Gameplay

For the television channel, see GamePlay HD

Gameplay is the specific way in which players interact with a game,[1][2] and in particular with video games.[3][4] Gameplay is the pattern defined through the game rules,[2][5] connection between player and the game,[6] challenges[7] and overcoming them,[8] plot[9] and player's connection with it.[6] Video game gameplay is distinct from graphics,[9][10] or audio elements.[9]

Contents

Overview

Gameplay is a term used to describe the interactive aspects of game design. An alternative name for gameplay that is finding favor with academics is game mechanics, however, it can be argued that gameplay and game mechanics are different concepts. Gameplay is what distinguishes a game from a non-interactive medium such as a book or film through the interaction with the game by the player. Often the game designer will seek to provide challenges for players through the design of game mechanics that it is hoped to be found entertaining by the player. Key concepts in gameplay design are:

  1. The presence of an environment.
  2. The ability for objects within the environment to change.
  3. Rules governing changes of state of objects—such as position—in response to the state of other objects and/or decisions made by the player.
  4. Player rewards and punishments resulting from changes to the state of the game.
  5. Players being able to manipulate objects or interact with the environment and its objects.

History

Arising alongside video game development in the 1980s, gameplay was used solely within the context of video or computer games, though now its popularity has begun to see use in the description of other, more traditional, game forms. Generally, the term gameplay in video game terminology is used to describe the overall experience of playing the game excluding factors like graphics and sound. Game mechanics refers to sets of rules in a game that are intended to produce an enjoyable gaming experience. Often academic discussions tend to favor terms like game mechanics specifically to avoid 'gameplay'.

Gameplay types

In video games gameplay can be divided into several types, for example, cooperative gameplay involves cooperation of one or more players, or deathmatch where players compete to kill each other, another example could be "twitch" gameplay which is based around testing a players reaction times and precision, maybe in rhythm games or first-person shooters. Various gameplay types are listed below.

Ambiguity in definition

The term gameplay can be quite ambiguous to define, thus it has been differently defined by different authors.

For instance:

Playability

Playability is a term in video gaming jargon that is used to describe the ease by which the game can be played, or the quantity or duration that a game can be played, in other words, the quality of gameplay.[16] Good playability of a game should also be a prerequisite for evaluating game experience. It has been proposed that "playability is the evaluative process directed toward games, whereas player experience is directed toward players. More precisely, playability methods evaluate games to improve design, whereas player experience methods evaluate players to improve gaming."[15]

Overview

The term "playable" may also be used to refer to objects in the gameplay that can be controlled by the player.

Playability can be defined as: "a set of properties that describe the player experience using a specific game system whose main objective is to provide enjoyment and entertainment when the player plays alone or in company".[17]

The definition of Playability can be based on Quality in Use. Playability represents "the degree in which specific player achieve specific game goals with effectiveness, efficiency, flexibility, security and, especially, satisfaction in a playable context of use".[17]

It can be ascribed to characters in role playing games or fighting games, and to factions in real-time strategy games. Various antonyms include unplayable, static and non-playable character. The term features often in previews, reviews and other critical discussions of games. In those places, whether a certain object will be able to be controlled by the player or not is of interest. A large amount of playable objects can enhance gameplay by supplying the player with a large amount of possibilities. Similarly, a game where there is a large amount of non-playable characters may be less immersive. Playability can also be used to describe a games fun factor and ease of play and it can be used as a factor for games to be rated, either by reviewers and critics or by players themselves.

Playability's attributes

Playability is characterized by different attributes and properties to measure the video game player experience

Playability's facets

The playability analysis is a very complex process due to the different point of view to analyze the different part of video game architecture. Each facet allows us to identify the different playability's attributes and properties affected by the different elements of video game architecture.[18] The playability's facets are:

Finally, the "global" playability of a video game will be deduced through each attribute value in the different playability's facets. It is crucial to improve the playability in the different facets to guarantee the best player experience when the player plays the video game.

