Symbiotic Player Relations

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Gameplay relations between players that make successes and failure of one player affect another similarly, and vice versa.

In many games the fortunes or misfortunes of one players may affects other players as well. When these ripple effects match the original effects, i.e. good effect for one player becomes a good effect for another player and the same for bad effects, the players are inclined to help each other. The will to help other players can also occur with less direct cause-effect relations, e.g. players may be able to perform actions that only benefits other players but those players also have actions that only can affect other players. When the combinations of goals and actions available make players benefit from cooperating in any of these fashions, the players have Symbiotic Player Relations.

Note that Symbiotic Player Relations does not imply that players always have to collaborate or that this may be the most efficient gameplay strategy or tactic. While symbiosis may be necessary (or obligated), it can also be facultative so that partners in the relationship benefit from it but can exist without it[1].

Examples

So Long Sucker

Left 4 Dead

Diplomacy

Prisoner's Dilemma

Battlestar Galactica: The Board Game

Using the pattern

Can Be Instantiated By

Buffs, Guilds, Mutual Goals, Social Organizations, Teams

Can Be Modulated By

Traitors

Diegetic Aspects

Interface Aspects

Narrative Aspects

Consequences

Quite expectantly, Symbiotic Player Relations gives rise to Cooperation. These Symbiotic Player Relations do not require that the benefits at once spread to all involved players, this since Delayed Reciprocity can be expected by the players (which in turn can lead to Guilting). If the relation is not obligated, the patterns opens up for Betrayal. If the relation is mapped in diegetic terms, the relations are a form of Loyalty.

Depending of how consciously players motivate their actions, Symbiotic Player Relations can give rise to Altruistic Actions.

Symbiotic Player Relations give players reasons to interact more with each other. These interaction are likely to create Social Interaction between the players, either through the actions themselves or as part of coordinating themselves, offering advice, or Guilting each other.

Relations

Can Instantiate

Altruistic Actions, Betrayal, Cooperation, Delayed Reciprocity, Guilting, Loyalty, Social Interaction

Can Modulate

-

Can Be Instantiated By

Buffs, Guilds, Mutual Goals, Social Organizations, Teams

Can Be Modulated By

Traitors

Possible Closure Effects

-

Potentially Conflicting With

-

History

New pattern created in this wiki. The initial idea of the pattern came from Niklas Kärrstrand (as codependency; this name in not used to avoid confusion since codependency has another meaning within psychiatry).

References

  1. Wikipedia page for Symbiosis.


Acknowledgements

Niklas Kärrstrand, Jonas Linderoth