Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
sufficient level of abstraction, in which structural features such as feedback loops
are immediately apparent. Machinations diagrams are designed to represent game
mechanics in a way that is accessible yet retains the structural features and dynamic
behavior of the games they represent.
The theoretical vision that drives the Machinations framework is that gameplay is
ultimately determined by the flow of tangible, intangible, and abstract resources
through the game system. Machinations diagrams represent these flows, and they
let you see and study the feedback structures that might exist within the game
system. These feedback structures determine much of the dynamic behavior of
game economies. By using Machinations diagrams, a designer can observe game
systems that would normally be invisible.
Figure 5.1
provides an overview of the
Machinations framework and its most important components.
FIGURe 5.1
The machinations
framework
The Machinations Tool
You can draw Machinations diagrams on paper or with a computerized drawing tool.
At the same time, the syntax of the language is exact. It describes unambiguously how
different elements of an internal economy interact. The syntax of the Machinations
language is formal enough to be interpreted and executed on a computer; it is close
to a visual programming language designed to represent game mechanics.
