Following Jesse Schell’s novel The
Art of Game Design once again I have learned more and more about balancing
mechanics that I would like to see present in my game. One of the other more interesting aspects of
balance is “punishment” – penalizing the player for making a wrong choice. At a glance this seems counterproductive,
wouldn't we want our players to have constant positive feedback while
playing? The answer is no, and surprisingly
being punished while playing a game can make the situation more intense because
you as a player are aware that you should be learning the entire time you’re playing. In fighting games, since each character has a
health bar and takes multiple hits to knock out, the ENTIRETY of a fighting
game consists of punishing mistakes, which is why I believe fighting games are
some of the best genre-wise in developing motor skills as well as thinking
improvisationally.
Punishment in fighting games specifically increases the challenge for smarter players, as reaction time is crucial to being a successful fighting game player. Increasing the punishment in relation to a minor or major failure is also a key element because you would not want to punish someone too severely for their mistakes, especially if they are still learning. Unfortunately most fighting games have a steeper learning curve than most other games, as playing against the computer and a human have completely different feels and strategies associated with each.
The punishment factor in fighting games is usually always the same: two people are fighting, one person throws a punch, the punch connects and they must decide which order of operation to continue attacking with, while the opponent (who was punished by being hit) must think defensively of how they can get out of this situation. Another example is: two people are fighting, one person throws a punch, the punch misses (or “whiffs” the opponent) and they are subject to punishment as they essentially chose the wrong move to do in that scenario, technically speaking. This gives the opponent a chance to punish the attacker with a move of their own, and their offense becomes the same as previously stated.
In fighting games it is common knowledge that being on the offensive is easier than blocking a string of attacks, and for that reason I would add 2 distinct features that could help with players defensively: Burst and Parry. Burst is a command usually activated by pressing all of the face buttons on the controller or fight pad, activating a “burst” of energy that completely frees you from any attack while simultaneously pushing the attacking opponent across the screen. This burst is limited to usually one per battle, and I cannot think of a better tool for defense that is accessible to any playing ability. It’s like the perfect panic button. Your instinct when panicking would be to press as many buttons as possible, and that is why this input works so well, just press all of them! The burst is instant and completely resets the current fighting stage spatially, which gives you more time to think without the enemy just bullying you.
The other defensive maneuver, Parrying, is a much more difficult to achieve action but yields a much better reward: complete invincibility. In Street Fighter 3, a new feature was added where you could potentially parry any attack (or string of attacks) by simply pressing forward as soon as you get hit. While this seems simple, it is one of the most difficult defensive maneuvers to master. That being said it has easier capabilities. Pressing forward puts you completely open to the enemy’s attack, so unless your timing is spot on, you’re gonna get hit. However with good timing an experienced player could potentially block every attack thrown at him or her, but this is highly improbable. It’s usefulness can be more easily attributed to surviving in a zoning war (a scenario where both opponents constantly throw fireballs at each other) Since fireballs are usually a single striking move that travels forward at a set rate, it is relatively easy with little training to deflect fireballs consistently. This instantly levels the playing field for characters without fireballs, and forces those with them not to rely on them.
My next field of study is how I plan on using “super meter” for the fighting style I want. But a good place to start is by clarifying in further detail just how important (to me at least) super meter is.
Punishment in fighting games specifically increases the challenge for smarter players, as reaction time is crucial to being a successful fighting game player. Increasing the punishment in relation to a minor or major failure is also a key element because you would not want to punish someone too severely for their mistakes, especially if they are still learning. Unfortunately most fighting games have a steeper learning curve than most other games, as playing against the computer and a human have completely different feels and strategies associated with each.
The punishment factor in fighting games is usually always the same: two people are fighting, one person throws a punch, the punch connects and they must decide which order of operation to continue attacking with, while the opponent (who was punished by being hit) must think defensively of how they can get out of this situation. Another example is: two people are fighting, one person throws a punch, the punch misses (or “whiffs” the opponent) and they are subject to punishment as they essentially chose the wrong move to do in that scenario, technically speaking. This gives the opponent a chance to punish the attacker with a move of their own, and their offense becomes the same as previously stated.
In fighting games it is common knowledge that being on the offensive is easier than blocking a string of attacks, and for that reason I would add 2 distinct features that could help with players defensively: Burst and Parry. Burst is a command usually activated by pressing all of the face buttons on the controller or fight pad, activating a “burst” of energy that completely frees you from any attack while simultaneously pushing the attacking opponent across the screen. This burst is limited to usually one per battle, and I cannot think of a better tool for defense that is accessible to any playing ability. It’s like the perfect panic button. Your instinct when panicking would be to press as many buttons as possible, and that is why this input works so well, just press all of them! The burst is instant and completely resets the current fighting stage spatially, which gives you more time to think without the enemy just bullying you.
The other defensive maneuver, Parrying, is a much more difficult to achieve action but yields a much better reward: complete invincibility. In Street Fighter 3, a new feature was added where you could potentially parry any attack (or string of attacks) by simply pressing forward as soon as you get hit. While this seems simple, it is one of the most difficult defensive maneuvers to master. That being said it has easier capabilities. Pressing forward puts you completely open to the enemy’s attack, so unless your timing is spot on, you’re gonna get hit. However with good timing an experienced player could potentially block every attack thrown at him or her, but this is highly improbable. It’s usefulness can be more easily attributed to surviving in a zoning war (a scenario where both opponents constantly throw fireballs at each other) Since fireballs are usually a single striking move that travels forward at a set rate, it is relatively easy with little training to deflect fireballs consistently. This instantly levels the playing field for characters without fireballs, and forces those with them not to rely on them.
My next field of study is how I plan on using “super meter” for the fighting style I want. But a good place to start is by clarifying in further detail just how important (to me at least) super meter is.
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