Some Disclaimers I am a designer of commercial computer games

Some Disclaimers

• I am a designer of commercial computer games.

• I am not an architect.

• Most game artists have no architectural training.

• I know little about formal architectural theory.

• I will probably use some terminology wrongly.

• I know how game designers design buildings, and why.

• This will be an extremely pragmatic lecture!

Human Perception of Architecture

• Visual Perception

• Sound

• Touch

• Smell

• Other senses

• Taste will be ignored!

Visual Perception

• Viewing a building:

• 120-140º visual angle
• Fully stereoscopic
• Huge light intensity range (1016!).
• Total darkness possible.
• Steady image
• 250 million receptor cells in both eyes
• Automatically-changing focus

Sound

• Listening to a space:

• Fully 3D
• Viewer-created sounds (footsteps, etc.) audible
• Infinite mixing of ambient sound
• Echoes created by space & materials
• Person can speak or sing at will
• Normally no soundtrack

Touch

• Feeling a building:

• Texture of materials
• Hardness of flooring
• Ambient air temperature
• Reflected heat
• Air currents
• Humidity

Smell

• Smelling a space:

• Construction materials
• Wood, concrete, stone
• Decorative plants
• Earth, flowers, etc.
• Relation to function
• Toilets, laboratories, kitchens, machinery.

Other Senses in Games

• No feeling of gravity pressing feet to floor

• (And no feeling of zero-G in space, either!)

• Movement and climbing are not tiring.

• We can create some claustrophobia, but…

• … no agoraphobia

• We can create worlds with bizarre physics, demonstrated visually.

The Costs of Architecture

• In buildings:

• Design costs
• Land costs
• Infrastructure materials
• Decorative materials
• Construction labor

The Costs in Games

• In 3D games the primary cost is detail

• 3D spaces are constructed from polygons
• There is a limited number of polygons available
• 3D buildings in games tend to look rather sparse
• Curves are expensive, straight lines are cheap

• In 2D games the primary cost is variety

• More architecture requires more artist time
• More images require more disk space

A Sparse Hotel Lobby

A Cheap Boulder

A Cheap Boulder

The Rules are Different in Games

• Normal engineering considerations do not apply
• mass, strength, volume
• Normal habitability considerations do not apply
• Toilets, fire safety, fresh air, temperature control
• Scale is irrelevant - a thing is as big as we say it is.
• We can put a palace in a matchbox.
• We can build spaces that are physically impossible.
• Infinitely-long staircases, Escher rooms.

The Functions of Real Buildings

• To protect people/goods/animals from the weather
• To organize human activity efficiently
• Factories, theaters, offices, sports arenas
• To conceal and protect goods/animals from theft
• Warehouses, barns, shops, storage facilities
• To offer personal privacy
• Toilets and private houses
• To protect people from other people
• Fortifications, military installations, prisons
• To impress, commemorate or simply decorate
• Civic monuments and religious buildings

Real-World Functions in Games?

• Weather is irrelevant; normally it is only cosmetic
• Organizing human activity is useful in multi-player games. Buildings not necessary, but a metaphor.
• Theft may or may not be possible; if possible, buildings offer a convenient metaphor for protection
• Privacy is normally irrelevant
• Military protection is a very common game function
• Impressiveness and decoration are also common
• Buildings in games mimic the real world when necessary. There are no buildings in chess.

Outdoor Spaces are Problematic

• It is hard to make sweeping vistas or panoramas, because of screen resolution and size limitations.
• Players can often move fast, so it is difficult to create meaningfully large spaces.
• Natural objects (trees, etc.) require far more detail than man-made objects. Games avoid them, which makes many games feel sterile.
• Aerial perspectives reduce the impressiveness of any structure or space.
• The Great Pyramid isn’t a big deal from 5000 feet up.

The Primary Function of Ludic Space

• The primary function of a ludic space is to support the gameplay.

• Ludic space is NOT analogous to real buildings and spaces, but to movie sets.
• The function of a movie set is:
• a) To create context by mimicking the real world
• b) More importantly, to support the narrative
• Movie sets often diverge from the real world for narrative purposes.
• They can make NY seem cleaner, or dirtier, than it really is.

So What Is Gameplay?

• Sid Meier defined gameplay as “A series of interesting choices.”

• The rules define the gameplay, specifically:

• The challenges the player(s) must face before they can achieve victory PLUS
• The actions they are allowed to make in order to overcome those challenges.

Types of Challenges - 1

• Physical challenges

• Speed and reaction time (twitch games)
• Accuracy and precision (steering and shooting)
• Timing
• Learning special moves (fighting games)

• Races - achieving something first

• Puzzles

• Should be based on a hidden principle
• Trial-and-error solution is a sign of bad design

Types of Challenges - 2

• Exploration Challenges

• Locked doors and traps
• Mazes and illogical spaces
• Teleporters

• Conflict

• Strategy, tactics, and logistics (logistics rarely seen)
• Survival & reduction of enemy forces
• Defending vulnerable items or units
• Stealth

Types of Challenges - 3

• Economic Challenges

• Accumulating wealth or points
• Achieving balance or stability in a system
• Caring for living things within a system

• Conceptual Challenges

• Understanding something new
• Deduction, observation, interpretation
• Detective games offer conceptual challenges

How Space Creates Challenges

• Constraint

• Limits the movement of the player’s avatar
• Limits the influence of weapons

• Concealment

• Hides players from one another

• Obstacles or Tests of Skill

• Players must pass around obstacles, avoid traps

• Exploration

• Players must learn the shape of the space.

Designing a Ventilation Shaft

This is Architectural Idiocy!

• This building consists of an equipment room and a ventilation shaft. The remainder is undefined. It does not exist in the game.

• The fans apparently blow OUT, not in (if they are not on when you jump, you plummet).

• The shutters are electrified. (Why?!)

• Two fans may be needed to move the air, but why two sets of shutters?

… but Sensible Game Design.

• Constraint

• The player starts on the roof and the only way in is through the ventilation shaft.

• Obstacles and Tests of Skill

• Must land on the ledge and avoid fan blades and electrified shutters.

• Exploration

• The player does not know what lies below the bottom of the shaft until he gets there.

Another Example

A Combat Space

Analysis of Sniping Areas

Guard Positions

Secondary Function of Ludic Space

• The secondary function of ludic space is to inform and entertain in its own right.

• Familiar locations offer cues to a space’s function and likely events there.
• Allusions and homages carry symbolic meaning.
• New worlds require new architectures.
• Surrealism warns the player not to rely on logic.
• Atmosphere carries an emotional message.
• Comedic effects offer pure amusement value.
• Clichés set a scene rapidly.

Familiarity

Allusion

Allusion

New Architectures for New Worlds

Surrealism

Atmosphere

Comedic Effect

Architectural Clichés