Missed Opportunities: Teach Through Gameplay

I would imagine that a free-to-play MMO would want to be accessible to a wide range of players. It would strive to encourage as many people to play as possible. And to do this, they would want to have a detailed, welcoming tutorial for new players.

But without such a tutorial, SOE‘s PlanetSide 2 might be doomed for failure.

Source: http://shooter-szene.4players.de/content/ego-shooter/planetside-2-serverzusammenlegung-und-ps4-version.html

PlanetSide 2, although it has solid shooter controls and a vast amount of depth, fails to teach players properly through gameplay. There is no tutorial anywhere in the game, minus a few on-screen prompts on what keys to press to interact with vehicles and terminals. Everything else must be learned through experimentation.

And that would be fine if the gameplay was simple, but PlanetSide 2 has a lot of depth. You can capture control points, destroy generators, take out terminals, attack two different factions of enemies, and much more all at once. Dozens of icons can appear on your HUD at any given time, and they can confuse new players.

Source: http://forums.station.sony.com/ps2/index.php?threads/hud-feedback.55422/

The game’s official website has video tutorials to explain some of this, but that’s not enough. Experiential learning is the best way to teach gamers how to play. Watching videos outside of the game only does so much.

I’ve heard a lot of people say that PlanetSide 2 is a difficult game to get in to, and it’s probably all because of the lack of a tutorial.

Source: http://facepunch.com/showthread.php?t=1207888&page=51
This is only half as cluttered as the screen usually gets, and very few of the markings are ever explained by the game.

And if SOE made an in-depth tutorial, it wouldn’t need to be human vs. AI. That kind of tutorial would cost a lot of money, especially for a purely multiplayer game. So instead they could make one similar to Modern Warfare 2’s tutorial, where you’re fighting dummies on a course to learn the controls.

Source: http://www.gamesradar.com/modern-warfare-2-spec-ops-guide/

PlanetSide 2 is a solid game, but I don’t think that it’s meeting its full potential. If SOE creates an in-depth tutorial, I could see a lot more people playing and filling the dry patches of this massive game.

Commentary: PS4 Reactions

It’s great to see a company that listens to its fans and knows its weaknesses. With their official announcement of the PS4, Sony – at least to me – proved itself to be one such company.

I’m very happy to see that Sony is addressing the issues of loading and downloading times. I said in a previous post that the new consoles should focus on faster loading times, but Sony took it several steps further.

Source: http://www.joystiq.com/2013/02/20/ps4-allows-playing-games-as-theyre-downloading/

If you haven’t heard about it, the PS4 will have a second processing chip entirely devoted to downloading updates for games without interrupting gameplay. You won’t have to spend hours installing updates after taking a month-long break from a game. That sounds like a great solution to many problems of the PS3.

But what may be one of the most interesting features of the PS4 may also be one that developers will hate. When you want to demo a game, you will be able to use the Gaikai cloud gaming service to stream the game and play from the very beginning for 30-60+ minutes.

Source: http://www.ps3trophies.org/news/news-7128-Sony-Buys-Cloud-Gaming-Service-Gaikai-for-$380m.html

That’s awesome. If I understand correctly, this will allow players to test every game on the PlayStation Store before making a $60 commitment. But I don’t see developers caring much for this feature.

The web show Extra Credits discussed here how demos haven’t been helpful with game sales. If anything, demos have hurt sales. If the Gaikai service allows players to play the first hour or more of a game, players might decide that one free hour is enough, and not buy the game if they thought it was only okay.

Some games might suffer from the Gaikai service, but as I said before, Sony seems to know its weaknesses, or at least it seems to have learned from some of its past mistakes. The PS4’s release is still many months away. Hopefully they will find ways to keep developers and gamers happy.

Commentary: Why Do We Play Minecraft?

Just as the title asks: Why do we play Minecraft?

The answer usually depends on the person. Some play purely to create, others to survive and explore, to socialize and connect, or to simply relax and tune-out. These are all valid reasons, but I think that there is an underlying, psychological reason why we play Minecraft: because of its near-constant rewards.

Source: http://www.esourceengine.com/downloads/minecraft/

Minecraft has the highest effort-to-reward ratio of any game I’ve played. The game grants instant gratification for nearly every action of the player, which creates a feeling of accomplishment. A player may not think about it consciously, but I believe that subconsciously, we feel accomplished with every block we break or place.

In a sense, when you break or place a block in Minecraft, you are forever changing the world. It’s not something that immediately comes to mind, especially since you can always break and replace a block, but somewhere in your mind, you feel empowered by this knowledge, this feeling of absolute control over a world.

Source: http://www.kotaku.com.au/2012/07/minecraft-exploit-lets-some-users-impersonate-other-players/
For those who have never played Minecraft, almost every block in the game can be manipulated. There is more freedom and control in Minecraft than any other game I know.

