游戏邦在:
杂志专栏:
gamerboom.com订阅到鲜果订阅到抓虾google reader订阅到有道订阅到QQ邮箱订阅到帮看

电子游戏是否该尽量提供更多角色

发布时间:2014-02-28 16:47:46 Tags:,,,,

作者:David Serrano

多样性是生活中的调味品,也就是游戏角色的调味品。当提到带有各种不同的角色可供选择的游戏时,玩家也能够感受到这种多样性:不管是惊讶于其提供的特殊内容或许多可供体验的任务,还是带有不同外观的相同机制。让我们检验看看!

大受欢迎的游戏花名册中总是出现打斗游戏的名字。这些游戏的机制是依赖于技能,并且从表面来看,我们可以发现它们的重玩价值是通过反复尝试同样的内容(游戏邦注:一直打斗直至对手的生命值被耗尽)而无需在不同游戏间做出改变。

(在很大程度上)玩家角色将能帮助解决这个挑战打斗游戏寿命的问题。大多数角色等同于最有可能的策略和最有可能的比赛,然后是重玩性,再然后便是用户粘性。许许多多角色将冲击屏幕,就像是在Wonka(一个巧克力品牌)工厂中那样。

tekken(from weknowgamers)

tekken(from weknowgamers)

像著名的多人联机在线竞争游戏(MOBA)这样全新或复兴类型便提供给玩家巨大的角色花名册,每个角色都带有特殊的能力和推荐策略,精通游戏的玩家或者未获得任何线索的新手都能使用这些角色。

MOBA游戏类型中最突出的便是Riot Games的《英雄联盟》以及Valve的《Dota2》,每一款游戏都带有许多可选择的可行角色(尽管有时候你必须预先打开他们)。这类游戏所具有的巨大花名册便说明了他们集成了先辈《Defense of The Ancient Door》(简称就是《Dota》)不变的蓝图,这是关于现有策略游戏的一个可适应的模组;就像类型所传达的那样,为了延伸挑战以及所谓的策略,单位似乎需要具有足够的多样性。

所以比起菜单,这样的游戏似乎会权衡关于成份的关注点,在此一个更大的数量将等同于重玩性。如果游戏具有更长久的多样性,那么便会出现比预期更多的可能结果。这里还必须抛弃讽刺,因为在走向成功的过程中,有时候我们也会缺少参数。尽管公式是可运行的;但前提是其它元素与强化这些功能的内容密切相关。

1)乐趣是源自单一角色或花名册的一部分

精通是基于不同方式出现于游戏中,关于这是玩家沉浸于大热门游戏的主要部分这一点并不让人感到惊讶。当然,精通也伴随着挑战。如果没有它,我们便不需要深入挖掘情节;都是有人打开先例。

除了这一方法,玩家将根据自己选择的花名册部分去执行。这意味着玩家是在我们不清楚更高层面的各种标准间进行选择(但它有时候还是很有用的):艺术价值,推荐,游戏建议参数,团队制作,自动挑战,强制发展,有效性,适应性等等。

基于一个角色去精通游戏将让系统不再需要使用花名册去带给玩家惊喜。这停留在提供支持或第二次机会的背景中,因此很容易被玩家的大脑所忽视或略过,尽管它在一开始便出现在那里。

不管怎样,精通这些部分需要具有强大,精心设计以及保持一致的发展基础,在此机制,设计和艺术将相互碰撞去缩小使用许多无用角色的需求。游戏(通过社区进行引导)可以建议玩家专注于一个或几个角色,让花名册能够鼓励新人去寻找自己的数据精神伙伴。添加关卡,标题,特别的比赛或可打开的内容等等去确保玩家无需在不同角色间转变,无需用尽流量或者掉入无聊或郁闷的情绪中,而获得良好的感受。

这些特殊的方法创造了有价值的循环元素和次游戏,意味着每个玩家都将从最初的游戏设置中提出一部分内容,并创造游戏体验的多个变量,尽管游戏仍保持不变。

2)乐趣是源自尝试或测试每个单一角色

除了根据玩家的不同想法选择精通一个单一的灵魂,有时候免费自助餐症状也会被诊断出来:尝试着到达,打开并玩游戏中的每个单一角色,直到筋疲力竭。为什么会筋疲力竭呢?因为这是反复做同样的事所导致的,当玩家不再能够依赖任何内容除了一些伴随着他所做出的选择的少数改变(有意义的改变)时,危险的感觉便会涌现出来。

