A Game as a Painting: Using Impressionism to Explore

Game Mechanics

Faculty of Arts

Department of Game Design

Author(s): Valdemar Ribbing

Master Thesis in Game Design, 30 hp

Program: Master's Programme in Game Design

Supervisor: Josephine Baird

Examiner: Sabine Harrer

June, 2021

Abstract

In the capitalistic landscape of games today there exists a paradigm where metrics rule over

game design which constrains the creativity and diversity of game design. Realistic games have

seen a surge in popularity under this paradigm and as an artist I look to the art movement of

impressionism for answers. In 19th century France, impressionist painters managed to escape

the conventional realism of their time and their work diversified art. I explore how game

mechanics could be refined using impressionist painting techniques as inspiration. Existing

definitions of game mechanics such as Sicart (2008) which sees mechanics as methods invoked

by agents, designed for interaction with the game state and Lundgren et al. (2003) which see

mechanics as any part of the rule system that covers one possible kind of interaction that takes

place during the game, both definitions fail to recognize the context (game) in which they exist

and looks at mechanics in isolation. Using the analogy of a game as a painting, the properties

of a brushstroke is translated into six considerations (size, placement, angle, visibility, shape,

and overlap) which can be used to explore game mechanics in a novel way. Through three case

studies I learned that my approach to game mechanics can be complementary to existing

definitions and provides a language to discuss game mechanics. The six considerations proved

useful both in research and in practice and enables a designer to quickly explore game

mechanics, embracing the context of the game they exist in.

Key words: Impressionism, games, painting, art, game mechanics, game design

Abstrakt

I dagens spels kapitalistiska landskap existerar det ett paradigm där metrik styr över speldesign

vilket stryper speldesignens kreativitet och diversitet. Realistiska spel har blivit mer populära

under detta paradigm och som en konstnär så letar jag i konströrelsen impressionism för svar.

Under 1800-talets Frankrike lyckades impressionistiska konstnärer fly från tidens

konventionella realism och deras arbete diversifierade konst. Jag utforskar hur spelmekaniker

kan förädlas med användning av impressionistiska målningstekniker som inspiration.

Existerande definitioner av spelmekaniker som Sicarts (2008) ser spelmekaniker som metoder

åberopade av agenter, designade för interaktioner med spelets tillstånd och Lundgren et al.

(2003) som ser spelmekaniker som en del av det regelsystemet som täcker en möjlig interaktion

som tar plats under spelets gång, både definitionerna misslyckas med att se på spelmekaniker i

deras kontext och kollar på spelmekaniker i isolering. Med analogin av ett spel som en målning,

så översätts ett penseldrags egenskaper till sex överväganden (storlek, placering, vinkel,

synlighet, form och överlappning) som används till att utforska spelmekaniker på ett originellt

sätt. Genom tre studier har jag lärt mig att mitt tillvägagångssätt bevisar sig vara användbart

både för forskning och i praktik samt att det tillåter designern att snabbt utforska spelmekaniker

med spelets kontext i åtanke.

Nyckelord: Impressionism, spel, måleri, konst, spelmekaniker, speldesign

Table of Contents

1 INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................................. 1

2 BACKGROUND ................................................................................................................................................ 3

3 METHODOLOGY ............................................................................................................................................. 5

4 PAINTING TECHNIQUES .............................................................................................................................. 6

4.1 THE CONSIDERATION OF SIZE ...................................................................................................................... 8

4.2 THE CONSIDERATION OF PLACEMENT ......................................................................................................... 8

4.3 THE CONSIDERATION OF VISIBILITY ........................................................................................................... 8

4.4 THE CONSIDERATION OF SHAPE................................................................................................................... 9

4.5 THE CONSIDERATION OF ANGLE .................................................................................................................. 9

4.6 THE CONSIDERATION OF OVERLAP ............................................................................................................ 10

4.7 MAKE THAT BRUSHSTROKE ....................................................................................................................... 10

5 CASE STUDIES ............................................................................................................................................... 11

5.1 CASE STUDY 1: ANALYZING A MECHANIC ................................................................................................. 12

5.2 CASE STUDY 2: ADDING A MECHANIC ....................................................................................................... 14

5.3 CASE STUDY 3: CREATING A GAME ........................................................................................................... 15

5.3.1 Mechanic - The tomato plant ............................................................................................................. 16

5.3.2 Mechanic – Day/night cycle ............................................................................................................... 16

5.3.3 Mechanic – Watering can .................................................................................................................. 16

5.3.4 Mechanic – Spray bottle with soapy water ......................................................................................... 17

5.3.5 Mechanic – Nutrients ......................................................................................................................... 17

5.3.6 Mechanic – Move the plant ................................................................................................................ 17

6 CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................................................. 19

7 FUTURE WORK ............................................................................................................................................. 21

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1 Introduction

When I started pursuing a career in game development, I did so both as an artist and as a

designer. In my education, a bachelor’s degree which was split into one part game design and

one part graphics, the approach to both these subjects differed vastly both in method and spirit.

