View source for Gain Competence

[[Category:Patterns]]
[[Category:Goal Patterns]]
[[Category:Action Patterns]]
[[Category:Needs revision]]
[[Category:Needs references]]
''The goal of being able to perform a specific ability to a certain level of competence within a game.''

Part of the charm with playing games is the possibility of becoming better at doing so. This can be because one has become better as a player or because the avatar, character, or units under one's control have become more powerful. [[Gain Competence]] describes the goal of the latter.

Note: ''[[Gain Competence]] is not the ability for a player to perform an action skillfully, see  [[Game Mastery]] and patterns regarding specific [[:Category:Action Patterns|actions]] for this.

=== Examples ===
Both making a queen (or other piece) out of a pawn in [[Chess]] and making a king out of a piece in [[Draughts]] can be seen as an example of a [[Gain Competence]] goal. 

[[:Category:Tabletop Roleplaying Games|Tabletop Roleplaying Games]] such as [[Dungeons & Dragons]] and [[GURPS]] offers players [[Gain Competence]] goals both through acquiring new equipment and through developing their characters attributes, skills, and powers. Similarly, [[:Category:Computer-based Roleplaying Games|Computer-based Roleplaying Games]] such as [[Torchlight]], the [[Neverwinter Nights series]] and the [[Elder Scrolls series]], have abilities that are either not available to the players initially (most commonly spells) or are not very efficient compared to the most powerful opponents. Learning these abilities significant help in completing the games, and gaining them may become explicit goals that are the focus of player actions on the expense of the main goal.

Deathmatch games in the [[Quake series|Quake]] and [[Unreal Tournament series]] have [[Gain Competence]] goals that are linked to acquiring weapons, since the different weapons have radically different abilities. While weapons have different abilities in most [[:Category:FPS Games|First-Person Shooters]], it is often not possible to have goals concerning them since either one has all weapons one will have in a match (e.g. the [[Team Fortress series]]) or new weapons are provided as part of a game's story.

== Using the pattern ==
[[Gain Competence]] goals are basically about wanting [[New Abilities|New]] or [[Improved Abilities]] affecting [[Attributes]], [[Powers]], or [[Skills]]. A special case of this is regaining [[Ability Losses]] or [[Decreased Abilities]]. The actual completion of [[Gain Competence]] goals are often packaged as [[Rewards]], e.g. advancing in [[Character Levels]] or [[Technology Trees]], receiving the benefits of previous [[Investments]], or gaining entry or acceptance of [[Factions]] or [[Helpers]]. A common way to provide [[Gain Competence]] goals is through [[Gain Ownership]] goals of [[Tools]] but [[Chargers]] and [[Power-Ups]] show that [[Movement]] to specific places in [[Game Worlds]] can suffice as well.

While the above describes how [[Gain Competence]] goals can be created, another important design aspect is why players should be motivated to adopt these goals. Having [[Player/Character Skill Composites]] is a generic way to motivate players to want to succeed with [[Gain Competence]] goals since this will then empower them. In games with [[Competition]] or [[Conflict]], the wish to be better is another cause for players to strive for these types of goals. Providing players with a [[Freedom of Choice]] between different [[Gain Competence]] goals can make players more willing to adopt specific such goals since these can then be part of [[Player-Planned Development]] and succeeding with the goals can be [[Character Defining Actions]].

=== Narrative Aspects ===
[[Gain Competence]] goals can quite easily be incorporated into [[Predetermined Story Structures]], e.g. having to develop a [[Powers|Power]] or [[Skills|Skill]] to be able to defeat a [[Boss Monster]], hinder a developing catastrophe, or be able to pass through [[Conditional Passageways]]. This makes them candidates for the goals of [[Quests]].

== Consequences ==
[[Gain Competence]] goals give players offers of [[Empowerment]] due to better [[Abilities]] and can be motivated by [[Limited Set of Actions]] or [[Asymmetric Abilities]] where the players feel disadvantaged. While it is not necessary for players to have them for [[Abstract Player Construct Development]] or [[Character Development]] to occur, players who have adopted such goals can have more [[Anticipation]]. For these reasons, the goals easy emerge when players can do [[Player-Planned Development]] due to having a [[Freedom of Choice]] regarding what competences to improve.

[[Gain Competence]] can provide players with [[Smooth Learning Curves]], as players do not have to have all possible actions but can prepare for which actions will be possible. When [[Gain Competence]] goals can be [[Symmetric Goals]] shared by several players or [[Agents]], this gives rise to [[Red Queen Dilemmas]] (if they are also [[Excluding Goals]] this instead becomes a [[Races|Race]]).

== Relations ==
=== Can Instantiate ===
[[Anticipation]], 
[[Empowerment]], 
[[Quests]], 
[[Smooth Learning Curves]]

==== with [[Freedom of Choice]] ====
[[Player-Planned Development]]

==== with [[Excluding Goals]] and [[Symmetric Goals]] ====
[[Races]]

==== with [[Symmetric Goals]] ====
[[Red Queen Dilemmas]]

=== Can Modulate ===
[[Abilities]], 
[[Abstract Player Construct Development]], 
[[Attributes]], 
[[Character Development]], 
[[Skills]], 
[[Powers]]

=== Can Be Instantiated By ===
[[Ability Losses]], 
[[Character Defining Actions]], 
[[Character Levels]], 
[[Chargers]], 
[[Competition]], 
[[Conditional Passageways]], 
[[Conflict]], 
[[Decreased Abilities]], 
[[Factions]], 
[[Helpers]], 
[[Improved Abilities]], 
[[Investments]], 
[[New Abilities]], 
[[Player/Character Skill Composites]], 
[[Power-Ups]], 
[[Rewards]], 
[[Technology Trees]], 
[[Tools]]

=== Can Be Modulated By ===
[[Asymmetric Abilities]], 
[[Limited Set of Actions]], 
[[Predetermined Story Structures]]

=== Possible Closure Effects ===
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=== Potentially Conflicting With ===
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== History ==
An updated version of the pattern ''Gain Competence'' that was part of the original collection in the book ''Patterns in Game Design''<ref name="Bjork & Holopainen 2004"/>.

== References ==
<references>
<ref name="Bjork & Holopainen 2004">Björk, S. & Holopainen, J. (2004) ''Patterns in Game Design''. Charles River Media. ISBN1-58450-354-8.</ref>
</references>

== Acknowledgements ==
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