作者：Ernest Adams

50年以前，William Higinbotham用一個示波器和一些模擬電路制作了第一款電子游戲。雖然自那以后，游戲已經發生了翻天覆地的變化，但今天的AAA游戲大作的成功也部分歸功于數年以前就存在的設計創新。在本文中，我將羅列我認為特別重要的50個設計創新（或某天會被證明是特別重要的）。其中有許多其實是老式游戲玩法的增強功能；運動、駕駛和射擊可以回溯到游樂場游戲和投幣電動玩具。游戲類型如回合制策略、邏輯益智和RPG，可以在桌面游戲上找到原型。我們用各種方式改進了這些古老的游戲，特別是電腦的出現，我們得以創造出在其他媒體上無法實現的新游戲類型。

不幸的是，設計創新的真正主人往往被世人所遺忘，而讓后來的成功游戲占了便宜。例如，很多人記得Pong設計了《Magnavox Odyssey》，而不是非電腦版的設計者Ralph Baer，即使先出現的是Baer的作品。為了修正這種傾向，我將一并列出創新的原始構思者（如果找得到的話）和該創新最知名的早期案例。我不保證我羅列的信息完全正確，歡迎指正。

玩法創新

我指的玩法創新是游戲帶給玩家的挑戰和玩家應對挑戰可能做出的行為。絕大多數這些行為是很明顯的：跳躍、轉向、打斗、建造、交易等等。但有些挑戰和行為顯然大大豐富了玩法的藝術，為我們提供了新的游戲方式。

1、探索

hunt the wumpus(from news.bigdownload.com)

最早的電腦游戲沒有探索玩法。許多是模擬某個地方或讓玩家通過很普通的空間（如《Hunt the Wumpus》，1972年）。我們從桌面角色扮演游戲借鑒了探索元素，并改良成現在的探索模式，如《生化奇兵》。在真正的探索玩法中，玩家進入陌生領域時會不斷產生新鮮感，并根據環境線索做選擇。這是一種不同于戰斗的挑戰，比較吸引喜歡探索地圖的玩家。首次使用的大概是：《Colossal Cave》（也叫作《Adventure》），1975年。

2、故事講述

這個話題引發的激烈爭論比電子游戲的其他任何設計特征都多。游戲應該講述故事嗎？如果應該，那么怎么做？故事講述意義是什么？有可能做得好嗎？底線是：并非所有游戲都需要故事。但是，如果沒有故事，游戲就只是一個抽象的概念——可能會吸引玩家，但并不總是那么吸引玩家。我們通常認為第一個運用這種元素的游戲應該是《Colossal Cave》，但這款游戲其實只提供沒有劇情的尋寶體驗。所以我認為第一款使用的應該是：《Akalabeth》（《創世紀》系列的始祖）或《Mystery House》，均發行于1980年。

3、潛行

大多數動作游戲都與武力有關。甚至當面對強大到不可戰勝的敵人時，你唯一的選擇就是一邊躲避他們的致命一擊，一邊與他們周旋或尋找他們的弱點。在潛行玩法中，玩家的思路是絕對不要讓敵人發現你的存在，這是一種完全不同于Rambo式的大亂斗的方法。在使用這個元素的早期游戲中，最著名就是：《神偷：黑暗計劃》，1998年。最早使用：未知。

4、有個性的玩家角色

如果你沒有玩過早期的游戲，你可能會很吃驚這怎么算是玩法創新。第一款冒險游戲和大多數其他電腦游戲，事實上都讓玩家本人作為游戲世界的主角——沒有玩家的代言人，只有玩家自己。因此，游戲不必假設玩家的年齡、性別、社會地位或其他任何身份信息——這意味著NPC與玩家角色的互動總是相當乏味單調的。早期的電子游戲也大多以交通工具為玩家角色（如《Asteroids》、《Space Invaders》）或完全沒有玩家角色（《Pong》、《Night Driver》）。具有獨立個性的玩家角色要求玩家鑒定一些不同于你自己的人，但他們極大地增加了游戲的戲劇性可能。最知名的早期案例是：《吃豆人》，發行于1980年（如果你認為他也算有個性的話，或者《大金剛》中的馬里奧，發行于1981年）。最早使用的可能是：投幣游戲《Midway’s Gun Fight》，1975年。

5、領導

在大多數陣營類RPG游戲和射擊游戲如《Ghost Recon》中，你可以單獨控制任何角色，但那其實不算領導。領導的真正挑戰是管理那些可能不會服從你的人，特別是當你不得不管理一支默認的團隊時，你不能選擇團隊成員。

你的團隊成員的強項和弱點決定了他們對你分配的任務的執行程度，所以判斷他們的個性和能力成為很關鍵的技能。一個經典的例子是發行于1999年的《King of Dragon Pass》，不過不太著名。最知名的早期案例是：《Close Combat》, 1996年。首次使用：未知。

6、外交

電腦游戲中的外交玩法并不新奇——首次發行于1959年的桌面游戲《Diplomacy》就是一個例子。電腦的大問題始終是制作可靠的電腦對手AI，但我們在這方面已經開始有進步了。與領導相比，外交更多地是判斷角色而不是計算命值。最著名的早期案例是：《文明》，1991年。首次使用的可能是：《Balance of Power》, 1986年。

7、修改

修改是一種玩法形式；是對原始游戲玩法的創新。最早的游戲不只是可以修改，而且是開放源代碼的，因為它們的源代碼就發表在雜志如《Creative Computing》上。當我們開始出售電腦游戲時，它們的代碼自然變成了商業機密。開放商業游戲的代碼是一個壯舉，因為拓展了游戲引擎的需求，這是將玩家限制在游戲原來的內容中所達不到的。最著名的早期案例是：《毀滅戰士》，1993年。允許修改代碼的第一款游戲也許是：《The Arcade Machine》, 1982年。這款游戲是街機游戲的搭建版。反對者可能會爭論搭建版游戲能不能算作可修改的游戲，但關鍵是，它們招募玩家制作內容的時間比Web 2.0或Web本身出現的時間還早。

8、智能NPC

在早期的2D回合制游戲《Chase》中，你會被困在一個圍著電絲網的籠子中，一些機器人企圖殺掉你。所有機器人都向你逼近。如果你躲到電絲網后面，他們就會繼續逼近直到被燒毀——十年前的NPC的智商大概就是這種程度。之后我們開始制作能看能聽并且受這兩種感覺約束的角色。我們還讓他們有基本的智能（以有限狀態機的形式），最后，他們甚至有了合作能力。目前，最復雜的NPC AI存在于運動類游戲中，運動員必須團結合作才能達到集體目標。我認為這應該是一種設計特征，因為它是設計師提出的要求、程序員想出的執行方法。首次使用：未知。

