So it's been quite an exciting journey creating my tabletop card game - Meowchelin Stars. I was thinking that it would be a cool idea to share some of what I've learned, both within Kyubi Games, as well as my years working in the creative industry. This space should allow me to talk about what I believe works best in the fields of game design, and eventually allow me to connect with people sharing opinions and the topic we all love - games.
Alright so let's get into the topic today, what IS the most important concept in designing a game?
There are multiple aspects of game design to consider when designing a game, such as the gameplay mechanics, game loop as well as the objective and win conditions. But amongst them all, I personally think that one of the most important things to consider is the player's agency. Let me explain.
Player agency refers to the player's ability to influence the game that they are playing based on the choices that they make. It's the amount of freedom the game designer gives to the player.
For example; you are playing a game where you are supposed to save a princess from a certain situation, and depending on whether you successfully save her or not, the outcome will lead you to a different event. Maybe the princess will become an enemy if you fail to save her, maybe she will join your team as another character if you successfully save her. This creates immersion for the player and gives the player a reason to do something within the game, instead of a linear experience. Of course, it depends on the kind of games you are making, obviously if story narrative is the biggest focus, such player agencies would be lesser. But it can still come in different forms, like your character's customization and progression.
I believe that a game's replayability, whether it is a video game or a tabletop game, is very much affected by whether you can get a different outcome everytime you play or not. A classic game like Super Mario, doesn't have a lot of player agency, you simply get better if you play it a lot, but the experience is very much the same. I think that it is a lot more interesting when there are many ways that you can play a game and win. This makes you want to play the game again and again trying different strategies and approaches.
What you do you think though?
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