Forum Overview :: Gamerasutra

If the movie rule is "Show, don't tell," the VG rule is "Do, don't show." by Mischief Maker 09/16/2013, 5:45pm PDT A series of contrivances made 4 puzzle platformers fall into my lap last weekend: Mark of the Ninja Volgarr the Viking Trine 2 Umihara Kawase DS Mark of the Ninja looks cool and Trine is abso-fucking-lutely gorgeous, but the comparatively homely Volgarr and Umihara are way more fun. Why? Mark of the Ninja and Trine 2 are about telling a story. A shitty videogame-quality story, but a story nonetheless. Volgarr and Umihara on the other hand are built around a handful of mechanics. The story based focus leads to sub-par gameplay in the pretty games: Mark of the Ninja pretty much straightjackets the player to a few clickable areas of interaction while Trine is at the opposite extreme, so loosey goosey with the mechanics that you can muddle your way through most puzzles without coming close to pulling off the maneuvers the designers intended. Volgarr and Umihara are built around first teaching the basic mechanics, then challenging players to explot them in increasingly complex situations. In Mark of the Ninja and Trine 2, the point is to see the end of the story and you can't have the game too challenging or you'll frustrate the player as they rush to see the shitty let down conclusion to the epic. Volgarr and Umihara have no plot, the reward is doing all the challenges successfully. We all know the way this rule applies to action games, but I'll posit that it applies just as well to story-centric games. In Planescape you can die and come back and the story revolves around the insane situations such a power could bring you into, as well as the moral implications of complete immortality. I am getting such deja vu as I type this. I could swear I made this "Do, don't show" argument on Caltrops before, but google is coming up empty.

What does a game designer need to know to create good mechanics? Good story? by fucking newbie 09/14/2013, 6:08pm PDT     I am hijacking this thread to talk about how much I hate Extra Credits by WITTGENSTEIN 09/14/2013, 6:25pm PDT         The Extra Credits writer was an evercrack addict and cried about it on the show by fucking newbie 09/14/2013, 8:16pm PDT     "Is this fun?" by fabio 09/15/2013, 3:58am PDT     I think it depends on the type of gaming you're making, "Fun" is a good start... by Worm 09/15/2013, 11:33am PDT     They should ask themselves: by Fullofkittens 09/15/2013, 2:38pm PDT         Ten pages of this in the New Yorker. Well, let's see how it goes. NT by fucking newbie 09/15/2013, 8:16pm PDT     Re: What does a game designer need to know to create good mechanics? Good story? by Entropy Stew 09/15/2013, 4:22pm PDT         I'D BUY THAT FOR FIVE DOLLARS! (adjusted for inflation) NT by That guy from Robocop 09/15/2013, 8:25pm PDT         We'd call it PI the movie NT by Directed by Arraanoofsssky 09/18/2013, 1:23am PDT     Too much inbred creativity by Lurker 13243 09/16/2013, 4:02am PDT         This is all 100% correct by fabio 09/16/2013, 3:53pm PDT             I have a lot of hope for these "millennials" by Fullofkittens 09/16/2013, 5:03pm PDT                 I thought Gen Y was Millennials? by WITTGENSTEIN 09/16/2013, 5:41pm PDT                     don't think there's a name for the new kids yet by jeep 09/16/2013, 8:50pm PDT                         Generation Z or millenials both apply, but here's the real name: by fucking newbie 09/20/2013, 1:06pm PDT                 Or you're only seeing the top percentage that manage to get work NT by fabio 09/16/2013, 10:56pm PDT                     True. NT by FoK 09/17/2013, 3:55am PDT     If the movie rule is "Show, don't tell," the VG rule is "Do, don't show." by Mischief Maker 09/16/2013, 5:45pm PDT         If the movie rule is "Show, don't tell," the VG rule is "Do, don't show." NT by <- not bad ( jeep ) 09/16/2013, 8:52pm PDT     Without friction, there can be no pleasure. by Jerry Whorebach 09/16/2013, 10:20pm PDT     Re: What does a game designer need to know to create good mechanics? Good story? by Ice Cream Jonsey 09/17/2013, 12:11am PDT         I agree with Jonsey. by Jerry Whorebach 09/17/2013, 1:30am PDT             Whoa! by Ice Cream Jonsey 09/17/2013, 10:18pm PDT                 I'm pretty sure they're still pathetic and mewling children. by Jerry Whorebach 09/19/2013, 1:32am PDT                     You should try playing OFF. NT by http://offgame.wikia.com/wiki/Downl 11/03/2013, 3:13am PST         also good NT by jeep 09/17/2013, 10:00am PDT     Re: What does a game designer need to know... by Commander Tansin A. Darcos 09/17/2013, 11:07am PDT         I'd love to see a Gamasutra postmortem of Patty Flinger NT by Entropy Stew 09/17/2013, 1:52pm PDT         your ator sucks bro give up by go fuck YOURself, too 09/17/2013, 4:57pm PDT             No, it's true by Ice Cream Jonsey 09/17/2013, 5:31pm PDT