9、對話樹（腳本的）交談

早期游戲中的交談是相當低劣的。文字冒險游戲的解析器能執行命令（“將油炸圈餅給警察”），但對于普通的話語（游戲邦注：例如，“嘿，先生，你知道這附近有沒有人賣保佑通過牙科考試的護身符？”）就無能為力了。有了對話樹后，游戲讓玩家從寫好的臺詞中選擇，角色再作相應的回答。如是游戲允許，玩家可以選擇最貼近自己的意圖的臺詞。如果寫得好的話，腳本對話讀起來可能自然得像真實的交談，可能會很有趣、很生動甚至很感人。在《猴島》系列中，由一場搞笑的辱罵對話引發的戰斗正是這類玩法的范例。首次使用：未知。

10、多重玩法

對于桌面游戲，通常所有活動都發生在相同的面板上，如《大富翁》或《Risk》。電腦游戲（和桌面RPG）往往允許玩家在兩種模式之間切換，從高級策略到低級戰術。只有電腦可以讓你自由進出任何等級——如《Spore》顯然就是這樣的。你是錙銖必較的微觀管理者還是不拘小節的戰略專家？不同的游戲要求不同的處理辦法。最著名的早期案例：《Archon: The Light and the Dark》，1983年。首次使用：未知。

spore2(from sporegaming.ucoz.com)

11、迷你游戲

這就是大游戲中套小游戲，通常是可選擇的，但也有強制的。不同于多層次玩法，玩家對迷你游戲的感覺與對母游戲的非常不同。《瓦力歐制造》就是由多個迷你游戲組成的。迷你游戲往往會破壞玩家的沉浸感，但給玩家帶來不同于整個游戲的別樣挑戰。有時候，迷你游戲其實比整個游戲還好玩。首次使用：未知。

12、多重難度

設計師John Harris發現，老式游戲，特別是投幣游戲機的目的往往是衡量玩家的水平，而現代游戲的宗旨卻是給玩家提供良好的體驗而不管他的水平如何。老式游戲的觀點是，玩家是設計師的對手；而新式游戲：玩家是設計師的受眾。通過提供多重難度，游戲可以吸引更多受眾，這也包括殘障玩家。首次出現：未知。

13、可逆的時間

保存和重新載入是一回事，但有時候你真正需要的是像孩子那樣提出的無理要求，即“重來”的機會——允許你在不重新載入或返回原路的情況下改正錯誤。最知名的案例：《波斯王子：時之沙》，2003年。當你犯錯時，你可以將時間倒回之前的10秒。每次時光倒流都會消耗一定量的時之沙，目的是防止玩家重復使用這種能力。但玩家可以通過打敗敵人獲得新的時之沙。游戲還允許玩家看到未來，使解決即將到來的謎題變得更容易——這是另一個明高的創意。首次使用的可能是：《Blinx: The Time Sweeper》，2002年。玩家通過收集不同的水晶組合，就能獲得各種一次性的操作命令。

14、玩家角色組合

在具有這種有點兒古怪的玩法的動作或動作冒險游戲中，玩家可以操作兩個具有互補技能的不同角色。有時候，他們可以當作一個角色用，有時候玩家不得不選擇其中之一，或只能使用當中的某一個。這不同于《Sonic and Tails》中的兩個獨立的玩家角色。最早使用的可能是：《Banjo-Kazooie》, 1998年。

15、沙盒模式

這種模式是指玩家可以在游戲世界里閑蕩，不要求達到特定的目標。到目前為止，最著名的沙盒模式出現在后來的《俠盜獵車手》系列中，這對該游戲的成功貢獻巨大。沙盒模式一般是指存在于目標導向型游戲中的特殊模式，而不是像《SimCity》這種開放性游戲。在沙盒模式中，有時候會發生突發性行為，即在游戲中出現設計師未計劃或未預測到的事件。首次使用：未知。

16、物理益智題

許多模似真實世界的游戲包含物理現象，但通常是技能考驗。我們用電腦制作物理益智題，玩家利用模擬物品的物理屬性找到完成任務的辦法。這類題目與智力有關，與手眼配合無關。首次使用的可能是：《The Incredible Machine》, 1992年。

17、互動劇情

目前只有一款這類游戲，但總有一天，它的繼承者會改變世界。《Fa?ade》是一款第一人稱3D游戲，發行于2005年。在《Fa?ade》中，玩家扮演一對婚姻危機中的夫婦的一個朋友。一天晚上，玩家拜訪他們的寓所，通過輸入真正的英語句子與他們交談；他們則用錄制好的聲音回答。玩家說的話會不同程度地影響這對夫婦的關系——讓他們和解或離婚或甚至激怒他們。這才是真正的角色扮演：沒有屬性值、沒有戰斗、沒有寶藏，只有劇情上的互動——影響一對夫妻的婚姻走向。許多設計師認為出自《Star Trek: The Next Generation》的“整個小說”是互動劇情的圣杯；而《Fa?ade》在這類游戲的發展中實現了重大突破。

輸入創新

交互活動是游戲的本質，在電子游戲中，有些設備必須將玩家的意圖轉化成行動。我們的設備一直有按鈕、把手、操作桿、滑塊、觸發器、方向盤和踏板等。但最近，我們的輸入設備選擇爆發性地增多了，因為優秀的設計師在選擇要使用什么設備以前認真考慮了。

robotron 2084(from significant-bits.com)

18、獨立移動和獨立瞄準

早期的游戲限制玩家角色，只允許朝一個方向，也就他面向的方向射擊。《Asteroids》就是一個例子。將移動與瞄準分離，需要第二根控制桿，這就極大提高了對玩家的身體協調能力的要求，但同時使玩家和設計師都更自由了。首次出現的大概是：投幣游戲《Robotron: 2084》, 1982年。

19、點擊

鼠標改變了玩家與空間和空間中的物品的互動方式。盡管現在看來鼠標操作也落后了，但點擊操作使冒險游戲比老式的“猜詞”似的、以語法解析為基礎的系統更加容易上手。最著名的早期案例是：《Maniac Mansion》, 1987年；為它而設計的SCUMM引擎仍然被獨立開發者們使用著。首次使用的大概是：Macintosh版的《Enchanted Scepters》, 1984年。Mac是第一臺配置鼠標的個人電腦。

20、用鼠標+WASD按鍵操作3D第一人稱的行動

這種在3D空間中移動第一人稱玩家角色的方法實在太好了，除非我們的模擬現實裝置真正能用了，否則我們不會考慮其他操作方法。雙桿控制器在精度上不能與之相比。首次使用：未知。

21、語音識別（和其他話筒支持）

哪一個更有趣：叫喊“A，沖啊！”還是繞著A用鼠標畫一個方框，然后點擊出一個菜單標簽“向前沖”？答案再清楚不過了。沖著你的伙伴（或你的敵人）叫喊或唱歌是樂趣的一大來源。首次使用的可能是：《Echelon》（使用的是Commodore 64機器）, 1987年。

