Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
In games, we can recognize patterns of behavior, and in many games we can recog-
nize multiple patterns at the same time. Games of progression are ordered systems,
because all possible sequences of challenges and actions are predesigned. Although
the player cannot know what will happen next, a designer looking at the mechan-
ics can determine it with certainty. In board games, taking turns creates a periodic
system but with more subtlety. The discrete unit of time (
ticks
) used in most massively
multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) affects the strategies of players.
The distinct development phases in
Sid Meier's Civilization
(expansion, consolidation,
war, colonization, and the race to space) are clear examples of emergent behavior in
games. Finally, dice or random number generators, and other players, introduce a
chaotic element into games. To design an emergent game, the designer must ensure
that all these elements balance one another in such a way that the game's overall
behavior falls somewhere in the emergence category.
Can emergence be Designed?
Emergence can occur in complex systems only after they have been set in motion.
This explains why game design depends heavily on building prototypes and testing
the game. Games are complex systems, and the only way to find out whether the
gameplay is interesting, enjoyable, and balanced is to have people play the game in
some form.
Normally we think of design as a process in which the designer knows what she
wants to produce and works to create it. Designing emergent systems is paradoxical
because designers may not know exactly what final state their system will produce
but will be designing the experience of getting there. However, as we explained in
Chapter 1, “Designing Game Mechanics,” certain structures in a game's mechanics
will tend to produce particular types of results. Understanding these structures helps
designers create the effects they want, even if the process still requires a lot of testing.
This topic is all about identifying these structures, recognizing them in your (and
others') games, and leveraging them to produce the gameplay you want.
Before we set our focus back on games in the following chapters, let's take a look at
a few classic examples from the science of complexity.
The science of complexity typically concerns itself with vast, complex systems. The
weather system is the classic example. In these systems, a small change can have
large effects over time. This is popularly known as the
butterfly effect
: A butterfly
that flaps its wings on one side of the planet might hypothetically trigger a motion
of air that accumulates into a hurricane on the far side of the planet. Other systems
studied by the science of complexity include stock markets, traffic, pedestrian flow,
the flocking of birds, and the motion of astronomical objects. These systems are
