Chapter 10: The Experience is in the Player's Mind
The brain is weird and difficult. For example:
Say the word "boast" five times.
Spell the word "boast" out loud.
Answer this question: "What do you put in a toaster?"
The correct answer would be bread, not toast, but we have primed the brain with a similar word.
4 principal mental abilities:
Modeling
How we represent real things in understandable ways. We make guesses about the structure of things and put them into contexts we can understand.
Interestingly, the author uses a drawing of Charlie Brown to point out how it's just a representation of a real thing. This is incredibly similar to the discussion of representative art in "Understanding Comics" by Scott McCloud. Our brains do more work if the art is more representational, and we can take advantage of that.
Charlie Brown's general shape is human enough to be recognizable, but abstract enough to allow the viewer to project onto it. His head is gigantic but that matches how we think about people, all the info is in the face and the rest is less important.
More abstraction = closer to the internal mental model = clearer for the player and easier to experiment
Clear, simple rules are always better. Don't let aesthetics or story get in the way of understandable gameplay. Look at chess: You either can make a move or not, given the rules of the pieces in question. It's up to you to use that to your advantage. While it may not be clear what the best option is, it is never unclear what options are available.
Focus
Getting into Flow
Clear Goals - See above
No Distractions - engage both mind and hands
Direct Feedback - immediate response from the game, good or bad. Avoid neutral feedback
Continuously Challenging - Game Balance. This part is tough. Gotta hit the flow channel between anxiety and boredom.
LENS 021: The Lens of Flow
To use this lens, consider what is holding your player's focus. Ask yourself these questions:
Does my game have clear goals? If not, how can I fix that?
Are the goals of the player the same goals I intended?
Are there parts of the game that distract players to the point they forget their goal? If so, can these distractions be reduced or tied into the game goals?
Does my game provide a steady stream of not-too-easy, not-too-hard challenges, taking into account the fact that the player's skills may be gradually improving?
Are the player's skills improving at the rate I had hoped? If not, how can I change that?
Requires watching players for extended periods of time.
Empathy
Most games require literally acting as someone else.
Imagination
Again as with "Understanding Comics", and as with "Psycho", if you let the player's imagination do the work, it's so much more powerful. As McCloud says, the action happens in the gutters. Leave room for the player to fill in the gaps.
Imagination is also necessary for problem solving. Creativity is borne from imagination.
Two parts: Communication and Problem Solving
Recommended Reading
Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art by Scott McCloud (Added by @zaphodb2002)
Chapter 10: The Experience is in the Player's Mind
The brain is weird and difficult. For example:
The correct answer would be bread, not toast, but we have primed the brain with a similar word.
4 principal mental abilities:
Modeling
How we represent real things in understandable ways. We make guesses about the structure of things and put them into contexts we can understand.
Interestingly, the author uses a drawing of Charlie Brown to point out how it's just a representation of a real thing. This is incredibly similar to the discussion of representative art in "Understanding Comics" by Scott McCloud. Our brains do more work if the art is more representational, and we can take advantage of that.
Charlie Brown's general shape is human enough to be recognizable, but abstract enough to allow the viewer to project onto it. His head is gigantic but that matches how we think about people, all the info is in the face and the rest is less important.
More abstraction = closer to the internal mental model = clearer for the player and easier to experiment
Clear, simple rules are always better. Don't let aesthetics or story get in the way of understandable gameplay. Look at chess: You either can make a move or not, given the rules of the pieces in question. It's up to you to use that to your advantage. While it may not be clear what the best option is, it is never unclear what options are available.
Focus
Getting into Flow
LENS 021: The Lens of Flow To use this lens, consider what is holding your player's focus. Ask yourself these questions:
Requires watching players for extended periods of time.
Empathy
Most games require literally acting as someone else.
Imagination
Again as with "Understanding Comics", and as with "Psycho", if you let the player's imagination do the work, it's so much more powerful. As McCloud says, the action happens in the gutters. Leave room for the player to fill in the gaps. Imagination is also necessary for problem solving. Creativity is borne from imagination. Two parts: Communication and Problem Solving
Recommended Reading