22、音樂的專用I/O設備（MIDI鍵盤不算）

部分技術，部分設計，I/O設備的進步已經改變了我們的游戲方式，特別是在音樂游戲。制作音樂和舞蹈需要制作大量身體活動，這些活動不容易轉換成操作桿和鍵盤操作。沙槌、康茄鼓、《吉他英雄》的控制器——都非常 有趣。首次使用的可能是：《勁舞革命》中的跳舞毯，1998年。

23、手勢界面

世界上的許多文明都認為手勢具有某種超自然的或象征性的力量，從天主教到印度的馬德拉舞再到佛教的肖像研究。魔法也往往與手勢有關——那是魔法杖的一部分。但大量電子游戲的魔法的問題是，點擊圖標和按鈕讓玩家覺得那更像技術而不是魔法。最近出現的手勢界面讓玩家以非語言、非技術的方式表達自己的意圖。最著名的案例：Wii操作器。最早使用的：《Black & White》, 2001年。

24、操作重組和其他易用性特征

當你習慣于某種操作器或按鍵組合時，你會希望所有同類游戲都采用相同的操作器或按鍵組合。現在的PC游戲一般允許玩家重置輸入設備上的命令，但這在主機上還不普遍。對于某些手部殘障的人來說，這是相當不方便的。

不幸的是，游戲開發商恢幾乎無視殘聯人士的需求——這一直是我們的恥辱。但我們最終有所覺悟了。關于這方面的創新還有：可調整的亮度和對比度；為色盲設計的調色板；可調節的游戲速度。游戲的易用性設計永遠不嫌多。

表現創意

提升玩家的視聽方面的創意很大程度上取決于技術進步，但我仍然認為這也是設計創意，畢竟設計師還可以選擇游戲使用或不使用這些表現創意。我認為屬性值和橫版2D屏幕不算創新，因為它們在投幣游戲機中早就存在了。

Populous 3(from game-over)

25、等角透視，有時也稱作“25度角”

電子游戲經過多年的側視和頂視時期后，終于迎來了等角透視。這種創新一出現就讓人感到驚訝。它為游戲創造了一種三維立體的感覺。這是第一次，玩家可以自然地同時看到頭頂和旁邊的物品，而不是通過憋腳的“作弊”器；玩家甚至可以繞到物品的另一面，如果設計師允許這種功能的話。最知名的早期案例是：《Populous》，1989年。可能最早使用的：《Zaxxon》投幣游戲機，1982年。

26、第一人稱視角

第一人稱視角直借用玩家的視角。比如，敵人拿槍指著你時，槍就是指著你的臉。但作為交換，你將看不到你的玩家角色，所以視覺生動的活動將損失沖擊力。第一人稱不是指真正的3D；早期的游戲并不允許完全的3D移動或向上向下傾斜。最著名的早期案例是：《Battlezone》投幣游戲機，1980年。可能最早使用的：NASA用Imlac小型電腦制作的《Maze Wars》，1973年。

27、第三人稱視角

從背面看玩家角色，視角越過玩家角色的肩部。視角跟著玩家角色移動。與第一人稱一樣，第三人稱也不一定需要真正的3D空間，但看起來像3D的。這個創新很重要，因為它允許玩家從一個自然的視角觀察游戲主角的所做所為，不像老式橫版和頂視角游戲。但代價是，玩家角色會擋住玩家的部分視線，在射擊游戲中會比較不方便。最著名的早期案例是：《古墓麗影》，1996年。最早使用的：未知。跟著交通工具移動的視角，如1982年出現的《Pole Position》，應該算是追蹤視角。

28、過場動畫

無論你喜不喜歡，過場動畫是游戲景觀的一部分。它們讓玩家在不同活動之間有一段休息時間，從不可游戲的視角欣賞游戲世界（往往更吸引人）。當然，游戲也可以在過場動畫中講述劇情。最著名的早期案例是：《Maniac Mansion》，1987年。最早使用的可能是：《吃豆人》，1979年。

29、真正的3D

我們經常使用偽3D視角，通常是因為我們的CPU性能不足以支持真正的3D。《毀滅戰士》就是一款偽3D運用得很好的游戲。3D并不總是有助于游戲玩法——想想《Lemmings》和《Lemmings》的3D版，但3D對游戲的影響是不可估量的。甚至手機游戲也開始使用3D加速器了。最知或的早期案例是：微軟的《Flight Simulator v1.0》，1982年。最早使用的可能是：《SPASIM》，1974年。這是一款以星際旅行為主題的多人主機游戲。

30、場景敏感型攝像機

第三人稱視角的進化版，場景敏感型攝像機會智能地跟隨行動而移動。這使得設計師得以使用電影攝影師的技術，采用每次移動的最佳視角。場景敏感型攝像機對冒險和慢節奏的動作冒險游戲非常適用。但是對于快節奏的游戲，玩家很可能因為突然的攝像機移動而迷失方向——為了迅速控制活動，你需要可預測的視角。最著名的案例是：《ICO》，2001年。首次使用：未知。提前渲染背景（如點擊類冒險游戲）和玩家控制視角（如《Gabriel Knight 3》）不是同一回事。

31、程序性場景生成

這種技術使設計師得以創造大量游戲空間而不必手動建立。如果是在運行中，甚至不需要儲存，這對早期的機器來說是非常重要的。最著名的早期案例：《Seven Cities of Gold》，1984年。可能最早使用的是：《River Raid》，1982年。

32、可交換的對話重放

這就是組合音頻片段以將不同的內容變成無縫連接的對話。我們在運動游戲中使用它創造可信的實況報道曲——不同的運動員的名字必須插到評論中。這種技術對創造逼真的電視直皤效果貢獻很大。最知名的早期案例是：《Hardball III》，1992年。最早使用的可能是: CD-i 播放機版的《3rd Degree》, 1992年。

33、自動變化的音樂

所有人都知道音樂對心情的影響極大。在電子游戲中，根據游戲事件改變音樂也是一種技巧，當然，音樂創作者不可能提前知道什么時候播放什么音樂。一個辦法是，只要根據要播放新的音樂，但如果做得不好，不同音樂的過渡可能會不和諧。另一個辦法是，分層混合音樂的諧調音部分，根據游戲的需要改變音量。最著名的早期案例是：《Wing Commander》，1990年。最早使用的可能是：《Way Out for the Atari 800》，1982年。

34、子彈時間

可調節的時間長期用于飛行模擬游戲，它的作用是允許玩家加速游戲世界的時間，以便更快打發無聊的時間。子彈時間是對可調節時間的革新。它在延緩時間的同時仍然允許玩家快速行動，玩家因此覺得自己不僅力量超強，而且速度也超快。最著名的早期案例是：《Max Payne》，2001。最早使用的可能是:《Requiem: Avenging Angel》，1999年。

35、應變環境

這是一個經典的游戲謬論：大爆炸摧毀了坦克，周圍建筑的墻壁和窗戶都完好無損。應變環境修正了這個問題，逼真地模擬世界的變化。這個功能給游戲的關卡設計帶來風險，因為玩家可能會進入設計師不希望你進入的地方；但這會讓游戲世界更逼真，玩家得以按自己的方式解決問題。最早使用的可能是：《Magic Carpet》，1994年。

