Games & Virtual Worlds Series

Designing Games & Interactive Stories

The world is the best narrator.
— Ken Levine

Game Worlds

A game world is a virtual environment in which a video game takes place. It can be as small as a single room or as large as an entire planet or galaxy. The main elements of a game world are:

Geography: This includes the terrain, landscape, and environment of the game world.

Characters: These are the non-player characters (NPCs) that populate the game world and interact with the player.

Objects: These are the items, weapons, and other interactive elements that the player can use or interact with in the game world.

Rules: These are the underlying mechanics that govern how the game world operates. This can include things like physics, combat systems, and other gameplay elements.

Story: Many game worlds have a narrative or overarching story that ties together all of the other elements of the game.

Physicality, time, space, the environment, emotions, ethics, and realism are all features that can be used to characterize a game’s setting.

Some games don’t have an in-game environment, as in sports. You wouldn’t say that football games take place in some made-up fantasy world, though they are ritualistic and tribal, which Oliver Stone depicts amazingly well in the opening scene of Any Given Sunday.

In sports, players still often put on a show because they give meaning to actions that aren’t particularly significant when considered literally. Getting a ball through a net or into a basket in itself is pretty mundane, and so a lot of socio-cultural mythology and drama has to be whipped up around these physical actions to make them emotionally compelling.

A common feature of many abstract games like tic-tac-toe is the presence of a board but not a world; in other words, there is no need for the player to engage in any form of creative fantasy. When playing chess, though the war aspect is clear in the pieces, we don’t really imagine King Arthur type adventures when mulling over the possible moves to make within its formal geometric spaces.

Art, animation, music, and sound effects are all integral parts of how most video games present their game world to the player. However, not all video game settings involve the senses of sight and sound. When reading a work of interactive fiction, the reader is responsible for visualizing and audibly imagining the world presented on the screen.

The characteristics that make up a game’s world are numerous. Some, like the size of the world, are quantifiable and have concrete numerical values. Others, like the general feeling of the global community, are qualitative in nature and cannot be captured with numbers or even a Scale. The game’s world is divided into different “dimensions,” or sets of interconnected properties.

The environments of video games are typically implemented as digital recreations of real-world locations. The player directs their avatar through this environment, exploring its various locations and interacting with the various elements and NPCs it encounters. Much of the game’s mechanics are tied to the space’s actual physical characteristics. Dimension, scale, and confinement are three examples of such characteristics. Physicality exists even in text adventures and point-and-click adventures. After exploring one area, the player travels to another.

Spatial Dimensionality

Standard video game dimensions are as follows:

2D games are those in which the game world is represented on a flat plane, with characters and objects existing on a single plane. 2.5D games are similar to 2D games, but they may have some limited three-dimensional elements, such as characters and objects with depth or the ability to move in and out of the plane of the game world.

3D games are those in which the game world is fully three-dimensional, with characters and objects existing in a space with width, height, and depth. In 3D games, players can move freely through the game world and view it from any angle.

4D games are those that use game modes or other techniques to present alternative renderings of the same game world. For example, a game might allow the player to switch between a “normal” mode and a “stealth” mode, each of which presents a different version of the game world. In the “normal” mode, the game world might be fully visible, while in “stealth” mode, the game world might be partially obscured or obscured entirely, requiring the player to use other senses to navigate through the environment.

Scale

Scale can be used to describe both the absolute size of the physical space represented (in game units such as meters, miles, or light-years) and the relative sizes of objects in the game.

Video game designers use scale to create a sense of space and immersion in the game world. Scale refers to the size of objects and characters relative to each other and to the game world as a whole.

There are several ways that game designers can use scale in their spatial design:

Realistic scale: In some games, designers will aim for a sense of realism by using scale that is similar to the real world. For example, if the game takes place in a city, the buildings and vehicles might be the same size as they are in real life.

Exaggerated scale: In other games, designers might exaggerate the scale of certain objects or characters to create a sense of awe or to make gameplay more interesting. For example, a game might feature giant robots or monsters that are much larger than they would be in real life.

Miniature scale: In some games, designers might use a miniature scale to create a sense of intimacy or to make the game world feel more manageable. For example, a game might take place in a small village or on a tiny planet, with everything in the game world being smaller than it would be in real life.

Variable scale: Some games might use a combination of different scales within the same game world. For example, a game might have a city that is built to realistic scale, but also feature giant robots that are much larger than they would be in real life.

Boundaries

Spatial boundaries in games refer to the limits of the game world or play area. These Boundaries can be physical (such as the edges of the game board or screen) or conceptual (such as invisible walls or barriers that prevent the player from accessing certain areas of the game world).

Game designers use Spatial Boundaries in a variety of ways to shape the gameplay experience. Some common ways that designers use spatial boundaries in their game design include:

Containment: Spatial boundaries can be used to contain the game world and keep the player within certain limits. For example, in a platformer game, invisible walls or barriers might be used to prevent the player from falling off the edge of the level.

Exploration: Spatial boundaries can also be used to encourage exploration and discovery. For example, in an open-world game, the player might be able to travel to different regions of the game world, each with its own unique geography and challenges.

Confinement: Spatial boundaries can be used to create a sense of confinement or claustrophobia. For example, a horror game might take place in a small, enclosed space, such as a house or a spaceship, where the player is unable to escape.

Examples of interesting spatial boundaries in video games and board games include:

In the video game Portal, the player is confined to a series of interconnected rooms and must use a special gun to create portals to move between them. The spatial boundaries of each room are used to challenge the player’s spatial reasoning skills and to create a sense of containment.

In the board game Escape Room, the players are confined to a single room and must use clues and puzzles to escape before time runs out. The spatial boundaries of the room are used to create a sense of confinement and to challenge the players’ problem-solving skills.

