Stat tracking is an amazing game design element, and is also way undervalued.
The most effective use of stat tracking so far is in Super Smash Bros. Melee. It tracks absolutely EVERYTHING. It went way beyond wins and losses and dives into areas such as:
-How far (distance in miles) you have jumped/fallen
-Cumulative home run distance
-Amount of times you've powered on the game
These are interesting on their own, but what makes stat tracking fun is when value is added to the stat, most commonly through an unlockable. This encourages the player to move beyond the main game mechanic and explore what else they can do with the game.
Microsoft introduced the concept of achievements with XBox 360. These are a lot of fun and can really add replay value to a game, but they rarely foster the player's creativity and curiosity. Instead they are often relegated to tracking the linear progress of the player through the game.
Having a universal measurement of what the player has accomplished is a great thing. Challenging the player's concept of what they can do with the game is also a great thing. I'd love to see games combine these two elements more than they do.
Here's the questions:
-What's your favorite use of stat tracking in a game?
-Do achievements add enough value on their own or could they do more?
Posts
Many stats are just a novelty. Grand Theft Auto for instance tracks distance traveled, number of people killed, etc. Interesting, but not integral. I would definitely like to see stats used for more. Unlockables are a great use, but not at the sacrifice of under valueing the rest of the game by over valueing unlocked or achieved content.
ReplyDeleteStat Tracking is always interesting. Fallout 3 tracks stats that you wouldn't think, like times addicted to a drug, the number of sleeping people you've killed, and the amount of healing items you've used.
ReplyDeleteI don't, however, like it when X-Box achievements are tied to certain stat. Then you just feel like you are grinding out so many kills or whatever to get an achievement. Achievements should be fun, and stats should also be. Rewarding for stats that are naturally obtained I think is a good use. So many kills, but reasonably as you progress naturally through the game. But when the reward value is set too high, it takes all the fun out of it. Say there are 5,000 enemies in a playthrough of a game, and the reward is unlocked at 20,000. It means you have to go through the game 4 times, killing everything you can, because you want that reward. It just isn't fun anymore.
I like the social aspect of achievements. I can look at any player on Live and get a sense of what kind of player he or she is from what types of games are on that person's list and how much each game was played. My favorite kinds of achievements, though, are the kind that layer gameplay on top of what is already there. The achievements that have you doing something the game would never have you do or the ones that encourage some type of spectacular failure.
ReplyDelete