Chapter 1.3 Ludology for Game Developers – An Academic PerspectiveLudology?Historical studies of gamesRise of game studiesLudology definedDesign ResearchKey Areas of Design ResearchIn terms of Ludology:Origins of Game DesignMaking design principles explicitExamples of Ludological Methods & ToolsChris CrawfordGreg CostikyanMDA Framework (1/2)MDA Framework (2/2)Formal Abstract Design ToolsFormal Abstract Design Tools (2)400 ProjectErnest Adams & Andrew RollingsGame Design WorkshopSteffen P. WalzGame Design Patterns (1/2)Game Design Patterns (2/2)Katie Salen & Eric ZimmermanAki JärvinenSummaryChapter 1.3Ludology for Game Developers – An Academic Perspective2Ludology?Ludus (Latin) = gameLogos (Greek) = reason, scienceLudology = Scientific analysis of games Ludology is a general term for studies and theories focusing on gamesCompare with ‘narratology’ = set of theories on narrative and narration3Historical studies of gamesLudology extends to all kinds of gamesEarly examples displaying ludological interests:Stewart Culin, Games of the North American Indians: v 1: Games of Chance & v 2: Games of Skill (1907)Johan Huizinga, Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play-Element in Culture (1938)John von Neumann & Oskar Morgenstern, Theory of Games and Economic Behavior (1944) Roger Caillois, Man, Play and Games (transl. in 1961)E.M. Avedon & Brian Sutton-Smith, The Study of Games (1971)These studies try to find common, generic aspects across various forms and cultures of games and game play4Rise of game studiesGame scholar Espen Aarseth, editor of gamestudies.org declared 2001 as “year one” of game studiesThere are earlier examples:Mary Ann Buckles’ doctoral thesis on Adventure from 1985 the 1stHowever, these were scattered effortsYear 2001 marks the emergence of an academic community focused on studying computer and video gamesLudology.org, by Gonzalo Frasca, as its hub5Ludology definedLudology is an academic attitude to gamesit requires a generic approach to gamesLudological efforts aim to understand better What games areHow they workWhy people play themHow to design more diverse and better gamesMarket research, technology development, background research are often too case-specific to be regarded as representatives of ludology6Design ResearchDR is interested in integrating research methods and results into design and product development processesSee Brenda Laurel (ed.) Design Research: Methods and Perspectives (2003) for introduction‘Game design research’ is a means to apply ludology to practical game development tasksGDR is, thus, a development-oriented means to practice ludology7Key Areas of Design ResearchResearch into designTraditional historical and aesthetic studies of art and designResearch through designProject-based, includes materials research and developmentResearch for designCreates objects and systems that display the results of the research and prove its worth8In terms of Ludology:Research into game designAnalyses of existing games, i.e. their designs, and how players engage with those designs, i.e. play the gamesResearch through game designResearch into games that builds prototypes as its resultsResearch for game designThe most fruitful area to cover in more detail9Origins of Game DesignEarly game design practices resemble the authoring of folk tales:The game elements and rules evolve over time by the effort of countless nameless “designers”Game design has developed towards systematic practices, games designed on purposeCraft vs. DesignCharacteristics of a craft product: combination of the methods and materials available as well as the situations in which the product has been used over a longer period of timeCharacteristics of a designed product: the result of a trying to reach a design goal by using methods and materials available10Making design principles explicitSome argue that designing games is an art, knack, or a mystical craftGame design does require talent and skillYet Ludologists also believe that it is desirable to find and describe the basic features and patterns which can assist, guide, and inspire design work Game design research aims at Making the principles of how to design explicitGiving designers a conscious layer of self-evaluationMaking it easier to consciously break the principles and to seek new forms of expressionCreating vocabulary that enables communicating design ideas and teaching the trade11Examples of Ludological Methods & Tools Many researchers and practitioners have developed methods and models to design gamesThe following methods and models are all recently proposed and display the ludological attitude in practice12Chris CrawfordThe Art of Computer Game Design (1984) may well be the first contemporary treatise with a strong ludological attitudeCrawford identifies four common factors between all games:RepresentationInteractionConflictSafetySee also Chris Crawford on Game Design (2003)13Greg Costikyan“I Have No Words & I Must Design” (1994)Identifies design choices that have to be made when games are designed And the main features necessary for games and that should be taken into account by game designers when making games:Decision makingGoalsOppositionManaging resourcesGame tokensInformation14MDA Framework (1/2)‘Mechanics, Dynamics, and Aesthetics’By Robin Hunicke, Marc LeBlanc and Robert Zubek Employed in the Game Tuning Workshops held in Game Developers’ Conferences since 2001MDA framework consists of three main components:Mechanics that describe the parts of a game at the level of data representation and algorithmsDynamics that describe the run-time behavior of the gameAesthetics that describe desirable emotional responses evoked in the player during gameplay15MDA Framework (2/2)The Aesthetics can be broken up into more distinct components; ‘Eight Forms of Fun ’:Sensation, game as sensory pleasureFantasy, game as make-believeNarrative, game as dramaChallenge, game as obstacle courseFellowship, game as social frameworkDiscovery, game as uncharted territoryExpression, game as self-discoverySubmission, game as pastime. MDA’s goal is to provide a framework to span between game design, development, game criticism and research16Formal