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How Games Get Balanced | Game Maker's Toolkit
🕑 Added 2019-04-10 13:05:28 +0000 UTCHello!
I've been wanting to make a video about balancing multiplayer games for a while. I think this is a really interesting topic, and yet there's not much information out there. Especially on YouTube - there's a few design-y videos, but nothing that explains the nuts-and-bolts of balance.
If you're immersed in the multiplayer scene this might be a bit basic, but I hope it will prove interesting to those who are less experienced. I know that I learned a lot about balance while making this video, which is always a good sign.
I want to apologise for how long this one took.
I had a lot of trouble with it, because the topic is just so darn complicated. There's a million rabbit holes you can jump down, like more stuff on shifting metas, or more stuff on how counters work with react-ability. So finding the right focus was tough.
I also struggled with the question of whether this is too simple and surface level: but ultimately decided that everyone's experience level is different and I reckon there will be many people who will find this valuable.
Oh and also I went on holiday with my girlfriend - and prepared that surprise engagement party!
Anyway. Happy to finally have this done. And now looking forward to the next one. I've been chatting with the dude who made Baba is You, and might have something on that game. But got some other ideas to explore, too. Even after a really difficult video, I'm excited about the next one. That's the sign of loving what you do ;)
Mark
Comments
Rodrigo Rojas-Ferrer
When I was getting my Masters in game design, we had to do an assignment about game balance, where we supported out hypothesis about a game’s balance or imbalance by using mathematical models. I was the only one that focused on a single player game (Pokemon ORAS) where I sought to show that the game indeed had “too much water”. What I found interesting was how the imbalance didn’t make the game any easier or harder, but greatly decreased the viable options for Pokemon you could use throughout the story. So, as you said, balance is also psychological since it can alter a player’s enjoyment regardless of difficulty; or, it can make certain design decisions moot since players will avoid or never consider certain decisions. Great video, by the way!
Game Maker's Toolkit
Yeah, balance is a subject that impacts single player too. Especially things like "how do you stop the player using the same tactic over and over". So it's a topic I'll come back to, for sure
Dragonnox
Would be interesting to see a video on the same idea but for singleplayer games too, how do you keep a game rewarding but still challenging as the player gets better? Ramp up the difficulty, or change the level of the enemy in an RPG like Octopath Traveller or Skyrim, etc. There must be a fine balance needed there too, and other ideas that do the same thing while still making the player feel rewarded for overcoming the challenge.
