Difference between revisions of "Races"

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[[Category:Staffan's current workpage]]
 
 
[[Category:Patterns]]
 
[[Category:Patterns]]
[[Category:Mechanical Patterns]]
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[[Category:Goal Patterns]]
[[Category:Needs work]]
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[[Category:Level Design Patterns]]
 
[[Category:Needs revision]]
 
[[Category:Needs revision]]
[[Category:Needs examples]]
 
 
[[Category:Needs references]]
 
[[Category:Needs references]]
[[Category:Stub]]
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''Gameplay goals that need to be worked against under pressure, often but not necessarily in competition against others.''
''The competition between players to be the first to reach a certain goal, often being the first to a certain location following an approved route.''
+
  
This pattern is a still a stub.
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Games have goals for players, but not all games put players under pressure to complete these. [[Races]] are goals that create this pressure, either from having to perform better than others or by finishing it before some given time. While the most obvious form of [[Races]] are those where one tries to reach a certain location before others do, [[Races]] can also be abstract in the form of gaining a certain score before others, discovering important areas before others, or researching technologies before others.
  
 +
=== Examples ===
 +
[[Sprints]], today most commonly in distances such as 100 meter or 400 meter, and long-distance competitions such as [[Marathons]] are classical examples of [[Races]]. The winning conditions for these are easy to describe: the goal is to be the first person to pass a certain distance marker, and this is to be achieved by moving (running) along the prepared course. These competitions are also part of computer-based sport games such as [[Decathlon]] and [[Summer Games]], although requiring somewhat different skills from participants.
  
In the context of classical board games, David Parlett [Parlett99] classifies Race s as being games concerned with being the first to get all pieces back home by traversing a linear track in as few turns as possible, using Ludo and Backgammon as examples. Modern board games, for example RoboRally, show examples of how Races can be expanded to include free movement on two-dimensional game areas. Computer-based racing games such as F-Zero GX or Mario Kart Double Dash!! allow players freedom of movement along the width of the track, and sometimes divide the track into several different tracks that offer different difficulties and advantages.
+
[[Elfenland]], [[Formula D]], [[Ludo]], [[RoboRally]], and [[Snakes and Ladders]] are examples of [[:Category:Board Games|Board Games]] that are more or less explicitly [[Races]].
  
Although the most common type of Race is the one where players try to reach a specific location or place by moving, a Race does not need to depend on a spatial goal. Other possibilities include being the first to gain a competence or arranging game elements in a certain order. More generally in a Race, the players try to reach, or achieve, a certain game state before other players.
+
[[:Category:Racing Games|Racing Games]] such as the [[F-Zero series|F-Zero]], [[Mario Kart series|Mario Kart]], [[Need for Speed series|Need for Speed]], and [[Sega Rally series]] are all [[Races]] as well, but here players have options of which vehicles to use and the gameplay may contain possibilities to upgrade these or attack competitors.  
  
=== Examples ===
+
[[:Category:Strategy Games|Strategy Games]] such as the [[Civilization (video game) series|Civilization]] and [[Europa Universalis series]] have several types of [[Races]]. The perhaps two most important of these are related to technological development and exploring and colonizing the game world before ones' competitors do so. Reaching Alpha Centauri is one of the winning conditions in the [[Civilization (video game) series|Civilization series]] and is in itself also a [[Races|Race]], as is the goal of building wonders (especially building the ''Utopia'' wonder in [[Civilization V]] since this is also a winning condition).  
Example: In Race s using a linear track, 100 meter dash for example, these winning conditions of the race are easy to describe: the goal game state is to be the first person to physically pass a certain distance marker, and this is to be achieved by running.
+
  
Example: The winning condition in Pig (a simple dice game) is to be the first one to Score a predefined amount of points.
+
[[Golf]] can be seen as a kind of [[Races|Race]]: the players try to go through the track in as little game time as possible (bearing in mind that game time in Golf is measured by the amount of strokes).
  
Example: The collectable card game ShadowRun uses points; each successfully completed mission gives players points, the number depending on the difficulty level of the mission.
+
Not many [[:Category:FPS Games|First-Person Shooters]] are [[Races]], but the [[Left 4 Dead series]] is an exception. This because at higher levels it is rarely cost efficient to search levels completely for loot so the best strategy to complete levels is to move as fast as possible.
 
