Difference between revisions of "Tiles"

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[[Category:Staffan's current workpage]]
 
 
[[Category:Patterns]]
 
[[Category:Patterns]]
 
[[Category:Interface Patterns]]
 
[[Category:Interface 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]]
 
 
''Game elements used to distribute resources, often with different characteristics, without necessarily revealing the distribution.''
 
''Game elements used to distribute resources, often with different characteristics, without necessarily revealing the distribution.''
  
[[Tiles]] are physical game elements  
+
[[Tiles]] are physical game elements used either to distribute resources between players or to mark places on gameplay areas. They may be of many shapes but are typically heavy enough to not be move unless players intentionally mean to move them. They may shared the appearance of one side with other [[Tiles]] to make randomization of them possible, and let game designers choose the exact distribution of each type. [[Tiles]] do not need to be physical game elements; they can also be simulated in computer games.
  
 
''Note:'' this pattern shared the same definition as [[Tiles]] since the difference primarily concern material and ergonomics.
 
''Note:'' this pattern shared the same definition as [[Tiles]] since the difference primarily concern material and ergonomics.
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=== Examples ===
 
=== Examples ===
 +
The board game [[Othello]] consists of playing [[Tiles]] and flipping them, trying to make one's color dominant on the board.
  
The board game [[Othello]] (aka Annex, aka Annexation) consists of playing tiles and flipping them, trying to make one's color dominant on the board.
+
[[42]], [[Mahjong]], [[Scrabble]], and [[Tien Gow]] are all [[:Category:Tile-Based Games|Tile-Based Games]] where [[Tiles]] are used as resources that form players hands, similar to how cards are used in many [[:Category:Card Games|Card Games]]. [[Tetris]] can also be said to be a [[:Category:Tile-Based Games|Tile-Based Games]].  
  
In the board game Dog eat Dog tiles are used to show that the nature on a part of the board has been polluted; they cover the board and show the same scenery, albeit more polluted, dirty and depressing.
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In contrast, [[Tiles]] are used in [[Carcassonne]] to build game worlds as gameplay progresses while in [[Hey! That's My Fish!]] they are used to destroy game worlds as gameplay progresses. The gameplay area of [[Settlers of Catan]] is constructed from [[Tiles]] before gameplay begins, but by randomizing these many different areas are possible. [[Carolus Magnus]] uses [[Tiles]] to represent gameplay areas also, but here the actual [[Tiles]] have no important information - what affects gameplay is how controls them, if they are joined with other [[Tiles]] to form groups, and their position in relation to other [[Tiles]] and groups. [[Small World]] has a fixed board for each number of players but use [[Tiles]] to mark mountains and various constructions that players can create as part of their moves.
  
NetHack uses Tiles to represent corridors, walls, dungeon, and cavern floors and so on. These Tiles are used to generate an almost limitless number of different dungeons.
+
[[NetHack]] and [[Slaves to Armok II: Dwarf Fortress]] uses [[Tiles]] to represent corridors, walls, dungeon, and cavern floors and so on. [[Minecraft]] does the same although here the [[Tiles]] are actually blocks. These [[Tiles]] are used to generate an almost limitless number of different dungeons but only qualify as [[Tiles]] as they can be destroyed or in some cases moved.
 
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[[Small World]]
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[[42]]
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[[Scrabble]]
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[[Carcassonne]]
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[[Carolus Rex]]
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[[Hey! That's My Fish!]]
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[[Mahjong]]
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[[Settlers of Catan]]
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[[Tien Gow]]
+
  
 
== Using the pattern ==
 
== Using the pattern ==
[[Tiles]] have many similarities with [[Cards]], so any design intending to use [[Tiles]] can also consider using [[Cards]]. While both can be used to create [[Hands]] of potential actions (e.g. [[Mahjong]] and [[Scrabble]] uses [[Tiles]] in this way), [[Tiles]] tend to be used to create [[Game Worlds]] while [[Cards]] instead tend to be used to create [[Abstract Player Constructs]].
+
[[Tiles]] have many similarities with [[Cards]], so any design intending to use [[Tiles]] can also consider using [[Cards]]. While both can be used to create [[Hands]] of potential actions (e.g. [[Mahjong]] and [[Scrabble]] uses [[Tiles]] in this way) or as [[Bookkeeping Tokens]], [[Tiles]] tend to be used to create [[Game Worlds]] while [[Cards]] instead tend to be used to create [[Abstract Player Constructs]]. Usually only one side and one facing of [[Tiles]] are used but [[Othello]] shows an example where they are flipped to indicate [[Ownership]]; [[American Megafauna]] turns biome ''cards'' to indicate how prevalent the biomes are in regions and [[Rommel in the Desert]] turns ''blocks'' to indicate the strength of [[Units]].  
  
