{"id":630,"date":"2023-02-11T10:00:13","date_gmt":"2023-02-11T16:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/genxtralife.com\/heropath\/?p=630"},"modified":"2023-02-04T10:34:34","modified_gmt":"2023-02-04T16:34:34","slug":"thoughts-on-mechanics-tools-obstacles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/heropath.com\/blog\/thoughts-on-mechanics-tools-obstacles\/","title":{"rendered":"Thoughts on Mechanics (Tools \/ Obstacles)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This post is a fifth part of the Heropath Thoughts series and will discuss Mechanics <\/strong>or Player in-game activity. Video Games are many things, but nothing is more essential than that of Player doing something and that requires Mechanics<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mechanics <\/strong>or Play Mechanics are the \u2018foundational\u2019, technical layer of game development that supports Play Motifs<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Fundamentals<\/a><\/strong>. Mechanics are divided up into four aspects, with the first two of the four being the focus of this post, them being Tools<\/strong> and Obstacles<\/strong>. As Raph Koster has written about in A Theory of Fun for Game Design<\/a>, these Elements are fun to play with because they allow skill development and mastery. Koster argues that things like the ‘dressing and fiction’ of a game is not something that can be mastered and I would disagree with him. Mastery in terms of knowledge can be applied in the Show & Tell Motif<\/strong> and this plays a critical role both in Video Games and human development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Play Mechanics, Tools & Obstacles.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s start with the first Mechanic<\/strong>, that of Tools<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Tools<\/strong> – Any in-game object that the player uses and controls directly or indirectly. It could be a cursor, an icon, a trait, an avatar, a vehicle, a city, a kingdom, an army, an so on. Examples: The paddle in Pong, Pac-man, a RPG attribute.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These Tools<\/strong> then interface with other Tools<\/strong> to create combinations and layers of complexity. So while the paddle in Pong is the player’s primary Tool<\/strong>, the ball in Pong is another Tool <\/strong>as it can be somewhat aimed based on where the paddle strikes the ball. Another secondary Tool<\/strong> would be the Power-pill when eaten by Pac-man makes allows for him to temporary dispatch the ghosts. RPG characters are complex combinations of attributes, class abilities, skills, and inventories, making them the pinnacle of Video Game Tool<\/strong> complexity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tools<\/strong> take the form of avatars (generic representations), characters (in-game personalities), units (collectives), and objects (everything iconic and abstract). These Tools <\/strong>will have attributes that are stored in-code that determines their function such as how fast Pac-man moves per second, how long the Power-pill lasts, etc. and the range and variety of these attributes are almost infinite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So now that Tools<\/strong> are defined, let’s define the next item. Players must overcome the Obstacles<\/strong> arrayed against them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Obstacles<\/strong> – The opponents, puzzles, resource limits, plot complexity, map\/level design, and more that challenges the Player. An unbalanced video game would have Tools <\/strong>that are poorly matched against the Obstacles <\/strong>and would lead to frustration and disillusionment making for a poorly designed challenge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here is a list of the different kinds of Obstacles<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n