+
Example: Golf can be seen as a kind of Race. The players try to go through the track in as little game time as possible (bearing in mind that game time in Golf is measured by the amount of strokes).
+
 
+
[[Left 4 Dead series]]
+
[[:Category:Racing Games|Racing Games]]
+
  
 
== Using the pattern ==
 
== Using the pattern ==
Race is a high-level goal that always requires the use of underlying goals to fill in the details of exactly what game state the players are trying to achieve and how the players can proceed to that game state. The most direct type of underlying goal for Race is Traverse, which is the traditional form of a Race, but by using Score, most forms of subgoals can be used to form Races. When several people can complete Gain Competence goals or have Excluding Goals that can be fulfilled at certain locations, this can take the form of a Race that is a Supporting Goal. Players starting with Shared Resources with players can exploit to gain Individual Rewards for Races between the players, for example, claiming Area Control of a previously unclaimed area through Exploration.
+
[[Races]] are high-level goal structures that needs more specific underlying goals to instantiate what game states players are trying to achieve as well as decide how players can act to try to achieve those game states. The races can be used as challenges between players in [[Multiplayer Games]] or be pit lone players against system controlled competitors.  
  
The end of a Race can be determined in several ways. The completion of an underlying goal, with Traverse as the prime candidate, can be used to determine the end of a Race, but the use of Time Limit makes the Race a matter of distance rather than of speed. By measuring the duration of activities to determine progress, typically by Score, Races can become Continuous Goals that typically go on until a specific resource, typically fuel or Lives, has been depleted from all players.
+
The most obvious types of underlying goal for [[Races]] is to take the term literally and have [[Traverse]] goals that can be achieved through [[Movement]] (or [[Maneuvering]]) and typically making [[Connection]] to some game element or marking in the [[Game Worlds|Game World]], and this may be the players themselves in [[:Category:Sports|Sports]] or games with [[Player-Location Proximity]]. However, by using [[Scores]] most forms of subgoals can be used to form [[Races]] (getting [[Achievements]] is a more modern and meta form of this) of achieving a certain amount of [[Resources]] (or alternatively losing them). In fact, it has been suggested that [[Score Tracks]] where the starting points for games that had [[Races]] as themes in them<ref name="Parlett"/>. Other general forms of [[Races]] include gaining [[Area Control]] (one of the many types of [[Races]] found in the [[Civilization (video game) series|Civilization series]]), gaining access to [[Game Items]] such as [[Loot]] or [[Vehicles]] (which create [[Races]] within [[Teams]] or groups in [[Borderlands]] and [[World of Warcraft]] for the former and in the [[Battlefield series]] for the latter). [[Gain Competence]] goals can be [[Races]], because they are either [[Excluding Goals]] or [[Symmetric Goals]] which gives a temporary advantage to the winner. This last case is an example of how [[Red Queen Dilemmas]] are [[Races]]. Simply adding [[Time Limits]] before something must be completed is in fact a way of creating [[Races]]. Many of the examples just given show that [[Races]] often can serve as [[Supporting Goals]] in games.
  
Players' feelings of participation in a Race depend heavily on whether they know their position in relationship to the other players. This requires that players have a certain Game State Overview so they can have a Perceived Chance to Succeed, typically Progress Indicators show the progress of all players, but Status Indicators can be used for Races with Continuous Goals. However, if players can perceive that they have very little chance of improving their position, the Race loses its Tension. To avoid this, one can add a Balancing Effect to the game so that trailing players are given various advantages.
+
[[Races]] need some factor that put [[Tension]] on players to try and achieve the underlying goals. Letting other players have the same goal, i.e. provide them all with [[Symmetric Goals]], is part of the literal type of [[Races]] and serves this purpose. If other players are not available, or not enough of them are available, [[Non-Player Characters]] can act as (non-violent) [[Enemies]] to provide competition. Less common is the use of [[Ghosts]] to let players compete against previous game sessions they or other players have had. The above mentioned [[Time Limits]] can also provide the required [[Tension]], and here trying to make [[Speedruns]] can be seen as a special case. This being said, the pressure to complete the [[Races]] can also be modulated by [[Time Limits]] (e.g. making everybody lose if nobody has completed the underlying goal within a certain amount of time) and by providing [[Imperfect Information]] about the goals or what is required to complete them. [[Tiebreakers]] can be used to ensure than only one competitor can win a [[Races|Race]]. Related to this, the appearance of clear leaders may make [[Races]] uninteresting. This can be avoided by introducing [[Balancing Effects]] during gameplay through having [[Negative Feedback Loops]] or providing access to [[Handicap Systems]] before gameplay begin, and both these are most typically created in diegetic [[Races]] through giving some of the competitors [[Movement Limitations]].
  
