Is this thing on?. Mechanics, Dynamics, Aesthetics A Formal Approach to Game Design Marc “MAHK”...

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Is this thing on?

Mechanics, Dynamics, Aesthetics

A Formal Approach to Game Design

Marc “MAHK” LeBlanc

April 2003

Game Design “Frameworks”

• Paradigms for organizing our understanding.

• Example Frameworks:– The 400 Project– Design Patterns

• Separate from the process.

Our Framework

• Organized around the designer-player relationship.

• Grounded in a formal approach.

The Designer-Player Relationship

Designer

Player

Designer

Player

Designer

Player

GameCreates Consumes

Designer

Player

Designer

Player

BookMovie

Designer

Player

BookMovie

Painting

Designer

Player

BookMovie

Painting

Designer

Player

BookMovie

Painting

ChairCar

Designer

Player

BookMovie

Painting

ChairCar

Steak Dinner

Designer

Player

The difference is the way that games are consumed.

An Extreme Opposite Example:A Theatrical Play

The “design team” knows:

• Script

• Lighting

• Acoustics

• Seating

• Intermissions

Games, on the Contrary

The designer doesn’t know:

• When will the player play? How often? For how long?

• Where? With Whom?

And most importantly...

• What will happen during the game?

Obligatory Editorial

This lack of predictability is the essence of play. It should be embraced, not eschewed.

A Formal Model of“Game Consumption”

Rules “Fun”System

Behavior

The Player-Designer Relationship, Revisited

Designer

Player

Rules “Fun”System

Behavior

The MDA Framework

Mechanics AestheticsDynamics

Definitions

• Mechanics: The rules and concepts that formally specify the game-as-system.

Definitions

• Dynamics: The run-time behavior of the game-as-system.

Definitions

• Dynamics: The run-time behavior of the game-as-system.

• Aesthetics: The desirable emotional responses evoked by the game dynamics.

The Building Blocks: Formal Models

• No Grand Unified Theory

• Instead, lots of little models

• Models can be formulas or abstractions.

• We can think of models as “lenses.”

• Discovering new models is an ongoing process.

MDA is a “Taxonomy” for Models

• Knowledge of Aesthetics

• Knowledge of Dynamics

• Knowledge of Mechanics

• Knowledge of the interactions between them.

Properties of Good Models

We want our models to be:

• Formal (i.e. well-defined).

• Abstract (i.e. widely applicable).

• Proven (i.e. known to work).

On any given game, we expect to use several different abstractions, not one big one.

Part III: MDA in detail

In this part, we discuss Aesthetics, Dynamics and Mechanics in detail.

The Player’s Perspective

The Designer’s Perspective

Understanding Aesthetics

We need to get past words like “fun” and “gameplay.”

• What kinds of “fun” are there?

• How will we know a particular kind of “fun” when we see it?

Eight Kinds of “Fun”

Eight Kinds of "Fun"

1. SensationGame as sense-pleasure

2. FantasyGame as make-believe

3. NarrativeGame as drama

4. ChallengeGame as obstacle course

5. FellowshipGame as social framework

6. DiscoveryGame as uncharted territory

7. ExpressionGame as self-discovery

8. SubmissionGame as surrender

Clarifying Our Aesthetics

• Charades is “fun.”

• Quake is “fun.”

• Final Fantasy is “fun.”

Clarifying Our Aesthetics

• Charades: Fellowship, Expression, Challenge

• Quake: Challenge, Sensation, Competition, Fantasy

• Final Fantasy: Fantasy, Narrative, Expression, Discovery, Challenge, Masochism

• Each game pursues multiple aesthetics.

• Again, there is no Grand Unified Theory.

Clarifying Our Goals

• As designers, we can choose certain aesthetics as goals for our game design.

• We need more than a one-word definition of our goals.

What is an “Aesthetic Model?”

• A rigorous definition of an aesthetic goal.

• Serves as an “aesthetic compass.”

• States criteria for success as well as possible modes of failure.

Some examples…

Goal: Competition

Model: A game is competitive if:• Players are adversaries.• Players have an ongoing emotional investment in

defeating each other.

Some Failure Modes:• A player feels that he can’t win.• A player can’t measure his progress.

Goal: Realistic Flight Simulation

Possible Models: Our flight dynamics are realistic if:

• They match a mathematical formula, or,• They pass our “realism checklist,”

Failure Modes:

• Counter-intuitive system behavior.

Goal: Drama

Model: A game is dramatic if:• Its central conflict creates dramatic tension.• The dramatic tension builds towards a climax.

