What We Get Out of Choice

[Kugyince]

While we struggle to figure out what choice is and what it's doing in our videogames, we continue to demand it. It's clear that choice offers interesting options for game design gameplay that are interesting, stimulating, and fun. So what does choice provide to players? Is the appeal of choice the ability to craft the game's narrative, or is it the experience of watching a narrative unfold in different ways?

Choice can be used for a lot of things, and fewer games are more confused about what they're doing with it than InFamous. There's a lot of problems with the way the choice is handled in this game, but the main one is that there are about 40-odd big choices in the game, not to mention the countless ones reflected in the moment to moment actions of the player, and each and every one(except the first) is a lie.

In reality, there is one choice. When nearly all of the powers in the game require the protagonist to be either wholly good or wholly evil, choosing anything but the same way is foolish. What follows then are not a series of choices but a incessant harassment of the player, and any attempt at seriously considering any choices beyond the first will be thoroughly punished.

In fact, Sucker Punch didn't create a system of choice at all. They created a game with two parallel narratives using a unessesary and ultimately irrelevant gameplay system. In practice, the system of choice in inFamous is a way of separating narrative, gameplay, and play style into two distinct sections, and that's in no way a bad thing even if it's bizarrely implemented. Choice has a lot to offer to game design without offering choice.

Full article here:
GameSetWatch - COLUMN: Design Diversions: 'What We Get Out of Choice' (http://www.gamesetwatch.com/2010/04/column_design_diversions_what_we_get_out_of_choice .php#more)

[fenrir1887]

Yeah, well, either way the topic got derailed by this discussion. I think some of these games like Knights of the Old Republic had the right idea. Choices in the game determined whether or not you joined the dark side or the light.

[Kong]

Some games with choice.

Freelance claims to have tons of choice. I played it for that reason. It was a lie and I am bitter about the time that lie stole from me.

Feda for SNES has a good evil choice system. Pretty well done but like the article says there isn't much choice. You pretty much just choose if you will be good or evil and the story does not change very much.

Star Ocean. You have a fairly wide range in how you interact with other characters which affects how they treat you. You also have a very wide range of skills you can choose to learn. You can not learn them all so the choice is important.

Black and White has a good evil choice system.

Might and Magic for Genesis has a huge number of quests you can choose to accept or decline. Not a great example of choice but decent.

The best example of choice I can think of is
Phantasy Star 4. You choose who you will marry after each chapter and then in the next chapter you play as your child. This choice drastically changes the game story.

I think these are all fairly week choices and games could stand with really vamping this aspect up.

[Dudebro]

How about Pirates gold? You can choose to be a law abiding privateer or a pirate. It's only two choices but it changes the game.

I think some of these games like Knights of the Old Republic had the right idea. Choices in the game determined whether or not you joined the dark side or the light.It also affected what party members you got and if they stay with you.

Another good example is Fable. Your character literally grows up throughout the game and depending on what choices you make(even as a kid) it changes the world, your looks and how people interact with you.

Last but certainly not least is the Fallout series. Those games give you the option to do almost whatever you want. Don't like the attitude the quest giver gave you? Shoot him in the head and steal all his stuff. Getting sick of your wife? Turn her into a prostitute and make some money. These actions don't change the main storyline but it affects just about every other aspect of gameplay. The worst one is if you end up killing a child(intentionally or accidentally) you get labeled a child killer and people will hate you, some will even attack you on site. It's epic.

[Kugyince]

Ultima IV.