MULTIPLAYER Barkan TOPRAK OVERVIEW Difference between single player

MULTI-PLAYER Barkan TOPRAK

OVERVIEW Difference between single player games and other pursuits Single player games: Illusion of another player or designer Reality concept in a multiplayer game Battling, cooperating or simply socializing It has a much greater importance than any single-player game can ever manage Examples from well-known games Single-player: Solitaire has extreme minority of available choices Multi-player: Chess, Monopoly 2

MOTIVATIONS Multi-player games satisfies “What Players Want” Replacing AI opponents provides much deeper and more unpredictable behavior Opponents will learn as they play: as players improve, so too do their opponents Desire to be challenged is met! Many people play multi-player games just to socialize 3

STARCRAFT 2 TOURNEMENT 4

MOTIVATIONS Multi-player feature of a game can change player’s perceived importance of playing the game Brag and shame feelings Alternate realities 5

MOTIVATIONS Much more dynamic experience than interacting with a computer alone All “wants” that multi-player games satisfy: challenge, social experience, potential for bragging rights, emotional payoff, deeply interactive experience It is important for designers to keep this list in mind 6

MOTIVATIONS Allowing the use of mechanics may not work in single- player games Some titles are ideally suited to being single player, others are can only work on multi-player experiences 7

THE FORMS Single System Multi-Player Pong, Mario Bros. , sport games, fighting games Same portion of the game world, both visible Can be problematic Split-screen New technology: same screen but different displays Advantages: much fun from interaction 8

THE FORMS Online Multi-Player Players invisible to each other Quake, Counter-Strike, Battlefield, Call of Duty, Ultima Online, Wo. W Extremely social experience Provides chat and voip 9

DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS Significantly different challenges in their design “Pause moments” Let players know how much time they will play “Hope” is important: Mario Kart example Customization Multi-player game designers have much less dictatorial control over players’ experiences 10

DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS Changing AI to real players may not be enough Take cue from multi-player non-computer games Cooperating creates a unique experience that cannot be replicated in a single-player game Protect newbies, they are vulnerable & valuable for long-term success Single player training Level limitation 11

CALL OF DUTY END-GAME SCOREBOARD 12

DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS People play to socialize Some games allow players to chat or talk with each other but some don’t Communication types Playing games with people that we already know VS people that we just met Every feature or mechanic you add to our multi-player game should be examined to determine how it impacts the players’ social experience Though not every feature needs to be a social one. 13

DEVELOPMENT ISSUES Development teams must decide: multi-player, single- player or both Play-testing and user feedback You never can anticipate what players will attempt to do Closed & open beta: sometimes not enough Patches Listening to community Monitor behaviors: Used most and used least 14

CONCLUSION The future of multi-player gaming looks bright Single-player games will probably continue to be more popular because the players can start and stop whenever they want Multi-player games provide unique experiences 15

THANKS Thank you for listening, any questions? 16