So even though you might not finish a project for days or weeks, the very fact that you’re making progress and modifying the world keeps you going.

I’m sure games such as Dwarf Fortress or Terraria offer this same effort-to-reward ratio. They grant the player a feeling of mastery over a world in a way that no other game can, and provide near-constant rewards that keep people playing for hundreds of hours.

A Look Ahead: PlayStation 4

There are only a few days left before Feb. 20, when the secret behind Sony’s teaser video will be revealed. Given the time of release, and the video itself, it’s almost certain to be a press conference on the PlayStation 4. So if this truly is the reveal of the PS4, then there’s one question on my mind: What will it do?

Source: http://www.gametrailers.com/ps3

The PS3 has been marketed for years as the console that, “only does everything.” So what features will its successor have? Given the tech demo that Square Enix revealed at last year’s E3, better graphical capabilities are assured.

But considering how good graphics already are, I’m hoping they focus more on loading time. As our entertainment technology has gotten better, loading has become worse. Think about how long it takes to turn on or change the channel of an HD TV. If the PS4 can break that mold, and deliver incredible detail at high speeds, I’ll be happy.

Source: http://www.videogamer.com/news/this_is_what_a_next_generation_final_fantasy_could_look_like.html
The Agni’s Philosophy tech demo was all done in real-time.

Of course that wouldn’t be the only thing we should expect out of the PS4. Every function of the PS3 should be transferred over and refined: The PlayStation Store; the Blu-ray player (or the next best thing); backwards compatibility (at least for PS3 games); etc. There have been plenty of concepts and news articles hinting at possible features (or lack there of), but nothing set in stone that I can find.

But what will happen with the Move? Will the Move be part of the main system? Will it be sold separately on launch or shortly after? Will it change to be more like the Kinect? Will Sony do away with it entirely?

Source: http://kotaku.com/5490632/playstation-move-everything-you-need-to-know

I have no experience with the Move, so I don’t know if it should belong with the new console or not, but if I were to venture a guess, I would say that Sony will either sell the Move in its current state separately, or find a way to merge it with the standard controller. It already has Sixaxis, so why not Move, too?

We’ll hopefully find out Sony’s master plan on the 20^th, so let’s keep our fingers crossed that our favorite features stick around, and hope that there are a few surprises in store.

Mini-series: Moral Choice – Part 2

The following post contains spoilers for Episode One of Telltale Games’ The Walking Dead video game.

Telltale Games’ The Walking Dead uses moral choice better than any other game I know. Its system encourages fast, critical thinking that does not bind the player’s choices (psychologically of course, not physically) with the labels of “good” or “evil.”

Source: http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/the-walking-dead-game/images/31922820/title/twd-game-wallpaper

Instead, every option appears in white text, and most of the time they are all equally valid, grey choices. There is no clear right or wrong, which gives the player the freedom to choose based solely on their opinion, rather than a game’s pre-defined morality.

Now of course, that isn’t to say that games such as Mass Effect, Catherine, and inFAMOUS have no sense of freedom. Players are always free to make the decisions they feel are right, but the mechanics of these games, the morality meters, discourage players from varying up their choices, albeit unintentionally. These mechanics also tell the player exactly how the game will perceive them, as either one side of the bar or the other.

Source: http://gamedesignreviews.com/scrapbook/choiceincatherine/
The chaos vs order meter in Catherine grants the player immediate consequence for their actions, making it easy for someone to quit the game, reload, and make a new choice.

But in The Walking Dead, which has no morality meter, a player can make all of their decisions based on pure opinion alone. If the player wants to save one character over another during a zombie raid, there is nothing stopping them from making what they deem is the most logical choice, no loss of points, no sudden shift in morality.

Source: http://www.giantbomb.com/news/the-walking-deads-faces-of-death-part-1/4335/
In a critical moment, the player must decide between two equally valid choices, to save either Carley or Doug.

Players choose not based on which character boosts their morality meter, but which one can help most in a zombie apocalypse. That simple fact grants more meaning and engagement in the player’s decisions.

Now granted, not every decision in The Walking Dead works out the way a player might think. There are plenty of moral choices that end up doing nothing, or series of choices that lead to the same result. But despite those missteps, those clear illusions of choice, The Walking Dead still has the most in-depth, open, engaging moral choice system in gaming.

Mini-series: Moral Choice – Part 1

Have you ever played a game with a moral choice system? Have you ever – while playing such a game – thought to yourself, “I’m going to pick the good option,” or “I’m going to pick the evil option,” or something similar? I know I have.

Source: http://www.giantbomb.com/mass-effect-3/61-29935/user-reviews/?review_id=22327

When I play a moral choice game, I devote myself to the good options (I’m a do-gooder, I know). That seems wrong to me. Shouldn’t we always be thinking, “I’m going to choose what I think is right?”

