Obstacles

Game elements that hinder players from taking the shortest route between two places in game worlds.

One definition of playing a game is "the voluntary attempt to overcome unnecessary obstacles". This can be applied literally by requiring that navigation in Game Worlds take into consideration diegetically present physical Obstacles. Often the Obstacles may be moved, destroyed, or avoided by specific actions but until this has been done (and it has become possible to do so), the Obstacles slow or block the players' progress in the game.

Examples

A typical kind of Obstacles are locked doors that require keys of various kinds. Examples of games that have this include The Legend of Zelda series, the Doom series, the Super Mario series, and the Leisure Suit Larry series.

Walls are Obstacles to both movement and laser firing in the board game RoboRally. It also stops movement in Ricochet Robots but here this can be advantageous since the robots cannot stop in any other way, and choosing the right walls (and other robots) to collide with is the only way to reach the goal destinations.

Most of the problems in the Portal series include finding ways of moving past obstacles by manipulating game objects and creating "portals" between different parts of levels. The Red Faction series also contain Obstacles in the form of walls, floors, and ceilings but these can be destroyed by players to give new access routes. In contrast, the board game Space Alert begins with no Obstacles to player movement in a space ship, but these can occur as effects of damage.

Using the pattern

Obstacles are most often created by making sufficiently large Diegetically Tangible Game Items. These may any type of Game Items, but Cosmetic Game Items and Props are examples that will be primarily experienced as Obstacles since they have little or no other effects on gameplay. Installations are worth pointing out in that they are naturally immobile while Avatars and Units are also worth pointing since they are highly mobile. A weaker form Obstacles, where the shortest route can still be taken but is not as efficient as taking a circumstantial route, can be created by Environmental Effects that give Movement Limitations; using Damage or Decreased Abilities provide weaker examples still since they do not actually hinder Movement but make passing through them into Risk/Reward considerations. Invisible Walls are also Obstacles but these may not even be noticed by players if they follow the routes intended by game designers.

The choice of Obstacles determines how players can bypass it, if at all. Privileged Movement that lets players ignore them while still maintaining their status as Obstacles to others. Making them Destructible Objects provides players with options of Game Element Removal by Damaging them - being able to do this can be a form of Privileged Abilities. Obstacles that block the way to Inaccessible Areas are often linked to Controllers that can remove them; the Controllers can either simply be Switches that need to be found or be game elements that need specific Resources or Tools (e.g. keys or key cards). Another option is to give players Privileged Abilities to ignore the Obstacles. If the Obstacles can be removed by players that have reached the far side of them, this provides a way to create Quick Returns.

Typically, Obstacles that do not act as boundaries for Inaccessible Areas can be avoided by taking longer routes, even if it is simply walking around a boulder or tree. Note that Obstacles can also be a large areas, for example mountains or chasms. While Obstacles affect how Avatars and Units can move in Game Worlds, Avatars and Units can be Obstacles to each other if they are Diegetically Tangible Game Items. Obstacles are usually not deadly to Avatars or Units, but can be so when colliding with them can cause Damage.

While blocking access to areas or creating detours are probably the most common reasons for placing Obstacles in Game Worlds or Levels, but they can also be placed to create Secret Areas simply by making them difficulty to notice.

Warp Zones have a complex relation to Obstacles. Having them present from the beginning can invalidate the Obstacles as hindering Movement or Line of Sight, but letting players open or create the Warp Zones during gameplay, as is the characteristic gameplay mechanic in the Portal series, provide the necessary building blocks for creating a spatial form of Puzzle Solving.

Diegetic Aspects

In games building their gameplay extensively on Rhythm-Based Actions, Obstacles are sometimes used as diegetic game elements that provide collisions between them and the players' Avatars as thematic explanations for the failures.

If Obstacles are placed so they only become apparent when they are closed, typically through a combination of high speed and turning corners, they give rise to Surprises.

Narrative Aspects

The combination of several Obstacles can create natural boundaries to Inaccessible Areas, and when used in this fashion, they can support Predetermined Story Structures if they can later be removed, e.g. by Switches.

Consequences

Obstacles create Movement Limitations in how Avatars and Units can perform Movement or Maneuvering in Game Worlds or Levels. They also affect Aim & Shoot since they can block Line of Sight, and this can make places with a view over the area worse as Sniper Locations while making the places themselves better as Sniper Locations. They can also force players to perform Leaps of Faith since they may not be able to see the areas they are moving into (this most often occurs with Movement such as Jumping or teleporting instead of "ordinary" Movement). The Obstacles that are created by Environmental Effects and that provide Ability Losses, Decreased Abilities, or Damage do instead raise Risk/Reward considerations. By having these effects, they naturally are Diegetically Outstanding Features even if this can be enhanced by their visual presentation. Depending on the size of the Obstacles, they can also make Game World Navigation difficult simply because they can make it difficult to get an overview of one's surroundings. By using these features and being placed strategically, Obstacles can modulate Movement to offer Challenging Gameplay or create Choke Points. Intentionally or not, Obstacles can create Secret Areas by occluding them.

While all Obstacles are Diegetically Tangible Game Items, the reverse is not true since some game items can be stepped over or onto, or can easily be moved aside. Obstacles can be Surprises if they appear suddenly from the players' perspective. When happens, they can effectively be Traps if collisions can cause Damage or provide other negative effects. If their appearance are Irreversible Events, they can enforce One-Way Travel through making retracing ones steps impossible.

As mentioned above, Obstacles can help control how Predetermined Story Structures are revealed. This does not necessarily led to new Levels or areas of the Game Worlds - they can also provide Quick Returns.

Skillful players may be able to bypass more than one Obstacle at the same time or without requiring more Resources than if the Obstacles were not present. This is an expression of Game Mastery made possible by, depending on the nature of the Obstacles, players Timing their actions (e.g. moving between moving objects), them performing Dexterity-Based Actions (e.g. avoiding stationary objects and other vehicles when driving), or by succeeding with Puzzle Solving (e.g. finding the most cost efficient route).

Relations

Can Instantiate

Choke Points, Dexterity-Based Actions, Diegetically Outstanding Features, Game Mastery, Inaccessible Areas, Movement Limitations, Predetermined Story Structures, Puzzle Solving, Secret Areas, Surprises, Timing

with Environmental Effects

Risk/Reward

with Irreversible Events

One-Way Travel

with Movement

Challenging Gameplay

with Surprises

Traps

with Switches

Quick Returns

with Warp Zones

Puzzle Solving

Can Modulate

Aim & Shoot, Avatars, Challenging Gameplay, Destructible Objects, Game World Navigation, Game Worlds, Maneuvering, Movement, Leaps of Faith, Levels, Line of Sight, Rhythm-Based Actions, Sniper Locations, Units

Can Be Instantiated By

Avatars, Cosmetic Game Items, Diegetically Tangible Game Items, Environmental Effects, Installations, Invisible Walls, Props, Units

Can Be Modulated By

Damage, Destructible Objects, Game Element Removal, Privileged Abilities, Privileged Movement, Warp Zones

Possible Closure Effects

with Destructible Objects

Game Element Removal

Potentially Conflicting With

Warp Zones

History

An updated version of the pattern Obstacles that was part of the original collection in the book Patterns in Game Design.