It’s not difficult to locate articles that offer advice on how to make an engaging game. You will find suggestions such as being creative, prototyping new concepts, and having someone playtest your game. Of course, these are all helpful suggestions.
However, one popular piece of advice is to “be prepared to make a lot of mistakes.” As a game creator, you will undoubtedly make horrible design decisions that you swore you would never make.
Some, though, are avoidable. To make this unavoidable step a little easier, here’s a list of five blunders that many developers agree only degrade the quality of the experience.
Table of Contents
1. NPCS That Don’t Repeat Important Information
We’ve all had the experience of having an NPC (non-player character) tell you where to get an item or your next objective. However, after exploring the area or completing a separate task, you forgot that critical piece of information.
So you return to that NPC, and instead of repeating the location of the item or mission, they talk about their cat or engage in some other pointless conversation. No matter how many times you speak with that NPC, they never provide you with the information you require.
If you’re creating a game in which NPCs impart crucial information to the player, you should surely have them repeat it because most gamers don’t take notes or screen capture while playing.
The only time you can get away with this is if your game also includes a screen that serves as a journal or record of events, allowing the player to see where they should go next at any time.
The easier it is for players to get important quest or objective information, the more likely they are to enjoy your game.
2. Quick Time Events That Feel Unnecessary
Anyone who has played Resident Evil 5 or 6 may have a better sense of what we mean. These two games, as well as many others, suffer from an overuse of Quick Time Events to the point where players can anticipate pressing buttons practically every time a cinematic appears.
Although these gameplay tactics can keep the user engaged and maintain a level of immersion, they can also be irritating when used excessively.
The truth is that many players love viewing a cutscene every now and again since they frequently feel like a prize for completing a segment of the game, especially if it helps advance the story or is simply fun to watch.
When done incorrectly, however, instead of enjoying the moment, gamers are nervously awaiting the point at which they must push a button or else die and be forced to watch the cutscene again.
If you ever find yourself building a game with cutscenes and Quick Time Events, make sure they feel important and add to the experience rather than feel bolted on.
3. Unfair or Unfun Character Classes
This design flaw has been less common as the RPG genre has matured over time, although it still appears on occasion.
We’re talking about a class or character type that, when compared to the others available, makes the game too difficult to play. The worst part is that this isn’t revealed until halfway or late in the game, meaning the player spent all that time progressing only to hit what feels like a brick wall.
This is common with traditional support classes like healers or characters who are primarily employed to buff other classes. The class is outstanding when played with others because it considerably improves the abilities of others and raises the possibility of victory.
However, when played alone, they are quickly slain or have no way of killing a boss unless you grind, which you would not have to do with any other class.
A good designer will ensure that all of their game’s classes can complete the single-player plot.
4. Text That Gets Cut Off Too Fast
It’s safe to say that very few gamers love seeing text disappear from the screen before they’ve finished reading it, especially if it’s significant and/or relevant to the primary story. Avoid having text with a small time constraint – preferable, no time limit – whether it’s a superfluous but interesting bit of lore or your next quest objective.
Certain games, such as Dark Souls, feature a loading screen that displays interesting content for players to read while they wait. The error occurs when the screen abruptly shuts out when the game is finished loading, regardless of whether the player is finished or not.
If you’re going to have long bits of text, provide the player a button to push when they’re done with the loading screen, especially if the text is many lines long and impossible to read in a few seconds.
5. Input-Disrupting Elements
This one is difficult because it appears in popular games such as The Legend of Zelda series. Most gamers, however, are in agreement that tampering with your controller inputs results in a miserable experience that simply serves as a cheap way to enhance difficulty.
In The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, for example, there are opponents who briefly invert your controls – whichever direction you order Link to walk, he moves in the other direction.
Although these gameplay aspects can provide a fascinating challenge, they are often distracting and frustrating. Worse, designers adore placing these types of foes near additional hazards that you’ll almost certainly encounter when your controls are suddenly modified.
Is it bad for a game to interfere with a player’s input? Probably not, but you’d be better off avoiding such an easy technique of adding challenge, which could damage immersion and merely annoy.
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