36、特殊屬性的指示器

健康、速度、魔法、命數、子彈、燃料等都有標準的屏幕指示器：力量條、數字、計量表、循環的小圖像。許多是借用了現實世界的設備。但那些不太明顯的屬性怎么辦？經過多年的開發，我們已經設計了各種各樣的表現方式——不勝枚舉，所以我只能列舉我個人最喜歡的幾種：《神偷：黑暗計劃》中的表明玩家角色“易見性”的閃光燈；射擊游戲中，當玩家移動時，十字瞄準線越來越分離表明武器準確度下降；模糊屏幕，使操作失靈，表明玩家角色喝醉了或麻醉了。

類型創新

我們從其他游戲形式中借鑒了許多電子游戲類型，但在電腦和真正的設計出現以前，有些類型是不可能實現的。

37、模擬建造和經營

無論是樂高積木還是商業經營游戲都早于電腦的發明，但正是電腦游戲首次將這兩種概念融合為一體。最著名的早期案例：《SimCity》，1989年。最早使用的可能是: Mattel Intellivision的《Utopia》, 1982年。

simcity4(from deafgamers)

38、即時策略游戲

電腦的回合制戰爭游戲來源于經典的桌面游戲如《Avalon Hill》，并且許多都與桌面游戲類似。即時玩法的加入使策略游戲更加適合普通大眾，不過追隨者會抱怨RTS游戲用快速的鼠標點擊和資源管理取代了真正的策略。最著名的早期案例：《Ancient Art of War》，1984年。最早使用的可能是: ZX Spectrum的《Stonkers》, 1983年。

39、格斗游戲

除了現實世界中的運動和1960年的玩具機器人，我找不到其他早于電子游戲的格斗游戲。許多游戲都具有格斗元素，但真正的格斗游戲只有打架，沒有探索或益智題元素。格斗游戲與現實的武術相差太遠了（游戲邦注：添加了魔法值、幻想的武器和不現實的物理現象），所以本身就包含一些創新。格斗游戲衍生出許多亞類型，但保留了共通元素：徒手格斗，無遠程武器。最知名的早期案例是：《街頭霸王》, 1987年。最早使用的可能是：投幣游戲《Heavyweight Champ》, 1976年。

40、節奏、舞蹈和音樂游戲

時間挑戰與乒乓球運動一樣古老，但以節奏為基礎的游戲出現的時間并不早。關于音樂制作的游戲越來越流行了。這類游戲避免了不經大腦的重復暴力，因此非常吸引女性玩家。最著名的早期案例是：《PaRappa the Rapper》, 1996年。最早使用的可能是Sega 32X的《Tempo》, 1995年。（1984年出現的《Music Construction Set》不算游戲。）

41、虛擬寵物和人物

人們喜歡看到小動物活蹦亂跳，特別是如果你不會因為讓它們死掉而產生罪惡感（或者如果它們根本就不會死）。訓練、喂養和裝扮它們都很有趣。在包含虛擬寵物和人物的游戲中，《The Sims》一直是銷量最佳的PC游戲；任天狗則在任天堂DS游戲機上廣受歡迎。最早使用的可能是：《Little Computer People》, 1985年。最著名的早期案例是：《Dogz》, 1995年。

42、上帝游戲

這類游戲融合模擬建造和經營游戲、即時策略游戲和虛擬生物游戲于一體，還具有自身的一些特點。在上帝游戲中，玩家扮演一群人的上帝，職責就是（基本上是）幫助這群人發展壯大。游戲的核心特點是間接控制——玩家可以通過自己的行為影響那群人類崇拜者，但不可以直接對他們發號施令或賜予他們神力如改變地貌或引起自然災害。上帝游戲讓我們根據需要制造火山。可能最早使用的是：《Populous》，1989年。（游戲邦注：有些人認為1982年的《Utopia》是上帝游戲，但作者認為它是一款模擬建造和經營游戲，因為玩家的力量并不是真正的神力。另外，《文明》也不屬于上帝游戲。）

43、社交和約會游戲

我只能找到一款非電腦的約會游戲，即Milton Bradley于1965年推出的桌面游戲《Mystery Date》。電腦模擬約會游戲主要產自日本。許多這類游戲采用對話樹交談，也就是選擇說正確的話，以便培養更親密的關系。有些具有復雜的屬性系統，但不同于一般的RPG；這些屬性與角色的魅力有關，與打怪的能力無關。可能最早使用的是：《同級生》，1992年。

44、互動電影

這類型來了又去，終于消失了。這是一個改變世界的設計創新，因為它清楚地證明了它是一個創意的死胡同，所以再也沒有人制作互動電影了—-但是有時候仍然用這個詞形容其他游戲類型中的影片質量。作為反面教材，互動電影告訴我們，游戲玩法才是王道。CD-ROM驅動器第一次使互動電影成為可能，在它們的全盛期，銷量驚人……直到玩家觀看小顆粒的視頻的新鮮感消退。最著名的早期案例：《The 7th Guest》，1993年。最早使用的可能是：投幣游戲《Dragon’s Lair》, 1983年。

45、“少女游戲”（不是“婦女游戲”）

游戲業在發展早期完全無視少女玩家的存在。在90年代中期，曾一度流行制作針對少女的游戲，但基本上是營銷炒作，許多少女受那些放在粉紅包裝盒的劣質產品的欺騙。此后，這個想法又一定程度上復活，于是出現了以著名的人偶娃娃為原型的Bratz娃娃系列。少女游戲受到爭議是因為有些人認為滿足少女的購物幻想，并不比滿足少年的暴力幻想更有社會責任感。其他以少女為受眾的游戲并不典型，如《Nancy Drew adventure》。最著名的早期案例是：《Barbie Fashion Designer》, 1996年。最早使用的可能是：《Barbie》, 1991年。（盡管1980年的《吃豆人》和《Centipede》都在女性玩家中流行，但都不針對少女市場。而1982年的《Plundered Hearts》的受眾是婦女。）

玩法方式創新

即玩家玩游戲的不同方式，以及設計師如何促進這些方式。

leaderboard(from staztic)

46、高分榜

早期的街機游戲不包含這種元素。如果游戲是多人的，你擊敗你的好友了，但只有你和他知道這件事。高分榜的功能就是，將你的名字與得分一起顯示出來，直到有人擊敗你，把你擠出排行榜。這對競技型玩家來說，是相當誘人的挑戰。首次使用的是：《Asteroids》，1979年。

47、保存游戲

保存游戲一出現就引發了一場宗教戰爭。喜歡挑戰，喜歡難度，不想“留一手”的玩家是一個陣營；希望根據自己的時間安排停止或繼續游戲的人是另一個陣營。允許保存進度是好是壞，取決于你的觀點，但確實對玩家的操作風格有很大影響。執行保存功能的方法有很多，各有優缺點。我把關卡密鑰（對于沒有保存媒介的機器）和檢查點也歸入保存類。首次使用：未知。

