A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO WINNING AND LOSING HOW PLAYERS DEAL WITH SHAME, GLORY, AND EACH OTHER
GAME LECTURE
JONAS HEIDE SMITH SMITH@ITU.DK
AGENDA THE THEORY OF WINNING AND LOSING THE REALITY OF PLAY WHAT YOU NEED TO DO
WHAT DO PLAYERS WANT? 1: A Challenge 2: To socialize 3: A dynamic solitary experience 4: Bragging Rights 5: An emotional experience 6: To explore 7: To interact
RICHARD ROUSE
TO WIN?
HOW DO PLAYERS BEHAVE? “[letting] the objective guide our behaviour in the game [is] the basic transaction we make with Games”
GREG COSTIKYAN
CONSTANCE STEINKUEHLER
“Gamers’ own thinking about styles of play and the identities they underwrite are a conflation of design characteristics and emergent culture of the context of the MMOG they inhabit, situated within the myriad of contexts they themselves encounter with others, with some configurations of constructs evoked for sensemaking in some social/material contexts, other configurations evoked in order to explain others. They are therefore complicated and necessarily messy.”
HOW DO PLAYERS BEHAVE? Game design
Game studies
Rational Player model
Active Player model
(Game-centered approach)
(Player-centered approach)
GOALS
OBJECTIVE GOALS Ultimate
Proximate
SUBJECTIVE GOALS
AGENDA THE THEORY OF WINNING AND LOSING THE REALITY OF PLAY WHAT YOU NEED TO DO
A STUDY OF PLAYER BEHAVIOUR
Fifa 2004
Fully cooperative
Champions of Norrath
Semi-cooperative
Mashed: Drive to Survive
Fully competitive
A STUDY OF PLAYER BEHAVIOUR
A STUDY OF PLAYER BEHAVIOUR Player 1: ()... Sådan! Nu ved jeg hvordan man gør. Det er bare r1 lige så snart I har et våben. Player 2: (kigger på sin controller) Player 1: Bare den her (viser knap på controller) Player 2: Okay Player 3: Hvad så bruger man det? Player 1: Så bruger man sit våben Player 2: Det synes jeg ikke fungerer () Player 1: () Player 3: Nå det virkede meget fint, nå okay Player 1: He. Arrh come on (ærgerlig, læner hovedet tilbage). Pis. Jeg glemmer hele tiden det der fucking sving.
3 types of test Observation of modelcontradicting behaviour Statistical test of relationship between code and game Reflections on code function and particular instances
Do players want to win?
Yes, but fairly Victory should not be a consequence of information assymetry
Magic circles?
How do you win and lose? Previous research suggests: • Conspicuous self-handicap • Goal redefinition
How do you win and lose?
How do you win and lose? My research supports the idea that: Losers become very frustrated
SUPERIOR PLAYERS
Concrete handicap
Nobility handicap Play to win Visible sacrifice
How do you win and lose? Rational play is mitigated by verbal communication.
But the �game contract� defines the interplayer relationship
What have we learned? • Players understand and accept objective goals • Players seek a level playing field • Winners may handicap themselves • Losers may lose interest (or redefine the game goals)
AGENDA THE THEORY OF WINNING AND LOSING THE REALITY OF PLAY WHAT YOU NEED TO DO
WHAT YOU NEED TO DO Study the dynamics of goal redefinition Study the effects of group size Study the effects of competitiveness (vs. casualness) Study how player perceptions match player behaviour Study the effects of gender distribution
WHAT YOU NEED TO DO Design interesting handicaps for superior players Design interesting activities for inferior players
Thanks for your attention smith@itu.dk www.jonassmith.dk