As part of my practice, an invaluable source of reference is those games which focus on creating a strong sense of atmosphere, as this appears to be a primary driver behind the 'Zen' experience. Atmosphere in games can be achieved in many different ways. From my own experience, I have played several different games of differing genre and art / audio styles that are considered atmospheric. In order to expand and reflect upon my own experiences playing these types of games, I decided to investigate if any research had been done in this area and then compare it to my own experience. A very good article titled 'Atmosphere in Games- Part 10- The Overview' written by Matthew Bentley is featured on Gamasutra, and can be found at the following webpage:
http://www.gamasutra.com/blogs/MatthewBentley/20131123/205550/Atmosphere_in_Games__Part_10__The_Overview.php?print=1
To summarise, within the article, Bentley breaks down atmospheric games into several components, and then uses these as a source of reflection. He concludes:
"How do we round this off? Well:
(a) Think things through so your player doesn't have to.
(b) Obscuring things only works if there's something to be obscured. If the player senses that behind your mask of opaqueness, there's actually nothing worth feeling sad/scared/happy/angry about, they won't care - and neither will you.
(c) Think about your music - most people don't. Make sure it fits. Make sure it stands up in it's own right, not just as background or wallpaper. If it doesn't contribute to the feel, kill it. Kill it dead.
(d) Don't skimp on voice-acting, or writing talent. These people know what works. You do not, typically, if today's games are anything to go by. Get a musical or creative director who oversees this, if you're already wearing too many hats to really give this the attention it deserves. You don't have to pay people. But they have to be excited. And don't screw them, either. Musicians and actors are people too, you know?...
(e) Make the art direction, sound direction, writing direction, level direction and overall world progression serve the core atmospheric engagement and 'feel/theme' of the game. You players may not be immediately engaged, but once they are, it will linger with them for far longer than a more explosive title ever could.
(f) Make the game realistic to itself! Not to the 'real world'! The gameworld only has to recognise itself as a logical structure, not planet earth necessarily.
(g) Gameplay is good, gameplay is great, but gameplay isn't everything. And inasmuch as everybody thinks everything should be expressed purely through gameplay at the present point in time, I believe this limits the scope of how to express ourselves, and how to achieve a feel in a game. The cutscenes in starcraft 1 weren't immersion-breaking, but rather served as level-complete rewards that both enhanced the mood of the game and progressed the story and the player's emotive drive to complete the story.
(h) Think globally, act personally: there's a reason why many indie games have been in recent years described as possessing 'atmosphere' and 'emotional depth' while the AAA titles continue to be emotional wastelands - you can't design a piece of magic by committee. Small groups, or smaller groups, along with good writing and direction, are what is needed to break out of the AAA loop. Don't worry about what everyone else will think so much - make a game that appeals to you, and hopefully draw enough of the long tail in to serve your financial rewards."
What is particularly interesting here is the fact that gameplay is not considered the most important factor for this type of experience. This is contrary to everything I have ever been taught both from an academic stand-point and through my professional practice in the industry. If we move the design emphasis away from gameplay, can we really consider the end product to be a game - or at least rewarding to the player as a game?
Another question that arises here is what is actually considered to be gameplay? Can gameplay be achieved if it is not challenge-driven? I believe it can. Looking back on previous research from my Contextual Review, one of the key drivers for successful toy/game design is the sense of exploration and discovery. This is an example of an aim that is not necessarily challenge- driven in the traditional sense of the term, as exploration and discovery does not necessarily have to be challenging to be achieved.
I will continue my research in these areas, and try and find practical examples that I believe help to explore the questions that have been presented. One of the first games that comes to mind is that of Limbo (Playdead). As a side scrolling Puzzle Platformer, gameplay is a definite fundamental factor in the design of this game. However, the controls are simple, and while the gameplay is effective it is not overly complex. To a degree the gameplay aspects of Limbo are intuitive, with no on-screen prompts or instructions ever being presented to the player. The game is incredibly atmospheric, and this is achieved through its art style and the direction of audio design.
 |
| Limbo (Playdead, 2010) |
