Game Structure

When Designing the rules and the mechanics of gameplay everything needs to be considered and information needs to be passed on to programmers on how different parts interact and how the overall flow of the game happens. 
A flowchart is used to clearly structure the design of the game and show how it works.

Players Actions

There are two different types of player actions done in video games. First of all, there are the action that the player can do when controlling a character/object within the game, the movements are usually more advanced than just walking left and right, there are jumping, crouching, sprinting, punching, and kicking and so on. The other type, is how the character(s) are controlled via a game controller. For instance, if you analyse two different games such as Grand Theft Auto (GTA) and Super Mario, you will clearly notice the difference in movements and how you will apply certain actions. In Super Mario, the actions used are very basic, where the most advanced action is sprinting where two buttons have to be pressed down simultaneously. Whereas, in GTA you can fly, drive, swim, shoot and more within the game. This shows a development in Video Game character actions.

There are numerous ways in which the gamer can control the characters in the game. A few examples are; a gamepad, a joystick, a steering wheel and motion sensors. The gamepad can be connected to the video game console wired or wireless, it enables gamers to have easy control over the video game as multiple buttons can be pressed to perform different actions and movements. Motion Sensor in video games is a new take on how a video game can be controlled as they can control or perform actions with the use of their body movements, a device such as the “Kinect” used with the XBOX 360 and ONE consoles, has a inbuilt camera in the Kinect device which detect the players physical movements and translate them to inputs in the game.

Interaction Models

Interaction model is the way that the player is controlled and represented within a game and how the player interacts with the world in the game. There are two different types of interaction models. These include Avatar Interaction and Omnipresence Interaction.

Avatar interaction model are used in video games when the player’s only interaction in the game is through an avatar within the game, which is normally through the character or characters in the video game. First Person and Third Person video games usually use this model as a base to create their game.The Uncharted series is a prime example of using the avatar interaction model as you are usually playing as the protagonist (Nathan Drake) and you are controlling his actions such jumping, running etc., also navigating the game world through the protagonist and engaging in the obstacles that you may be facing during the game. Developers use this model specifically to make players more attached to the characters and become more involved and immersed in the game.

Omnipresence interaction model is usually associated of having control over the character(s) inside the video game and certain game world features such buildings etc. Game genres which use this kind of gameplay are that of Strategy and Simulation games. A good example that use this interaction model is the Sims series. They allow players to have full control of each character and what activity they might be doing whilst making building and architecture such as rollercoasters and theme parks to improve the city in the game. People like this type of game as is it let them be creative and unique, also create their own little world.

Goals, Challenges and Rewards

Goals within a game is usually the objective that the player have to complete in order progress along the game. There can be multiple goals that the player has to achieve to go on to next level, which are usually associated as mini objectives that the player to do such as collect x amount of items. Optional objectives are similar to side missions, where it’s not necessary to complete in order to complete the overall game but it’s beneficial as they allow the player to gain access to more items, shortcuts, currency etc. Games that usually have this type of objectives are adventure games. Uncharted is a prime example of different types of objectives to complete as you may be asked to find a specific artefact to get a reward.

Challenges are similar to mini objectives as they are a pathway to lead to a Main objective. The length of challenge may vary within games, for instance a short term challenge can be a “kill X”, where x can be an enemy, a medium challenge may be, is “collect X amount of items”, where it may take a few minutes to collect the items that might be scattered around the game world, and a long challenge could be get 100% on all challenges. A game that includes all different types of challenges is Assassins Creed, as they feature a kill mission, collect a certain amount of “packages” and 100% on all Sync(s).

Rewards are usually collected after a certain of challenge or mission has been completed successfully. The reward can vary from currency to increasing a certain attribute. This is common within games as it helps the player improve and carry on further in the game. It also gives the player an incentive for them to play more and complete the game. Game developers have realised that not having this feature will make the game boring and repetitive as players may think that all they are doing is just doing missions without any purpose.

Mechanics

There are 3 main types of mechanics which are; Inventory, Scoring and Winning Condition.

Inventory in video games usually players to store and carry items freely along with them throughout the journey of the game. A number of games have different capacities on how much they can store items, for instance in Call of Duty, you are limited to carry two different weapons and grenades. The items you pick up or buy in the game is usually stored in some kind of “bag”, where it can be stored and scrolled through for later use.

Scoring is usually a point system within the game to see how much you have gained throughout the game and/or level. There are different types of scoring system such as Exp. points, Killstreak, Goals/Points (Sports) etc. This is usually a record of how well you are doing in that specific game and how much you need to go on to the next level, for instance to level up in Battlefield you have to get X amount Experience points to go on to the next level which usually gained by playing different types of games modes.

Win Condition within games is usually calculated by the amount of points or health the each battling team have, it can also be determined by how far you have progressed within the game for example when you complete a story mode in Mortal Kombat after you defeat the Final Boss, it will end with a short cut scene finishing with a screen stating “You Win”. However within that final battle you have another win condition where it will say “Finish Him!” or “Excellent”, ”Perfect” if playing Street Fighter, stating that you have won.

Rules and Addiction

Rules are placed within video games for the player to understand on what and what not to in the game for the character to progress within the game without getting killed for instance. It also set boundaries in the game so that the player can’t cheat in a game or alter the game on how it’s played so they gain an advantage over someone who is playing the game within the rules of the game. Games such as Call of Duty is often hacked by people who want to gain a significant advantage in the game by coming invincible or having unlimited ammunition which is not allowed and usually monitored and banned by the games administrator. Game developers put in these certain rules and regulation in the game so the game is balanced and fun to play in single player and multiplayer.

