One thing we rely on when we talk about games is categories: those little boxes that tell us what genre a game belongs to. And yet, those categories are often vague or messy, and can lead to a lot of (often silly) debates. So in this essay I will propose some broad ideas about what categories are for and how we might rethink our use of them.
Author Archives: drmabian
The Danger of Franchises
Have you ever looked at a lineup of major game releases, only to feel like there are way too many sequels, and not many new properties? In this essay I will explore why we can often end up seeing a lot of longrunning video game franchises, and why that can often cause a problem for the games themselves.
Playing The Long Game
Games have been getting bigger and taking longer to finish. It’s not uncommon to see big games boast about how many hours it will take to do everything. But is this tendency towards bigger maps and longer playtimes actually valuable?
Talking About Games: The Compatibility Problem
What makes a given game mechanic and a given genre “compatible”? As easy as it might be to say that some combinations aren’t compatible, the problem is actually much more difficult to solve, and demands careful attention.
The “Choose Your Ending” Problem
Video games often allow you to choose how you want the game to end, often by quite literally asking you which ending you want. But presenting stories in this way is ultimately counterproductive. In this essay, I’ll explore the idea of how asking players to pick the ending they want generally undermines the ultimately purpose of both storytelling and interaction.
Moral Choices: The (Un)Ethics of Crunch
Crunch is an aspect of video game development that has been gaining attention in recent years. And for those who are aware of what it is, it’s horrific to even read about. In this essay I take a deeper dive to examine crunch through the lens of moral philosophy to help put into broader terms just exactly why crunch is wrong.
Why We Play Games
“Why do people play video games?” The question seems easy to answer, but will that answer tell us much? In this essay I dig a bit more into the question of why people play video games to provide some ideas for how we might better talk about video games with other people.
On Roguelikes
Roguelikes are a genre of video games that rely on randomness. But in what ways can that randomness cause problems for the game – and more importantly, the player?
Moral Choices: Teachable Moments
When we talk about morality in art, we often want to teach lessons to the person viewing that art. Video games are no different in trying to teach lessons. But how we teach lessons – especially moral lessons – is important, and much tougher than we may think.
On Storytelling: Philosophical Narratives
Storytelling is a core part of creating games, but as we try to make more and more complex stories, what should we be aiming for? In this essay I explore the idea of how to incorporate philosophical questions into the storytelling process.
