Post on 22-Nov-2014
description
From outer space to your farmUnderstanding digital games
Level 1The beginning
Like many new technologies, digital gaming started as something
out of this world.
1962 1971 1971
Spacewar!1st gen digital game
Computer space1st gen arcade game
Magnavox odyssey1st gen home console
The first digital games
In 1972 the spaceship has landedIn a local bar in Sunnyvale, California.
AtariFormer publisher of pinball machines pivoted to be a developer and manufacturer of commercially successful arcade games.
But what IS a game, really?
A game has many definitions and structures. In its base it is a system of rules,objectives and a tangible outcome.
Here’s one of my favorite definitions:
“ A game is a series of meaningful choices” S. Meier
● Competition● Self improvement● Feeling of progression● Pattern recognition● Sense of autonomy● Story/mystery● Reward system (random/linear)● Positive reinforcements● Flow - Immersion● Social interaction● To feel smart● What else?
Why games are fun?We love...
Sense of autonomy, AKA meaningful choicesAre the heart of every game
What are the differences between the two?
● Skill based● Gives sense of autonomy● Multiplayer● Infinite variability● Community
● Sometimes a skill game (depends on the machine)
● Less sense of autonomy● Single player● Finite variabilty
Game design principles for arcades
● Super intuitive controls and objectives
● Endless, race to highscore gameplay● Fairly hard● Skill based games
The game design IS the business model
Insert coin Play (1-5 min approx.) Die Continue?
Yes
Get your initials on the leaderboard. (if you were awesome)
Next player
No
Why “Continue?” is such an amazing selling point?
Loss aversion. People hate losing stuff they already “own” the morse so when invested time and emotion into.
The golden era of arcades1972-1985
Space invaders
1978Pac Man
1980Street fighter II
1991Donkey kong
1980Asteroids
1981
10,000,000,000+ 8,000,000,000+ 6,500,000,000+ 1,120,000,000+ 500,000,000+
Link to arcade commercial
Who plays arcade games?
Back in the day the majority were young, competitive males. But there were attempts to reach the other gender as well..
Pac-Man was designed with girls in mind
● A game about an eating disorder, Pac-Man tries to avoid the ghosts who haunt him for it.
● No shootings/killings involved.● The settings (maze) appeals to both genders.● This is actually a CASUAL game.
Pacman is the most profitable arcade of all times
* A note to game designers: Girls MATTER!
Arcade traction started to decline in 1985
As home entertainment consoles took over
Level 2Game design evolves
NES3rd gen console that revived the dying US
market
Home consoles
Link to arcade commercial
1985
In terms of game design, what are the differences between the two?
● Short gameplay● No save games● Highscore as main objective● Monetization based on small
transactions
● Long gameplay● Save game feature● Many different objectives● Monetization based on one big
transaction
Game design rule - the feedback loop
Kill monsters Get treasure Buy weapons
Repeat
Feedback loop AKA - the addiction loop
Dopamine Love!
Game design rule - the feedback loop
Dopamine strikes when anticipating to be rewarded Random sized loot
(variable reward) - causes addiction
Don’t you LOVE it when that happens?
(But more on candy crush love later on…)
As games started to get biggerThey appealed to what seems to be a niche gamer market
Until….
Enter the PC. Not a gaming platform.. yet.
Genres evolve on PC
2001 20021990
BejewledDownloaded over 150M times
The simsBest selling PC game in all
times
SolitaireThe most popular PC game
Casual games first introduced on PC
Social gameBiggest social game, more than 11M DAU at peak. FTP
MMORPGMost subscribed game with 7M paying customers.
2009 2004O, and the internet...
It’s always a “non gaming” apparatus to expand the gaming circles to “non-gamers”
Actually, tablets brought in a new audience
And now digi gamers officially span from toddlers to elders
Level 3But what are casual games anyway?
What do you see here?
We love spotting patterns.We also love to match things, sort things, put things in
order.
Casual games take those daily brain activities
And use them as the main game mechanic
Match things Sort things Put things in order
This is why candies, fruits, gems and animalsare so commonly used. They offer a natural “matching”
system
Casual games controls also need to come naturally
NaturalNot natural
And remember this?
Kill monsters Get treasure Buy weapons
Repeat
Casual games need a smaller, condensed feedback loop
Identify pattern
Decide on which to act
act
Watch reaction and get reward
Game design rules for casual games
● Use elements from real life (unlike space stuff)● Super intuitive gameplay● Design for small bursts of play● Designed for totally different play
environments● Condensed feedback loop
Level 4Mobile and the free to play market
Shifting to mobile (2009)
Fruit ninjaNew mechanics for touch screens
Draw somethingFirst true mobile social
success
Angry birdsBringing puzzles to the people!
App Stores 2014
Candy crush sagaTop grossing, monetization machine
Clash of clansTop grossing, dumbed down RTS game
Flappy birdThe app store phenomena of 2014
Free to p(l)ay marketIf things are offered for free, why would anyone pay?
Well...
Most do not pay. Others pay a little.And a small minority pays A LOT. We call them whales.
Free to play - fishing for whales● Game design emphasizes micro transactions● Game design heavily shaped by data● Strong use of “loss aversion”● strong use of impulsive buy (usually to rush processes up)● Finding the exact amount of player frustration
Some say that free to play killed the gaming industry. I think it brought gaming to everyone.
From Arcade venues to our pocket, everybody is a gamer.
Gaming is… Everywhere
“Everything in the future online is going to look like a multiplayer game”- Eric Schmidt, Google chairman
Xbox 1 commercialDonkey kong commercial
This deck was brought to you by
Dori Adar, Creative director at TabTale, gamer, talker, midnight toker.
Doriadar@gmail.com