When exploring the graphics side of my education, I was encouraged to be expressive and to

tell stories through my work. The game design part of the education was less expressive and

rigid, with a focus on marketing, where innovation was not a way forward, but a selling point.

In Game design by numbers: Instrumental play and the quantitative shift in the digital game

industry (2013) Whitson argues that game design, due to the growing usage of metrics and the

“fallibility of individual creative autonomy” (p. 3) has turned game design into what he refers

to as game design by numbers. More specifically, game design by numbers refers to game

design that is no longer driven by the developers themselves but by “quantitative and thus

‘objective numbers’” (p. 265). Whitson (2013) attributes this development to capitalism

adapting to the modern landscape of video games. According to Whitson (2013) developers,

particularly in the console games industry “voice additional concerns about lack of creativity

and the excessive constraints imposed by manufacturers and publishers." (p. 170). One of

Whitson main points is that game developers lack creative autonomy and that “Publishers - not

players - take the role of 'buyers' by selectively providing funds for game development projects,

signalling to developers what to make.” (p. 159). I am dissatisfied with the capitalistic view of

game design I was taught in my education which I also recognize in Whitson’s (2013) work.

In the past few years, I have begun to notice a trend where games have been advertising

themselves as realistic. In How Realistic is Realism? Considerations on the Aesthetics of

Computer Games, a paper that explores the believability of realism in games, Wages et al.

(2004) state that one of the reasons we are seeing more realistic games is due to competition in

the game industry that forces companies to search for selling points which often ends up being

in the graphical domain. With the financial success of realistic AAA games such as Red Dead

Redemption 2 (2018) and Grand Theft Auto V (2013), the games industry has found comfort in

realism as the metrics suggest that this is the way to make games and design by numbers rules

supreme. Whitson (2013) state that those who go against design by numbers are rejected by the

games industry and as such the industry perpetuates what currently is profitable, only adapting

when there is more profit to be made. As Whitson (2013) states, there is a paradigm in the

games industry that constrains creativity and diversity, both things that I value highly as a game

designer and a player.

In response to the realistic blockbuster games of the last few years, I feel the need to take back

some creative control to game designers from the design by numbers paradigm of today as I

want to see more diverse and creative games. During my education, I found that in art I could

be more creative and expressive, which is why I believe that we game designers need to expand

our vocabulary and approach game design from an artistic angle. I believe that for us designers

to escape the paradigm, we need to start doing things differently and to solve this puzzle I look

to the past for answers.

A similar situation to today’s dominance of realism can be found in the art scene of 19th century

France. A small group of artists who later became known as the impressionists were dissatisfied

with the current state of art and created their own path as a reaction to realism. Even before the

impressionist movement had caught wind, journalist of the time, Emile Zola recognized the

value of the impressionists work at the 1865 salon and states that “he expects an artist to express

his personality and his temperament, and not to reproduce reality” (Venturi, 1941, p. 38). The

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impressionists were able to escape the paradigm by being bold in their work and immerse

themselves in the scenes they were depicting. Impressionism diversified art, spawning many

new styles of painting, and designers need to do the same. While Impressionism in art is of

particular interest to me, the movement also had a large part to play in the development of music

(Byrnside, 1980) and writing (Thomson et al., 2000) and if impressionism transcended the

boundaries of a medium before, it might do it again for games though I will only look at art to

limit the scope of this thesis.

The aesthetic qualities of impressionism is what gave rise to this paper, they inspired me to

consider how as designers, we can transform games, not just in terms of visuals, audio or

dialogue but at the very core. According to Adams et al. in Game mechanics: advanced game

design (2012):

Game mechanics lie at the heart of all game design. They implement the living

world of the game; they generate active challenges for players to solve in the game

world, and they determine the effects of the players’ actions on that world. It is

the game designer’s job to craft mechanics that generate challenging, enjoyable,

and well-balanced gameplay. (Introduction section, para. 6)

In Gameplay and game mechanics: a key to quality in videogames (2007) Fabricatore also

places game mechanics at the heart of game design but there are contesting views such as the

MDA framework (Hunicke et al., 2004) where aesthetics governs over mechanics. For this

paper I have elected to start my efforts with game mechanics as they conventionally have a

focus on challenge, not aesthetics, which might test the transmediality of impressionism. I

believe there is inspiration to be drawn from impressionism to be used in all aspects of game

development, such as level design, character design, narrative and more. To limit the scope of

this paper, I will only look at game mechanics so that I can go into some depth while still

providing an overview of how we can use art in the game design process. I expect that this

process will reveal new ideas in other aspects of games as well.