The evaluation of who wins a Race when two or more players complete it simultaneously can either be done with a Tiebreaker or allow for Tied Results. Using a Tiebreaker increases the Tension and forces Individual Rewards while Tied Results make Shared Rewards possible.
+
Literal or diegetic [[Races]] can be modified in several other ways: [[Chargers]], [[Pick-Ups]], and other [[Strategic Locations]] can introduce [[Risk/Reward]] elements (see the [[Super Mario series]] for examples of the two first and [[Formula D]] for an example of the last) and thereby make it less clear what is the most optimal route, [[Landmarks]] can help [[Game World Navigation]], and [[Vehicles]] can provide variation in the different attributes related to the [[Races]] (e.g. acceleration, top speed, stability, etc.). Another variation to these types of [[Races]] is of course one where the players themselves try to be the first to reach a finishing line. [[Sprints]] and [[Marathons]] are examples of games, while [[Orienteering]] adds the need for [[Physical Navigation]] to the gameplay.
 
+
Racing games that are Real-Time Games commonly use convoluted and winding tracks to add the extra dimension of having to Maneuver, making Strategic Knowledge of the Game World valuable. Requiring players to Maneuver makes skills in Dexterity-Based Actions important and brings in tactical Risk/Reward decisions of how fast the player is willing to speed down a track in relation to his skill.
+
 
+
It is possible to apply Race in almost any kind of game by introducing time as the determining factor of an outcome. All players do not have to start the Race at the same time, making Races possible in both Asynchronous Games and Synchronous Games, as the prime requirements of a Race are that the goals are the same for all players and that the starting conditions are equivalent, with the possible modification of Handicaps. The use of Ghosts allows for the creation of Meta Games that are Asynchronous Games based on merging a game instance with a recorded instance.
+
 
+
Some games, however, are better suited for Races than others, because there are natural possibilities for players to evaluate the distance between their current position, the goal, and the other players' relative positions. The accuracy of this relative position information may change over time varying the player's Anticipation and Tension levels as well as supporting Player Defined Goals. For example, in many racing games players have direct access to the relative position information if other cars are within the field of vision. Otherwise, they have to rely on a track diagram, which gives Imperfect Information through a Game State Overview. When an opponent comes into sight, the goal of overtaking that player becomes significantly more present as the possibilities and progress of the goal become easier to perceive.
+
 
+
Racing games usually provide some form of Charger or Pick-Ups in specific Resource Locations and, in Races, force players to make Risk/Reward choices between saving time and risking not having enough Resources or losing time but having Resources.
+
 
+
=== Can Be Instantiated By ===
+
[[Area Control]],  
+
[[Game Items]],  
+
[[Loot]],
+
[[Movement]],
+
[[Score Tracks]],
+
[[Speed Runs]],  
+
[[Traverse]],
+
[[Vehicles]]
+
 
+
[[Enemies]] together with [[Non-Player Characters]]
+
 
+
[[Gain Competence]] together with [[Excluding Goals]] or [[Symmetric Goals]]
+
 
+
=== Can Be Modulated By ===
+
[[Balancing Effects]],  
+
[[Chargers]],
+
[[Handicap Systems]],  
+
[[Landmarks]],  
+
[[Strategic Locations]],  
+
[[Time Limits]],
+
[[Vehicles]]
+
 
+
The appearance of clear leaders may make [[Races]] uninteresting. This can be avoided by introducing
+
 
+
[[Balancing Effects]] during gameplay or providing [[Handicap Systems]] before, and both these are most typically created through giving some of the competitors [[Movement Limitations]].
+
  
 
=== Diegetic Aspects ===
 
=== Diegetic Aspects ===
 +
Many [[Races]] are literal ones in [[Game Worlds]], and in this sense the pattern can be seen as a [[:Category:Level Design Patterns|Level Design Pattern]], especially if the [[Races]] make designers chance the actual layout of the [[Game Worlds]].
  
