Video game design and programming course for the Master in Computer Engineering at the Politecnico di Milano. http://www.facebook.com/polimigamecollective https://twitter.com/@POLIMIGC http://www.youtube.com/PierLucaLanzi http://www.polimigamecollective.org
5. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
Balance Type #1: Fairness
• Fairness is the quality that players universally seek in games
• Players want to feel that the forces working against them can be
defeated
• Symmetrical games are the simplest way to ensure that your
game is fair, since all the players have all the same powers and
resources
• All tabletop games and most sports are symmetrical
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6. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
Asymmetrical Games
• To simulate real-world situations
• To give players another way to explore the game space
• Personalization
• To level the playing fields (noob vs expert)
• To create interesting situations
§ Scotland Yard (players vs mr X)
§ Bhag-Chal (5 tigers vs 20 goats)
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7. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock-paper-scissors
8. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock-paper-scissors
12. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
Balancing Challenge Difficulty
• Increase difficulty with each success
• Let players get through easy parts fast
• Create layers of challenge (with grades)
• Let players choose the difficulty level
• Playtest with a variety of players
• Give the losers a break
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20. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
Once a dominant strategy is discovered,
the game is no longer fun
the puzzle of the game has been solved
because there are no more choices to make
25. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
Triangularity in Mario Kart
manual vs automatic? kart vs bike?
grab power-ups? use power-ups?
use speed boost pads?
left or right?
26. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45PdtGDGhac
40. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
Length of the gameplay is one
important thing to balance
If the game is too short, players may not get
a chance to develop meaningful strategies
If the game goes on too long, players may
grow bored, or they may avoid the game
46. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
Why Should a Game Punish Players?
• Punishment creates endogenous value
• Taking risks is exciting
• Possible punishment increases challenge
• Shaming
• Loss of potions
• Shortened play
• Terminated play
• Setback
• Removal of powers
• Resource depletion
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47. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
Gathering Food in Diablo
Version #1
collect food or suffer from
diminished powers due to hunger
Version #2
players are never hungry but get
a boost of ability if they eat
48. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultima_III:_Exodus
50. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ea6UuRTjkKs
51. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
Balance Type #10
Freedom vs Controlled Experience
52. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
Games are interactive, and the point of
interactivity is to give the player control,
or freedom, over the experience
How much control?
Giving the player control over everything
is more development and can also be
boring for the player
57. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
Natural vs Artificial Balancing
space invaders go faster, the fewer they are
Elegance
dots in Pac-Man serve multiple purposes
they provide a short term goal, a long term goal,
triangularity, points/success, extra life
58. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
“if a line in a script doesn’t serve at
least two purposes, it should be cut”
Old Hollywood saying
59. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
Rule of thumb: a game element
should have at least three purposes
61. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
Balance Type #12
Detail vs Imagination
62. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
Only detail what you can do well
Give details the imagination can use
Familiar worlds do not need much detail
Use the “binocular” effect
Give details that inspire imagination
65. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
Game Balancing Methodologies
• Use the lens of the problem statement
• Doubling and halving
• Train your intuition by guessing exactly
• Document your model
• Tune your model as you tune your game
• Plan to balance
• Let the players do it
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67. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
It spoils the reality of the world
It is exploitable
Players improve with practice
68. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
Design in Detail: Changing the Time between Shots for the Sniper
Rifle from 0.5 to 0.7 Seconds for Halo 3 by Jaime Griesemer.
http://www.gdcvault.com/play/1012649/Design-in-Detail-Changing-the
69. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e31OSVZF77w
70. Prof. Pier Luca Lanzi
http://www.facebook.com/polimigamecollective
https://twitter.com/@POLIMIGC
http://www.youtube.com/PierLucaLanzi
http://www.polimigamecollective.org