J2: Formal and Dramatic Elements

From last time, I talked about Flux and Osu!...

In Flux, the formal elements are very interesting, I think, because they are variable as the games progresses. Naturally, certain elements are fixed, such as the players and how you are allowed to play cards. The rules and objectives of the game can change very rapidly, though, and sometimes they can even change every turn.

In Osu!, the formal elements of the game are much more stable. For the players in the game, there is a single player and a multiplayer mode, but the actual gameplay does not change much at all from one mode to the other. The objectives of the game are to hit the circles on screen with the right timing and to get the highest score. The conflict comes from failing to hit the circles at the right time (or even at all), which penalizes the player by reducing his health, but hitting circles properly will restore a small amount of health.

An interesting thing about both of these games is that neither of them have certain dramatic elements that many people have come to look for in a game; a story, characters, or a real premise. The thrill of both of these games comes from their challenge, rather than any thematic elements of the games. In Flux, the challenge comes from having to outwit the other players and better adapt to the changing rules in order to achieve victory. In Osu!, the challenge comes from hand-eye coordination, and the challenge can be changed so that it is suitable for both beginners and experts.

After doing the reading and applying it to these games, I can better see some of the design choices that were made, and I better appreciate the difficulty in making them.