tweak or balance it. We specifically decided not to compromise the single-player expe-
rience, either through changing the mechanics or taking our time away from working
on that primary part of the game. Interestingly, the multi-player inCentipede 3Ddid
actually function and was not a complete failure from a creative standpoint; it worked as
an amusing diversion for a short period of time. But it was not a great enhancement to
the title since the game had never been planned for it and we lacked the design time it
would have required to make it a truly worthwhile experience.
Some games that have added multi-player midway through development have
ended up with mechanics that are significantly different in the multi-player and sin-
gle-player games. This is unfortunate, since the idea of having a game with both modes
is that players who are fans of the single-player experience can easily switch over to the
multi-player game to continue playing the game they already enjoy. If the game is
extremely different they may become frustrated and give up. Of course, some differ-
ences are certainly fine, such as slight variations in how the inventory functions or how
long a given power-up lasts. But players should feel like they are playing largely the
same game.
Thankfully, tacking multi-player gaming onto an existing single-player game is no
longer acceptable to critics or gamers. In Chapter 15, “Getting the Gameplay
Working,” I encourage designers to keep the game development process as organic as
possible for as long as they can. But for the above reasons, it is very important to decide
from the very start if your game will include multi-player. This is important not just so
your code can be architected correctly and your game mechanics can be designed to
work for both types of games, but also because you can use the multi-player game to
actually greatly aid you in development. Assuming your networking code is working
early enough, you can actually get your development team playing the multi-player
game and start iterating on your game mechanics early to get them as tight and fun as
possible. Assuming you keep making progress and the multi-player game is fun, this
can be great for team morale and help people see how the game they are working on is
coming together. And once your mechanics are a known quantity, building a fun
252 Chapter 13: Multi-Player
When developingHalo,
Bungie concentrated on
developing the multi-
player game first, before
moving on to the single-
player levels.