Difficult Questions About Videogames

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This suggests that I had been focusing on the wrong part of the punishment system, and that the attraction of casual games is better explained as sparing use of setback punishment: Finally, this research points to another layer of complexity in player psychology. That failure and difficulty is important to the enjoyment of games correlates well with Michael J. This yields an extra complication in relation to the game Shopmania discussed previously: Given that players enjoy a challenge, why do players not simply challenge themselves by finding new ways to play the game?

The conclusion must still be that players want to fail as well as win, but that players of the single-player games discussed here do not seek out additional challenge or depth if they do not have to. Perhaps single player games are perceived as designed experiences that players expect to be correctly balanced without having to seek additional challenges themselves?

By contrast, although the focus here has been on single player games, Jonas Heide Smith has documented how players of multiplayer games frequently handicap themselves to create an even playing field, effectively opening themselves to failure Smith , Multiplayer games and more open sandbox games seem to encourage players to undertake more challenge-seeking behavior. The study raises a number of additional questions, but I believe the following are the most obvious ones to explore further:.

Video Games, Aggression, and Risky Behavior

I have argued that failure is central to player enjoyment of games. This is not that surprising, given conventional wisdom that a game should be balanced to match the skills of players.

Failure and Punishment

The study supports the idea that growth , the experience of learning, of adjusting strategies, of trying something new, is a core attraction of video games. This is more than the simple truism it sounds like. It reveals much deeper and more complicated facts about games, and players. This research was done in collaboration with Gamelab in New York City, who provided facilities, discussion, feedback, and playtesting. Thanks to Svend Juul for statistical expertise.

Not all failure is punished in games - many smaller types of failure go unpunished, such as bumping into a wall.

Casual games are understood here as downloadable games that the player can play freely for typically 60 minutes, after which the game must be purchased to continue playing. Via the Ludologist blog, www.

The conclusions from the Super Monkey Ball 2 study may not map to questions discussed in this essay, as Super Monkey Ball 2 has a rewarding audiovisual feedback when the player fails compared to the more basic representation in the game prototype used here. This is also due to the fact that casual games tend to contain much randomness, making every replay of a single level is a bit different from the previous. Since there is no universal scale for rating games, little can be deduced from the individual rating, but ratings can be used comparatively to examine player perceptions of game quality.

What is the role of failure in video games? This is the second question: Jolly Bear Games The psychological attribution theory provides a framework for examining different types of failure and punishment in games. Kelley distinguishes between three types of attributions that people can make in an event involving a person and an entity: The event was caused by personal traits, such as skill or disposition.

The event was caused by characteristics of the entity. The event was based on transient causes such as luck, chance, or an extraordinary effort from the person.

Do Video Games Make Kids Saints or Psychopaths (and Why Is It So Hard to Find Out)?

First Test, Offline A preliminary test was conducted offline. Second Test, Online 85 players were recruited online 4 and asked to play the game and answer a questionnaire see Appendix 2 for a description of the test procedure. Players that did not complete the game. Players that completed the game, losing some lives.

Players that completed the game without losing any lives. Categories were based on attribution theory, but expanded into smaller subcategories: Player attribution of failure Figure 6: Answer type Examples Too easy as lack of a challenge. In a discussion of the initial disappointing reception of the game Shopmania Gamelab , Catherine Herdlick and Eric Zimmerman discuss how much of the criticism of the game came from the fact that it was perceived as too easy: Csikszentmihalyi , 74 While flow theory does suggest that the player may oscillate between anxiety and boredom, it poses the banal problem that the standard illustration suggests a smooth increase in difficulty over time.

The Contradictory Desires of Players I initially discussed a contradiction between the observation that players want to win and the observation that players prefer games where they lose some, then win some. This leaves us with several opposing considerations indicating that games should be both easier and harder than they are: The player does not want to fail makes player sad, feels inadequate.

Winning without failing leads to dissatisfaction.

Games few people have beaten

The study raises a number of additional questions, but I believe the following are the most obvious ones to explore further: Is the relation between game rating and performance also consistent if the game is made easier or harder? In game development experience, it is certain that small changes to game designs do matter to players. To what extent can individual elements of a game design be isolated? To what extent can we extrapolate from one game to all games?

Acknowledgements This research was done in collaboration with Gamelab in New York City, who provided facilities, discussion, feedback, and playtesting. Offline Test Procedure Participants were tested one at a time, and did not see or talk to other participants. This is not a test of your skill; we would simply like to know what you think about the game. It was noted on what levels players lost lives. After one game had been played, the player was interviewed. Each player was asked to rate the game as follows: Each player was asked how he or she could tell if a game is too easy.

