Emergent gameplay paper

just stumbled on this Game Developers Conference presentation that discusses how to create emergent gameplay in a game. Written by some of the fellows who are working on Thief 3 and Deus Ex: Invisible War.

http://www.ionstorm.com/gdc2004/

(The Harvey and Randy Smith paper)

There is a power point viewer download at that site, if you don’t have one.

[Edit]

Some thoughts on this paper. The basic presented idea is to link together little game mechanics, so the player can invent cool new strategies. I can see a few immediate examples from Iwar:

1. Cargo pods can be carried by player
2. Cargo pods can be undocked in mid flight
3. Objects in motion remain in motion….
4. Items can be destroyed by collision
5. Pods of antimatter explode.

None of these little rules explicitly creates a game of tossing antimatter pods at mega freighters, but together they make for a world of fun! If any of them were left out (say pods didn’t coast) then you couldn’t do it.

Another is hunting cargo ships by piling cargo pods in front of Lpoints. A strategy that comes from interactions the same simple rules above.

Another is sitting behind the lpoint and blasting the unshielded tails of ships as they fly in. They cannot see you right away, they have forward speed, they do not turn.

Using freighters as giant battering rams – via REM link, is another emergent gameplay idea.

Someone reported killing a cruiser by getting it to fire on a station (and letting the station take it out with reactive fire).

Any thoughts on other “mechanics” that would make interesting emergent game play in EoC?

Having those tanker ships explode? (using them to take out stations, or damage ships needing refule).

REM hacking cargo pods and stealing them as they emerge from the station? Driving cargo pods around?

Shooting ships causes them to signal for distress. Distress causes ship to leave station. Unguarded station is open to attack.

-Gtrout