作者：keen & graev

注释：在阅读文章前，有些人也许已误解本文的主要内容。我并非要将湖泊或小水池同某款游戏进行比较。文章主要围绕游戏设计元素，它们令小水池有小水池的样子，湖泊有湖泊的样子。这主要涉及mmorpg游戏的整体体验，及其与你根据自身查看这些情境元素的具体方式得到的整体体验存在什么联系。不要认为我在这一话题的观点具有决定性，事实并非如此。不要觉得这些具有类推性——不妨将它们看做对比关系。

魔兽世界(from itreviews.com)

仔细查看以下图片。你看到什么？现在想想MMO游戏，再次浏览这些图片。现在你看到什么？

kiddy pool vs lake(from mmosite)

通过两次查看这些图片，你脑中浮现什么词汇、图像、细节和感觉？尝试将你脑中的这些想法变成说明性文字，然后将它们记录下来。下面我将陈述我自己的看法。

尺寸——湖泊大于小水池。

范围——湖泊的画面包含树木、海岸线及大片水域，营造一种有些令人望而生畏的氛围。而小水池主要着眼于水、水池、玩具、小狗和软管之类的细节；查看水池时，我们更容易把握所有元素。

写实性——小水池通过角色图像激发我们的想象力。水池里有个玩具及一个小伙伴。从某种程度上说，这是高度模式化的体验。湖泊几乎没有任何创造性（游戏邦注：因为这就是你会在自然中看到的情景）。

投入——湖泊经过数百或数千年才形成这一面貌。而小水池只需要几分钟。要在湖泊中游泳，你需要真正掌握游泳技巧。你需要投入更多时间游过湖泊，越过水域，感受整个湖泊。小水池则无需耗费我们很多精力——你可以坐在里面洒水花，这无需进行训练或掌握其他知识。小水池对于所有用户来说很容易使用。

年龄——当我看到小水池时，我最先想到的是“儿童”。当我看到湖泊时，最先想到的是“成人”。但所有年龄层的用户都可以在其中进行享受。

自由——小水池是个局限空间。其中容纳不了很多东西。喜欢小水池的用户需要发挥更多想象力，或是接受这样的事实：在此你需要尽情释放自己，尽情享受其中。这是个受控空间。湖泊可以容纳船舶、大批访客和鱼，让大家尽情发挥自己的娱乐方式。

安全性——小水池几乎不会出现什么安全问题。这是个受到高度监管的空间，风险很低。水池清空后，软管就会被封上，以确保大家的安全，让大家能够尽情享受其中。而湖泊则存在更大威胁性。相比之下，在湖泊中游泳，或参与湖泊活动显得没那么安全。当湖泊干涸或出现环保人士经常警示我们的恶果，或是火苗迅速蔓延时，会出现什么情况？这将不在我们的控制范围内。这很多取决于信念和运气。

我脑中浮现若干可通过上述画面呈现的游戏作品（水池和湖泊）。记住不是所有人的看法都一样，因为这主要基于我们对自己所体验游戏的认知及与这些画面相关的经历。《魔兽世界》堪称小水池的典型代表。游戏呈现受控空间的模式化乐趣，其中游戏谨慎地将乐趣填充给玩家。这旨在确保玩家总是享受其中，能够快速进出游戏。玩家可以在游戏中引入能够提高趣味性的元素，没有人会因此而受到干扰。当开发者想要改变《魔兽世界》时，他们可以轻松进行控制，改变小水池体验。

谈到匹配湖泊的游戏，我想到《星球大战》、《网络创世纪》、《VG》或《无尽的任务1》。我期望呈现的是，能够让玩家享受于空间之中的更开放世界，但它其实是个可能发生任何情况的粗糙空间。享受这些游戏的玩家需要艰难接受内容被灌输给自己的事实，因为他们经常出于特定目的前往湖泊或体验这些游戏。玩家通常需要在这些游戏中寻找自己的乐趣，因为它们更像是“沙盒模式”。若你在湖畔发现一个能够晒日光浴和进行小酌的绝佳地点，那么你多半会玩得很愉快。但若是随后出现一群年轻人，他们播放嘈杂的音乐，吸食毒品，举止粗鲁，那会出现什么情况？从某种程度上说，这很像是个PvP体验，在此你无法进行控制，但在小水池里，若有人妨碍你玩乐，那么你多半会将他们驱逐出去，让父母打电话通知他们的父母，不再和他们说话。湖泊型的游戏包含更多义务，在此你需要放弃更多东西。

有时候我真的非常享受于小水池之中，倾向选择这种体验，而不是抽空到湖泊区。若我说自己仍然不喜欢小水池，那绝对是骗人的。但湖泊还是有它的独特乐趣，我想很多人都可以理解。这是截然不同的体验（游戏邦注：通常是个存在更多“未知性”的体验）。

若你想要进行更多思考，不妨想想PvP/PvE，或者机制&机制在小水池&湖泊情节的具体表现，或是其他不是如此极端的情况。想想“小水池&游泳池”，或是其他对比关系。有时我们很难用言语表达自己看到画面时脑中浮现的是什么，但务必积极进行尝试。也许你无法恰当表述自己的感觉，但这依然是个有趣的尝试。

游戏邦注：原文发布于2009年2月22日，文章叙述以当时为背景。（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译，拒绝任何不保留版权的转载，如需转载请联系：游戏邦）

Perceiving Elements of Game Design

By keen & graev

NOTE: Before you read, some people have already begun to misunderstand what this is about.  I’m not drawing comparisons between lakes or kiddy pools and particular games (I’m asking YOU to do that after you read the next sentence).  It’s about the elements of game design as they pertain to what makes a kiddy pool a kiddy pool and a lake a lake for YOU.   It’s about the total experience in a mmorpg and how it can relate to the total experience YOU are capable of having based on how YOU view the elements of these scenarios.  Do not read MY feelings on the subject as definitive because they’re not.  Do not read these as analogies – read them as drawing comparisons.