 +
[[Tiles]] can be used to build [[Game Worlds]], and if combined with [[Randomness]] can do so before gameplay begins to create entire [[Procedurally Generated Game Worlds]]. [[Tiles]] used for this can represent [[Environmental Effects]] and they can be modified by making them into [[Resource Generators]], [[Resource Locations]], or providing [[Location-Fixed Abilities]]. All of these can make the [[Tiles]] into [[Strategic Locations]]. A choice when using [[Tiles]] to create [[Game Worlds]] like this is if they should be designed so they are "plane-filling" or just represent the important parts of the [[Game Worlds]]. The former is necessary if [[Diegetic Consistency]] is to be maintained and examples of games with this design solution include [[NetHack]], [[Minecraft]], and [[Settlers of Catan]]; games that do not this include [[Carolus Magnus]] and [[Container]] (although the latter claims that the surface the game is played on represents an ocean).
  
Tiles can be used either to define the Game World or to be put on an area defined by the Game World. They may be designed in such a manner that every tile may be put next to any other tile (regarding form and appearance), or not (implying rules that a tile may only be put where it fits). In board games the game areas that are constructed by Tiles can make use of the two sides of a tile to represent different modes of the game area defined by the tile. In computer games the Tiles may have any number of different modes. Tiles can also have a semi-permanent nature, for example, they can start to deteriorate when an Avatar or one of a player's Units has been placed on the tile, creating a Time Limit for long the tile can be used.
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While [[Tile-Laying]] can result from [[Tiles]] combined with the [[Construction]] pattern (e.g. [[Dominant Species]]), having [[Tiles]] as [[Destructible Objects]] instead results in [[Shrinking Game Worlds]] (e.g. [[Hey! That's My Fish!]]). Both placing and removing [[Tiles]] are examples of when these become [[Focus Loci]] for players, but this can also be the case if players can in other ways manipulate them, flipping them as done in [[Othello]] is one example of this. In [[:Category:Computer Games|Computer Games]], [[Tiles]] may have natures that are more dynamic. In the [[Super Mario series]] there are several examples of [[Tiles]] that start to deteriorate when stepped on, creating [[Time Limits]] for long the tile can be used. In [[Greed Corp]] each turn a harvester is used next to a hex or on it while remove one layer of it and finally remove the [[Tiles|Tile]] altogether.
  
Tiles can either be uniform in form, as the squares in Chess, or have irregular shapes, e. g. shaped to fit an illustrative game map as in Diplomacy. Irregularly shaped tiles can be used to make tiles have different properties regarding connections to other areas of the game board, creating Strategic Locations. Regardless of the shape, Tiles can also become Strategic Locations by having different characteristics enabling, for example, Privileged Abilities. Tiles that are placed differently in different game instances can be created so that the distribution of different tiles can make certain tiles more valuable.
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Like [[Cards]], [[Tiles]] can be used for [[Trick Taking]] and is in this case often combined with [[Turn Taking]]. These, and games where [[Tiles]] are picked by players and then played (e.g. [[Carcassonne]]), often place the [[Tiles]] in [[Drawing Stacks]]. Used [[Tiles]] can be placed in [[Discard Piles]] and the distribution of [[Tiles]] in [[Drawing Stacks]] can be manipulated by [[Stack Seeding]].
 
