Optional Goals

Goals that players do not need to complete in order to win or finish a game.

This pattern is a still a stub.

Examples

Example: Collecting extra heart pieces in Zelda are Optional Goals that help the player.

Example: In one of the games in the Ultima series, one can bake bread, but this is of no use to the player in the game.

Example: The secret areas in Castle Wolfenstein offer several types of Rewards to players but are not required to complete the game. After accidentally finding one, or being informed by other players, the player does not know where these areas are but does know that they exist and can choose to spend time looking for them.

Example: The games in the Final Fantasy series provide many quests that give experience points and objects when they are fulfilled but they are not necessary to solve to complete the game.

Example: The game Day of the Tentacle contains the whole predecessor, Maniac Mansion, as part of a game console that is within the game. The whole inner game could be finished without providing any advantage to the outer game.

Left 4 Dead series Assassin's Creed series Torchlight

Anti-Examples

optional

Relations

Instantiates: Meta Games, Selectable Set of Goals

Instantiated by: Player Defined Goals

Modulated by: Trading

Can Instantiate

Achievements, Challenging Gameplay, Freedom of Choice, Goal Achievements, Goal Hierarchies, Handicap Achievements, Replayability, Supporting Goals

with Collection

Grind Achievements

with Ephemeral Goals

Freedom of Choice

Can Modulate

Ephemeral Goals, Factions

Can Be Instantiated By

Achievements, Actions Have Diegetically Social Consequences, Companion Quests, Easter Eggs, Endgame Quests, Environmental Storytelling, Handicap Achievements, Information Passing, Loyalty, Minigames, Open Destiny, Secret Areas, Sidequests, Speedruns

Game Items together with Sets

Rewards with Time Limits

Can Be Modulated By

Strategic Knowledge

Possible Closure Effects

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Potentially Conflicting With

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History

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

Acknowledgements

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