LogFAQs > #905617167

Epyo posted...

Eh, I guess I don't know. From the looks of that 2d prototype and some of their GDC talks, it really seemed like emergent gameplay was the original goal. All that "multiplicative gameplay" stuff. And yeah I don't think that's what we got, like when you see that camp of dudes and a boulder on the cliff above them, that's not emergent, that's just being sure to provide many options...

Their GDC talk explained it really well. Emergent gameplay is exponential. Multiplicative is different. It means if there are 10 mechanics, then there are 10*10 = 100 interactions. Emergent systems can create 100 interactions from just like 3 mechanics. But they specifically didn't want that. They wanted only the interactions that they liked and polished to end up in the game. And that took a ton of work but apparently it worked for a lot of people.

It's the difference between guitar and Guitar Hero. One is an overwhelmingly complicated tool of creation and innovation, and the other is a toy that was painstakingly limited in the most fun way. Most open world designers wrongly believe players want the former, while most toy-like game designers don't put in the effort to have those multiplicative mechanics. That's the balance BOTW achieved. I just wish the toy was more fun.
---

_foolmo_
2 + 2 = 4