Unlocking

The act of getting access to additional abilities or game-related content.

Many games withhold abilities or content from players until they have met certain requirements, which may be as simple as reaching a certain level of completing the game or proving a certain level of game mastery. When players have been aware of these abilities or content before they are revealed the act of Unlocking them becomes significant in itself.

See the Gamasutra article Aesthetics of Social Games for more details.

Examples

Players of Tabletop Roleplaying Games such as Dungeons & Dragons could unlock new powers and skills by gaining character levels. This is also found in but may here take the form of development trees, as for example in the Dragon Age series. Similar trees exist in First-Person Shooters such as Borderlands and Dead Island.

While some new abilities are unlocked in the Super Mario series, the games also show that Unlocking levels that players can choose between is another way of providing more game content for players as they play. Games on social network platforms such as Facebook, e.g. CityVille and Empires & Allies, also make use of Unlocking but here this is typically tied to being able to finish constructions and players can pay money to do this instead of having to get the help from a certain amount of friends.

Using the pattern

Designing for players to be able to perform Unlocking in games rely on deciding what Abilities or game-related content can be unlocked and announcing this

announcing the possible

Development Trees, linked for example to Powers, Skills, or Technologies,

Can Be Instantiated By

Abstract Player Construct Development, Achievements, Character Development, Character Levels, Development Trees, Neighbors, Purchasable Game Advantages

Unlocking are often applied to control how Privileged Abilities, Vehicles, and Weapons are introduced into gameplay. They can also be used to open up Levels to players. Sidegrades is a specific type of game content acquired by Unlocking that instead of directly improving players abilities give them a greater Freedom of Choice.

Consequences

Since Unlocking is the act of gaining access to something preordained, this can easily be felt as a Reward than gives Value of Effort to the actions leading up to the Unlocking; an exception to this if the Unlocking is a result of an Purchasable Game Advantages. Knowing about the possibility of Unlocking something makes it possible to Anticipation about this and can motivate both Grinding and Player-Planned Development.

Relations

Can Instantiate

Anticipation, Grinding, Player-Planned Development, Rewards, Sidegrades, Value of Effort

Can Modulate

Levels, Privileged Abilities, Vehicles, Weapons

Can Be Instantiated By

Abstract Player Construct Development, Achievements, Character Development, Character Levels, Development Trees, Neighbors, Purchasable Game Advantages

Can Be Modulated By

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Possible Closure Effects

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Potentially Conflicting With

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History

New pattern created in this wiki. However the concept was first described in the Gamasutra article Aesthetics of Social Games by Aki Järvinen.

Acknowledgements

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