 
=== Interface Aspects ===
 
=== Interface Aspects ===
 +
Some [[Race]], abstract ones especially, can be difficult for players to experience as actual [[Races]] due to them not being aware of how well competitors are doing. This can be avoided by introducing [[Game State Overviews]] such as [[Mini-maps]] which indicate the others' positions (this can be found in e.g. the [[Mario Kart series]] and the [[Need for Speed series]]). However, the [[Game State Overviews]] or even just [[Game State Indicators]] of some of other players' gameplay attributes can create [[Races]] where players otherwise would not perceive any. Alternatively, [[Progress Indicators]] could be used for similar effects.
  
 
=== Narrative Aspects ===
 
=== Narrative Aspects ===
 +
While all [[Races]] can be said to produce narratives of the struggle to reach a goal, this is a narrative produced through gameplay more than a narrative supporting gameplay.
  
 
== Consequences ==
 
== Consequences ==
[[Races]] of any kind give players explicit goals to work, and thereby [[Anticipation]]. If the [[Races]] are against others, the pattern gives rise to [[Competition]] and they are against other players their goals are [[Symmetric Goals]].  
+
[[Races]] of any kind put players under [[Tension]] to work against explicit goals, and this thereby provides [[Anticipation]] for reaching that goal. They give implicit [[Time Limits]] to players unless explicit [[Time Limits]] have already been added to the gameplay. If the [[Races]] are against others, the pattern gives rise to [[Competitions]]. Given that many [[Races]] are literal [[Races]], the pattern can be used to modify gameplay in [[Game Worlds]] and this may make players tackle [[Game World Navigation]] differently and can make certain locations into [[Strategic Locations]]. [[Races]] are usually [[Excluding Goals]] although some [[Turn-Based Games]] allow [[Tied Results]] for those completing [[Races]] on the same turn. Even so, [[Tiebreakers]] are often used (even for the [[Turn-Based Games]] just mentioned) so that individual winners can be identified. They are also [[Interferable Goals]] in that one [[Agents|Agent's]] position can be directly influenced by the progress of other [[Agents]].  
  
Given that many [[Races]] are literal [[Races]], the pattern can be used to modify gameplay in [[Game Worlds]] and this may make players tackle [[Game World Navigation]] differently.
+
The end conditions of [[Races]] often make them into ordinary goals that are completed when a specific game state is reached. However, when [[Time Limits]] or some other sort of [[Limited Resources|Limited Resources]] is the main factor in determining the end of a [[Races|Race]] (as is the case in the [[Out Run]] and the [[Sega Rally series]]), this turns the challenge into one of endurance rather than speed. [[Unwinnable Games]] with [[Scores]] create the same type of [[Races]]. These [[Races]] all have [[Continuous Goals]] but are also less likely to be perceived as [[Races]] since one has to focus continuously on the present situation rather than a possible end.
 
+
Further, if the players have means to judge their own progress and to know the progress of the other players through Progress Indicators, a Race promotes Competition and creates a Conflict between the players. Races are usually Excluding Goals through the use of Tiebreakers although Tied Results allow for Shared Rewards.
+
 
+
Traditional Races give rise to Movement in games and are modulated by Movement Limitations of individual players or effects of the environment.
+
 
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=== Can Instantiate ===
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[[Strategic Locations]],
+
[[Time Limits]]
+
  
 +
[[Races]] within [[Teams]] that lead to [[Individual Rewards]], e.g. gaining control over [[Loot]] or [[Vehicles]] simply by being first to reach them, can easily create [[Internal Rivalry]].
  
