Geospatial Game Widgets
Game elements that are located in the diegetic world but are not diegetically present.
This pattern is a still a stub.
Contents
Examples
character outlines Left 4 Dead Series
checkpoint beacons in the Grand Theft Auto series and Mirror's Edge
Geospatial Game Widgets can exist in Board Games as well. Examples of games that make use of these to show goal destinations include Ricochet Robot and RoboRally.
Using the pattern
Geospatial Game Widgets are used to provide information to players at specific locations in Game Worlds and Levels, so using them consist of choosing what information is to be shown and where to show it.
Showing where Goal Points exist is one common example of what Geospatial Game Widgets are used for, this since there may not be a plausible way to include this in the game's diegesis.
such as check point in Racing Games
Geospatial Game Widgets do not have to be their own independent game elements but can be closely tied to other game elements. One such example is to show the Health of Units directly above them or, as World of Warcraft does, show players' Handles hovering above their Avatars. The Left 4 Dead series has another version of tying Geospatial Game Widgets to Avatars - in these games the outlines of Avatars become glowing so that survivor players can notice each other through walls and other solid objects. More generally, Geospatial Game Widget can show information related to the abstract attributes of Characters in direct proximity to Avatars. Besides Avatars and Units, Pick-Ups are likely candidates to be augmented with Geospatial Game Widgets (shown for example in Dead Space) to lessen the risk that players miss noticing their locations.
Ghosts are Geospatial Game Widgets that show the gameplay of players in earlier game sessions.
Diegetic Aspects
Diegetic Consistency is harder to maintain in games with Geospatial Game Widgets since these are non-diegetic in their nature. This is especially true when they are no occluded by diegetic elements, as is the case for the outlines of Avatars and specific Pick-Ups in the Left 4 Dead Series. They can in some cases be diegetically explained if this includes explaining their insubstantiality, Dead Space does this by explaining the Geospatial Game Widgets are holograms.
Interface Aspects
As information providers, Geospatial Game Widgets are interface components.
Consequences
Geospatial Game Widgets are Game State Indicators that, as mentioned above, often break Diegetic Consistency by introducing non-diegetic elements into Game Worlds or Levels. In games with Cooperation they can support Coordination, especially when they bluntly ignore Diegetic Consistency to be visible through diegetic elements.
Relations
Can Instantiate
with Cooperation
Can Modulate
Avatars, Characters, Game Worlds, Handles, Health, Levels, Pick-Ups, Units
Can Be Instantiated By
Can Be Modulated By
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Possible Closure Effects
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Potentially Conflicting With
History
New pattern created in this wiki, based on the concept of Geometric elements in Fagerholt & Lorentzon[1].
References
- ↑ Fagerholt, E. & Lorentzon, M. (2009). Beyond the HUD - User Interfaces for Increased Player Immersion in FPS Games. Master of Science Thesis, Department of Computer Science and Engineering Division of Interaction Design, Chalmers University of Technology.
Acknowledgements
Erik Fagerholt, Magnus Lorentzon
