I was thinking about this the other day, so I wanted to get it down here. What makes game design / programming different from all other types of software development? Sure, it tends to be more difficult due to the melding of many forms of technologies, different programming/scripting languages, advanced math, physics, the list goes on. But I'm getting at something else entirely.
The thing that intrigues me about game programming is simply this: As the developer, you have the ability to write some code, that when finished, can be able to provide endless fun and entertainment. The whole idea of writing something once, putting it on a disc or into an EXE and sending it out, only to be able to play that game and "create fun" each and every time you play it in new ways is really astounding. The game that really got me thinking about this was of course Grand Theft Auto. Therein lies a game in which all the work has been done, disc printed, shipped, sold. From there, anyone who plays this game can create their own fun, their own experience, and can do so for an unlimited number of years. All of this can be separate from what the makers of the game "intended" you to do, or it can include those elements as well.
Another way to think of this is that someone can create something, and from that something, they can turn it into anything they want. Think about a car. The car maker produces this vehicle to get its customers from place to place safely. The customer can then take that car and choose to do anything they want with it. They can race it, enter it into demolition derbies, enter it in car shows, use it to transport materials, etc... It's a limited example in comparison to Grand Theft Auto, but the same motif of creating a system of some sort, and then being able to jump into that system and envelop yourself in it, creating fun and experiences as you go.
Clearly, not every game is cut out for this type of adaptation, but I believe elements of this are possible in nearly every game. Keep this in mind as you design your game. Ask yourself, "Can the players of my game use elements inside the game to create their own fun/experiences that I didn't explicitly program into the game?"
-Z
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2 comments:
Grand Theft Auto is so unique because the real crux of the game is the player creating their own fun. If you can't find things about the game to enjoy, the missions sure as shit aren't going to provide that. It's so much different from more linear games like RE4, where you are literally pushed along a single path and the "fun" of the game is getting armed to the teeth and blowing away the same enemy models over and over again. It's two completely different things to just try and make sure you're providing a vibrent, interesting world vs making sure there's just enough enemies and just enough challenge to keep you engaged; I have a lot of respect for GTA because of that, they're really one of the few franchises to pull it off.
Well written article.
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