In the video game The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, the player is free to explore a vast open-world game world. The spatial boundaries of the game world are used to encourage exploration and discovery, as the player can travel to different regions with their own unique geography and challenges.

Temporal Design

The way time is handled in a game and how it varies from our own real world is determined by the game’s temporal dimension.

Approaches to time and temporal design in video games are:

Turn-based: In this type of game, time is divided into discrete “turns” in which each player or character takes a turn to perform an action. The game progresses in a sequence of turns, with the game state changing after each turn. Examples of turn-based games include chess and most role-playing games.

Continuous time: In contrast to turn-based games, continuous time games take place in real-time, with the game state changing constantly as the game is played. This means that the player must make decisions and perform actions on the fly, without the luxury of waiting for their turn. Examples of continuous time games include first-person shooters and most sports games.

Variable time: This refers to games that allow the player to adjust the speed of time or the flow of events. For example, “hero time” or “bullet time” refers to a feature in some games that allows the player to slow down time in order to perform actions more precisely or react to events more easily. This can be useful in action games where the player needs to dodge attacks or make precise shots.

Anomalous time: Some games incorporate elements of time travel or other distortions of the normal flow of time into their gameplay. In these games, the player may be able to manipulate time in order to solve puzzles or achieve other objectives.

Player-adjusted time: Some games allow the player to adjust the speed at which the game is played, either by adjusting the game’s frame rate or by using a “time scale” feature. This can be useful for players who want to speed up or slow down the game to match their preferred playstyle or to fit their available time.

Related Articles

Ideation, Brainstorming & Innovation

Audiences, Game Titles & Player Types

Prototyping, Playtesting, Iteration & Fun

Affordances, Game Dynamics, Gameplay & Core Loops

Pillars, Goals, Features & Elements

Environment, Culture & Emotion

Mapping & Wayfinding

Demographics by Age & Sex

Flowcharting, Algorithms & Pseudocode

Game Documentation

Bibliography & Further Reading

• A Game Design Vocabulary: Exploring the Foundational Principles Behind Good Game Design by Anna Anthropy and Naomi Clark
• A Theory of Fun for Game Design by Raph Koster
• Advanced Game Design: A Systems Approach by Michael Sellers
• An Introduction to Game Studies by Frans Mayra
• Basics of Game Design by Michael Moore
• Blood, Sweat, and Pixels: The Triumphant, Turbulent Stories Behind How Video Games Are Made Blood, Sweat, and Pixels: The Triumphant, Turbulent Stories Behind How Video Games Are Made by Jason Schreier
• Board Game Design Advice: From the Best in the World vol 1 by Gabe Barrett
• Building Blocks of Tabletop Game Design: an Encyclopedia Of Mechanisms by Geoffrey Engelstein and Isaac Shalev
• Character Development and Storytelling for Games by Lee Sheldon
• Chris Crawford on Game Design by Chris Crawford
• Clockwork Game Design by Keith Burgun
• Elements of Game Design by Robert Zubek
• Fundamentals of Game Design by Ernest Adams
• Fundamentals of Puzzle and Casual Game Design by Ernest Adams
• Game Design Foundations by Brenda Romero
• Game Design Workshop by Tracy Fullerton
• Game Mechanics: Advanced Game Design by Ernest Adams and Joris Dormans
• Game Writing: Narrative Skills for Videogames edited by Chris Bateman
• Games, Design and Play: A detailed approach to iterative game design by Colleen Macklin and John Sharp
• Introduction to Game Systems Design by Dax Gazaway
• Kobold Guide to Board Game Design by Mike Selinker, David Howell, et al
• Kobold’s Guide to Worldbuilding edited by Janna Silverstein
• Level Up! The Guide to Great Video Game Design, 2nd Edition by Scott Rogers
• Narrating Space / Spatializing Narrative: Where Narrative Theory and Geography Meet by Marie-Laure Ryan, Kenneth Foote, et al.
• Narrative Theory: A Critical Introduction by Kent Puckett
• Narrative Theory: Core Concepts and Critical Debates by David Herman, James Phelan, et al.
• Narratology: Introduction to the Theory of Narrative, Fourth Edition by Mieke Bal
• Practical Game Design by Adam Kramarzewski and Ennio De Nucci
• Procedural Storytelling in Game Design by Tanya X. Short and Tarn Adams
• Professional Techniques for Video Game Writing by Wendy Despain
• Rules of Play by Salen and Zimmerman
• Storyworlds Across Media: Toward a Media-Conscious Narratology (Frontiers of Narrative) by Marie-Laure Ryan, Jan-Noël Thon, et al
• Tabletop Game Design for Video Game Designers by Ethan Ham
• The Art of Game Design, 3rd Edition by Jesse Schell
• The Board Game Designer’s Guide: The Easy 4 Step Process to Create Amazing Games That People Can’t Stop Playing by Joe Slack
• The Cambridge Introduction to Narrative by H. Porter Abbott
• The Grasshopper, by Bernard Suits
• The Routledge Companion to Video Game Studies by Bernard Perron and Mark J.P. Wolf
• The Routledge Encyclopedia of Narrative Theory by David Herman
• The Ultimate Guide to Video Game Writing and Design by Flint Dille & John Zuur Platten
• Unboxed: Board Game Experience and Design by Gordon Calleja
• Video Game Storytelling: What Every Developer Needs to Know about Narrative Techniques by Evan Skolnick
• Writing for Video Game Genres: From FPS to RPG edited by Wendy Despain
• Writing for Video Games by Steve Ince
• 100 Principles of Game Design by DESPAIN

Acknowledgement

This online courseware was co-authored with OpenAI technology in order to produce a clear, succinct writing style that will be accessible to the widest range of readers from a variety of backgrounds.

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