Be aware that this paper is not trying to mount an argument against realism in games, it is

instead trying to explore an alternate path. The impressionists managed to escape the paradigm

of their time, but it would be naïve to assume that this thesis would accomplish the same as that

is far outside the scope of this paper. My personal short-term goal with this endeavor, which

will be the focus of this paper, is to create an approach that expands my own thinking regarding

game mechanics using impressionism as inspiration. My personal long-term goal however is to

explore what value lies in using art and painting to inspire the game development process. My

research question is split into two stages: How could/can we translate impressionist painting

techniques into game design principles? How could a designer create game mechanics with

these principles in mind?

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2 Background

This section will further examine realism in games and how they relate to the paradigm Whitson

(2013) described. In How Realistic is Realism? Considerations on the Aesthetics of Computer

Games Wages et al. (2004) state that realism is an elusive term that has established itself in the

minds of both players and developers, meaning many different things such as the “quality of

the audio and visual presentation, the simulation of physical properties but also of the behavior

of non player characters” (Realism section, para. 1). In Fantasies of the North: Medievalism

and Identity in Skyrim (2016) Cooper explains that while realism in games started as a measure

of graphical fidelity, it is today referring to many different things such as the likelihood of the

narrative, the depiction of culture or the physical rules which means that “the term realism is

often dependent upon the context in which it is used” (p. 24).

In two recent games, Red Dead Redemption 2 (2018) and The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt (2015),

the protagonist’s beard will grow in real time during play, something that would not be possible

say twenty years ago (in terms of visuals). As the visual fidelity of games increase, becoming

more realistic, designers today feel compelled to match realistic visuals with realistic

mechanics. In the article Red Dead Redemption 2: Can a video game be Too Realistic (2018),

the author, Wills comments the following on Red Dead Redemption 2:

Unfortunately, performing work-like tasks and living the ‘every day’ in games

can easily test our patience. (…) In ultra-realistic games, those expectations are

quickly frustrated: we push a complex sequence of buttons to perform simple

actions (such as drawing a gun), we lose authorial control (and voice) to

orchestrated story arcs (Red Dead’s set missions), and narrow visual cues become

an excuse for human experience.”. (Too much responsibility? section, para. 3)

In the article, Wills (2018) found that the ultra-realism of Red Dead Redemption 2 to be

detrimental to his experience and made it difficult “to escape, to play, to indulge in fantasy (in

other words, the ‘unreal’) and most of all, have fun.” (Too much responsibility? section, para.

5). As pointed out by Wills (2018), Huizinga in Homo Ludens (1955) states that fun is crucial

to play itself, yet Red Dead Redemption 2 is immensely popular and loved by many. Instead of

rejecting realism in games, I would rather that we, as designers explore alternate paths.

Wilcox-Netepczuk noted in his paper Immersion and Realism in Video Games – The Confused

Moniker of Video Game Engrossment (2013) that “Video games have dramatically increased in

realism over the past several years. With an increase in both graphical fidelity and gameplay

realism” (p. 92), a development I recognize in the AAA games (games developed by major

game studios) of today. However, in the independent games scene there are movements that

approach reality in a different way. The indie scene has seen some financial success with what

is known as reality-inspired games, a term coined by Florent Maurin in his article What reality-

inspired games are (2016). Some examples that Florent (2016) brings up of reality-inspired

games are Papers, Please (2014), This War of Mine (2014) and That Dragon, Cancer (2016).

Florent (2016) describes reality-inspired games as making a direct reference to the real world,

describing the world through a credible model of its mechanic, allowing the player to to

manipulate this model in order to see things from an unusual perspective, allowing for non-

permanent consequences encouraging the player to try again and improve and what we learn

from reality-inspired games stick with us as real human beings. In the paper Reality Inspired

Games: Expanding the Lens of Games’ Claims to Authenticity, McMillan and Jayemanne

(2020) states that: “Whilst AAA studios push the idea of realism, these games are constrained

by lengthy development periods and having to adhere to strict rules by publishers as well as the

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games orientation being player-centric in order to sell.” (p. 7). The paper itself is an exploration

of the concept of reality-inspired games and how they relate to the larger game industry.

The approach to reality that reality-inspired games utilize is clearly different from the realism

as a selling point in AAA games. But these two realities are not mutually exclusive to one

another and for example: That Dragon, Cancer used reality as a selling point in its

advertisement. However, McMillan and Jayemanne (2020) concludes in their paper that reality-

inspired games are not under the same pressure to appease publishers and meet sales targets as

AAA games which results in more creative freedom and more mature games. Although indie

games can exist somewhat outside the paradigm, Whitson (2013) state that in the capitalistic

landscape of video games today, indies fuel the larger industry with their creativity, both

through their innovation and through their employees who often go to work at AAA studios.

