Aside
from the creative aspects of my game (which come flowing naturally like a
golden river of honey), I have been very interested in learning how to make my
game as balanced as possible. A common
critique of older fighting games (and even some of the more complex fighting
games we see today) is that there is a complete lack of balance. Some games like Marvel vs. Capcom 2 have been
revolutionary in the sense that they offered over fifty playable characters. Even
though this game is over ten years old, a roster that size is unheard of even
by today’s standards. Although it grants
the players the widest selection of playable characters, it also creates
countless difficulties when it comes to actual gameplay. Even though there are over fifty characters,
only maybe twenty of them are “worth using” because their frames, hitboxes, and
priorities are just simply better than others.
For example, having a giant robot as blatantly the most powerful
character in the game has been a common theme of these older fighters. It just seems…unimpressive. I want a level playing field where fire-ninjas
are going up against crystal Goddesses, and the battle could always go either
way depending on the player’s actual
playing skill. I have taken ideas
from some of my favorite games to implement this.
In
Jesse Schell’s book The Art of Game
Design, he spends an entire chapter on balance and game mechanics, many of
which I intend to utilize in my design.
The first is symmetry, making the playing field even for both
players. This means always giving each
player the same “materials” to each have at their disposal when the round
starts. Tools such as “Burst” and “Parrying”
have been tools implemented by fighting game designers to give skilled players
an advantage despite what character they are playing as. Burst frees you completely from an opponent’s
assault (which is a refillable gauge used by each player) and parrying can
completely negate an opponent’s attack with precise timing. This way a player can concentrate on playing
a character that they actually like rather than a character they know is just
plain good.
Another
need for balance lies in the difficulty in the game itself. I find that most retro fighting game creation
was not tested as thoroughly with professional players as necessary. Way too often in modern day fighting games a
professional player can quickly find and exploit any unbalance in a particular
character, and these game-changers usually are not discovered until months
after the game’s release. This calls for
updates, patches, or even re-releasing games which has caused fan appreciation
to drop heavily for companies like Capcom.
I would intend to have the game tested heavily and thoroughly by players
of all skill styles. It would be interesting
to see if there is a trend in the type of character selected by each type of
gamer (from casual to professional).
From there, we would be able to determine if a certain character is too “hard”
to play as, or just simply mechanically difficult to use (to a point where the
player would have no control over the difficulty).
All
of the balancing issues ten to be resolved by extensive testing, which
companies usually cut short due to release dates being so strict. I will further look into what other options
or aspects I can add into my game in order to make it enjoyable for all ages
and skills to enjoy.
No comments:
Post a Comment