Narrative Time

Conflict Resolution

Climax

Goal: Drama

Failure Modes:• No dramatic tension.• Tension does not increase towards a climax.

On to Dynamics...

Understanding Dynamics

• How can we predict and explain the behavior of the game-as-system?

Formalizing Game Dynamics

RulesInput Output

State(Player)

(Graphics/Sound)

The “State Machine” Model

Models of Game Dynamics

• Again, no Grand Unified Theory

• Instead, a collection of many Dynamic Models.

• Dynamics models are analytical in nature.

Some examples…

Example: Random Variable

This is a model of 2d6:

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Chance

Die roll

Example: Feedback SystemA feedback system monitors and regulates its own state.

Too Cold

Too Hot

An Ideal Thermostat

Thermometer

Controller

Cooler

Heater

Example: Operant Conditioning

• The player is part of the system, too!

• Psychology gives us models to explain and predict the player’s behavior.

Where Models Come From

• Analysis of existing games.

• Other Fields: Math, Psychology, Engineering…

• Our own experience.

On to Mechanics...

Understanding Mechanics

• There’s a vast library of common game mechanics.

Examples

• Cards: Shuffling, Trick-Taking, Bidding

• Shooters: Ammunition, Spawn Points

• Golf: Sand Traps, Water Hazards

Mechanics vs. Dynamics

We need to acknowledge mechanics and dynamics as distinct concepts.

Dynamics emerge from Mechanics.

Interaction Models

• How do specific dynamics emerge from specific mechanics?

• How do specific dynamics evoke specific aesthetics?

Example: Time Pressure

• “Time pressure” is a dynamic.

• It can create dramatic tension.

• Various mechanics create time pressure: – Simple time limit– “Pace” monster– Depleting resource

Moving Forward…

Let’s hope the future brings us:

• A rich aesthetic vocabulary.

• A eclectic library of game mechanics.

• A catalog of formal models: Aesthetic, Dynamic, Interaction

In other words,

“Formal Abstract Design Tools.”

The Three Musketeers

...and the Dynamics of Drama

Rules for Three Musketeers

• Players take turns moving one of their pieces. No diagonal moves.

• Musketeers move by capturing a nearby enemy.

• Cardinal’s men move to a nearby empty space.

• Cardinal wins if the Musketeers are in the same row or column.

• Musketeers win if they cannot move.

Starting Board

Discussion Questions

What’s a good strategy for the Musketeers?

For the Cardinal?

What are the aesthetics of Three Musketeers?

In other words, what’s “fun” about it?

When does the “dramatic climax” of the game occur?

Can we prove that the game halts?

1. What is the maximum number of choices the musketeer player can have on his turn?

2. How many first moves are there?

3. How many last moves are there?

What does this graph look like?

The Dramatic Arc

RisingAction

FallingAction

Climax

The Dramatic Arc Pervades Game Aesthetics

• Challenge: Obstacle/Triumph

• Discovery: Novelty/Mastery

• Submission: Toil/Reward

• Competition: Equality/Supremacy

So Games are Stories, Right?

• Rather, Play and Narrative intersect.

• The Dramatic Arc is the point of intersection.

• Drama is more “primal” than narrative.

• Games don’t tell stories, they are stories.

Drama in Detail

Drama Requires:

• Dramatic Tension

• Rising and Falling Action

Drama in Detail

Drama Requires:

• Dramatic Tension– Uncertainty– Inevitability

• Rising and Falling Action

Dramatic Tension

• Uncertainty: The outcome is ambiguous

• Inevitability: The outcome is imminent.

Drama in Three Musketeers

• Uncertainty: Search tree complexity

• Inevitability: Depletion of the Cardinal’s men

(consider “pushing” variant)

Other Sources of Uncertainty

• Negative Feedback (“Crash Team Racing”)

• Rising Stakes (“Jeopardy”)

• Limited Information (“Warcraft”)

Other Sources of Inevitability

• Non-reversible processes.

• Non-renewable resources.

• Perception is important.

Denouement in Games

• Games need to resolve their tension.

• Some resolution happens outside the game.

• Many digital games build in post-game resolution.

That’s All!

• Drama is a central play aesthetic.

• Drama is structured tension.

• Several different dynamics evoke uncertainty and inevitability.

Questions?

www.algorithmancy.org

(www.monkeyjump.com)

mahk@world.std.com

Is this thing on?. Mechanics, Dynamics, Aesthetics A Formal Approach to Game Design Marc “MAHK”...

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