48、聯網游戲

聯網游戲使玩家能夠成雙結隊地一起玩游戲。盡管這是游戲史上的一個突破，但存在一個最大的缺陷——很難配對，玩家必須先認識有調制解調器和相同版本游戲的其他玩家，然后才有可能玩到一起。事實上，聯網游戲早在個人電腦出現以前就存在了。最著名的早期案例：《RabbitJack’s Casino for Q-Link》（使用的是Commodore 64機器），1986年。最早使用的可能是: 《Maze Wars》（使用麻省理工學院的Imlac微型計算機）, 1974年。

49、多人模式的地下城

這種玩法將探索元素與多人模式合二為一。多人模式的地下城游戲是現在火暴的MMORPG的始祖。在韓國，幾乎人人都是這類游戲的愛好者。最早的版本沒有聯網，而是在一臺分時主機上玩。最早使用的：在艾塞克斯大學玩的《MUD》，1979年。

50、政黨游戲

我們知道多人游戲，但政黨游戲是另一回事。這類游戲提供真實的政黨背景，讓玩家們各自組成團體。在政黨游戲中，玩家不是深深地沉浸在幻想世界里，而是玩許多迷你游戲。最早使用的：《Mario Party》, 1998年。

以上就是我挑選出來的50個游戲創新，有些在過去就證明了其重要性，有些的重要性則有待時間的檢驗。至于它們的意義，不同人自然有不同的看法，也許有些人認為是必不可少的創新我卻沒有列出來。我期待進一步探討！

游戲邦注：原文發表于2007年11月1日，所涉事件及數據均以當時為準。（本文為游戲邦/gamerboom.com編譯，拒絕任何不保留版權的轉載，如需轉載請聯系：游戲邦）

50 GREATEST GAME DESIGN INNOVATIONS

by Edge Staff

From gameplay, to presentation to input devices, videogames are a hotbed of innovation. Ernest Adams notes 50 game design innovations, some that have already made their impact, and others that will shape the future of the medium…

Digg this article here.

Fifty years ago William Higinbotham built the first videogame with an oscilloscope and some analog circuitry. While games have changed enormously since then, even today’s AAA blockbusters owe some of their success to design innovations made years earlier. In this article I’m going to look at 50 design advances that I feel were especially important, or will prove to be some day. Many of them are actually enhancements to older forms of play; sports, driving, and shooting go back to fairground games and mechanical coin-ops. Other genres, such as turn-based strategy, logic puzzles, and RPGs, began life on the dining room table. We have improved these earlier games in many ways, and the computer has allowed us to create new genres that would be impossible in any other medium.

Unfortunately the true innovator of a design idea is often forgotten, while a particularly successful later game gets the credit. For example, more people remember Pong than remember Ralph Baer’s non-computerized design for the Magnavox Odyssey, even though Baer’s work came first. To correct this tendency, I’ll list both the original inventor of the idea (if I could find it) and the best-known early example of the innovation. I don’t promise to be right all the time; corrections are welcome.

Gameplay Innovations

By gameplay I mean the challenges that the game poses to the player, and the actions that the player may take to meet the challenges. The vast majority of these actions are obvious: jumping, steering, fighting, building, trading and so on. But some challenges and actions distinctly advanced the state of the art, and provided new ways for us to play.

1. Exploration.

The earliest computer games didn’t offer exploration. Many were simulations set in one location, or afforded movement only through trivial spaces (e.g. Hunt the Wumpus, 1972). We eventually borrowed exploration from tabletop role-playing and turned it into extravaganzas like BioShock. True exploration provides ongoing novelty as you enter unfamiliar areas, and lets you make choices based on clues in the environment. It’s a different sort of challenge from combat, and attracts players who enjoy being virtual tourists. Probable first use: Colossal Cave, aka Adventure, 1975.

2. Storytelling.

Storytelling is the subject of more acrimonious debate than any other design feature of videogames, even including the save-game issue. Should we do it or not, and if so, how? What does it mean? Is it even possible to do well? —and so on. Bottom line: not every game needs a story, but they’re here to stay. Without a story, a game is just an abstraction—which can be enough to engage the player, but isn’t always. First use is often attributed to Colossal Cave, but that was really a treasure-hunt without a plot. Possible first use: Akalabeth, precursor to the Ultima series, or Mystery House, both released in 1980.

3. Stealth.

Let’s face it, most action games are about force. Even when confronted with overwhelmingly powerful enemies, your only option is to avoid their killing shots while grinding away at them or searching for their vulnerable spots. In stealth play the idea is to never even let the enemies know you’re there, and it requires a completely different approach from the usual Rambo-style mayhem. Best-known early example: Thief: The Dark Project, 1998. First use: unknown.

4. Avatars with their own personalities.

If you weren’t around in the early days this one might surprise you. The first adventure games, and most other computer games too, described the world as if you, the player, were actually in the game—not a representation of you, but you. Consequently, the games could make no assumptions about your age, sex, social position, or anything else—which meant that NPC interactions with your avatar were always rather bland. The early video games, too, mostly displayed vehicles (Asteroids, Space Invaders) or no avatar at all (Pong, Night Driver). Avatars with independent personalities required you to identify with someone different from yourself, but they increased the dramatic possibilities in games enormously. Best-known early example: Pac-Man, 1980 (if you can call that a personality; otherwise, Jumpman, aka Mario, in Donkey Kong, 1981). Possible first use: Midway’s Gun Fight coin-op, 1975.

5. Leadership.

In most party-based RPGs and shooters like Ghost Recon, you can control any of the characters individually, but that’s not really leadership. The true challenge of leadership is delegating to others who might disobey you, especially when you have to take over an existing team without any choice about who’s in it. The strengths and weaknesses of your people determine how well they succeed at the tasks you give them, so judging their characters and abilities becomes a critical skill. A little-known but excellent example is King of Dragon Pass, 1999. Best-known early example:

Close Combat, 1996. First use: unknown.

6. Diplomacy.

Not new with computer games—the board game Diplomacy was first published in 1959. The big problem for computers has always been making credible AI for computer opponents, but we’re starting to get this right. As with leadership, diplomacy is more about judgment of character than counting hit points. Best-known early example: Civilization, 1991. Probable first use: Balance of Power, 1986.

7. Mod support.

Modding is a form of gameplay; it’s creative play with the meta-game. The earliest games weren’t just moddable, they were open-source, since their source code was printed in magazines like Creative Computing. When we began to sell computer games, their code naturally became a trade secret. Opening commercial games up to modding was a brilliant move, as it extended the demand for a game engine far beyond what it would have been if players were limited to the content that came in the box. Best-known early example: Doom, 1993. Probable first use: The Arcade Machine, 1982, which was a construction set for arcade-like games. Purists may debate whether construction set products count as moddable games, but the key point is that they enlisted the player to build content—long before “Web 2.0” or indeed the Web itself.

