RESISTANCE - A Game Design Vocabulary - page 153

Get other friends or classmates who weren't involved in designing your scenario to
play it. Afterward, ask them whether their goals, choices, and scores were clear to
them. What did or didn't they understand? How could you make these systems clearer?
Alternatively, are there ways in which lack of clarity could make the game more
interesting?

.

Split the scenario you've been discussing into multiple parts by inserting moments of
reward. For example, after part of the scenario has been completed, give the player
or players an additional verb to use if they've completed certain goals or actions.
Try experimenting with different kinds of rewards, including combinations of the
following:
■

.

A moment to pause and relax, where the resistance of the game lets up for a while

■ A new verb that they can use in the next section of the game

■

■ A purely decorative reward like a medal or a title that recognizes an accomplish-
ment but doesn't affect the game system

A limited amount of a resource they need to use to enable a verb

Group Activity

For this activity, you'll once again be using Knytt Stories , the game creation tool described at the
end of Chapter , “Context.” Split into two teams (even a team of one is fine!) and design a level

in Knytt Stories . When you're done, have the other team play it, and watch them playing. Don't
say anything while they're playing, but keep track of your own reactions as they move through
the scenes you've created. How does watching other people play make you feel about what
you created?

4

Using the preceding process—creating a level, and then watching someone else play it—try
out the following ideas:

■ Make an easy game that just introduces a new verb.

■ Take the easy game and see if you can make it more challenging by increasing the

resistance somehow. Can you increase the resistance by developing verbs? How about
just with objects?

■ Extend the game so that it has periods of high resistance (for example, a difficult sec-
tion) and periods of low resistance (a section where the player can pause and relax or
just engage in rote activities she's already mastered).

■ Make an extremely high-resistance game—not impossible, but one that you're not
sure if the other team could actually beat. See what happens!