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Tiles can be used to define how and how fast the game elements can move through the connections to the neighboring Tiles. They can also be used to define the size of the game elements, i. e. that a game element may, regardless of its actual physically size, be said to occupy one or several tiles fully if placed within them.
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hexagons
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dominoes
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[[Bookkeeping Tokens]]
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While [[Tile-Laying]] can result from [[Tiles]] combined with the [[Construction]] pattern (e.g. [[Dominant Species]], having [[Tiles]] as [[Destructible Objects]] instead results in [[Shrinking Game Worlds]] (e.g. [[Hey! That's My Fish!]]).
+
 
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=== Can Be Modulated By ===
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[[Discard Piles]],
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[[Stack Seeding]],
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[[Strategic Locations]],
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[[Turn Taking]]
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[[Trick Taking]]
+
  
 
=== Diegetic Aspects ===
 
=== Diegetic Aspects ===
 +
As [[Tiles]] can be the building blocks of [[Game Boards]], [[Game Worlds]], and [[Levels]], they can be important in maintaining a game's [[Diegetic Consistency]].
  
 
=== Interface Aspects ===
 
=== Interface Aspects ===
 
[[Tiles]] is an [[:Category:Interface Patterns|Interface Pattern]].
 
[[Tiles]] is an [[:Category:Interface Patterns|Interface Pattern]].
 
=== Narrative Aspects ===
 
  
 
== Consequences ==
 
== Consequences ==
[[Tiles]] can construct [[Game Worlds]] and [[Levels]], and allow these to be separated into clearly distinguishable areas, making the position and possibilities of actions easier to judge. This also allow easier changes in them, either in ownership if they represent [[Territories]] or in the actual gameplay area; the latter is in many cases used to have [[Reconfigurable Game Worlds]] (e.g. to create [[Shrinking Game Worlds]]).
+
[[Tiles]] can construct [[Game Boards]], [[Game Worlds]], and [[Levels]], and allow these to be separated into clearly distinguishable areas, making the position and possibilities of actions easier to judge. This also allow easier changes in them, either in ownership if they represent [[Territories]] or in the actual gameplay area; the latter is in many cases used to have [[Reconfigurable Game Worlds]] (e.g. to create [[Shrinking Game Worlds]]). They also make it easy to have [[Configurable Gameplay Areas]] before gameplay begins (e.g. [[Settlers of Catan]]).
  
Besides being used to create [[Game Worlds]] and [[Levels]], [[Tiles]] can like [[Cards]] form [[Sets]] or [[Abstract Player Constructs]]. Being able to add [[Tiles]] to [[Abstract Player Constructs]] make [[Abstract Player Construct Development]] possible while being able to add [[Tiles]] in other gameplay is often some sort of [[Construction]] activity.
+
Besides being used to create [[Game Boards]], [[Game Worlds]], and [[Levels]], [[Tiles]] can like [[Cards]] form [[Sets]] or [[Abstract Player Constructs]]. Being able to add [[Tiles]] to [[Abstract Player Constructs]] make [[Abstract Player Construct Development]] possible while being able to add [[Tiles]] in other gameplay is often some sort of [[Construction]] activity.
  
 
When [[Tiles]] need to be given to players during gameplay, they can support both [[Drawing Stacks]] and [[Drafting]] and through shuffling them [[Randomness]]. With fixed distributions of which types of [[Tiles]] exist, these design solutions encourage players to engage in [[Memorizing]] which [[Tiles]] have been drawn and which have been played.
 
When [[Tiles]] need to be given to players during gameplay, they can support both [[Drawing Stacks]] and [[Drafting]] and through shuffling them [[Randomness]]. With fixed distributions of which types of [[Tiles]] exist, these design solutions encourage players to engage in [[Memorizing]] which [[Tiles]] have been drawn and which have been played.
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== Relations ==
 
== Relations ==
 
=== Can Instantiate ===
 
=== Can Instantiate ===
[[Abstract Player Construct Development]],
 
 
[[Abstract Player Constructs]],  
 
[[Abstract Player Constructs]],  
 
[[Bookkeeping Tokens]],  
 
[[Bookkeeping Tokens]],  
 +
[[Configurable Gameplay Areas]],
 
[[Construction]],  
 
[[Construction]],  
 +
[[Diegetic Consistency]],
 
[[Drafting]],  
 
[[Drafting]],  
 
[[Drawing Stacks]],  
 
[[Drawing Stacks]],  
 +
[[Environmental Effects]],
 +
[[Focus Loci]],
 +
[[Game Boards]],
 