NOTE #2: I’ve added another element to this discussion.  Race Tracks vs. Legos.  Let’s look at what makes a race track a race track, and Legos, Legos.   I’ll add my thoughts in the comments as not to completely disrupt the flow of the blog entry.

Look closely at the pictures above.  What do you see?  Now think about MMO’s (MMORPG’s, MMOG’s, MMOFPS, etc.) and look again.  What do you see now?

Now that you’ve taken a second to look at the pictures and think about them before and after thinking about MMO’s, what words, images, details, feelings, etc., come to mind?  Try to work those ideas out of your head into something you can explain, then write them down somewhere.  I’m going to write what came to mind for me below.

Size – The lake is larger than the kiddy pool.

Scope – The picture of the lake brings trees, shoreline, a large body of water, and brings a somewhat overwhelming sense of atmosphere.  The Kiddy Pool focuses in closely on details like the water, the pool, the toys, the dog, and the hose; when we look at the pool it’s much easier to take it all in.

Realism – The kiddy pool excites the imagination with pictures of characters.  There’s a toy in the water to play with and a little friend.  In a way, it’s a highly stylized experience.  The lake has very little creativity because it’s precisely what you expect to see in nature.

Effort – The lake probably took hundreds or thousands of years to get where it’s at.  The kiddy likely took mere minutes.  To swim in the lake would require that you know how to swim.  It would take more time to swim aross, to tread water, and to experience everything this lake has to offer.  The Kiddy Pool doesn’t require much effort – you can sit in it and splash around without the need for training or additional knowledge.  The kiddy pool is user friendly for everyone.

Age – When I look at the Kiddy Pool I initially  think “children”.  When I look at the Lake I initially think “older people”.   However, both can be enjoyed by people of all ages.

Freedom – The kiddy pool is a confined space.  Not much can fit in the kiddy pool.  The kiddy pool requires those enjoying it to use a bit more of their imagination or to accept that what goes on here will require you to ‘let go’ and enjoy.  It’s a controled environment.   The Lake can hold boats, thousands of people, fish, and allows people thee ability to explore their own methods of enjoyment.

Safety – There is very little that could go wrong in the Kiddy Pool.  It’s closely supervised and the risk is low.  If the pool empties then the hose is closeby to ensure the safety of the person and their enjoyment.  The Lake on the otherhand poses a much greater threat.  By comparison it’s much less safe to swim in a lake or to partake in lake activities.  If the lake dries up or that bad stuff the green people are always warning us about comes to pass or a fire sweeps through… what then?  It’s out of our control.  A lot rests on faith and luck here.

I’ll stop there.

I can think of several games that would best be represented by each of these pictures (the pool and the lake).  Keep in mind that it won’t be the same for everyone since it’s based entirely upon how we percieve the games we play and experiences associated with these images.  World of Warcraft comes to mind as the perfect example of the kiddy pool.  It has that stylized fun in a controled environment where the entertainment is spoonfed to the player carefuly.  It’s designed to ensure players are always having fun with the ability to get in and get out quickly.  Players can introduce elements to the game (like the ball or the dog) that will increase the fun and no one will be bothered by it. If the developers want to change WoW then it’s easy to change just like it’s easy to manipulate and alter the kiddy pool experience.

When I think about what games would match the lake, I think about games like SWG, UO, VG, or EQ1.  I think about a more open space with the potential for the player to enjoy what the world allows them to do, but it’s a much harsher place with the potential for anything to happen.  Players enjoying these games have a much harder time accepting things being spoonfed to them because they often go to the lake, or to these games, for a specific purpose.  People often have to make their own fun in these games because they are more ‘sandbox’.  If you found a nice spot at the lake to enjoy the sun and a drink then you’re probably having a good time… but what happens when that group of teenagers show up with their loud music, drugs, and rowdy behavior?   In a way, this is very much a PvP – person vs. person – experience that you might not be able to control, whereas in the kiddy pool if someone is disrupting your fun then you can kick them out or have your parents call their parents and never speak to them again and …. ahem. There is a lot more commitment involved with the lake type games and you have a lot more to lose.

There was a time that I really, really enjoyed the kiddy pools and would have opted for that experience over taking a trip to a lake any day.  Heck, I’d be lying if I said I don’t still like the kiddy pools (or the slightly upgraded versions).  But there’s something about going to the lake(river, ocean, etc) that I think a lot of people can understand.  It’s a different experience – often times a more ‘unknown’ experience.

If you really want to make your brain hurt, you can take this even ‘deeper’ and think specifically about PvP/PvE or one particular mechanic vs. another in a Kiddy Pool vs. Lake situation or don’t use such extremes like I did.  Think “kiddy pool vs. Swimming pool” instead or other comparisons.   Sometimes it’s hard to put into words what your brain thinks when you look at the pictures, but try.  Chances are you won’t be able to truly do your pereception justice, as I know I have not, but it’s still fun to try.（Source：mmosite）