Conclusions and what to do next

Looking back on my initial goal of finding indirect control methods for inexperienced players; I feel that the goal was a little short-sighted. What I was actually seeing was not different people having different behaviour based on experience, but different behaviour based on personality, with decisions being made based on their individual playing style and what they personally found interesting.

I think the idea of having different players led to different challenges and experiences through level design still has merit, except instead of basing what a player could arrive at on experience, it will be based on personality. I still think that players who were going to important looking areas last were doing so in order to ‘game’ the environment, looking for advantages. and players who went to important areas first weren’t either concerned or interested in finding game like experiences.

So perhaps we can use this idea to create an exploration based game, where players walk around a 3d environment, and players who just want to look around can be led on a sightseeing tour, but those who want a more game like experience, with action, danger and puzzles, can be led to areas that will give them that.

This would take a lot of work, as it would essentially mean that I would need to make twice the content. However, I believe I could offset this by using a simplistic art style inspired by the research.

Throughout it, I saw many environmental stimuli and aesthetics that I don’t believe have an effect on player behaviour, despite that they would of if the player was placed in the same situation in real life. Things such as: materials, being in a large open area, dangerous looking passage ways, oppressive looking architecture, camera views being shook about and using an emotionally inspired aesthetic.

If these things don’t have an effect on behaviour, then for this game maybe an art style could be developed that doesn’t include them. Essentially, a bare bones representation of a world that, while being aesthetically pleasing, only gives players the necessary information they need in order to make decisions on where they want to go.

This art style would end up being low detail, simply because it would be the only amount required.