这就像是每天都吃着最喜欢的食物一样:你将发现基础的味道不断重复着,让你像野生的青蛙那样打着嗝;不管为什么,你将不能逃离这一基础,从而以没有什么比退出更棒的选择这样的结果告终。

乐趣也许也会源自测试,但前提必须是游戏的内在动力是为了进行测试。否则用户粘性仪表(如果可测量的话)将按照尝试一些可游戏的角色进行衡量:这是一个简单但却吓人的公式。

这些游戏弊病在打斗街机游戏中很常见,在每款新游戏中,花名册都变得更加庞大,添加了一些内容让系统更加清新或培养玩家所需要的动态思维。如果比起选择角色并尝试他们,游戏看起来懒得提供任何内容,那么它便不可能成为玩家的选择。

所以这种做法就像疲劳仪表,将会随着玩家尝试角色并通过在此进入游戏中重复同样的努力,尝试着找到一种方法去解决之前自己做出的选择而不断升高。

是否每个单独的角色都能够提供足够强大的体验去重置玩家在不断尝试时所出现的疲倦感?

当然了,并不是在所有游戏角色选择中都会出现疲倦感,这与机制以及游戏体现出的整体感有着深刻的联系。但之后为了拥有更棒的体验,角色将变得不是那么重要。

然后将导致……

乐趣可以基于许多不同的方法源自具有巨大花名册的游戏,似乎我们很难获得所有的价值。但这些对于玩家基于可选择的自我改变的体验来说非常重要。

我们没有理由用一些无趣的角色去填补空位,如果不存在有意义的需求将其呈现给玩家的话就不该这么做。模仿,填补的借口以及招摇的开发者欲望都将导致系统带给玩家沉重的打击,并会在之后让他们感到无聊,失去继续探索其它游戏功能的欲望。

这些游戏中的每个添加物都将伴随着更有效的参数进行调整,而不“只是触及每个心灵”或“为了更广泛的类型”。如果游戏不能够提供给角色重要意义,最终呈现在玩家面前的只会是一顿免费的自助餐,并伴随可想而知的胃痛。

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

HUGE ROSTERS = INFINITE PLAY?

by David Serrano

Variety is the spice of life, and so is, partially, of game characters. When it comes to games with a diverse and astonishing amount of characters to choose thousands of feelings comes, with the same diversity, to player’s minds: whether it should be amazing for its unique offer or overwhelming,  so many things to do or just the same mechanic with a different skin. Let’s check it out!

Popular big roster games have always been, and still they are and will be (as long as hard drives proves to be capable of don’t explode by filling it like Guinness record sandwiches) fighting games. Such games mechanics rely on skill and from its surface, its common to say that its replayability comes by the reiteration of the same thing all over again (fight until the depletion of the opponent’s life bar) without a fewer changes from title to title.

Player characters (in a massive way) came to help this question that was challenging the longevity of fighting games. The most characters equals to the most possible strategies and possible matches and then into replayability, and then engagement. And then happened to be dozens of characters, and then they blasted the screen feeling like being on Wonka’s factory.

New or uprising genres such as the famous Massive Online Battle Arenas offer the player an incredibly large roster of characters, each one with its specific abilities and recommended strategies, usable by ones who have mastered the game or newbies who haven’t got a clue.

Both massive forces of this MOBA games are Riot Games’ League of Legends and his counterpart Valve’s Dota 2, each one with an astonishing number of available characters ready to be chosen (even though sometimes you have to previously unlock them). The immense roster this games hold is, partially, explained by the fact that they inherited the unalterable blueprint of its predecessor Defense of The Ancient Door (or Dota), which was an adaptation (mod) of an existing strategy game where; whose, as stated by the genre, units seems to be enough diverse in order to extend the challenge and the so called strategy itself.

So rather than the menu, such games seems to weigh all its focus on the ingredients, where a larger number should equal directly to the beloved word of replayability. The more the best, the longer diversity the game takes, then the more possible outcomes than should be expected. And irony shall be left out, because when it takes to its success, sometimes we’re out of arguments. The formula, somehow, works; but only when the other factors are enough relevant to reinforce such feature.

A) Fun comes by mastering a single character or a portion of the roster

Mastership comes along in games in so many different ways that, it is not surprise that is a crucial part from which players get its engage on big roster games. But of course, with mastership comes challenge. And without it, there is no need to dig further on the plot; it’s all said since someone opens the case.