Now and then, when the stars align, I start a new play-through of a modded version of The

Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (2011) where many popular mods advertise their realism. On the topic

of mods in Skyrim, Cooper (2016) found that “The huge number of game modifications

(henceforth, mods) freely available for download testify to the desire to achieve the highest

possible graphical quality, and to the level of player-investment in operating in a realistic

environment.” (p. 29). One would think that fantasy games would be an escape from reality,

but Cooper (2016) has found that lately there has been a surge of what she refers to as ‘realistic

fantasy’ which encompasses games such as The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt and The Elder Scrolls

V: Skyrim.

In trying some of the popular mod packs (a curated collection of mods) of The Elder Scrolls V:

Skyrim which feature ultra-realistic mods I recognized myself in Wills (2018) reflections on his

experience in Red Dead Redemption 2. While the realistic mod packs have been detrimental to

my personal experience, these are quite popular, and I am probably not the intended audience.

I find it interesting that the rise of realism in modded The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim happens at

the same time as the rise of realism in AAA games that Wilcox-Netepczuk (2013), McMillan

and Jayemanne (2020) observed in their studies, suggesting that they are connected somehow.

One of the reasons why modding is so huge in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is due to the ease-

of-access to development tools as well as the game itself supporting mods. In Modding to the

big leagues: Exploring the space between modders and the game industry (2010), an article that

explore the relationship between modders and the game industry, Postigo concludes that the

game industry intentionally develops mod support and tools for their games “to create a

developer base from modder culture, a base it can use to develop valuable derivative works

which it can license and gain profit.” (Conclusion: All modding, all the time section, para. 1).

This suggests that even modding, an exercise that is not motivated by profit, exists within the

capitalistic paradigm of games today that Whitson (2013) describes. There is a trend of realistic

AAA games which is perpetuated due to their financial success (Whitson, 2013) in our

capitalistic ecosystem. Independent and reality-inspired games manage to differentiate

themselves but still exists within the same sphere as AAA games.

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3 Methodology

Due to both the broad nature of the subject and the fact that this is relatively unexplored

territory, there is a need for an explorative methodology. In the book Game design research

(2017), Lankoski and Holopainen describes research through design (RtD) as follows:

“Research through design: The emphasis here is on creating design knowledge and not the

project solution; through an action-reflection approach. It seeks to provide an explanation or

theory within a broader context: for example, research in emerging fields of design.” (p. 174).

They also argue that in RtD, the researcher must make clear their motivations and personal

background to produce transparency and to help understanding the researcher’s decisions.

While the concept has evolved since then, Christopher Frayling presented RtD in his paper

Research in Art and Design (1993) to bridge the traditional gap between art and research. With

RtD having its roots in art, one could consider it an appropriate methodology for a paper such

as this which explores games from an artistic perspective. If the goal is to create novel design

principles to be used in game design, then RtD, an approach that acknowledges the value of

artifacts seems to be well-suited for this paper as it is according to Godin and Zahedi “closest

to the actual design practice” (2014, From Frayling Onwards section, para. 6). As stated in the

paper Research through design in HCI. In Ways of Knowing in HC (Zimmerman, J., & Forlizzi,

2014) RtD is “a type of research practice focused on improving the world by making new things

that disrupt, complicate or transform the current state of the world.” (p. 170).

As the subject is vast in trying to connect the artistic process with the game design process, this

entire paper will serve as an exploration of an idea: the idea that as game designers, we can

draw inspiration from aesthetic practices (such as painting or sculpting) to make games more

diverse and expressive. The idea itself is not new, it has been explored many times before in

different shapes and forms, an example being the MDA framework (Hunicke et al., 2004) where

aesthetics governs mechanics, but I hope to approach it in a novel metaphorical way.

For the next part of this paper, I will be investigating what painting techniques characterized

the impressionists and speculate on how these could be translated into game design principles.

The second part will be a discussion on how those principles could potentially be used to

approach game mechanics with three case studies. The principles will be tried in three ways: as

an analytical tool for an existing game mechanic in an existing game, as a way to implement a

new mechanic into an existing game and lastly used in a speculative manner to refine several

mechanics in an entirely new game. The process I am suggesting is not a tool for generating

mechanics by itself, but rather a tool to help the designer understand and be able to refine them

further.

