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What makes games fun?

Posted by Xeptic - February 17th, 2010


I've been discussing this question with a couple of people lately and the answer usually boils down to something like: Rewarding players for their actions. As in, the more you play, the bigger the reward (more XP, more gold, unlocking content, etc.), so there's something to 'work' towards.

What makes games fun to play for you?


Comments

A challenge. Something that you can feel proud of once you've completed it. Interesting/new concepts can also be fun because they are something new, something you've not seen before.

Working towards the reward should indeed be a fun challenge for the player, feeling proud of your accomplishment is a reward in its own I suppose. Innovative concepts is something I haven't thought of, but it's certainly true. Problem is if the fun will last once the innovativeness wars off *cough*Wii*cough*.

What Godliest said but the chalenge isnt impossible or just to piss the player off. Something that can have a balance of entertainment andchalenge. Personally i like the stradegy in some too. Like small puzzels. And a game where how long you take doesnt matter.

Rightyo, so challenges are okay, but they shouldn't be too hard. Which is tricky, because when they're too easy you won't feel very proud when you've completed them.

a game that you can replay over again after completing the story, it has to be challenging, it has to have a good story, and it has to hev likeable AND dislikable characters. Also leveling up a character, upgrading weapons, lots of places to explore that you can visit over and over, what you do to certain characters effects the gameplay. etc etc etc.

Those are all good points, but they don't really apply to all genres of games I think. A good story for example, I like a good story as well, but a game like Toss the Turtle is pretty great without any form of story at all.

thats exactly what your friends said; upgrade, more xp, more gold, but, the ideal game is this and Something more...
want some examples?
<a href="http://artlogicgames.com/paper-war/">http://artlogicgames.com/paper-war/</a> - in this one, you have an pencil attack- you attack with colors, while constructing towers to improve your defense
<a href="http://artlogicgames.com/epic-war-3/">http://artlogicgames.com/epic-war-3/</a> - in this one, the creatures card system is totally inovating, you can even upgrade them while level up your hero and upgrade your magics...
if you liked my tips... can you do me a favor?
let me stay tuned in updates in new games you are doing, i would like that a lot

(sorry for the bad english, you know, im not from USA)

K, so besides challenges you need something unique-ish that sets your game apart from the others. You're now on my 'send pm to these people when game is finished'-list

none-stop swift juggernaut momentum

That's actually a pretty good things to put on a game's features-list. Right next to giant enemy crabs and real-time weapon changing.

I think fun goes deeper then just rewards or a challenge. There is no real reward in reading a book or watching a movie, but people find those enjoyable too. I don't think we can really put a pinpoint on why we find games fun, but rather what people want to see in games.

But I really just like something new. A new gameplay mechanic, a fresh story, or something of the sort.

I don't think there's some sort of holy grail that will make your game kick-ass either, else smarter people would've come up with that by now. It is interesting to see how everyone thinks of something else though. Either different people like different things, or whatever makes games fun is indeed hard to pinpoint.

I agree 100% !

I think great music,awesome explosions,strange looking clothes,huge n' beautiful worlds to explore,many hours to play,lots of weapons,TONZ OF UPGRADES,online multiplayer,a sequel,outstanding looking graphix,a good voice casting,nice looking box art and availability on ALL game consoles are what make a good game !

That's quite the list you got there.

Kleine piemels? is dat het helemaal in Holland?
De ouw Grieken herleven! in Rotterdam!

btw Ik hoop dat het geen point and click game wordt want ik heb parkinson en zou steeds de ballen aanklikken.

Hehe, denk eens aan de extra dimensie die je kunt toevoegen met een WiiMote!

...The more things you can do on a game, the better the game is.
freedom of movement, strange things, strange places where you get RARE items or something.
Unlockables are interesting points for this too.. but I think it would more apply to the music, graphics and strange things that would make players usually go into curiosity.

Also.. the simpliest games rule. See.. Tetris, or mario bros..
that's because you can do some stuff you can't normally do on other games.
and also they're challenging..

So.. Challenging games, interesting games where you Discover new Awesome stuff, music, graphics, and unlockables...and/or simple games... mostly I guess..

the more the sand-box the game looks like, the cooler.. if you know what I mean.. (you can practically do whatever the hell you want)

P.S. Shht! DETAILING is the most important thing on games!
for exapmle: if you play a bloody game, you want to see Heads exploding, their bones braking out of the bodies... etc.
if you play a shooting game, you would like those unique features.. like slow motion, or hide-and shoot option..

Why are you asking, are you going to make a game or something?

All good points. So what you're saying is that you should have plenty of freedom to experiment with the gameplay, while keeping everything simple. Makes sense :)

I am making a game at the moment, but I'm just asking out of interest.

Wel onthouden 98-99-100 andere hand...
anders krijgt ge 1 dikke en 1 dunne arm ;-)

Ahh.. I see.. Well, it's the best question I've ever seen in my life, so let you know I'm already became a big fan of your interrogations, let me know if you ask anything else THAT interesting again :O xD
would love to see the game if you're uploading it to newgrounds...
or is it a comercial game?

lol, will do. I'm going to submit it to NG eventually. It won't be anything too special though. Trying to have a go at a different genre

Or just use the arcade version of 'CONTRA' as an example of a great game !