a path that leads directly to the next conflict. Games that encourage players to poke
around may make the path less obvious.
I once saw someone criticize Shigeru Miyamoto’s games as being all about explo-
ration, and therefore not very good games. The observation that exploration is the
focus of the laterMariowas a correct one. The mistake was in asserting that this is not
a fun part of gameplay, as millions ofMariofans will refute. The challenge lies in making
exploration entertaining and rewarding for players, something Miyamoto’s games do
expertly.
Puzzle Solving ..............................
Sometimes progressing in a level involves more than just finding a path to the next area
while killing the adversaries that stand in your way. Instead it may involve figuring out
what needs to be accomplished in order to open a certain door or clear a large obstacle
out of the way. Some of the simplest examples of this are the “switch flipping” puzzles
found in many older first-person shooters. In these games (often for no particular rea-
son) players need to navigate through a large section of the map in order to flip a switch.
This action opens a door somewhere else that leads players to another area where
another switch is in need of flipping. And so it goes. This switch may instead be a key or
any other object that opens a door or may be disguised as some type of device that
blocks the players’ progress. For example,Call of Dutydisguised switch flipping as plac-
ing explosives on anti-aircraft guns. This is the simplest form of a puzzle in an
action/exploration game. Here the focus is mostly on players exploring until they find
the puzzle, with the solution to the puzzle itself then being trivial. In the case of the
switch, once it is found all players need to do is flip it.
Some would say that all puzzles are keys in the end, but this misses an important
point and opportunity for more compelling gameplay. More sophisticated variants on
the switch/door combination can be situations that require players to actually figure
something out in order to progress. Perhaps a laser beam needs to be refracted around a
series of corners in order for players to move on. In order to refract it correctly, players
will need to move several reflective plates. Players must understand the simple phys-
ics of the situation that govern how the beam will behave when reflected in different
ways. InThe Suffering, early on players come to a puzzle where they need to block a
gate that keeps swinging shut with a large stone statue. Players need to experiment in
the environment and with the game mechanics in order to solve this puzzle. With chal-
lenges of this sort, the focus here shifts from just finding the puzzle to finding it and
then figuring out how to manipulate it correctly. The player’s gaming experience is
enhanced by this puzzle instead of it merely delaying the end of her game. Determining
how much emphasis your level will have on puzzle solving is important to keep in mind,
especially within the context of the game as a whole. A sure way to frustrate players is
to suddenly throw a bunch of arbitrary puzzles at them after the entire game up to that
point has been more action-oriented.
Chapter 23: Level Design 457