Decisions in video games.

[Deleted]

I was brain storming today, and I plastered my thoughts about the illusion of choice in video games. At least that is what I think it's about. Anyway give it a read and let me know what you think.

Blog stuff

And if TL;DR: Emotions.

[Enigma]

I know a PS1 game where the whole storyline is based on your choices. It's called "Ace Combat 3 : Electrosphere" and as for a PS1 jet fighting game, you must not expect much from it, but when you get to play it, all of it makes sense. You are constantly having video chats with other people in your company and they tell you what's going on and how they feel about what's going to happen or what just happened on a mission. If you fail to fully complete a mission, they will act like so, and if you succeed too! About 5 times in the game you have to choose your path to a company or another, but it changes the whole game's objective and context! It is not simply going to end alike, it actually makes your game and personnality. In the most of the games, choosing something will end up in the end to be the same result, but not in Ace Combat 3.

[toxik87]

i pondered this as well, i use to actually feel some sort of emotional connection to characters even if the graphics were not the best, until i realized that it's just a game and then i wasn't too cautious about messing up a conversion or something like in an rpg, for example in ff7 there's that part everyone knows when you could take the kid's 7gil and well with the mentaliy of "it's just a game" i take the money That's right I take the money Muhahahah because well that kid's feelings aren't real i guess then from there you could delve into whether a computer/robot's AI feelings are valid but in this case nope- as for making the whole experience more real and especially if it's an attractive woman than yeah i guess i'll be less likely to intentionally mess up the situation, but just for fun i probably would at least once hehe. i actually thought the computer's AI these days in certain games would have been powered up by this point and lead to an actual different experience as a result of the choices made, like you said about the algorithm i thought it was already achieved, well one thing's for sure it's going to happen

[Deleted]

I always see my characters as a extinction of myself. So in a way that influences my decisions in video games. I usually play the moral upstanding character, but there is never a "unknown" outcome to that choice or a gray area, which is the hardest thing to pull off in a video game.

Most games if you choose the good dialog option you always get a good outcome and vice versa for the "Bad" choices. I think it would add a lot to a game to throw that unknown variable in there. Where good decisions don't always lead to a predictable good outcome.

It would be interesting to see a AI given a "personality" and with it it's own reaction to your choices depending on it's own preference and in terms a sort of way to show a relationship grow with a AI, rather than some fake "Like" bar or "Karma" reflecting the AI's relationship with you.

The AI In video games could be improved so much, and we don't have quite the power to make it fool proof, but it would be refreshing to see someone put these into consideration rather than tickling a adrenaline itch with a bunch of idiot "bots" running around.

A dream I'd like to see come true is a game based on choices and developing a relationship with a AI that is done well enough it actually causes a emotional response in people. I feel like that would be pushing the genre forward. Actually doing something completely new and making a companion a actual companion rather than a AI partner.

That is mostly why this came up. In order for a companion to be such, it would have to make choices on it's own and have it's own "personality" per say.

I'll stop there before this ends up being 7-8 pages long of rambling. Haha.

[OskyCMK]

This is probably a bad example but whatever. This is just what came to my mind reading this.

I played a game called Freelancer. Basically a space rpg. The game was linear but was promoed on the idea that you get to do whatever you wanted. Really that wasn't the case but there was something to it. After the main story you are free to explore (this is pretty much why I love the game to death) and the world is very much alive and busy. You go the bar and you find freelance jobs (kill/capture/cleanhouse are only options) for different factions in the game. It could be from the Miltary, police, Bounty Hunters, corporations, and even from criminal factions. This was neat in that you got to establish whatever relationships you wanted. But the only benefit to being friendly with some factions was to gain easier access to particular regions in the game. You can go to these areas, if you can survive being fired at by every ship in the system. But it's better to gain friendly relationships so this doesn't happen. But typically good relationships with one faction would lead to bad relationships with others.

The factions were interesting though because they all had their own goals and motives. For example there was a "criminal" faction called the Blood Dragons. Basically they were looking to overthrow the current govt. Reading into it you would understand their reasoning and might even go "hey I respect that, I want to help them". But helping the factions by doing more missions for them did nothing to boost their factions, just your rep with them.

Helping a faction and seeing them actually advance in the game world would have been something though. I always think what if I could have helped this faction enough and they actually were able to influence the in game world. So if this was possible in a game then I can see decisions being more important, not just in a relationship with one character, but with a whole game world.

[Deleted]

That is actually a good example. It's just on a larger scale than what I was focusing on.

In most games where you do take part in a faction and help that faction achieve it's goals the outcome is usually the same. You have a bunch of friendlies walking around the world, but does the game world actually change? This shows you do have a choice, but the consequence and effect of that choice isn't there.

Let's say we have a game with a futuristic city and a oppressive government. The sky is usually dark and there are cameras and government funded police on every corner. The streets are busy, but most people just hustle pass one another. The government doesn't allow free time.

Now in this game you have three factions:

The Goverment VS Freedom Fighters VS Chaos

We'll go with the most drastic first. Let's say you choose Chaos and are successful in taking over the city. In order for your choice of faction to have effect the game world itself would have to change to reflect that choice rather than just having AI friendlies walking around.

If chaos rained less people would be out on the streets. Buildings would be scared and dilapidated. This faction would use violence to a greater extent that the government and crime would run rampant. People would be slaughtered in the street. This would paint the picture of Chaos winning and showing that your faction choice had a consequence and a effect on all of the people living in the city rather than it just being another path to the end game.

But to give the player true freedom you would have to allow the player to go through the game anyway they choose, Being a double agent for two factions, creating his/her own faction or not participating in the war at all.

This is focusing more on world choices though, which I feel is a little easier to convey. I was just breaking it down to a one on one level with two people rather than a whole world.

Still there is that question, what stops you from picking a random faction? Is it morals? or is it just about it being a game so it doesn't matter?

Each person in a faction would have to have the emotions and the ability to convince you what you are doing is right. Each person on the street you run into would have to convey their thoughts on each faction in a realistic manner. Rather than just screaming and running, or saying way to go.

I really think the whole disconnect is the fact developers are afraid to do two things. One is to take power away from the player and the other is to make a player feel actual emotion towards a game.

It's just something I feel would actually push it forward rather than having the same stale thing going on.

[Enigma]

I also know a RPG-like game wich is based on liberty and choices. It's called "Custom Robo" for the Gamecube, and it is all about fighting crime with your own customized character. Between missions, you can decide where you go to do what, and when you talk with people you can choose what you say (it dosen't always matter though). The whole world is a place you can go explore by yourself and do whatever you want!