Alongside this way, players will perform accordingly to the portion of the roster they choose and the feeling of both belonging and need to it. That means that players choose alongside a variety of criteria from which we barely know its upper levels (but it keeps useful sometimes): artistic value, recommendation, game’s suggestion parameters, team making, auto-challenges imposed to grow up, usefulness, adaptation, etc.

Players choose characters following a variety of criteria from which we barely know its upper levels such as artistic value, usefulness, adaptation or challenges, among others.

Mastering the game based on one character makes the system to no longer require its roster to surprise or amaze the player. It stays on the background offering support or a second chance, and thus can be easily ignored or skipped from the player’s brain even though it is there (shining, glittering or whatever) since its very first time.

Dota2 and other MOBA kind of games, offer a huge roster where few characters are selected by experienced players based on role they play, on a deep understaing of the system rules and a vast community support.

Nevertheless, mastering such portion requires to have a strong, well designed and consistent growing ground, where mechanics, design and art collide together to diminish the need of depending on using loads of characters for no use.  Games (from its community, to guides up to themselves) can suggest the player to focus on one or a few, having the roster to encourage newcomers to find his data-soul brother. Adding levels, titles, specific matches, unlockables, etc; just to make sure the player feels comfortable without needing to switch from one character to another, being able to run out of flow, falling into boredom or anxiety.

Such specialization way brings into the scene a valuable aspect of recycle and sub-game, meaning that each player extracts a portion of the game from the initial set up, creating multiple variations of the experience even though the game stays the same.

B) Fun comes by trying and/or testing every single character

Otherwise than mastering a single soul chosen wisely according to different wills of the player, sometimes the syndrome of the free buffet is diagnosed when it’s too late: try to reach, unlock and play every single character on game, until exhaustion. Why exhaustion? Because it happens by reiteration, a dangerous feeling when the player can’t rely on anything but in the low amount of change (meaningful change) with every choice he makes.

It’s like having a favorite meal just everyday: somehow you’ll found that the base flavor that keeps repeating on yourself and making you burp like a wild frog is, and will be, always there; no matter what or why, you won’t be able to escape from its base, letting you end in a state of repeatability where nothing seems better than quitting.

Tobal 2 holds the Guiness World Record for the biggest roster ever made. Up to 100 playable characters: more than the half, copycats of styles and moves from the rest.

Fun may come from testing, but only if the game’s inner dynamics are meant for such thing. Otherwise, the engagement meter (if measurable) will be equally numbered in tries on the amount of playable characters: an easy and scary equation.

Fun may come from testing, but only if the game’s inner dynamics are meant for such thing

Such game disease is a common denominator on fighting arcade games where the rosters get higher in each new title and offering in exchange a little nor few additions to make the system refreshing or nurturing for the dynamic minds that players often require. If the game seems lazy to suggest anything rather than choosing characters and try them out, perhaps it should be better on the shelves where it was taken from..

So this practice works like a tiredness meter that grows higher each time a player tries a character and repeats the same effort by re-entering the game and tries to find a meaning to the choice he has done.

Can every single character provide an experience that can be enough powerful to reset the feeling of tiredness the player may get from the continuous try?

What happens when rosters are so huge and mechanics are static and (broadly talking) boring? The graphic shows the overall progression from the player’s start up to ending without any reward from the fact of having tons of characters.

Of course not always tiredness is something that may happen from choosing every game character available, it has to do tons with deeper features such as mechanics and the overall feel the game brings up. But then characters turn into something less important or relevant in order to excel or to have a greater experience.

And then it leads to…

Fun can come in so many diverse ways from roster huge packed titles, which seems quite off the record to pick up only both values. But those have provided to be present and critical for player’s experience upon an outrageous array of selectable alter egos.

There’s no reason for filling blank spaces with dull characters if there’s no meaningful need for lending them to the players. Copycats, stuffing excuses and ostentatious developer desires leads to systems capable of overwhelm players and later bore them, losing every intention to keep on exploring the else game features (if there’s any).

Every addition in such games shall be justified with a more valid argument than “just to reach every single mind” or “for a wide variety of styles”. If characters are, make games giving a significant meaning for them, or it will end up being nothing but a free buffet with an expected stomach ache.

PD: In the forthcoming article I’ll tackle the techniques and must-have features of titles who wish to impliment such big rosters and bring them a meaningful role inside their games. Stay tuned!(source:games4breakfast)


上一篇:

下一篇: