On the second lecture of GDP, we talked about the formal elements of game. Formal elements of games are important for game design because the elements are what build up and give content to the game. It also helps us to analyze a game by breaking it down to each element and see how they work with each other. The formal elements of game can be found from simple game such as Tic Tac Toe to AAA title game such as Skyrim-The Elder Scroll, therefore, it is useful to study them to see what makes a game fun. The following is the list of the formal elements and I will briefly explain what they are in the game and use Tic Tac Toe as an example to identify these elements.
1. Players
Every game involves players, in fact, games are made to provide an experience to players. Therefore, players have to be participated in the game. They are the people who accept and follow the game rules and this is called having the Lusory attitude. Game designers can improve games from understanding how players interact with the game, and other players in the game.
E.g.: In Tic Tac Toe, it usually involves 2 players. One draws 'O' to represent him/herself and the other one draws 'X'.
2. Objectives
Objectives are goals in the game for players to achieve. They are there to motivate player to make progress in the game. There are many types of objective such as racing, constructing, or performing a forbidden act, etc., and they are there to let players achieve the goals in game through different actions.
E.g.: In Tic Tac Toe, players' goal is to have their symbol lies 3 in a row either horizontally, vertically, or diagonally on a 3x3 grid.
3. Procedures
Procedures are the step that players take during the game. They are defined by the game rules and the control players have. Procedure is also where the gameplay happens, which can be simply expressed as who does what, where, when, and how.
E.g.: In Tic Tac Toe, player draws his/her symbol on the 3x3 grid in his/her turn. Once the symbol is drawn, his/her turn is over and then the other player repeats the same steps.
4. Rules
Rules are there to constrain players' action, making them to play through the game under a different circumstance or behaviour. In one of the slides, it clearly points out a fact about rules, that "If [players] don't follow the rules, they are no longer in the game". Therefore, rules have significant impact on gameplay as it shapes up the players' experience through the predefined condition of what player can or cannot do in the game.
E.g.: In Tic Tac Toe, players have to take alternate turns to place the symbol until either one player wins or the grids are filled.
5. Resources
Resources are the object in the game that have values to players, which could influence their action or decision making. Designers can control the scarcity of the resources to adjust the gameplay.
E.g.: In Tic Tac Toe, players have 9 grids as their space to put down their symbols. As the game goes on, some grids can have higher value than others as it can help players win the game before the opponent or block off the opponent.
6. Conflicts
Conflicts are there to make game more fun and challenging as it prevents players from reaching the goal directly. It often occurs when players encounter obstacles or dilemmas when they try to progress in the game under the defined rules.
E.g.: In Tic Tac Toe, players would have conflict with each other from deciding where to put the symbol.
7. Boundaries
Boundaries are where the rules apply. Anything outside of the boundary is not part of the game.
E.g.: In Tic Tac Toe, the boundary is set in a 3x3 grid. Sometimes, it would be set as 4x4 or more. Anything that is drawn or happened outside of the grid will have no affect in the game.
8. Outcome
Outcome is the result, or the ending of the game, where players receive their rewards for their participation at this stage. However, outcome sometimes can result in punishment or disappointment if players are under-performed.
E.g.: In Tic Tac Toe, player can have outcome of either win the game, lose the game, or a tie.
Through the use of formal elements, games are able to create a magic circle, a term from Huizinga, where players can temporary live in a virtual world, act as a virtual character, or behave differently to achieve short-term goals and enjoy the game experience.
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