tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579312376304629754.post1108176967055676804..comments2023-02-24T05:54:19.593-08:00Comments on Randy Gaul's Game Programming Blog: Game Design: Positive and Negative Feedback; Flow ControlCecilSunkurehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16129986119923492789noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579312376304629754.post-28060627185589232992010-05-10T18:50:30.402-07:002010-05-10T18:50:30.402-07:00You are absolutely correct. There is no magic form...You are absolutely correct. There is no magic formula when designing video games, and each game is different. I may have sounded keen on negative feedback loops, though this is only because these seem to be more commonly used. Interesting games can arise when positive feedback loops are employed in a meaningful way. For example, StarCraft 2 melee was designed so that 1v1 matches wouldn't last much longer than 20 minutes. I was told from watching some analysis videos that players were designed to be able to exploit the other player's weaknesses in strategy and use those to quickly gain victory. This in a way could be seen as a positive feedback loop where the player who makes a major mistake immediately becomes much less likely to pull a comeback and come out victorious.<br /><br />It is important to understand the tools used in game design, and often times challenging paradigms leads to interesting design innovations. Thanks for the comment.CecilSunkurehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16129986119923492789noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3579312376304629754.post-78480582102089980212010-05-10T13:00:18.167-07:002010-05-10T13:00:18.167-07:00I think you're quite right about the dangers o...I think you're quite right about the dangers of positive feedback loops; in a game with a "strong" positive feedback loop, there's simply no point in playing any longer once one player has taken a decisive advantage. I think you're a bit too keen on negative feedback loops, though. Just as it is frustrating to have no chance at a comeback, it is also frustrating if all the effort that you put into gaining an advantage over your opponents comes to naught because the game balances it out with negative feedback. Equally frustrating is watching the game give some advantage to a player who has done nothing to earn and deserve it; seeing inferior play rewarded generates a feeling of unfairness. Could you imagine how awful chess would be if the positive feedback loop created by attaining a material and positional advantage were somehow removed and replaced with a system that rewarded the loser?<br /><br />In my experience, the most fun games are ones with "weak" positive feedback loops. With a "weak" loop, the prospect of your own power spiraling upwards to victory gives you something to fight for, while the prospect of the same happening for your enemy gives you something to fight against, creating excitement and tension, respectively. The sides fight in an effort to gain "momentum" leading to victory; where excessive negative reinforcement automatically cancels out such momentum, there's nothing to fight for. In a properly balanced game, there are sufficient options for gaining positive reinforcement that even a more powerful player cannot completely dominate a weaker player; the weaker side almost always has the ability to shift the game's momentum if it succeeds in out-playing the stronger side. Gaining strength gives you a real and significant advantage, yes, but not one that is deterministically decisive. It's only when the game is designed such that there is *nothing you can do* against a stronger opponent, that is, such that a brute strength advantage automatically closes off all options for fighting back, that the positive feedback becomes a problem.<br /><br />Do note that these remarks are primarily directed towards games with players in opposition. There may be more room for negative feedback in games where there is a single player, or where the players are on a team, so your milage may vary in applying the above comments to such projects.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com