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4 Painting techniques

In this section I will first look at the painting techniques of the impressionists and how they

approached painting in order to then translate them into game design principles. From an art

history point of view, a brief description of the impressionists’ key techniques can be described

as “short, broken brushstrokes that barely convey forms, pure unblended colors, and an

emphasis on the effects of light” (Samu, 2004, para. 2). It is difficult to find, besides the odd

quote here and there, information detailing the actual painting process, the craft itself. While

the impressionists were a part of a collective, each artist worked independently and in a distinct

style, so the painting process would look very different depending on the artist. Then if it is not

possible to look at a specific process, I can instead look at their work and the remnants of their

techniques.

The visible brushstrokes are a key characteristic of the impressionists, and from a distinct

brushstroke one can extrapolate a lot of information such as the artist’s emotional state

according to Callen in the book Technique of the Impressionists (1982). The brush of the painter

is displayed for everyone to see or as art critics of the time described it: "The actual painting

process is jerked into the foreground, the mark of the brush work is given its own stimulating

role to excite the emotions” (Reutensvärd, 1952, p. 278).

Then, if a brushstroke can convey so much, it must be an incredibly useful expressive tool. This

begs the question then, what would the equivalent of a brushstroke be in game design? Before

that can be answered, the components of a brushstrokes and the considerations an artist must

take before applying a brush must be examined. Shape: what type of brush am I using? Size:

how much space will it occupy? Placement: what space will it occupy? Angle: from what angle

am I applying the brush? Visibility: how visible is the brushstroke? Overlap: does the

brushstroke overlap with other brushstrokes? Historically, most renaissance artists worked

under a master in workshop that were more akin to factories (Cartwright, 2020) which is not

entirely unlike today’s situation as most designers (workers) work under a lead designer

(master) in big studios (workshops). The impressionists, however, worked independently and

out in nature (Venturi, 1941). Rusch (2017) recognizes that a designer needs to be intentional

in their work, and as such, all the questions are followed by a ‘and to what end?’ question, as

painting can be considered an exercise in intent as well.

The six considerations (shape, size, placement, angle, visibility and overlap) are often seen in

image manipulation and drawing software, where the software tries to emulate brushstrokes

and I acknowledge that there are other considerations which I unfortunately cannot examine

due to the scope of this paper.

Where an impressionist painter worked with a canvas we game designer work with

sophisticated frameworks and game engines instead. These frameworks help us create games

but perhaps it is difficult to be intentional in these complex structures littered with rules. The

canvas is also a framework of sorts, but perhaps a more familiar and intuitive one. Then, for

digital games, if the canvas is our framework and the brush is our tool, what is the paint? Paint

by itself does not do much, but it is arranged in ways to convey meaning or represent something.

I find it fitting to consider the paint as oneself because when painting, an artist would bring with

them a palette of colors, and in design, the palette of colors or design knowledge would be

internalized. The paint would be all the experiences you have had as a designer, artist, human,

and so on. Rusch advocates for channeling the inner self in Making Deep Games: Designing

Games with Meaning and Purpose (2017) to boost critical thought and analysis in game design.

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Then if the paint is oneself, we must pay attention to ourselves in the analogy of a game as a

painting.

In the book Making Deep Games: Designing Games with Meaning and Purpose (2017) the

author, Rusch states that “if we want to design experiences with deliberation and intent, we

cannot fast-forward to creating rules and mechanics (the concreteness of our material game).

We need to know first, what we want to model.” (Becoming a Mind Reader section, para. 4),

and that “Exploring the source system – the experience the game aims to capture – is a crucial

part of the design process and deserves careful consideration.” (1.1 Becoming a Mind Reader

section, para. 4). Rusch (2017) then suggests an introspective approach to boost one’s creativity

and critical thought, a process that is similar to how the impressionists worked, as they are both

about getting to know one’s subject/experience. In painting, there is often a visual motif,

something to depict and there is not nearly as many variables and complex scenarios an artist

must consider as there is in the creation of deep games, but they are still both exercises in intent.

The impressionists, unlike the other artists of their time, decided to immerse themselves in their

painting by painting outdoors, or what is referred to as en plein air. The impressionists closed

the distance to what they were trying to model and there were no longer any need to guess,

because the painting was unfolding right before their eyes. While it would be interesting,

developing a game en plein air, the important thing to learn here is the importance of intent and

understanding the experience one wants to create. Rusch (2017) states in her book, specifically

regarding mechanics that one should not jump the gun and put them in without thought, because

“if they are not informed by a vision for the experience they should enable, or the message they

are meant to convey, they lack substance. They can only be deep or meaningful by accident.”

(1.1 Becoming a Mind Reader section, para. 4).

