Difference between revisions of "Improved Abilities"

Revision as of 19:02, 22 June 2011

The event of abilities improving their efficiency.

This pattern is a still a stub.

Improved Abilities are not the physical or mental abilities of players; they are the effects of the game state upon the evaluation functions of actions.

Players can progress in games by having their actions effect on the Game World increase and by having greater chances of succeeding. When these chances or effects have improved, the players have received Improved Abilities and have greater chances of completing goals or otherwise influencing the game state.

Examples

Example: Tabletop roleplaying games often describe players' skill in an area with a value, and succeeding with the skill requires players to roll below the value with a die. Improvement of these skills is done simply by increasing the associated value.

Example: Chargers and power-ups in racing games often give vehicles a speed boost or raise the maximum speed possible without further affecting players' possible actions.

Torchlight

Using the pattern

Improved Abilities most often raise players' chance to succeed with actions or make the effects of their actions more powerful. The difference between New Abilities and Improved Abilities is often one of scale or perspective: are the abilities activated in the same fashion as before, do they affect the same parts of the game state, and are does the Alternative Reality explain them as being different or the same? Improved Abilities are often easier to explain within a Consistent Reality Logic than New Abilities, as the pattern can use increases of Skills of Characters or Avatars. Power-Ups and Chargers are common game elements used to provide temporary Improved Abilities with Time Limits, while Tools give improvements as long as they are carried. Another way to give players Improved Abilities is to make their actions require fewer Resources, thereby letting players make more efficient use of Limited Resources.

As a Balancing Effect, Diminishing Returns can be used to avoid letting players with powerful abilities more easily get Improved Abilities than other players. In the same way, New Abilities can be balanced by Ability Losses in other Competence Areas; game design can have Balancing Effects by linking Decreased Abilities in some areas to Improved Abilities in others.

New Abilities

Attributes, Powers, Skills

Can Instantiate

Environmental Effects,

Can Be Instantiated By

Controllers, Equipment, Sets, Tools, Vehicles, Weapons

Can Be Modulated By

Time Limits

can modulate

Enemies

Diegetic Aspects

Interface Aspects

Narrative Aspects

Consequences

Improved Abilities give players Empowerment by making the Abilities of Abstract Player Constructs, Avatars, or Characters more potent and can through this promote Competence Areas. The improvement is typically Rewards for completing Gain Competence goals or the acquisition of various types of Controllers, Equipment, Sets, Tools, or Vehicles as part of Gain Ownership goals. Gaining Improved Abilities create Supporting Goals as well, as they empower players to influence the game state and create Exaggerated Perception of Influence. When given before gameplay starts, Improved Abilities are a way of setting Difficulty Levels. Regardless of when they are given, Improved Abilities may however go against Challenging Gameplay if given in too much abundance.

When Improved Abilities are applied to Enemies this can give Challenging Gameplay as well as create Boss Monsters. When applied both to players and Enemies, Improved Abilities can, like New Abilities, give rise to Red Queen Dilemmas. This can also occur when competing players can improve abilities during gameplay so that they are equally matched.

Like New Abilities, the improvement of Abilities is a form of Abstract Player Construct Development or Character Development, and when players' are given a Freedom of Choice to affect what Abilities are improved, it also gives rise to Player-Planned Development. In games with Teams, the development also becomes Team Development, potentially with the additional effect of Orthogonal Differentiation.

Can Instantiate

Balancing Effects, Character Defining Actions, ,

with Abstract Player Construct Development or Character Development

Paper-Rock-Scissors, Varied Gameplay

Ammunition

Tradeoffs

with Boss Monsters

Varied Gameplay

Decreased Abilities

Balancing Effects

Can Modulate

Ammunition, Factions, Freedom of Choice, Power-Ups

Relations

Can Instantiate

Abstract Player Construct Development, Balancing Effects, Character Defining Actions, Character Development, Competence Areas, Difficulty Levels, Empowerment, Environmental Effects, Exaggerated Perception of Influence, Gain Competence, Red Queen Dilemmas, Rewards, Supporting Goals

with Abstract Player Construct Development or Character Development

Paper-Rock-Scissors, Varied Gameplay

Ammunition

Tradeoffs

with Boss Monsters

Varied Gameplay

with Controllers, Equipment, Sets, Tools, or Vehicles

Gain Ownership

Decreased Abilities

Balancing Effects

with Enemies

Boss Monsters

with Freedom of Choice

Player-Planned Development

with Teams

Orthogonal Differentiation, Team Development

Can Modulate

Abilities, Abstract Player Constructs, Ammunition, Attributes, Avatars, Challenging Gameplay, Characters, Enemies, Factions, Freedom of Choice, Power-Ups Powers, Skills

Can Be Instantiated By

Controllers, Equipment, Sets, Tools, Vehicles, Weapons

Can Be Modulated By

Time Limits

Possible Closure Effects

-

Potentially Conflicting With

Challenging Gameplay

History

An updated version of the pattern Improved Abilities that was part of the original collection in the book Patterns in Game Design^[1].

References

1. ↑ Björk, S. & Holopainen, J. (2004) Patterns in Game Design. Charles River Media. ISBN1-58450-354-8.

Acknowledgements