How do you plan to deal with the
issue of new players arriving in the middle of a long game? Get rid of the
victory condition, or find a way to make sure that players are matched with
those of similar ability?
If
the game has different levels and the new players have to complete each level
to get to the other one, it is likely that the player has enough resources
and enough experience to interact with others in the game, in a way it is
like grade-school. A first grade elementary kid is more comfortable in
her/his own class.
2.
What will happen to the gameplay when a player vanishes?
How will it affect the other players’ experience of the game (what they see
and hear)? Does it disrupt the balance of the game? Will it make the
challenges easier or harder? Is the game even meaningful anymore?
It
depends on the way the game has designed for the players to interact with
each other. If they are competing or collaborating then that will have an
effect on them. The effect can mimic the real life. If a comrade dies in a
battle, then it is not only devastating in terms of resources but it also has
an emotional impact.
3.
What happens to the game’s score when
a player vanishes? Is the game still fair?
I
think there should be more than one measurement, so it depends how long it
takes to get the scores and how long they were present in the game. So if
someone was there for one hour and quit when they had 20 points, when they
are away, there are points that can be gathered but they missed out on it.
Maybe random bonuses that they will see what they missed when they log back
in. Just like real life.
4.
Does your game offer a player an advantage of some kind
for intentionally disconnecting himself (whether by preventing himself from
losing or by sealing his own victory)? Is there any way to minimize this
without penalizing players who are disconnected accidentally?
The
game can end, the period of time will elapse without stopping, if the player
is not there the victory conditions change, just like real life, if one
leaves a meeting they loose out on information that can help them, or if
someone does not go to a party, the next party is never the same, so in a non
repeating game, this problem will not exist.
5.
In a turn-based game, what mechanism will you use to
prevent a player from stalling play for the other players? Set a time limit?
Allow simultaneous turns? Implement a reasonable default if the player does
nothing?
Depending
on the situation, one can use a random system, such as rolling a dice to
determine whose turn it is, or the turn times out if the player takes no
action. If the game requires cooperation the turn idea is obsolete, otherwise
the time limit is a good way to alleviate the stalling.
6.
If you offer a chat mechanism, what features will you
implement to keep it civil? Filters? A complaint system? An ignore system? Or
will your game require moderated chat spaces?
The
computer can be programed to substitute the offensive word with another word.
(However this might affect people’s freedom of speech, and be morally
questionable) However one can be rated as offensive person, so just like
reviews for bookstores, each person can have points in different categories
that represent their character and the other people can use filters to decide
if they want to talk to certain players that have certain characteristics
7.
Is your game designed to prevent (or alleviate) collusion?
Because you can’t prevent players from talking to each other on the phone as
they play, how will you address this? Or can you design your game in such a
way that collusion is part of the gameplay, as in Diplomacy?
Calculating
for collusion as if it was in a Diplomacy game is an interesting solution,
however it will put the other players at a disadvantage and encourage
collusion.
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