Participants were not paid, but as game testing is often described as a way of entering the game industry, testers may have strong motivation for pleasing the company. Players were directed to a page with instructions, as can be seen at http: Players were directed to the game. Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. Want to Read saving….

Want to Read Currently Reading Read. Refresh and try again. Open Preview See a Problem? Thanks for telling us about the problem. Return to Book Page. Published first published June 7th To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up. Lists with This Book. This book is not yet featured on Listopia. May 27, Tom rated it it was amazing. A thought-provoking mix of deceptively simple questions with radical, loving, conservative, funny, mundane, controversial, and emotional answers.

A pervasive, essential addition to an often misunderstood cultural form. John rated it really liked it Sep 25, Richard rated it it was amazing Oct 10, Oh yes, and these baddies also respawn. To top this all off, if you manage to make it to the end of the game, you must face three bosses in a row without dying. Becoming a ninja in real life and taking out actual criminals may be easier than finishing Ninja Gaiden. The game boasts impressive graphics for the system, extremely fast gameplay, a rocking soundtrack, and epic science fiction-inspired racetracks.

Oh yeah, and it's also tough as nails. The game demands track memorization and flawless driving to succeed. The races move so fast that unless you know what's coming around the corner, your vehicle will likely fly off the track and explode. Suffice it to say, if you can complete percent of what F-Zero GX has to offer, then you are a video game god.

You can't beat Tetris. You can't beat Bejeweled. So why would anyone assume that you can beat Threes? Games like Sirvo's tile-based timewaster are usually about racking up high scores, not reaching an ending. For most puzzle games, bragging rights are the only reward you need. And yet, as the minds behind the Threes Porn Twitter account discovered, Threes does end. It just takes a long time to get there. In Threes , players start with pieces worth one and two points. By swiping the screen, they can merge the tiles, making pieces that are worth three points, then six, then twelve, and so on.

Creating the biggest tile in the game, which is worth 6, points, takes a long time. Making two and fusing them together takes even longer, and requires quite a bit of patience, a careful strategy, and a whole lot of luck. Three and a third years after Threes made its debut debut yes, seriously someone finally discovered the game's hidden ending, quite possibly becoming the first person to do so — at least without cheating.

It only takes about 15 hours to finish NieR: Automata's main campaign, but that's hardly the end of the game.

In fact, the first time that you see the credits, you're only about a third of the way through PlatinumGames' post-apocalyptic android adventure. If you want to truly beat the game, you'll need to start a new game and work through the base campaign for a second time, observing events from 9S's — and not 2B's — point of view.

Then, you'll have to begin a third playthrough, which unlocks the second half of the story and introduces 2A, a playable character that only briefly appears in the game's opening section. You're still not done. After your third go-around, you'll unlock a level-select screen, which you can use to select the other option during the game's climactic boss fight no spoilers — you'll know what we mean when you get there. That'll unlock the fourth ending, but you're not done quite yet.

As the credits roll, the game transforms into a nigh-impossible bullet-hell shooter. Finish that — and no matter how many times the game asks, don't give up — and you'll finally get the real ending. Many games have New Game Plus modes, and most players won't realize that they need to play the game multiple times to get the full story. It's not hard to get the final ending, but it's not easy to find without help. Super Hexagon couldn't look more simple.

You control a small triangle caught in the middle of a hexagon, pentagon, or square. Each side of the polygon has an opening, and all you have to do is guide your piece to the exit while the shape shrinks around you. Succeed, and you'll find yourself in the middle of another hexagon.

Survive for 60 seconds to unlock the next difficulty, and keep going until you've successfully outlasted each level. That shouldn't be difficult. In practice, it's almost impossible. Maybe it's the way that the Super Hexagon levels rotate while you're rotating yourself, making it hard to keep your sense of direction straight.

Difficult Questions About Video Games by James Newman

Maybe it's how the shapes in the middle of the screen pulse in time to the music, giving the entire experience a psychedelic vibe. Perhaps it's the way that the shapes change as they get closer to your avatar, requiring split-second reactions and sudden changes of strategy. Whatever the cause, only 3.

But, sure, it looks simple. Players who cut their teeth on '90s shooters like the original Doom and Quake should feel right at home in Devil Daggers , the throwback FPS from indie developer Sorath.

Like those games, Devil Daggers asks players to toss out things like stealth and strategy and go in guns or, in this case, knives blazing, killing everything that moves as quickly as possible. Also like those games, Devil Daggers takes no prisoners. If you fall off of the level or make contact with an enemy, that's it. Back to the beginning. In order to master Devil Daggers , you don't have to reach the end of the level.

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