OpenBracket

A problem with many games that I have come across is the issue of replayability and length and this issue isn’t limited to PBBGs but has been affecting PC and console games for the last few years. But since this is a blog primarily about PBBGs lets explore this aspect in relation to them.

Many games have a limited story due to the difficulty of constantly producing new content. Many games approach this many having ’rounds’ (SK, NZ,), where after a few months or after a certain in game event happens, the round resets along with all the characters and everyone start new.  Some games don’t have a story and just provide a sandbox world where the players run the show (kind of like TC or RK). And then you have games that have a set story with quests and when you finish you’re character restarts (like KoL) and you start the game quests again with a ‘new’ character, often with some new unlocked content.

So which way is the best way to your game? I really have no idea but lets look at the strengths and weaknesses of each type.

First up, round based. A round based game from my experience works best for strategy game. In a strategy game you have a set goal; Defeat your enemies before they defeat you.  And because there is a set end and the fact that a strategy game can be enumerated on actions, you can make the game challenging by having players try to defeat each other can achieve high scores before the round ends. And with the knowledge of a set end, players know how long they have before they need to start attacking and defending. Through in factions, round persistent leaderboards and round carry overs, and you have a game that with minimal content changes/additions can continue to be fun for a player for several months. Offering round updates and slight changes each round and the chance for players to show off their achievements from past rounds will help retain players for a long time.

With this style of gameplay, you will likely need to split your development time between features and content. Keeping balance is important here, since you want your players to be able to play the game differently each round and see something different or new.

Next is the sandbox style game. If you are unsure what exactly I mean, think of simcity, or gta where your goal isn’t really anything in game but to play and see what you can do. These games can be highly addictive (at least for me anyways) but without regular updates and in game events, they can stagnant quickly.  This is because the game itself doesn’t direct the players but the players direct each other. As you can see, this format can lead to a lot of player activity until most of the content has been viewed or played through. The more freedom and options provided to the player, often, the better this style of game is.

Let`s look at TornCity and Renaissance Kingdoms; both games have open ended play, the players control the game play, both have limited gameplay, but both still exist and gain new players due the high level of player interaction.  This level of player interaction is often difficult to get right in strategy games and even more difficult in quest driven games.  So, if you are planning a game that is a sandbox, keep in mind player interaction should be on the top of your list for features and future development.

And finally we have quests driven games. These games are probably the most difficult to keep players playing. This is mainly because everything is game and content driven. Without constant content development these games can quickly lose there appeal. Many games try to solve this by some form of ‘ascending’, meaning that your character and quests are somehow reset to the beginning and providing you with slightly different content or new avenues you can play. While this can be fun, there is limited playability due to the repetition of content and the lack of player interaction. Sure, many of these games have clans or factions, but much of the time the communication and new elements they add for the player isn’t enough to make up for the lack of content.

So with a quest game, almost constant content development is a most. Feature development isn`t as important because the point of the game isn’t what you can do, but playing the story.

What do you think? These are simply my opinions and views I have gathered through the last number of years playing web games and would be more than happy to debate or be corrected on any of them ^_^

And on a side note: I know itès be ages since my last post. So if anyone has any suggestions for posts or anything they would like to write about let me know. Fire off an email to bardic(dot)knowledge(at)gmail(dot)com or leave a comment.