Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
tend to fall in four-letter initialisms, like ENFP (for me) or INTJ (for
some other person). These letters are compiled across four planes that
offer us insight into a variety of elements of the human mind. If we
are able to understand these planes, we can apply that knowledge to
the design of challenges and obstacles in our games that will teach our
players how to continue having fun, completing challenges, and play-
ing our games. I would like to keep one thing constant throughout
this discussion: chances are, you are reading this thinking of imple-
menting some of these psychological tidbits into your user testing or
research, which is awesome. I would like to point out that this is just
one of many tests you can apply to your games testers before gathering
data from them in order to ensure a truly random sample, one of the
hallmarks of good research.
The first and most easily observable of the four parts of this model
is the attitude scale, which determines whether people are given to
introversion or extraversion. Introverts are typically quiet and reserved
and prefer to act in solitary situations. Contrarily, those who are extra-
verted are attention seeking, loud, and incredibly outgoing. Different
cultures place different values on introversion and extraversion. In
North America, having a big voice and being outgoing are considered
assets, whereas in Japan, introversion is considered to be respectful,
polite, and dignified. Why does this matter to games? Very simple—
consider the introvert for a moment. How likely is he or she to want
to be the singer, or participate at all, in a game like Rock Band ? he
answer is probably not very , unless alone or in certain situations. It is
a chore for people who are introverted to interact with large groups of
people in social situations. On the other hand, how much fun is a true
extrovert going to get from a visual novel? Bear in mind that these
type indicators are not hard guarantees of whether someone is going
to like something. The methods by which players choose their likes
and dislikes are complicated and far-reaching. I am only here to show
you the differences in how people solve problems, so that you might
have some insight in your design choices and user testing.
The second of the MBTI parameters is the letter responsible for
the intake of data. This is important to games, as often our primary
mode of teaching players to solve problems in our designs is to give
them data about the situation, the controls, and the context of the
game world. These portions are divided into sense or intuition. These
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