 
== Relations ==
 
== Relations ==
 
=== Can Instantiate ===
 
=== Can Instantiate ===
 
[[Anticipation]],  
 
[[Anticipation]],  
 +
[[Continuous Goals]],
 +
[[Excluding Goals]],
 +
[[Interferable Goals]],
 
[[Strategic Locations]],  
 
[[Strategic Locations]],  
 +
[[Supporting Goals]],
 +
[[Tension]],
 +
[[Tied Results]],
 
[[Time Limits]]
 
[[Time Limits]]
 +
 +
==== with [[Chargers]], [[Pick-Ups]], or [[Strategic Locations]] ====
 +
[[Risk/Reward]]
 +
 +
==== with [[Individual Rewards]] and [[Teams]] ====
 +
[[Internal Rivalry]]
  
 
==== with [[Movement Limitations]] ====
 
==== with [[Movement Limitations]] ====
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==== with [[Multiplayer Games]] ====
 
==== with [[Multiplayer Games]] ====
[[Competition]],
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[[Competitions]]
[[Symmetric Goals]]
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=== Can Modulate ===
 
=== Can Modulate ===
 
[[Game World Navigation]],  
 
[[Game World Navigation]],  
[[Game Worlds]]
+
[[Game Worlds]],
 +
[[Multiplayer Games]]
  
 
=== Can Be Instantiated By ===
 
=== Can Be Instantiated By ===
 +
[[Achievements]],
 
[[Area Control]],  
 
[[Area Control]],  
 +
[[Connection]],
 
[[Game Items]],  
 
[[Game Items]],  
 +
[[Game State Indicators]],
 +
[[Game State Overviews]],
 +
[[Ghosts]],
 +
[[Imperfect Information]],
 
[[Loot]],  
 
[[Loot]],  
 +
[[Maneuvering]],
 
[[Movement]],  
 
[[Movement]],  
 +
[[Player-Location Proximity]],
 +
[[Progress Indicators]],
 +
[[Red Queen Dilemmas]],
 +
[[Resources]],
 
[[Score Tracks]],  
 
[[Score Tracks]],  
[[Speed Runs]],  
+
[[Scores]],
 +
[[Speedruns]],
 +
[[Time Limits]],  
 
[[Traverse]],  
 
[[Traverse]],  
 
[[Vehicles]]
 
[[Vehicles]]
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[[Balancing Effects]],  
 
[[Balancing Effects]],  
 
[[Chargers]],  
 
[[Chargers]],  
 +
[[Game State Overviews]],
 
[[Handicap Systems]],  
 
[[Handicap Systems]],  
 
[[Landmarks]],  
 
[[Landmarks]],  
 +
[[Limited Resources]],
 +
[[Mini-maps]],
 
[[Movement Limitations]],  
 
[[Movement Limitations]],  
 +
[[Negative Feedback Loops]],
 +
[[Physical Navigation]],
 +
[[Progress Indicators]],
 
[[Strategic Locations]],  
 
[[Strategic Locations]],  
 +
[[Tiebreakers]],
 
[[Time Limits]],  
 
[[Time Limits]],  
 
[[Vehicles]]
 
[[Vehicles]]
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<references>
 
<references>
 
<ref name="Bjork & Holopainen 2004">Björk, S. & Holopainen, J. (2004) ''Patterns in Game Design''. Charles River Media. ISBN1-58450-354-8.</ref>
 
<ref name="Bjork & Holopainen 2004">Björk, S. & Holopainen, J. (2004) ''Patterns in Game Design''. Charles River Media. ISBN1-58450-354-8.</ref>
 +
<ref name="Parlett">Parlett, D. (1999). Oxford History of Board Games, p. 35. ISBN-10: 0192129988.</ref>
 
</references>
 
</references>
  
 
== Acknowledgements ==
 
== Acknowledgements ==

Latest revision as of 07:50, 27 September 2016

Gameplay goals that need to be worked against under pressure, often but not necessarily in competition against others.

Games have goals for players, but not all games put players under pressure to complete these. Races are goals that create this pressure, either from having to perform better than others or by finishing it before some given time. While the most obvious form of Races are those where one tries to reach a certain location before others do, Races can also be abstract in the form of gaining a certain score before others, discovering important areas before others, or researching technologies before others.

