Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
FIGURE 11.3
Absolute, relative,
and perceived levels
of difficulty
Power
Provided to
Meet
Challenges
Absolute
Difficulty
In-Game
Experience
the Player
Has Had
Relative
Difficulty
Perceived
Difficulty
Time
If the available power grows at exactly the same rate as the absolute difficulty goes
up, the relative difficulty will be a flat line, as illustrated in
Figure 11.4
(next page).
In that case, a level 5 knight would find it exactly as hard to kill a level 5 troll in
the middle of the game as a level 1 knight would find it to kill a level 1
troll at the beginning of the game. But relative difficulty should not be a flat line
because when you factor in the player's increasing in-game experience, the per-
ceived difficulty actually goes down—the game gets easier. Aim to increase the
absolute difficulty of the challenges somewhat faster than you increase the avail-
able power to meet them. The gap between absolute and relative difficulty widens
only slowly.
TIP
In a long game,
relative difficulty must
increase over time to
counteract the player's
growing in-game
experience, or he will
perceive the game as
getting easier and
easier.
WHEN PERCEIVED DIFFICULTY SHOULD NOT CHANGE
The perceived difficulty throughout the game should either remain flat or should rise.
In most games, it rises. For some players, however, it should remain flat or rise only very
slowly. Young children and casual gamers have a lower tolerance for frustration than
older and more hardcore players. Mobility-impaired players may not get as much benefit
from increasing experience as fully able players in games with physical coordination
challenges. If you are making a game specifically for these groups, try to keep the per-
ceived difficulty level nearly flat throughout the course of the game.
