contributes events to the story through his actions, even
if they don't change the plot or the ending. if your message leaves no room for active
participation, then you shouldn't make it into a game.
Games possess a unique quality that sets them apart from all other media: They
are the only medium in which the signal is generated by mechanics. Games
can
use audio, video, animation, and text—the presentational media—to deliver their
message, but their mechanics are their strength. If your game uses only presenta-
tional methods, then you might as well use some other medium that is better suited
to your message. As we have shown, the mechanics that govern a game's internal
economy create emergent gameplay. To build meaningful games, you will need
everything you have learned about mechanics so far and use that knowledge to
create the right mechanics to fit your message.
Games and films share the quality that their signals have a high production value.
This creates expectations in the audience. When we watch a film or play a game, we
expect a high-quality production. We might pay a few dollars to see or buy it, but
we know it costs far more to create it. This probably explains why clients expect so
much when they order a serious game: They compare it with the latest production
out of Hollywood and the latest batch of triple-A game titles. Serious games with
smaller budgets have trouble living up to these expectations because, unlike film, a