See also

References

  1. ^ Lindley, Craig (June 24–26, 2004). "Narrative, Game Play, and Alternative Time Structures for Virtual Environments". In Göbel, Stefan. Technologies for Interactive Digital Storytelling and Entertainment: Proceedings of TIDSE 2004. Darmstadt, Germany: Springer. pp. 183–194. doi:10.1007/978-3-540-27797-2_25. ISBN 978-3540222835. ".. gameplay gestalt, understood as a pattern of interaction with the game system." ("A gestalt may be understood as a configuration or pattern of elements so unified as a whole that it cannot be described merely as a sum of its parts."); ".. In general, it[gameplay gestalt] is a particular way of thinking about the game state from the perspective of a player, together with a pattern of repetitive perceptual, cognitive, and motor operations. A particular gameplay gestalt could be unique to a person, a game, or even a playing occasion. Unique gameplay gestalts can also be identified across games, game genres, and players." 
  2. ^ a b Salen, Katie; Zimmerman, Eric (2004). Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press. ISBN 978-0-262-24045-1. "Game play is the formalized interaction that occurs when players follow the rules of a game and experience its system though play." 
  3. ^ a b Lindley, Craig; Nacke, Lennart; Sennersten, Charlotte (November 3–5, 2008). "Dissecting Play – Investigating the Cognitive and Emotional Motivations and Affects of Computer Gameplay". Proceedings of CGAMES 08 (Wolverhampton, UK: University of Wolverhampton). ISBN 978-0-9549016-6-0. http://www.bth.se/fou/forskinfo.nsf/8ea71836fbadac09c125733300214ab9/f336e780df204cf4c125753d003d3b45!OpenDocument. "The experience of gameplay is one of interacting with a game design in the performance of cognitive tasks, with a variety of emotions arising from or associated with different elements of motivation, task performance and completion" 
  4. ^ Tavinor, Grant (October 5, 2009). The Art of Videogames. Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN 978-1405187886. http://books.google.com/?id=LM3hnwGb8xUC&pg=PA86&dq=Gameplay. "[T]he interactive involvement typically associated with videogames, that is, the activities that occur when one plays a videogame." 
  5. ^ Egenfeldt-Nielson, Simon; Smith, Jonas Heide; Tosca, Susana Pajares (February 19, 2008). Understanding Video Games: The Essential Introduction. Routledge. ISBN 978-0415977210. http://books.google.com/?id=31XHdVXlbt0C&pg=PA101&dq=gameplay+%22how+it+feels+to+play+a+game%22. "In line with the common use of the term, we will define gameplay as: the game dynamics emerging from the interplay between rules and game geography." 
  6. ^ a b Laramée, François Dominic (June 15, 2002). Game Design Perspectives. Charles River Media. ISBN 978-1584500902. http://books.google.com/?id=T9kS82J5LG0C&pg=PA70&dq=%22gameplay. 
  7. ^ Adams, Ernest; Rollings, Andrew (2003). Andrew Rollings and Ernest Adams on game design. New Riders Publishing. ISBN 1592730019. "One or more casually linked series of challenges in a simulated environment"; "Gameplay is the result of a large number of contributing elements. .. gameplay is not a singular entity. It is a combination of many elements, a synergy that emerges from the inclusion of certain factors. .. The gameplay emerges from the interaction among these elements, .." 
  8. ^ Adams, Ernest (September 23, 2006). Fundamentals of Game Design. Prentice Hall. ISBN 978-0131687479. http://books.google.com/?id=-BCrex2U1XMC&pg=PA251&lpg=PA251&q=. ".. defined gameplay as consisting of the challenges and actions that a game offers: challenges for the player to overcome and actions that let her overcome them. .. [T]he essence of gameplay remains the relationship between the challenges and the actions available to surmount them." 
  9. ^ a b c Concise Oxford English Dictionary (11, Revised ed.). Oxford University Press, USA. August 11, 2008. ISBN 978-0199548415. "gameplay (in a computer game) the plot and the way the game is played, as distinct from the graphics and sound effects" 
  10. ^ Oxland, Kevin (2004). Gameplay and design. Addison Wesley. ISBN 0321204670. ".. gameplay is the components that make up a rewarding, absorbing, challenging experience that compels player to return for more .. [Gameplay] does not come from a great visual character, not does it come from state-of-art technology and beautifully rendered art." 
  11. ^ Rollings, Andrew; Morris, Dave (1999). Game Architecture and Design. Coriolis Group Books. p. 38. ISBN 978-1576104255. 
  12. ^ Björk, Staffan; Holopainen, Jussi (2005). Patterns in Game Design. Charles River Media. ISBN 1-58450-354-8. 
  13. ^ Adams, Ernest; Rollings, Andrew (2003). Andrew Rollings and Ernest Adams on game design. New Riders Publishing. ISBN 1592730019. 
  14. ^ Rollings, Andrew; Morris, Dave (2000). Game Architecture and Design. New Riders Games. ISBN 978-0735713635. 
  15. ^ a b Nacke, Lennart E.; Drachen, Anders; Kuikkaniemi, Kai; Niesenhaus, Joerg; Korhonen, Hannu; van den Hoogen, Wouter; Poels, Karolien; IJsselsteijn, Wijnand et al. (September 1, 2009). "Playability and Player Experience Research". Proceedings of DiGRA 2009: Breaking New Ground: Innovation in Games, Play, Practice and Theory (London, UK: DiGRA). http://www.digra.org/dl/display_html?chid=http://www.digra.org/dl/db/09287.44170.pdf. "playability is the evaluative process directed toward games, whereas player experience is directed toward players. More precisely, playability methods evaluate games to improve design, whereas player experience methods evaluate players to improve gaming.(p.1)" 
  16. ^ Usability First: Usability Glossary: playability
  17. ^ a b González Sánchez, J. L., Zea, N. P., & Gutiérrez, F. L. (2009). Playability: How to Identify the Player Experience in a Video Game. Proceedings of INTERACT 2009: 12th IFIP TC 13 International Conference, Uppsala, Sweden, August 24–28, 2009
  18. ^ Stanford Ontology Library Video game's Elements Ontology: A video game's elements ontology by González Sánchez, J. L. and Gutiérrez Vela, F. L. University of Granada, Spain.

Further reading on playability