Hey everybody – This week I had to grade research papers, so I did not have time to write a new post. The article that was scheduled for this week (about personality in games) will hopefully be up next Saturday. Until then, enjoy this post about the relationship between Luck and Skill in game design,…
Read MoreLuck Vs Skill: The False Dichotomy
When I started researching for this article, my original plan was to talk mainly about a category of games known as “Solved Games”, or games that have a mathematically proven optimal strategy. I was going to use that article to talk about what it means to have solved a game, different games that have been…
Read MoreGoing Rogue-like: When to use Procedurally Generated Environments in Games
This semester I am taking a class based around the design of game engines, and in that class we recently had a brainstorming session for a game. One of the biggest talking points of that discussion was whether or not we should design the game to use procedurally generated elements, or design everything manually. Inspired…
Read MoreTake a Chance: The Illusion of Randomness in Games
Randomness is one of the most important elements of almost any game, and also one of the most misunderstood. Randomness can have a huge impact both on the design and experience of a game, and can lead both to very exciting moments and very frustrating ones. This is a huge topic, and one that I…
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