Examples

Sprints, today most commonly in distances such as 100 meter or 400 meter, and long-distance competitions such as Marathons are classical examples of Races. The winning conditions for these are easy to describe: the goal is to be the first person to pass a certain distance marker, and this is to be achieved by moving (running) along the prepared course. These competitions are also part of computer-based sport games such as Decathlon and Summer Games, although requiring somewhat different skills from participants.

Elfenland, Formula D, Ludo, RoboRally, and Snakes and Ladders are examples of Board Games that are more or less explicitly Races.

Racing Games such as the F-Zero, Mario Kart, Need for Speed, and Sega Rally series are all Races as well, but here players have options of which vehicles to use and the gameplay may contain possibilities to upgrade these or attack competitors.

Strategy Games such as the Civilization and Europa Universalis series have several types of Races. The perhaps two most important of these are related to technological development and exploring and colonizing the game world before ones' competitors do so. Reaching Alpha Centauri is one of the winning conditions in the Civilization series and is in itself also a Race, as is the goal of building wonders (especially building the Utopia wonder in Civilization V since this is also a winning condition).

Golf can be seen as a kind of Race: the players try to go through the track in as little game time as possible (bearing in mind that game time in Golf is measured by the amount of strokes).

Not many First-Person Shooters are Races, but the Left 4 Dead series is an exception. This because at higher levels it is rarely cost efficient to search levels completely for loot so the best strategy to complete levels is to move as fast as possible.

Using the pattern

Races are high-level goal structures that needs more specific underlying goals to instantiate what game states players are trying to achieve as well as decide how players can act to try to achieve those game states. The races can be used as challenges between players in Multiplayer Games or be pit lone players against system controlled competitors.

The most obvious types of underlying goal for Races is to take the term literally and have Traverse goals that can be achieved through Movement (or Maneuvering) and typically making Connection to some game element or marking in the Game World, and this may be the players themselves in Sports or games with Player-Location Proximity. However, by using Scores most forms of subgoals can be used to form Races (getting Achievements is a more modern and meta form of this) of achieving a certain amount of Resources (or alternatively losing them). In fact, it has been suggested that Score Tracks where the starting points for games that had Races as themes in them[1]. Other general forms of Races include gaining Area Control (one of the many types of Races found in the Civilization series), gaining access to Game Items such as Loot or Vehicles (which create Races within Teams or groups in Borderlands and World of Warcraft for the former and in the Battlefield series for the latter). Gain Competence goals can be Races, because they are either Excluding Goals or Symmetric Goals which gives a temporary advantage to the winner. This last case is an example of how Red Queen Dilemmas are Races. Simply adding Time Limits before something must be completed is in fact a way of creating Races. Many of the examples just given show that Races often can serve as Supporting Goals in games.

Races need some factor that put Tension on players to try and achieve the underlying goals. Letting other players have the same goal, i.e. provide them all with Symmetric Goals, is part of the literal type of Races and serves this purpose. If other players are not available, or not enough of them are available, Non-Player Characters can act as (non-violent) Enemies to provide competition. Less common is the use of Ghosts to let players compete against previous game sessions they or other players have had. The above mentioned Time Limits can also provide the required Tension, and here trying to make Speedruns can be seen as a special case. This being said, the pressure to complete the Races can also be modulated by Time Limits (e.g. making everybody lose if nobody has completed the underlying goal within a certain amount of time) and by providing Imperfect Information about the goals or what is required to complete them. Tiebreakers can be used to ensure than only one competitor can win a Race. Related to this, the appearance of clear leaders may make Races uninteresting. This can be avoided by introducing Balancing Effects during gameplay through having Negative Feedback Loops or providing access to Handicap Systems before gameplay begin, and both these are most typically created in diegetic Races through giving some of the competitors Movement Limitations.

