POWER-UP NOMENCLATURE PART 2: PERSISTENCE AND
SUPPLY
François Dominic Laramée
(Missed Part 1? Click here)
Last month, we discussed one of the properties of power-ups, namely the
level of active engagement required on the part of the player to exploit
them to the fullest. We examined the consequences of focusing on passive,
active and middle-of-the-road (i.e., equippable) power-ups on gameplay
styles and audiences. This month, we extend the picture by adding the
Permanence/Immediacy axis. Next time, we will complete the series by
studying the Scarcity/Omnipresence axis and by inserting a handful of
examples into the proper slots on the grid.
Second Axis: Permanence / Immediacy
The timing of a power-up's activation, and the length of time during
which it affects gameplay once triggered, define another useful axis of
analysis. This time, we will define four positions along the axis, for
permanent, immediate, temporary, and delayed-action power-ups.
Permanent
A permanent power-up is activated as soon as the player
earns it, and remains in effect until the end of the game (or sometimes,
until the death of the character). Typical examples include hit points, a
secret character to unlock, higher mana levels, access to an upgraded ship
design, and new moves like the ability to swim underwater in Spyro 2:
Ripto's Rage.
Permanence is not to be confused with unlimited supplies: in the
Diablo series, a wizard's intrinsic maximum mana (irrespective of
temporary enhancements due to magic items) is a permanent characteristic
that only changes when the character gains levels, but the actual mana
available at any given time is limited, and the rate at which this supply
is replenished once depleted is most definitely not infinite.
Of all the categories of power-ups along this axis, the permanent type
can best afford a learning curve. Permanence removes the risk of "wasting"
a valuable resource, so players can experiment freely: once Spyro learns
how to swim, you can fiddle around with the controls a little without fear
that he will suddenly "unlearn" if you swim for too long and exhaust his
store of swimming knowledge.
Many shrewd designers will complement the learning curve with an
implicit "utility curve" for the power. Initially, a newly acquired power
will be put to the test in simple challenges. Then, as the player learns
to master it, the tasks will grow in complexity. Once the power has become
second nature, the game will slowly phase it out in favor of the next
element of novelty. Finally, even later, a surprising combination of
several well-known (and in some cases, almost forgotten) powers can be
brought back to solve a major challenge in ways that create resonance
within the game.
Permanence is also a useful characteristic in the power-ups granted to
players in casual games: since there is no sense of urgency involved, a
permanent power-up is a natural fit for the slower paces typical of this
type of entertainment.
Immediate
An immediate power-up is triggered as soon as it is
acquired, generates an instantaneous effect, and goes away just as
abruptly. The quintessential example is the "super-bomb" that blows up
every enemy and obstacle on screen as soon as the character activates a
lever: the effect is spectacular, but once the bomb is gone, it doesn't
come back. The various contraptions that are provided to the player as
tools to solve levels in The Incredible Machine are a subtler case,
but one that is equally valid: you can't carry them from one level to the
other, and no matter how long you take to plan your solution, it is out of
your control the very moment you click on the Test button.
Immediate power-ups are highly tactical in nature. As a player, your
job is to figure out how (and when) to use them optimally in their current
environment. No long-term planning is involved, although precise timing is
often crucial to obtain optimal benefits. As a result, the immediate
power-up is an effective tool in arcade settings, although the
aforementioned The Incredible Machine applies it to puzzle solving
in striking fashion.
Temporary
A temporary power-up has a finite life cycle. This duration
can be defined by time, as in the case of a five-second anti-gravity
burst; by uses, like super-powerful ammunition; or even by mutual
exclusion, when a character gains the ability to breathe fire as long as
he doesn't pick up another power-up that makes him fly through solid walls
instead.
Temporary power-ups make for effective time-based tasks and puzzles. If
a switch opens a gate for 6 seconds, or a magic floor tile makes the
player invisible for one minute, then calibrating challenges becomes a
relatively simple matter of placing power-ups, goals and obstacles at
appropriate distances from each other within the level. Temporary
power-ups also provide perfect set-ups for mini-games: a hero who gains
the ability to fly for a short time can engage in aerial acrobatics for
the purposes of a Quidditch game – but the level designer in charge of the
next stage of the game doesn't have to account for the fact that the
player might fly over his obstacles, because he will have lost that
ability by the time he gets there.
However, when using temporary power-ups, great care must be taken to
ensure that the power-up respawns quickly enough to support
experimentation. In Spyro 2, if you fail to accomplish a task
before your power-up runs out, you can simply walk through the gate
granting the power once again and re-try. Solving a challenge may require
multiple tries, but at least it never becomes impossible, and you never
have to wait for the gate to recharge either.
Delayed
A delayed power-up is a variant of the temporary class that
can be picked up by the player, carried for a while, and activated only
when needed. Examples include most inventory items in role-playing games,
weapons in shooters, and protection spells.
The obvious advantage of a delayed power-up is that it allows strategic
thinking. If you have demolition charges left over at the end of Level 5,
you might be able to find something nice to do with them in Level 6. Some
of the ideas you come up with may even be completely unforeseen by the
designer: jumping on a demolition charge while wearing boots of
invulnerability may trigger an explosion, and the recoil can propel you
over (or through) the super-heavy monster guarding access to the treasure.
From the player's perspective, such freedom of action is tremendously
rewarding. From the designer's perspective, however, it demands extreme
levels of skill: the presence of delayed power-ups requires that most
solutions to most problems be foreseen, so that the challenges can be
designed in such a way that many styles of gameplay are supported and
provide roughly equal benefits over the course of the entire game.
Conclusion
Time is a versatile tool in the arsenal of the game developer. By
giving players access to permanent improvements, we allow them to think
strategically and learn at their own pace. By focusing on short-term
power-ups instead, we can put the emphasis on quick-thinking and tactical
experimentation. Finally, by letting players choose the timing of their
own empowerment, we provide opportunities for almost unbounded creativity
– at the cost of a significantly more difficult design effort.
Next issue, we will complete the series by looking at the third and
final axis on our grid and by positioning a handful of examples into it.