There are many definitions of game mechanics, and it is difficult to tell which one is the most

appropriate for my approach. In the article Defining game mechanics (2008), Miguel Sicart

argues that “game mechanics are methods invoked by agents, designed for interaction with the

game state.” (Introduction section, para. 6). Sicart’s definition separates game rules and game

mechanics from each other as opposed to Lundgren and Bjork’s definition (2003) where “A

game mechanic is simply any part of the rule system of a game that covers one, and only one,

possible kind of interaction that takes place during the game, be it general or specific.” (A

Terminology for Describing Interaction within Games: Mechanics section, para. 1). The MDA

(mechanics, dynamics, and aesthetics) framework recognize aesthetics as an important part of

games that can in turn influence mechanics, but I suggest going further, viewing the mechanics

as aesthetic building blocks (brushstrokes), that together paints a complete picture. I also

believe that their view of aesthetics does not quite fit this paper, where the aesthetics in MDA

“describes the desirable emotional responses evoked in the player, when she interacts with the

game system.” (MDA section, para. 7). A painter (designer) does not need to cater for an

unknown observer (player) but can instead focus on the painting (game) and what it means to

the painter. As such, I believe a less player-centric view of aesthetics is appropriate.

Lundgren and Bjork (2003) states in their paper on mechanics that: “Nevertheless, the concept

of mechanics, i.e., that a game can be regarded as an entity put together by a number of smaller

components, can be very useful. During the design process it can make it easier to consider the

game’s overall design, achieving an insight how different parts influence each other.” (Using

Mechanics in Game Design section, para. 2). If one were to view a game as a whole greater

than the sum of its parts (mechanics), then it is not far from viewing a game as a painting, made

up of many brushstrokes. While something, might not necessarily be a game mechanic,

depending on what definition is being used, I believe that stretching the definition can in certain

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cases be beneficial if it helps the designer understand what they want to accomplish. As such,

from an artist’s standpoint I rather prefer Lundgren and Bjork’s (2003) definition as it affords

to be stretched more. Sicart (2008) recognizes a limitation in the formal understanding of

mechanics and that they “only allows us to design and predict courses of interaction, but not to

determine how the game will always be played, or what the outcome of that experience will

be.” (Defining Game Mechanics section, para. 16). There are several ways to interpret what a

mechanic is and based on my research above on Lundgren and Bjork (2003) as well as Sicart

(2008), there is a need for an approach that embraces looking at game mechanics in the context

of a game, which consists of many game mechanics.

4.1 The consideration of size

How do you determine the size (as in size of a brush) of a game mechanic? The size of the

brush determines how much of the canvas a brushstroke will occupy, but how much space does

a mechanic occupy in a game? Traditionally in game design, game mechanics are split up into

mechanics and core mechanics; the argument for the distinction being that a “core mechanics

is often used to indicate mechanics that are the most influential, affecting many aspects of a

game and interacting with mechanics of lesser importance, such as those that control only a

single game element.” (Adams et al., 2012, From Rules to Mechanics section, para. 2). A

foreseeable problem with this statement is that it tries to divide mechanics into core and not

core; something the authors recognize as they go on to state that the “distinction between core

mechanics and non-core mechanics is not clear-cut; even for the same game, interpretation of

what is core and what is not can vary between designers or even between different contexts

within the game.” (From Rules to Mechanics section, para. 3). Figuring out the size of a

mechanic-as-a-brushstroke or what is a core mechanic and what is not can be helpful in trying

to understand the experience, but as stated by Adams et al. (2012), it fails to acknowledge the

context of said mechanic. A brushstroke in impressionist paintings is only a part of a larger

whole, a highly contextual entity and to help us consider the context of a brushstroke, one can

look at placement.

4.2 The consideration of placement

What space on the canvas will this mechanic-as-a-brushstroke to occupy? What is it adjacent

to? A search for adjacency could perhaps provide understanding to some of the context but it

also begs the question, what are we looking for? If a painting is made of brushstrokes and each

brushstroke is considered as a mechanic, then it would make sense to look at adjacent

mechanics. On a canvas, it is easy to locate adjacent brushstrokes due to its two-dimensional

nature, but a game does not only occupy a space (which can be three-dimensional, complicating

it further), but also time. The analogy of a canvas as a framework (game engine) is stretched to

its limit when discussing placement of mechanic-as-a-brushstroke as the idea is expanded in so

many directions at once. One could even place a mechanic, not only in time and space, but

according to a narrative. To me, at least three questions are formed from this discussion. What

are its adjacent mechanics in terms of time? What are its adjacent mechanics in terms of space?

What are its adjacent mechanics in terms of narrative?

4.3 The consideration of visibility

How visible is this mechanic-as-a-brushstroke? In Adams and Dormans (2012) discussion

regarding core mechanics, they bring up an example where while gravity is considered a core

mechanic for the designer due to its large influence, it does not appear as one for the player.