[[Game Worlds]],  
 
[[Game Worlds]],  
 
[[Levels]],  
 
[[Levels]],  
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[[Reconfigurable Game Worlds]],  
 
[[Reconfigurable Game Worlds]],  
 
[[Sets]],  
 
[[Sets]],  
 +
[[Strategic Locations]],
 
[[Territories]]
 
[[Territories]]
 +
 +
==== with [[Abstract Player Constructs]] ====
 +
[[Abstract Player Construct Development]]
  
 
==== with [[Construction]] ====
 
==== with [[Construction]] ====
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==== with [[Destructible Objects]] ====
 
==== with [[Destructible Objects]] ====
 
[[Shrinking Game Worlds]]
 
[[Shrinking Game Worlds]]
 +
 +
==== with [[Randomness]] ====
 +
[[Procedurally Generated Game Worlds]]
  
 
=== Can Modulate ===
 
=== Can Modulate ===
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[[Discard Piles]],  
 
[[Discard Piles]],  
 
[[Hands]],  
 
[[Hands]],  
 +
[[Location-Fixed Abilities]],
 +
[[Resource Generators]],
 +
[[Resource Locations]],
 
[[Stack Seeding]],  
 
[[Stack Seeding]],  
[[Strategic Locations]],
 
 
[[Trick Taking]],  
 
[[Trick Taking]],  
 
[[Turn Taking]]
 
[[Turn Taking]]
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== Acknowledgements ==
 
== Acknowledgements ==
-
+
Daniel Bernhoff,
 +
Annika Waern,
 +
Karl-Petter Åkesson

Latest revision as of 13:16, 21 July 2016

Game elements used to distribute resources, often with different characteristics, without necessarily revealing the distribution.

Tiles are physical game elements used either to distribute resources between players or to mark places on gameplay areas. They may be of many shapes but are typically heavy enough to not be move unless players intentionally mean to move them. They may shared the appearance of one side with other Tiles to make randomization of them possible, and let game designers choose the exact distribution of each type. Tiles do not need to be physical game elements; they can also be simulated in computer games.

Note: this pattern shared the same definition as Tiles since the difference primarily concern material and ergonomics.

Note: this pattern does not deal with the tiles that may be used to construct the Chess boards and their like, since these tiles are decorative and cannot themselves be manipulated in games.

Examples

The board game Othello consists of playing Tiles and flipping them, trying to make one's color dominant on the board.

42, Mahjong, Scrabble, and Tien Gow are all Tile-Based Games where Tiles are used as resources that form players hands, similar to how cards are used in many Card Games. Tetris can also be said to be a Tile-Based Games.

In contrast, Tiles are used in Carcassonne to build game worlds as gameplay progresses while in Hey! That's My Fish! they are used to destroy game worlds as gameplay progresses. The gameplay area of Settlers of Catan is constructed from Tiles before gameplay begins, but by randomizing these many different areas are possible. Carolus Magnus uses Tiles to represent gameplay areas also, but here the actual Tiles have no important information - what affects gameplay is how controls them, if they are joined with other Tiles to form groups, and their position in relation to other Tiles and groups. Small World has a fixed board for each number of players but use Tiles to mark mountains and various constructions that players can create as part of their moves.

NetHack and Slaves to Armok II: Dwarf Fortress uses Tiles to represent corridors, walls, dungeon, and cavern floors and so on. Minecraft does the same although here the Tiles are actually blocks. These Tiles are used to generate an almost limitless number of different dungeons but only qualify as Tiles as they can be destroyed or in some cases moved.

Using the pattern

Tiles have many similarities with Cards, so any design intending to use Tiles can also consider using Cards. While both can be used to create Hands of potential actions (e.g. Mahjong and Scrabble uses Tiles in this way) or as Bookkeeping Tokens, Tiles tend to be used to create Game Worlds while Cards instead tend to be used to create Abstract Player Constructs. Usually only one side and one facing of Tiles are used but Othello shows an example where they are flipped to indicate Ownership; American Megafauna turns biome cards to indicate how prevalent the biomes are in regions and Rommel in the Desert turns blocks to indicate the strength of Units.