When players become hooked to the game they become Addicted, as it is very unhealthy can have a negative impact on the mind and body of the gamer. Gamers are usually become addicted due to being too immersed in the game as its realism make the gamer feel that their in the game world, also the fact that the game have unreal features that the gamer may not be able to do in real life such as flying, shoot guns, deal drugs etc. Competition within video games can also make the player attached to the game as they believe that playing more will make them better and beat everyone they face. Video Game developer may purposely make the game addictive as they want their game to be the most played video and more popular in comparison to the competition.

Game World Setting

Game settings can be found within every game which can be adjusted according to the player’s personal preference on how to play the game. Developers create games dependent on the games plot and expand on that. They look at different aspect of the games such as, physical settings, temporal settings, emotional settings and ethical settings of the game.

When creating the physical settings of the game, the developers make the game world suitable to the games storyline by deciding where it will be placed and how the character will interact and adapt to that setting. For instance, football game in a basketball court will be considered as irrelevant. This will be made to make the gamer more immersed in the video game and look forward to carry on playing later on.

The temporal setting of the game will be taken into consideration during the creation of the game, as the time period of the game is crucial part of the game on making it more chronologically accurate as it will give the game realism and depth. For example, Assassins Creed: Unity, was based on the French revolution so the era of the game should be set in the late 18^th century otherwise it will make no sense which could make the gamer stop playing.

The environmental setting is the condition the character the game is playing in, which usually affects the weather the game is playing in at the very moment. For instance, in Need for Speed, the weather can alter depending on where the character (Car) is on the map, for example driving in the desert the weather is usually hot in the day whereas during the night it is humid and cold. This feature is included in games to give games more realism and natural feel, games such as FIFA play in real time conditions where it if it’s raining the players usually slide along the grass more longer when slide tackling for the ball, which affects the overall gameplay.

The emotional setting of the game affects the characters emotion and body language in the game. This setting is important to include in video games as this feature improves the realism of the game, this can be clearly seen through cut-scenes in games where the main character’s father dies and you will feel you will have to avenge the father through the protagonist of the game, this makes the player more immersed and emotionally attached in the game.

The ethical setting in the game is usually set by how the game is played and what in the game you can do that limits the game into a specific age bracket. For example, in Grand Theft Auto V you are usually encouraged to steal a car from a civilian in the game world or violently shoot enemies within the game. This certain feature makes it inappropriate for children who are under the age of 18, as the content is very explicit for children to be witnessing and may imitate the actions in to real life. This matter is usually resolved by setting a PG rating on the game suitable for a specific target audience.

Difficulty and Balance

Balance in video game terminology refers to the concept of a character or level that is not too overwhelming or too weak/easy that it will make the gamer carry on playing and not complain about the difficulty of the game. 

Gamers with different skills may believe the game may be too easy or hard, so developers have embedded into most games a difficulty setting, which the player can determine the balance of the game which it will be playable for the gamer, thus affecting the gameplay and can be altered throughout the game, if the AI becomes too challenging/easy for the player.  At the start of any game, the difficulty of the gameplay will be quite easy for the player as they are usually introduction to the game on how to play, what different moves and buttons to help you advance in the game, which then gradually increase in difficulty as the game goes on, for example the wave of enemies increase in numbers and become stronger in terms of health and accuracy of attacks, this keeps the gamer immersed in the game making the objective more challenging.

Some examples of difficulty used in video games are FIFA, Call of Duty and Street Fighter. The use of difficulty in FIFA is usually dependent of the skill of the gamer, as they may increase the difficulty to make the AI controlled team more difficult to play against and break down to score and win.

Narrative, FMV and Cutscenes

A Narrative in a video game usually in video format, tell us the story line of the game. Normally found at the start of the game campaign but also can be embedded throughout the campaign. Video game designers use narrative in video games to interest and engage the gamer, as games with story lines that have no thought behind may bore the gamer and not carry on further within the game. An advantage of using narratives within game, give the game a more in-depth look on the game, making it more interesting. Although weaknesses of this is that some narratives within the game take up gaming time which can be a burden on some people as they may have a restricted playing time, or just really eager to go on to the next part of the game. A video game that has a really interesting story line is The Last of Us: Remastered.

A Full-Motion Video (FMV) is a video footage within a game that supplies you with information, usually during or after a mission has been completed. They are usually triggered when a certain objective or action has been made, so they can help you advance further within the game. Some video games use interactive FMV, which requires the gamer to make certain decisions during the cut scene, more modern games use a more detailed animation to enhance the games visual style of the game. An advantage is that it looks really impressive compared to a normal cut scene found within a game a game as they may last for a few seconds, whereas the FMV is a more detailed short video which may last for a few minutes. A weakness is that it may cost quite a bit of time and money for the developers to create as a lot of in-depth detail is required. Also the fact that it may take a few minutes until the game is loaded may also deter the gamers involvement in the game, although developers has combat this by allowing the gamer to skip the FMV if a certain button is pressed.

A Cutscene are non-interactive sequence(s) used by many games to show that advancement of the plot. They are usually found at the beginning of a mission or halfway through the storyline to give a twist and introduce new elements in the game whilst the protagonist is idle. Developers have done this to give depth in the game and making it more interactive even though the character is non-playable for a short while. The use of cut scenes also gives the game a smoother transition giving it a more professional look, although it can be annoying for some users as it limits certain aspects of the game such as a special move may be triggered and can’t be undone until the action is done which can make the user exposed to enemy attacks a good example is Street Fighter where you may trigger a special move that includes a small cut scene within it but the enemy has blocked the move and can go in for an attack as you are left exposed.