8. Smart NPCs with brains and senses.

In an early 2D turn-based game called Chase, you were trapped in a cage filled with electric fences and some robots trying to kill you. All the robots did was move towards you. If you could get behind an electric fence, they’d walk into it and fry—and that was the sum total of NPC intelligence for about ten years. Then we began to implement characters with vision and hearing and limits to both. We also gave them rudimentary brainpower in the form of finite state machines and, eventually, the ability to cooperate. Some of the most sophisticated NPC AI is now in sports games, where athletes have to work in concert to achieve a collective goal. I consider this a design feature, as it’s something designers asked for and programmers figured out how to implement. First use: unknown.

9. Dialog tree (scripted) conversations.

Early efforts to include interactive conversation in computer games were pretty dire. The parsers in text adventures were okay for commands (“GIVE DOUGHNUT TO COP”) but not for ordinary speech (“Hey, mister, do you know anybody around here who can sell me an Amulet of Improved Dentistry+5?”). With a dialog tree the game gives you a choice of pre-written lines to say, and the character

you’re talking to responds appropriately. If the game allows it, you can role-play a bit by choosing the lines that most closely match the attitude you want to express. Written well, scripted conversations read like natural dialog and can be funny, dramatic, and even moving. The hilarious insult-driven sword fights in the Monkey Island games are sterling examples of the form. First use: unknown.

10. Multi-level gameplay.

With a board game everything usually takes place on the same board, as in Monopoly or Risk. Computer games (and tabletop RPGs) often let you switch between two modes, from high-level strategy to low-level tactics. And only a computer can let you zoom in and out to any level you want—as Spore apparently will do. Are you a micromanager or a master of strategy who doesn’t sweat the small stuff? Different games demand different approaches. Best-known early example: Archon: The Light and the Dark, 1983. First use: unknown.

11. Mini-games.

A small game within a big game, usually optional, sometimes not. Not the same as multi-level gameplay; a mini-game feels very different from its parent. WarioWare consists of nothing but mini-games. Mini-games often destroy the player’s immersion, but offer a different set of challenges from those in the overall game. Sometimes the mini-game is actually better than the overall game. First use: unknown.

12. Multiple difficulty levels.

Designer John Harris has observed that older games, especially coin-ops, were intended to measure the player’s skill, while the newer approach is to provide the player with an experience regardless of his skill level. The old-fashioned school of thought is that the player is the designer’s opponent; the new school is that the player is your audience. By offering multiple difficulty levels, we make games available to larger audiences, which also includes handicapped players. First use: unknown.

13. Reversible time.

Saving and reloading is one thing, but sometimes what you really want is what as kids we used to call a “do-over”-a chance to correct an error without the hassle of a reload or going back a long

way in the game world. Best-known example: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, 2003. When you made a mistake, you could reverse time for ten seconds. To prevent you from using it continually, each usage costs you a certain amount of sand, which has to be replenished by defeating enemies. The game also let the player see into the future to help with upcoming puzzles, another clever innovation. Possible first use: Blinx: The Time Sweeper, 2002, in which collecting up crystals in various combinations gives the player a variety of one-shot time control commands.

14. Coupled avatars.

In this slightly oddball innovation, you play an action or action-adventure game using two quite different avatars with complementary abilities. Sometimes they work together as one; at other times you have to choose which to use, or are required to use one or the other. Not the same as two separate avatars like Sonic and Tails. Possible first use: Banjo-Kazooie, 1998.

15. Sandbox modes.

The term refers to a mode of play in which you can fool around in a game’s world without being required to meet a particular objective. By far the best-known sandbox modes are in the later Grand Theft Auto games, contributing greatly to their popularity. Sandbox mode is normally used to describe special modes within otherwise goal-oriented games, not open-ended games like SimCity. Sandbox modes also sometimes afford emergent behavior, events arising in a game’s world that were not planned or predicted by the designer. First use: unknown.

16. Physics puzzles.

Many real-world games involve physics, but they’re usually tests of skill. The computer lets us create physics puzzles, in which you try to figure out how to accomplish a task using the physical properties of simulated objects. They’re about brainpower, not hand-eye coordination. Possible first use: The Incredible Machine, 1992.

17. Interactive drama.

There’s only one of these, but someday its descendants will change the world. Fa?ade is a first-person 3D game released in 2005. In Fa?ade you play the friend of a couple whose marriage is in trouble. You visit their apartment for an evening and converse with them by typing real English sentences; they respond with recorded audio. Depending on what you say, you can influence their relationship—get them to reconcile, cause one or the other to leave, or even anger them so much that they throw you out. It’s role-playing in the real meaning of the term: no stats, no combat, no treasure, just dramatic interactions—with a couple’s future happiness at stake. Many designers consider the “holonovels” from Star Trek: The Next Generation to be the holy grail of interactive storytelling; Fa?ade is an important advance on the quest.

Input innovations

Interactivity is the essence of gaming, and in a videogame, some device has to translate the player’s intentions into action. We’ve always had buttons, knobs (aka spinners or paddles), joysticks, sliders, triggers, steering wheels and pedals. But recently our options for input devices have exploded, and a good designer gives careful thought to them before choosing an approach to use.

18. Independent movement and aiming.

Early games restricted the avatar to shooting in the direction that it was facing—as in Asteroids, for example. Separating movement from aiming requires a second joystick, which substantially increases the physical coordination required of the player, but offers more freedom for both player and designer. Probable first use: Robotron: 2084 coin-op, 1982.

19. Point-and-click.

The mouse changed the way players interact with spaces and the objects within them. Although now considered dated, point-and-click made adventure games much more accessible than the older “guess the verb” parser-based system. Best-known early example: Maniac Mansion, 1987; the SCUMM engine devised for it is still in use by independent developers. Probable first use: Enchanted Scepters for the Macintosh, 1984. The Mac was the first personal computer to routinely ship with a mouse.

20. Mouse+WASD keys for 3D first-person movement.

This is so much the best way to move a first-person avatar in a 3D space that, until we get virtual reality gear that really works, there is no reason to consider anything else. Dual-joystick setups on controllers can’t match it for precision. First use: unknown.

21. Speech recognition (and other microphone support).

Which is the more exciting: yelling “Company A, charge!” or drawing a box with your mouse around Company A, then clicking a menu item labeled CHARGE? I rest my case. And hollering at your buddies (or at your enemies)—or singing with them—can be a big part of the fun too. Probable first use: Echelon for Commodore 64, 1987.

22. Specialized I/O devices for music (not counting MIDI keyboards).

Part technology, part design, advancements in I/O devices have changed the way we play, especially in musical games. Making music and dancing to it is an intensely physical activity that doesn’t easily translate to joysticks and typewriter keyboards. Maracas, conga drums, the Guitar Hero controller—all great fun. Possible first use: dance mats in Dance Dance Revolution, 1998.