Tiles can be used to build Game Worlds, and if combined with Randomness can do so before gameplay begins to create entire Procedurally Generated Game Worlds. Tiles used for this can represent Environmental Effects and they can be modified by making them into Resource Generators, Resource Locations, or providing Location-Fixed Abilities. All of these can make the Tiles into Strategic Locations. A choice when using Tiles to create Game Worlds like this is if they should be designed so they are "plane-filling" or just represent the important parts of the Game Worlds. The former is necessary if Diegetic Consistency is to be maintained and examples of games with this design solution include NetHack, Minecraft, and Settlers of Catan; games that do not this include Carolus Magnus and Container (although the latter claims that the surface the game is played on represents an ocean).

While Tile-Laying can result from Tiles combined with the Construction pattern (e.g. Dominant Species), having Tiles as Destructible Objects instead results in Shrinking Game Worlds (e.g. Hey! That's My Fish!). Both placing and removing Tiles are examples of when these become Focus Loci for players, but this can also be the case if players can in other ways manipulate them, flipping them as done in Othello is one example of this. In Computer Games, Tiles may have natures that are more dynamic. In the Super Mario series there are several examples of Tiles that start to deteriorate when stepped on, creating Time Limits for long the tile can be used. In Greed Corp each turn a harvester is used next to a hex or on it while remove one layer of it and finally remove the Tile altogether.

Like Cards, Tiles can be used for Trick Taking and is in this case often combined with Turn Taking. These, and games where Tiles are picked by players and then played (e.g. Carcassonne), often place the Tiles in Drawing Stacks. Used Tiles can be placed in Discard Piles and the distribution of Tiles in Drawing Stacks can be manipulated by Stack Seeding.

Diegetic Aspects

As Tiles can be the building blocks of Game Boards, Game Worlds, and Levels, they can be important in maintaining a game's Diegetic Consistency.

Interface Aspects

Tiles is an Interface Pattern.

Consequences

Tiles can construct Game Boards, Game Worlds, and Levels, and allow these to be separated into clearly distinguishable areas, making the position and possibilities of actions easier to judge. This also allow easier changes in them, either in ownership if they represent Territories or in the actual gameplay area; the latter is in many cases used to have Reconfigurable Game Worlds (e.g. to create Shrinking Game Worlds). They also make it easy to have Configurable Gameplay Areas before gameplay begins (e.g. Settlers of Catan).

Besides being used to create Game Boards, Game Worlds, and Levels, Tiles can like Cards form Sets or Abstract Player Constructs. Being able to add Tiles to Abstract Player Constructs make Abstract Player Construct Development possible while being able to add Tiles in other gameplay is often some sort of Construction activity.

When Tiles need to be given to players during gameplay, they can support both Drawing Stacks and Drafting and through shuffling them Randomness. With fixed distributions of which types of Tiles exist, these design solutions encourage players to engage in Memorizing which Tiles have been drawn and which have been played.

Relations

Can Instantiate

Abstract Player Constructs, Bookkeeping Tokens, Configurable Gameplay Areas, Construction, Diegetic Consistency, Drafting, Drawing Stacks, Environmental Effects, Focus Loci, Game Boards, Game Worlds, Levels, Memorizing, Randomness, Reconfigurable Game Worlds, Sets, Strategic Locations, Territories

with Abstract Player Constructs

Abstract Player Construct Development

with Construction

Tile-Laying

with Destructible Objects

Shrinking Game Worlds

with Randomness

Procedurally Generated Game Worlds

Can Modulate

-

Can Be Instantiated By

-

Can Be Modulated By

Destructible Objects, Discard Piles, Hands, Location-Fixed Abilities, Resource Generators, Resource Locations, Stack Seeding, Trick Taking, Turn Taking

Possible Closure Effects

-

Potentially Conflicting With

-

History

An updated version of the pattern Tiles that was part of the original collection in the book Patterns in Game Design[1].

References

  1. Björk, S. & Holopainen, J. (2004) Patterns in Game Design. Charles River Media. ISBN1-58450-354-8.

Acknowledgements

Daniel Bernhoff, Annika Waern, Karl-Petter Åkesson