Luck
The feeling that random effects are not random but favorable or unfavorable to a player.
This pattern is still a stub.
Many events in games are impossible for players to control in a predictable and repeatable fashion. However, when players feel that they can affect this event anyway, either through how they perform the action or what they wish for when the effect of the action is being determined, they may feel that they have Luck.
Examples
Example: Letting players roll dice in any game is motivated primarily by letting players experience the possibility of Luck; the main other reason is that nobody else should have to perform the physical actions for the players' game action.
Example: The high level of Luck in gambling games lets most people start playing the games easily and feel that they are competent players, even though Game Mastery might be very difficult to achieve.
Using the pattern
Luck is hard to explicitly design players to experience unless the game system cheats. This can be instantiated by Game Masters to provide maximum Tension but is a Risk/Reward choice, because if players notice the cheating, they will lose all Illusion of Influence.
Designing for the possibility for players to feel lucky is much easier, most often simply some form of Randomness is sufficient. Typical ways of letting players feel Luck are through letting them roll Dice, giving them hidden Card Hands, or letting Near Miss Indicators show them how close they were to being affected by dangers. For Betting, actions based around Skills, or Overcome goals that are determined by Randomness, players may base their Risk/Reward choices upon how much Luck they feel that they have.
Parts of Polyathlons that appear to depend on Luck add elements not depending on player skills and that may have less Predictable Consequences.
Movement and Location-Fixed Abilities (example for randomesss), Skills
another
Can Be Instantiated By
Critical Hits, Delayed Effects, Drawing Stacks, Feigned Die Rolls, Game Masters, Randomness
Potentially Conflicting With
Several patterns can work against players feeling Luck. Extra Chances take away the perception since unluckiness can be avoided through them. Fixed Distributions and Strategic Knowledge can work against it since players may know exactly what will happen or at least the exact odds for different outcomes.
Narrative Aspects
Consequences
Feeling Luck gives players an Exaggerated Perception of Influence in games, and this can be enough to create interesting games with No Direct Player Influence. However, Luck can also create Tension when perceived in actions with Delayed Effects since players may not be sure about their Luck.
Games that rely heavily on Randomness, or at least lack Predictable Consequences, often make it possible for players to feel that the outcome depends on Luck, and thereby give these games deceptive Smooth Learning Curves. Games depending totally on Randomness can be said to depend solely on Luck and have no Game Mastery, but many games with high levels of Randomness can have Game Mastery through Bluffing or Strategic Knowledge about probabilities, although Meta Games and Tournaments or other forms of playing many game sessions may be required to notice the Game Mastery.
Luck can ruin or lessen the satisfaction of Goal Achievements when it allows the goals to be achieved not by player skill but fortunate events.
Relations
Can Instantiate
Exaggerated Perception of Influence
with Delayed Effects
with Exaggerated Perception of Influence
Can Modulate
-
Can Be Instantiated By
Critical Hits, Delayed Effects, Drawing Stacks, Feigned Die Rolls, Game Masters, Multiplayer Games, Randomness
Can Be Modulated By
-
Possible Closure Effects
-
Potentially Conflicting With
Extra Chances, Fixed Distributions, Goal Achievements, Predictable Consequences, Strategic Knowledge
History
A rewrite version of the pattern Luck that was part of the original collection in the book Patterns in Game Design[1].
References
- ↑ Björk, S. & Holopainen, J. (2004) Patterns in Game Design. Charles River Media. ISBN1-58450-354-8.
