1.
I WANT TO GO TO THERE
Motivating Players in Open Games
Joel Burgess, Senior Designer
Bethesda Game Studios

2.
Simple Question
How do you go about making
levels for open-world games?

3.
Single Player Multiplayer
Level Design

4.
Welcome to My Sandbox
WHAT ARE OPEN GAMES?

5.
Define
“Open”

6.
Player Agency

7.
Why Are We Fascinated?
Why Are Open
Games Important?

8.
Tandem Authorship

9.
The Unpredictable Player
• Trained to Defy Direction
• Will always confound you
• Not, actually, a jerk.

10.
Player-Designer Contract
• The Player is in Control

11.
Player-Designer Contract
• The Player is in Control
• Stay Backstage

12.
Player-Designer Contract
• The Player is in Control
• Stay Backstage
• Fulfill Expectations

13.
Player-Designer Contract
• The Player is in Control
• Stay Backstage
• Fulfill Expectations
• Player Story > Designer Story

14.
Enabling Player Participation
CREATING THE FRAMEWORK

15.
Setting Up For Fun

16.
Environmental Techniques

17.
Distant Landmarks

18.
Nearby Landmarks

19.
Point Lookout Video Introduction

20.
Motion in Environment

21.
Prior Knowledge
•Roads
•Bridges
•Signposts
•Distant Smoke
•Flowing Water
•Lit Windows/Fires
•Tracks of Vehicles/Creatures

22.
Don’t Forget Audio

23.
Yo dawg, I heard you like goals.
WHAT’S OUR GOAL? IT’S GOALS.

24.
Goals & Player Motivation
• Aim for the player to always have a goal
• Know what goal types your game permits

25.
Goal Types
• Explicit Goals
• Player Determined Goals
• Emergent Goals
• Goals of Opportunity
• Out-of-Game Goals

26.
Components of a Goal
• Perceived Risk/Reward
• Commitment
• Inherent Interest

27.
Are We Powerless?
• No!
Provide Interesting Goals For the Widest
Possible Range of Player Interests

28.
Knowing is Half the Battle
DESIGNING FOR FREEDOM

29.
Deliberate Distraction
Entertainment
Time

30.
Deliberate Distraction

31.
Deliberate Distraction
Entertainment
Time

32.
Dealing With Empty Area
“Just for Looks”

33.
The Iconic Rope Bridge

34.
Handling for Open Games

35.
Consolation
Loot

36.
Considerations for Big Worlds
LARGE-SCALE MOTIVATION

37.
Same Problem, New Scope
POI Density

38.
POI Density
• POI Options
• Time per POI
• Your Desired POI Density
• Vertical “Chunk” Estimate
• Extrapolate Against Time in Schedule

39.
Fallout 3 Examples
Adding and Cutting
(even when it hurt)

40.
Fallout 3 Example: DC Neighborhoods

41.
Thanks For Listening
email joel@joelburgess.com
twitter @joelburgess
facebook “level design in a day” group