But when games like inFAMOUS or Mass Effect give a “good” or “evil” rating to their choices, a lot of players make decisions for the sole purpose of being good or evil. In inFAMOUS, you get only get certain powers when you’re pure good or pure evil, so why would you ever want to vary your choices?

Source: http://infamous.wikia.com/wiki/Arc_Lightning
Only when you play evil can Cole get powers such as Arch Lightning

Now don’t get me wrong, I love moral choice systems. They’re a great tool for storytelling and for exploring conflicts in a way no other medium can. But when the “good vs. evil” aspect comes in, it makes those choices less meaningful, more black and white, and less engaging.

When the game presents options with clear indicators of what is right and what is wrong, the player is unwillingly drawn to whichever play style they have already chosen. If they’re committed to being good, they’ll pick good almost every time.

Source: http://alpha-build.net/2010/07/19/the-mass-effect-effect-emergent-storytelling-in-games/

This isn’t true of all players, to be sure, but plenty of people are likely to tune out when they see a highlighted good or evil option, and fail to make a thought-out decision. I won’t lie, I’ve done this many times in Mass Effect, and I’ve watched others do the same.

This is a shame, because a lot of the decisions in Mass Effect – such as how to deal with the Geth in Mass Effect 2 (spoilers) – aren’t black and white. And even though there is no clear color to pick, the game’s system trains players that the top decisions are Paragon, and the bottom decisions are Renegade, so some of the meaningful thought is lost, since players know how they’ll be rewarded for their choices.

But there are games with moral choice where nearly every option is in the gray. In these games, you never know what consequences your decisions might have. So next time, I’ll look at how The Walking Dead handles moral choice.

A Look Ahead: “Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time”

Seven years ago, Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves put an end to the cartoon adventures of Sly Cooper. But being the lover of master thievery that he is, Sly couldn’t settle on just three games.

On February 5^th, Sanzaru Games – picking up where original developer Sucker Punch left off – will finally be launching Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time. And from what I’ve seen from the trailers, it’s going to be the biggest Sly Cooper yet.

I’ll be honest here; I’m a fan of the series. I played and loved all three Sly games, but I’m going to do my best to look at this game on its own merit.

When it comes to Thieves in Time’s overall size, the Gamescom trailer shows that there are at least four time periods/worlds to explore, including feudal Japan, medieval Europe, early Arabia, and the Wild West. It’s uncertain if there will be any more, but I wouldn’t expect a developer to reveal everything in the trailers. Let’s hope Sanzaru has a few surprises in store.

If the previous games are any indication, you can explore the worlds with every character in the hideout.

The original characters – Sly, Bentley, Murray, and Carmelita Fox – will each get a chance to explore these time periods, and the “Pulling the Heist” trailer shows that they’ll all have multiple jobs to do to complete a world. Each world will also include one of Sly’s ancestors that the player can use after they’ve been unlocked.

With at least four ancestors, plus the main cast, there will be eight or more characters to play throughout the game, each with their own mechanics and play styles. Awesome.

The Arabian costume gives Sly the ability to slow down time.

On top of all of that, Sly will unlock costumes that grant him special powers. From the look of it, he’ll have more tricks and moves than any previous game. If everything is balanced and given proper attention – and given the long development time for this game, I would hope so – this game will have a vast amount of depth.

I have high hopes for Thieves in Time. It looks deep and varied in its gameplay, and as the trailers show it’s got a good sense of humor. Whether you’re a fan of the originals or you’re brand new to the series, Thieves in Time looks well worth checking out.

Commentary: Soloing in MMOs

I know it kind of defeats the purpose, but when I play a new MMO, the first thing I do is look for the best solo class.

It’s odd when I think about it, but it’s true. Almost every time I play an MMO, I go for the character class that can best survive on its own. I’m basically saying, “Sweet, an online game filled with tens of thousands of players from all around the world… I’m gonna play by myself.”

And I’m not the only one who does this, by far. Clearly other people play these solo classes, otherwise they wouldn’t exist. In Final Fantasy XI, the Red Mage specializes in solo-play. It can learn a handful of skills and spells from other classes (White Mage, Black Mage, Warrior…), which give it a high survivability. Players can experience a good portion of the game on their own by using the Red Mage.

But why is it that the Red Mage and other solo classes exist? In an online game, wouldn’t players want to be part of a community, to socialize and team up to take down strong monsters? Wouldn’t a developer want to encourage teamwork with their mechanics, and make it imperative that players work together? Solo classes seem to contradict the very idea of an MMO.

Yet they’re played.

The Ranger from Guild Wars 2 also has great solo survivability.

There could be many reasons why loners – like myself – play solo classes: to avoid having to rely on other players; to experience the game’s story leisurely; to enjoy the fight system. Some of these reasons might be personal, but no matter what the reasoning the idea of people playing by themselves in an online game is a little funny.

And I’m not saying this should change by any means; it’s just a little food for thought.