Vertical Slice

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(Good to Great first aired as Episode 17 on February 20, 2017.) In games, as in any creative discipline, it’s relatively easy to find good creative products, but much harder to find truly great ones. What is it that separates great creative work — and the people who do it — from the rest? In Episode 17 of Vertical Slice, we’re delving into the differences in mindset, focus, and process that differentiate the most vividly inventive creators. Let’s see what we can learn from the best!

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In game design as in life, it’s tough to reach an ideal outcome without taking risks. Thus, if the goal is to create games that will surprise, inspire, and entertain in new ways, accepting the risk of equal dislike by some proportion of players is an important prerequisite. This detachment may sound simple in the abstract, but in the context of real projects even steely creators can sometimes find it hard to stick with potentially polarizing design choices. How can we get better at this important skill? On Episode 49 of Vertical Slice, we’re looking for ways to strengthen our games by consciously abandoning the desire to please everyone, and hewing instead to the opinionated design choices that express our true creative intent.

Show Notes

• Apropos of last episode’s discussion of mobile gaming as the new core frontier, Valve recently announced Steam Link: an app that will enable players to stream their PC games to their phone. The app is an interesting first foray into a domain that could be very appealing for certain kinds of titles, and we’re interested to see how it’s received.
• We’ve linked to Tim Keenan’s GDC 2017 talk on Duskers before, but it’s well-worth a second callout in the context of opinionated design. Duskers critically lauded gameplay, atmosphere, and aesthetics are a testament to the power of making hard creative choices and sticking to the unique viewpoint of your project.

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Mobile gaming has long been a commercial powerhouse, but it hasn’t typically exerted a strong pull on the so-called “core gaming” audience of PC and console enthusiasts. Mobile’s rap has been that it’s ideal for light entertainment, but not well suited to more complex experiences. Recently though, the new mobile incarnations of Fortnite and Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds have upended this conventional wisdom. What does it mean that two dominant core developers have turned to the mobile market to boost the fortunes of their marquee titles? And what does this evident upswing in mobile core gaming mean for the rest of the industry? On Episode 48 of Vertical Slice, we’re sizing up the implications of this emerging trend, and discussing the future of game design in a mobile core world.

Show Notes

• Surprisingly, the mobile incarnations of Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds and Fortnite have both received positive reviews. However, the newfound ubiquity of these titles has come with some unintended social ripple effects, particularly in schools, where Fortnite has become a grating educational distraction.

Image credit: Radu Privantu (CC BY 2.0)

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Time is one of the most implacable risks that game development studios face. It takes time—sometimes quite a lot of it—to create a worthwhile game, and in traditional release models all of that time has to be financed up front before a game’s sales can even begin. In this context, the idea of being able to deliver game experiences incrementally—in episodes or chapters rather than massive releases—is surely an appealing proposition. Episodic content has the potential to reduce risk for studios and increases content frequency for audiences, so why hasn’t the format found wider adoption? On Episode 47 of Vertical Slice, we’re discussing the dream and the drawbacks of episodic game delivery, and brainstorming ways to help this underexplored approach blossom.

Show Notes

• The 2018 BAFTA Games Awards took place last week, and What Remains of Edith Finch was honored with the Best Game prize. It’s a well deserved accolade for a truly innovative entry in the modern games canon.
• After a long hiatus, Sony’s God of War franchise will make its debut on the PS4 this week. Kratos’ new quest is attended by monumental expectations, but early indications are that it may well live up to them.

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In a games market that is full to bursting with interesting titles, even compelling games can easily become lost in the shuffle. In order to cut through the noise and succeed, developers need to match their work to the right audience, finding the niches where their game’s particular experience can connect with just the right kind of player. How should designers approach this challenging exercise in precision product/market fit? On Episode 46 of Vertical Slice, we’re discussing the realities of designing for a crowded game ecosystem, and discovering the best practices for success in an unforgiving marketplace.

Show Notes

• Digital Extreme’s Warframe is an inspiring example of beginning with an opinionated design, and stewarding a small but dedicated audience into a market powerhouse. Having attracted more than 38 million players in its five year history, Warfare demonstrates that it’s still possible for small, determined studios to begin with a modest launch and iterate to chart-topping success.