23. Gestural interfaces.

Many cultures imbue gestures with supernatural or symbolic power, from Catholics crossing themselves to the mudras of Hindu and Buddhist iconography. Magic is often invoked with gestures, too—that’s part of what magic wands are for. The problem with a lot of videogame magic is that clicking icons and pushing buttons feels more technical than magical. The gestural interface is a comparatively recent invention that gives us a non-verbal, non-technical way to express ourselves. Best-known example: Wii controller. Probable first use: Black & White, 2001.

24. Reconfigurable controls and other accessibility features.

When you get used to a certain controller or keyboard setup, you want to be able to use it in every analogous game. PC games now routinely allow players to remap the commands on their input devices, but this is not yet as common as it should be on console machines. For people with hand problems it can be vital. Unfortunately, game developers have almost completely ignored the needs of the handicapped—to our lasting shame. We’re finally starting to get a clue. Among the other useful innovations here are: subtitles for the hearing-impaired; separate volume controls for music and sound effects; adjustable brightness and contrast controls; alternative color palettes to help the color-blind; settable game speed. The slogan of accessible game design is there’s no such thing as “too slow.”

Presentational innovations

Innovations in what the player sees and hears may depend heavily on technological advances, but I still consider them design innovations as well, features the designer can choose to use in their game—or not. I take static and scrolling 2D screens for granted; they already existed in mechanical coin-ops.

25. Isometric perspective, also sometimes called “three-quarters perspective.”

After years of side-view or top-view videogames, the isometric perspective provoked gasps of astonishment when it first appeared. It created a sense of three-dimensionality that had been sorely lacking from games to that point. For the first time, players could see both the tops and the sides of objects in a natural way, rather than through awkward “cheated” sprites, and could even move around objects to see them from the other side, if the designer had provided that feature. Best-known early example: Populous, 1989. Probable first use: Zaxxon coin-op, 1982.

26. First person perspective.

First person lends immediacy like no other point of view. When an enemy points a gun at you, it’s really at you—right in your face. The big tradeoff is that you don’t get to see your avatar, so visually dramatic activities such as traversing hand-over-hand along a telephone wire lose their impact. First person doesn’t have to mean true 3D; the earliest examples didn’t allow fully 3D movement or tilting up and down. Best-known early example: Battlezone coin-op, 1980. Probable first use: Maze Wars, developed at NASA on the Imlac minicomputer, 1973.

27. Third person perspective.

Controlling your avatar as seen from behind, looking over its shoulder. The camera follows wherever the avatar goes. Like first person, third person doesn’t necessarily require a true 3D space, but it has to seem like one. This innovation was important because it allowed you to watch a heroic character doing his stuff from a natural viewpoint, unlike the older side-scrolling and top-scrolling perspectives. The tradeoff is that the avatar obscures your view of part of the world, which can be awkward in shooting games. Best-known early example: Tomb Raider, 1996. First use: unknown. Viewpoints that follow vehicles as in Pole Position, 1982, are more properly defined as chase views.

28. Cut scenes.

Love ’em or hate ’em, they’re part of the gaming landscape. They give players a rest between periods of activity, allow them to see the game world from a viewpoint that doesn’t have to be playable (and is often more attractive), and of course can tell a story. Best-known early example: Maniac Mansion, 1987. Probable first use: Pac-Man, 1979.

29. True 3D.

We used to fake 3D viewpoints a lot, usually because we didn’t have the CPU power to provide the real thing. Doom was a very clever fake. 3D doesn’t always improve gameplay—consider Lemmings versus Lemmings 3D—but its impact on gaming is incalculable. Even mobile phones are starting to get 3D accelerators. Best-known early example: Microsoft Flight Simulator v1.0, 1982. Probable first use in a game: SPASIM, a Star Trek-themed multiplayer mainframe game, 1974. These were possible only because of the extremely limited number of objects in the landscape.

30. Context-sensitive camera.

A natural advancement on the third person perspective, a context-sensitive camera moves intelligently to follow the action. This enables the designer to use a cinematographer’s skills to present the game from the best angle at every moment. Context-sensitive cameras are excellent for adventure and slower-paced action-adventure games. In fast games, however, there’s a risk that sudden camera movements will be disorienting—to control events at speed, you need a predictable viewpoint. Best-known example: ICO, 2001. First use: unknown. Pre-rendered backdrops (as in point-and-click adventures) and player-controlled cameras (as in Gabriel Knight 3) aren’t the same thing.

31. Procedural landscape generation.

This technique enables designers to create large play spaces without having to build them by hand. If it’s done on the fly, they don’t even have to store them, which was important in the early machines. Best-known early example: Seven Cities of Gold, 1984. Probable first use: River Raid, 1982.

32. Interchangeable dialog playback (aka “stitching”).

This is the practice of assembling audio clips together to produce seamless dialog with varying content. We use it to create credible play-by-play in sports games, where the names of different athletes have to be inserted into the commentary. It has done a lot to create a truly television-like experience. Best-known early example: Hardball III, 1992. Probable first use: 3rd Degree for the CD-i player, 1992.

33. Adaptive music.

Everyone recognizes the power of music to create a mood. In videogames, the trick is to change the music in response to game events, and of course the composer can’t know in advance when they might occur. One approach is simply to play a new track on demand, but the transition can be jarring if not done well. Another approach is layering—mixing harmonizing pieces of music together and changing their volumes in response to the needs of the game. Best-known early example: Wing Commander, 1990. Possible first use: Way Out for the Atari 800, 1982.

34. Bullet time.

Adjustable time has long been standard in flight simulators; it lets you speed up game-world time in order to get through dull periods quickly. Bullet time is a later innovation. It slows time down while still letting you act quickly, so it creates a feeling of super-speed to go with the more common game sensations of super-strength or super-toughness. Best-known early example: Max Payne, 2001. Possible first use: Requiem: Avenging Angel, 1999.

35. Deformable environments.

Here’s a classic game absurdity: a huge explosion destroys a tank, but does nothing to the walls and windows nearby. Deformable environments correct this and let you literally change the world.

This feature poses a risk to a game’s level design because you may be able to get into places the designer didn’t expect you to; but it makes the world much more realistic and lets you solve problems in your own way. Possible first use: Magic Carpet, 1994.

36. Clever indicators for unusual attributes.

Health, speed, mana, lives, ammunition, fuel, and so on all use pretty standard screen indicators: power bars, digits, gauges, repeating small images. Many are borrowed from real-world devices. But what about other, less obvious attributes? Over the years we’ve devised a variety of clever ways to display them—too many to list, so I’m lumping them all together. Some personal favorites: the flickering light in Thief: The Dark Project that indicates how “noticeable” your avatar is; the crosshairs that grow farther apart to indicate reduced weapon accuracy while you’re moving in shooter games; blurring the screen and rendering the controls unreliable to convey that the avatar is drunk or drugged.