Literal or diegetic Races can be modified in several other ways: Chargers, Pick-Ups, and other Strategic Locations can introduce Risk/Reward elements (see the Super Mario series for examples of the two first and Formula D for an example of the last) and thereby make it less clear what is the most optimal route, Landmarks can help Game World Navigation, and Vehicles can provide variation in the different attributes related to the Races (e.g. acceleration, top speed, stability, etc.). Another variation to these types of Races is of course one where the players themselves try to be the first to reach a finishing line. Sprints and Marathons are examples of games, while Orienteering adds the need for Physical Navigation to the gameplay.

Diegetic Aspects

Many Races are literal ones in Game Worlds, and in this sense the pattern can be seen as a Level Design Pattern, especially if the Races make designers chance the actual layout of the Game Worlds.

Interface Aspects

Some Race, abstract ones especially, can be difficult for players to experience as actual Races due to them not being aware of how well competitors are doing. This can be avoided by introducing Game State Overviews such as Mini-maps which indicate the others' positions (this can be found in e.g. the Mario Kart series and the Need for Speed series). However, the Game State Overviews or even just Game State Indicators of some of other players' gameplay attributes can create Races where players otherwise would not perceive any. Alternatively, Progress Indicators could be used for similar effects.

Narrative Aspects

While all Races can be said to produce narratives of the struggle to reach a goal, this is a narrative produced through gameplay more than a narrative supporting gameplay.

Consequences

Races of any kind put players under Tension to work against explicit goals, and this thereby provides Anticipation for reaching that goal. They give implicit Time Limits to players unless explicit Time Limits have already been added to the gameplay. If the Races are against others, the pattern gives rise to Competitions. Given that many Races are literal Races, the pattern can be used to modify gameplay in Game Worlds and this may make players tackle Game World Navigation differently and can make certain locations into Strategic Locations. Races are usually Excluding Goals although some Turn-Based Games allow Tied Results for those completing Races on the same turn. Even so, Tiebreakers are often used (even for the Turn-Based Games just mentioned) so that individual winners can be identified. They are also Interferable Goals in that one Agent's position can be directly influenced by the progress of other Agents.

The end conditions of Races often make them into ordinary goals that are completed when a specific game state is reached. However, when Time Limits or some other sort of Limited Resources is the main factor in determining the end of a Race (as is the case in the Out Run and the Sega Rally series), this turns the challenge into one of endurance rather than speed. Unwinnable Games with Scores create the same type of Races. These Races all have Continuous Goals but are also less likely to be perceived as Races since one has to focus continuously on the present situation rather than a possible end.

Races within Teams that lead to Individual Rewards, e.g. gaining control over Loot or Vehicles simply by being first to reach them, can easily create Internal Rivalry.

Relations

Can Instantiate

Anticipation, Continuous Goals, Excluding Goals, Interferable Goals, Strategic Locations, Supporting Goals, Tension, Tied Results, Time Limits

with Chargers, Pick-Ups, or Strategic Locations

Risk/Reward

with Individual Rewards and Teams

Internal Rivalry

with Movement Limitations

Balancing Effects, Handicap Systems

with Multiplayer Games

Competitions

Can Modulate

Game World Navigation, Game Worlds, Multiplayer Games

Can Be Instantiated By

Achievements, Area Control, Connection, Game Items, Game State Indicators, Game State Overviews, Ghosts, Imperfect Information, Loot, Maneuvering, Movement, Player-Location Proximity, Progress Indicators, Red Queen Dilemmas, Resources, Score Tracks, Scores, Speedruns, Time Limits, Traverse, Vehicles

Enemies together with Non-Player Characters

Gain Competence together with Excluding Goals or Symmetric Goals

Can Be Modulated By

Balancing Effects, Chargers, Game State Overviews, Handicap Systems, Landmarks, Limited Resources, Mini-maps, Movement Limitations, Negative Feedback Loops, Physical Navigation, Progress Indicators, Strategic Locations, Tiebreakers, Time Limits, Vehicles

Possible Closure Effects

-

Potentially Conflicting With

-

History

An updated version of the pattern Race that was part of the original collection in the book Patterns in Game Design[2].

References

  1. Parlett, D. (1999). Oxford History of Board Games, p. 35. ISBN-10: 0192129988.
  2. Björk, S. & Holopainen, J. (2004) Patterns in Game Design. Charles River Media. ISBN1-58450-354-8.

Acknowledgements