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The idea of incorporating player feedback into the game design process has strong intuitive appeal. Rather than just guessing what players want, why not ask them directly? In fact, while the theory may be simple, the practice of gathering authentic, balanced, and actionable feedback can be quite challenging. How do you test a game when its still rough and incomplete? How do you get play testers to tell you what they think, not what they think you want to hear? Most importantly: how do you stay true to your personal vision while still being open to external opinions? On Episode 45 of Vertical Slice we’re exploring these questions and more as we learn how to make player feedback a productive part of the design process.

Show Notes

• Fortnite and Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds are heading to mobile. We’re skeptical; the mobile form factor just doesn’t seem like a good match for these shooters. Fortnite’s decision to enable cross-play between mobile, PC, and console players is particularly puzzling.
• Four months after Star Wars Battlefront II’s controversial launch, EA is restoring microtransactions to the game. Notably: the revised microtransaction system will now offer cosmetic items only.
• Capcom’s MegaMan boss character contests, which date back to MegaMan 2 in 1988, are notable early examples of incorporating fan feedback into a game design.
• Once more we find ourselves referring to Nick Popovich’s superb GDC talk on the design of Slime Rancher. Nick’s unusually brave approach to playtesting is one any game designer should consider deeply.
• Schell Games’ Definitive Guide to Playtest Questions is a great primer on how to ask productive, open-ended questions of your players.

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Designing a single gameplay system is a meaningful challenge by itself, but it’s also only the first step in the design of modern games. Today’s games are built not around the single threads of individual systems, but rather around complex tapestries: multitudes of gameplay systems that overlap with and influence one other in a profusion of different ways. Economies, level progressions, social systems—even “simple” modern games involve surprisingly intricate inter-system connections. How does one approach designing these kinds of complex interdependencies? On Episode 44 of Vertical Slice we’re exploring the unique challenge of overlapping system design, and looking for the principles that can help steer the way to meaningful and fun system interactions.

Show Notes

• Inspired by the Switch, Chris has been looking for deeper games on the iPad. Ports of slower-paced PC games like The Banner Saga and Civilization 6 are proving a good source of more meaningful iPad experiences.
• While multi-system games are now the standard, well-crafted single-system games can still have a special appeal. Derek suggests Tiny Wings and Whale Trail as worthwhile exemplars of modern single-system design.
• If you’re looking for games that test the limits of sprawling multi-system interaction, Paradox Interactive is the studio to study. Games like Stellaris and Europa Universalis define the far end of modern game complexity and command skilled, specialized audiences.

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The game industry exists at the intersection of two very different worlds: the world of games as pure creative expression, and the world of games as products. Superimposing these perspectives is no easy feat; how does one reconcile the unpredictable nature of the creativity journey with inflexible business concerns like schedules and budgets? Is such reconciliation even possible? On Episode 43 of Vertical Slice, we’re debating this fundamental question, and looking for practical ways to operationalize the creative process without sapping creativity or bulldozing business plans.

Show Notes

• For more discussion on the delicate relationship between the creative and business dimensions of game studios, we also recommend Episode 19: You Eat Last.

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The play pattern of “grinding”, or repeatedly playing the same content in order to level a character or earn rewards, is surely one of gaming’s most curious idiosyncrasies. How can playing the same content time and time again be fun? In fact, games dating back to the classic JRPGs of the 8-bit era have shown that well-designed grinds can be quite satisfying, affording players the opportunity to pursue and accomplish goals in a pleasant continuous loop. That kind of equilibrium doesn’t happen without effort though, and uninspired or careless designs can easily tip grind-based gameplay in much more tedious directions. So: what makes for the perfect grind? On Episode 42 of Vertical Slice we’re taking a careful measure of this unique gameplay motif, and looking for the delicate mechanisms that keep player-friendly grinds in balance.

Show Notes

• Monster Hunter: World has arrived to great acclaim, enchanting veteran hunters and series newcomers alike with its deep gameplay and charming personality. If you’re curious what all the fuss is about, Gaijin Hunter offers an excellent review authored from the standpoint of a long-time Monster Hunter fan.

Image credit: Roger H. Goun