Experimental Game Dev Podcast Show

Development of Train Conductor, an iPhone game

Simon of Voxel Agents talks about their game, Train Conductor

You can download the podcast here…
http://www.indiegamepod.com/podcasts/voxel-agents-gdc-2010-interview.mp3

Or listen to it here…

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Development of the game, Vessel

Martin discusses his work on the game, Vessel

You can download the podcast here…
http://www.indiegamepod.com/podcasts/vessel-gdc-2010-interview.mp3

Or listen to it here…

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Development of the game, Boryokudan Rue

Josh, UCLA student, talks about their game, Boryokudan Rue

You can download the podcast here…
http://www.indiegamepod.com/podcasts/ucla-student-gdc-2010-interview.mp3

Or listen to it here…

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Requiring Higher Levels of Player Commitment AFTER Building Higher Levels of Player Interest

Hey folks,

I’m looking at various games online and on cell phones. I think it’s interesting to note that some games with similar themes have widely different levels of success. I think part of it is because many game developers require the high levels of commitment before getting the player interested in the game.

Sure successful games can require high levels of commitment…like, people are going to play StarCraft 2…and pay for it before checking it out.

But for many indies, why should a player pay for the game before getting an idea of whether it’s fun. Additionally, why should they have to create a login/provide an e-mail address…before getting to play the game. These all provide friction that get in the way of fun.

Here’s a design principle that I’ve seen work…
Require higher levels of player commitment AFTER building higher levels of player interest.

This means…developers keep things as lightweight as possible. Figure out the quickest and easiest way to get the player into a game…then once they show interest…like spending 10 minutes in a game…pop up a dialog that asks them to create an account, etc.

If they spend a few hours in a game, ask them to upgrade, etc.

Yes, there is no guarantee that they will register, etc. But now most people are so use to seeing login/register screens at the beginning of a game…that if you do the same…it’s not really indie…but cliche…and the game may even trigger a visceral “skip this” response.

To recap…raise the level of commitment/engagement (getting an e-mail address, creating a login, buying the game, subscribing, etc.) after each corresponding stage the player shows higher levels of interest/commitment.

Take care 🙂

IGF Mobile Game Of The Year, Spider: The Secret of Bryce Manor

David discusses their IGF mobile game of the year, Spider: The Secret of Bryce Manor

You can download the podcast here…
http://www.indiegamepod.com/podcasts/spider-iphone-gdc-2010-interview.mp3

Or listen to it here…

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Casual Connect: Development of a new game genre, SOLAR games…

Hey folks,

Here’s an interesting interview taken at Casual Connect…the company tonchidot, developers of the Sekai Camera application on iPhone and iPad…that are focusing on the intersection of mobile, social, and augmented reality gaming.

Please bear with some of the translation challenges 🙂

You can download the podcast here…
http://www.indiegamepod.com/podcasts/cc-2010-arg-solar.mp3

Or listen to it here…

Development of the game, Spectre

Jamie talks about their biographical game, Spectre

You can download the podcast here…
http://www.indiegamepod.com/podcasts/spectre-gdc-2010-interview.mp3

Or listen to it here…

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Development of the game, Shatter

Corey, lead artist, talks about their game, Shatter

You can download the podcast here…
http://www.indiegamepod.com/podcasts/shatter-gdc-2010-interview.mp3

Or listen to it here…

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Development of the iPhone game, Stair Dismount

Jani of Secret Exit talks about their iPhone version of Stair Dismount

You can download the podcast here…
http://www.indiegamepod.com/podcasts/secret-exit-gdc-2010-interview.mp3

Or listen to it here…

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What Is The Certainty Factor At Every Moment In Your Game…

Hey,

I’ve been watching various people play these social games. One thing that amazes me here is that there is very little opportunity to get confused. Once a person finishes one step, there is a prompt or dialog box that directs the player to do the next thing.

These are “guided interactions” and work well with keeping the casual gamer engaged. At GDC this year, one panel discussed how one game did poorly, but then they had much better guided help in a follow-on game and the 2nd game did a lot better.

I like to coin this term “Certainty Factor”…at every moment of these successful social games, the “Certainty Factor” is at 100%…that means, the player knows 100% for sure…what to do next.

These social game designers leave nothing to chance…they know that without the prompts, most of the players would be lost…and either quit…because they do not know what to do next…or just move onto the next game.

By making sure the “Certainty Factor” is at 100%, the people play the games much longer. Let’s say the player is done planting on their farm, then a nice dialog asks them to help their friend’s farm…and once they do that, another nice dialog may pop up to ask them to send gifts, etc.

These are activities the player would not have thought about themselves…they’ve got 100 other real-life things to think about. The dialogs remind them as well as raise the “Certainty Factor”…so that the players know what to do next at that moment in the game.

As Indie and Experimental game developers, on the edge of innovation, I think it is important to ask…”What is the Certainty Factor at this moment in the game”…make sure it is 100%…once that happens, you’ll be on your way to ensuring that people keep playing the game.

If the “Certainty Factor” is below 100%…ask yourself, “What do I need to change/do to increase the Certainty Factor?” Should I add a dialog prompt? Should I have an arrow pointing at the next goal or place to go…should I have a hint pop up? Whatever is needed to make the Certainty Factor 100% helps.

Also, keep in mind that you can also have the Certainty Factor go to 200%…how is that possible? Well, as a designer, you get to 100% by making the next step absolutely clear…and then you get 100% more for making sure the guidance/dialog you add to raise the Certainty Factor is both FUN and FUNNY. Laughter helps!

In any case, what is the Certainty Factor at each moment in your game? Most of the non-successful games I’ve seen have a factor of usually 0% or even negative. What do you need to change to raise the “Certainty Factor” FOR EVERY MOMENT in your game?

Feedback and clarifications welcome 🙂