Genres

We borrowed many videogame genres from other game forms, but a few genres would not have been possible before the invention of the computer, and represent real design innovation.

37. Construction and management simulations.

Both LEGO blocks and business management games predate the computer, but videogames put the two ideas together for the first time. Best-known early example: SimCity, 1989. Probable first use:

Utopia for the Mattel Intellivision, 1982.

38. Real-time strategy games.

Turn-based computer war games had their roots in classics like the Avalon Hill board games, and many of them looked like board games too, with square counters representing units on a hexagonal grid. The addition of real time play made strategy gaming far more accessible to the general public, although purists would complain that RTS games replace true strategy with rapid mouse clicking and resource management. Best-known early example: The Ancient Art of War, 1984. Probable first use: Stonkers for the ZX Spectrum, 1983. A related genre is real-time tactics, games that concentrate on individual battlefields (e.g. the Total War series) and eliminate the resource-manufacturing aspects of RTS games.

39. Fighting games.

Apart from real-world sports and the 1960’s toy Rock ’Em Sock ’Em Robots, I can’t find any examples of fighting games that predated the videogame. Many games include fighting elements, but true fighting games concentrate on mêlée combat without exploration or puzzle-solving. Fighting games have moved so far beyond real-life martial arts (incorporating magic powers, fictitious weapons, and unrealistic physics) that they constitute a major innovation of their own. There are now many sub-genres, but the common element is hand-to-hand fighting without ranged weapons. Possible first use:

Heavyweight Champ coin-op, 1976. Best-known early example: Street Fighter, 1987.

40. Rhythm, dance and music games.

Timing challenges are as old as Pong, but games specifically based on rhythm arrived comparatively recently. Games about making music are increasingly popular too. By avoiding mindless repetitive violence, they also attract a larger female audience. Best-known early example: PaRappa the Rapper, 1996. Possible first use: Tempo for Sega 32X, 1995. (Music Construction Set, 1984, doesn’t count as a game.)

41. Artificial pets and people.

People love watching little critters live their lives, especially if you don’t have to feel guilty about letting them die (or if they’re immortal and can’t die at all). Training and nurturing them and buying trinkets for them are all part of the fun. The Sims is the best-selling PC game of all time; Nintendogs is a massive hit on the Nintendo DS. Possible first use: Little Computer People, 1985. Best-known early example: Dogz, 1995.

42. God games.

This genre is a mashup of construction and management simulations, real-time strategy games, and artificial life games, with some extra qualities all its own. In a god game, you assume the role of the god of a group of people, and your job is (mostly) to help them prosper. The key features are indirect control—you can influence your worshippers through your actions, but you cannot give them explicit orders—and divine powers such as changing the landscape or causing natural disasters. God games let us make volcanoes on demand; what more need I say? Probable first use: Populous, 1989.

(Some people consider Utopia, 1982, to be a god game, but I class it as a CMS because the player’s powers aren’t truly godly. The claims of the Firaxis PR department notwithstanding, Civilization is not a god game.)

43. Social and dating games (with or without sex).

I can only find one non-computerized dating game, Milton Bradley’s 1965 board game Mystery Date. Computerized dating sims are a major phenomenon in Japan. Many use dialog tree conversation, in which saying the right thing to a prospective partner leads to a closer relationship. Some have complex systems of attributes not unlike those in role-playing games, but the attributes describe a character’s romantic appeal rather than his ability to whack monsters. Possible first use: D??ky?′sei (Classmates), 1992.

44. Interactive movies.

This genre came and went, and good riddance to it. It’s a world-changing design innovation because it proved so clearly to be a creative dead end that everybody knows not to make interactive movies any more—although the term is still used at times to describe the cinematic quality of games in other genres. Interactive movies taught us, by negative example, that gameplay comes first, period. The CD-ROM drive first made them possible, and in their heyday, they sold tons…until the novelty of watching tiny, grainy videos wore off. Best-known early example: The 7th Guest, 1993.

Probable first use: Dragon’s Lair coin-op, 1983.

45. “Games for girls” (not women).

The game industry ignored girls entirely for most of its early history. In the mid-1990s there was a short-lived vogue for making games for girls, but it was mostly marketing hype and a lot of girls got ripped off by shoddy products in pink boxes. The idea has since been revived somewhat; witness the Bratz series based on the (in)famous dolls. A degree of controversy surrounds games for girls, as some people are concerned that fulfilling girls’ shopping fantasies is not as socially responsible as fulfilling boys’ violence fantasies. Other games aimed at the girl market are less stereotypical, e.g. the Nancy Drew adventure games. Best-known early example: Barbie Fashion Designer, 1996. Probable first use: Barbie, 1991. (Although Pac-Man and Centipede, both from 1980, were popular with female players, neither was explicitly marketed to girls. Plundered Hearts, 1982, was aimed at adult women.)

Play styles

Different ways that people play, and how designers facilitate them.

46. Brag boards (aka high score tables).

The earliest arcade games didn’t have them. You could beat your buddy if the game was multiplayer, but only you and he knew it. The brag board, which records your initials along with your score, lets you be king of the hill until someone bests you, an irresistible challenge to competitive players. First use: Asteroids, 1979.

47. Save game.

The subject of religious warfare ever since it was invented, with those who enjoy the challenge of making it through a difficult section with no safety net in one camp, and those who want to stop and start play on their own timetable in the other. For good or ill, depending on your perspective, the ability to save profoundly affects your play style. There are many ways to implement saving, however, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. I include level passwords (for machines with no storage media) and checkpoints in the same category. First use: lost in the mists of time.

48. Modem-to-modem and networked play.

Modem-to-modem games let people play together in pairs. Although an important step forward, their biggest weakness was in the lack of a matchmaking facility—you had to know someone else who owned a modem and a copy of the same game. Then we got networking, and the medium exploded. However, networked play actually existed before personal computers. Best-known early example: RabbitJack’s

Casino on the Quantum Link service for Commodore 64 machines, 1986. Probable first use: Maze Wars on networked Imlac minicomputers at MIT, 1974.

49. Multiplayer dungeons.

Combine the fun of exploration in games like Zork with the fun of multiplayer play, and you get the multiplayer dungeon. MUDs are the direct precursors of today’s wildly popular MMORPGs. In South Korea, they’re a national mania. The earliest version was not networked, but played on a timesharing mainframe. First use: MUD, at the University of Essex, 1979.

50. Party games.

We’ve always had multiplayer games, but party games are different—they’re designed to provide entertainment in the context of a real party, a group of people enjoying each other’s company.

Instead of immersing players deeply in a fantasy world, party games give them lots of mini-games to play and laugh about. First use: Mario Party, 1998.

Those are the fifty design innovations that I’ve selected, some that were extremely important, others that will be increasingly so in the future. Opinions will doubtless vary as to their significance, and I may have omitted something that others find essential. I look forward to further discussion!(source:edge-online)

轉載于:https://www.cnblogs.com/PocketZ/archive/2013/02/28/2937785.html

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