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The mechanic of gravity is not something that is questioned and simply melts into the

background. When mixing colors for a brush, there is a mountain of choices to make, but one

that springs to mind regarding the discussion on core mechanics is that of visibility. Not all

brushstrokes are mixed equally and some exercise a greater degree of visibility on the canvas.

While impressionist Camile Pissarro once said: “Work at the same time on sky, water, branches,

ground, keeping everything going on an equal basis... Don't be afraid of putting on colour...

Paint generously and unhesitatingly, for it is best not to lose the first impression.” (Tate, n.d.,

HOW DID THEY PAINT section, para. 4), a brushstroke made in a gray sky is bound to attract

less attention than that of one depicting a person as humans are hard-wired to recognize other

humans. The brush is mixed so that, even though gravity, a mechanic-as-a-brushstroke with a

vast size, does not stand out almost akin to an underpainting (a painting technique where the

canvas is painted, often in a monochromatic color to establish the design and tonal values before

the actual painting begins). The opposite of the gravity example, would be a small mechanic-

as-a-brushstroke, say for example opening a door; the act of opening a door is a result of a direct

interaction with the player and thus have a higher visibility (for the player), the same can be

said for shooting a gun or jumping. In the paper Gameplay and game mechanics: a key to quality

in videogames the author states that “players tend to focus on the elements they have to deal

with in order for ‘things to happen’ in the virtual world.” (Fabricatore, 2007, Game mechanics:

the tools for gameplay section, para. 2).

4.4 The consideration of shape

Understand the shape of a mechanic-as-a-brushstroke, what does it look like? An artist has a

plethora of shapes in their arsenal in the forms of various brushes, sponges, palette knives and

more to aid them. The technique of every artist differs from one another and what brush one

elect to use is, not only a part of one’s identity but also as valid as any other. The impressionists

received a lot of criticism from their contemporaries for their liberal use of accentuated

brushstrokes and was even referred to as “the performance of a monkey who had got hold of a

box of paints” (Reutersvärd, 1952, p. 274), yet today this technique would hardly be considered

radical. In social cognition studies it is known that from a young age, humans instinctively

associate angular shapes with danger and round shapes with peacefulness (Hess et al., 2013).

Therefore, on the canvas, even at the simplest visceral level, a shape can tell a story, and to take

it further, a dab of a sponge can become a bush and a stroke becomes a person seen at a distant.

The shape of a brush is incredibly versatile in its storytelling capabilities which is why one must

try to understand the shape of our mechanic and what story it might tell.

4.5 The consideration of angle

From what angle am I making this mechanic-as-a-brushstroke? In painting, the angle of the

brush is simply a way of tilting the brush to give a certain effect. The angle can alter the shape

of the brush and is important in the dynamic action that constitutes a brushstroke. If the shape

of a mechanic-as-a-brushstroke is known, then one must also understand from what angle to

apply it and potentially what it could result in. I have some difficulty making a direct translation

from angle of a brush to angle of a mechanic-as-a-brushstroke, so what constitutes an angle?

An angle requires a starting point and an end point and in the context of a brushstroke the start

would be where you grip the brush, and the end would be the paint that you apply. As I find

this translation difficult, I will be pragmatic and focus on the hand that paints.

Mastery and technique decide how a brush is angled, to achieve a certain effect. This brings up

a question of approach; from where you should I approach this mechanic-as-a-brushstroke?

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This question can be interpreted in several ways. Am I approaching this mechanic as a player,

an educator, a storyteller, or something entirely different? What argument do I want to make

with this mechanic? In Making Deep Games: Designing Games with Meaning and Purpose

(Rusch, 2017) the author states that to “create deep games, we need to study ourselves, pay

attention to how we see the world, what drives us, what holds us back, how we relate to others,

and why.” (1.1 Becoming a Mind Reader section, para. 1), and that there is a benefit to “tuning

in to your very own frequency” (1.1.1 Morning Pages section, para. 4), which can result in more

deep and meaningful games. The angle of a mechanic-as-a-brushstroke then becomes an

introspective consideration.

4.6 The consideration of overlap

Brushstrokes are rarely stacked next to each other in a neat way, they are often place upon each

other in a seemingly chaotic manner as to achieve a certain effect. In painting, one often starts

with the background (usually the sky), working their way to the foreground, as to emulate

perspective and achieve a natural composition. The impressionists took it even further and

acknowledged the visual effects of light and atmosphere. In terms of digital art, the overlap of

a brush is often interpreted as opacity, it is also related to pressure, as in the pressure applied

on a drawing tablet. As I have a background in digital art, I choose to interpret overlap as

opacity, which in turns brings up thoughts of layers as in digital art through opacity you can

layer several brushstrokes to achieve a certain effect.

In Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (2012), the mechanic of throwing a grenade by itself is

simple, you hold a button, aim it in a certain direction and upon release it is thrown. Already

there is an overlap of mechanics with aiming and throwing but there is more. The throwing of

a grenade is also impacted by both the movement and the jumping of the player as the

momentum from a run or a jump carries over into the actual throw. All these mechanics together

gives depth to the grenade throwing mechanic and allows for complexity, which Adams and

Dormans (2012) discuss regarding emergent systems as “the threshold for complexity is

surprisingly low. Relatively simple rules can give rise to complex behavior, as long as there are

enough parts, activity, and connections.” (Active and Interconnected Parts section, para. 12).

In the article The future of game design: Moving beyond deus ex and other dated paradigms

(2001) Harvey Smith describes emergent behavior as the following:” Emergent behavior occurs

when a system acts in an organized fashion beyond the sum capabilities of its individual parts.”

(Terms section, para. 5) which is reminiscent of how an impressionist painting only functions

at a certain level of zoom. If one moves too close and look at the individual parts, it might not

make sense. On Impressionism, Venturi states that “In order to avoid virtuosity when they had

arrived at light and color, they stopped finishing. They reduced the subject matter to the state

of motif in order to keep the content of a work of art in the state of sensation” (p. 44), they

didn’t need to spend hours detailing the windmill, because the relative simplicity was enough

to capture the scene. Many mechanics-as-brushstrokes overlapping can create depth and

complexity as the individual mechanics themselves does not need to be detailed to achieve

depth and complexity as Adams and Dormans (2012) recognize. Consider the overlap of a

mechanic-as-a-brushstroke but there will be moments when there doesn’t need to be an overlap,

if that is what the game, as a whole requires.

4.7 Make that brushstroke

Both in game design and art, when I was just getting started there was a lot of confusion as I

was unfamiliar with both processes. In game design, I didn’t really know what unique

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experience I wanted to create so I resorted to copying other games I cherished. It was difficult

to grasp my intention but for every game I made, I learned something new. The same goes for

art; I would admire pictures and 3D models and wish I would one day be able to make

something cool myself. Every painting I drew, 3D character I modeled and game I developed

lead to me gaining some understanding of what I was doing. All the six considerations, that

each begs questions to be answered might not produce meaningful and interesting game

mechanics by themselves, but hopefully they can help a designer to faster understand their

work. I have tried and failed so many times, and especially in painting I still struggle to be able

to express myself in the way I want. In my struggle to learn how to paint I found the

impressionists and their paintings. I found them to be inspiring both as an aspiring artist (their

technique) and as an observer (their beauty).

My intention is not to slow down an already time-consuming task, but to enable the designer to

be purposeful in a quick way with the six considerations. Ultimately, this is about me trying to

grow as a designer and an artist, and I wish to know if it is possible to create game mechanics,

as purposefully and (relatively) swiftly as an artist draws a brushstroke. Impressionism makes

a point to not get bogged down on details and focus on the moment and sensations in front of

you (Venturi, 1941), something I will not be able to focus on too much in this paper as I chose

to start with exploring the brushstroke. The brushstroke is far from everything that attracts me

to impressionism, which leaves much up for future studies.

5 Case studies

In my translation from brushstroke to game design principles I have arrived at the six

considerations of size, placement, angle, visibility, shape, and overlap. I have expanded upon

the six considerations with questions derived from my discussion surrounding each of them in

the previous section.

Size: How much space will my mechanic occupy?

- Placement: What are the adjacent mechanics in terms of time, space, and narrative? Is

my mechanic placed appropriately?

- Angle: From where am I approaching this mechanic; as a designer, a player, an

educator, or something else? What argument am I trying to make?

- Visibility: How much of my mechanic is visible to the player? Is it meant to take center

stage?

- Shape: What is the shape of my mechanic? What story is it trying to tell?

- Overlap: Is there any overlap with other mechanics? If so, what new experiences will

emerge from the overlap? Should this mechanic overlap with other mechanics?

For the next section, I will try to test the expanded six considerations, and evaluate their

usefulness in three different case studies. The first scenario will be to try them as an analytical

tool on an existing mechanic in a recognized game. The second will be to add a new mechanic

in a recognized game. The third case study will be to speculate on a new game entirely and use

the six considerations to refine and explore several game mechanics. For the third case study, I

wish to zoom out a bit to see how the six considerations work in a larger context. This means

that the third case study will not be going into the same depth as the other case studies for each

mechanic.

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5.1 Case study 1: Analyzing a mechanic

The mechanic I have chosen to analyze using the six considerations is the roll mechanic in the

game Dark Souls (2011). My reason for choosing Dark Souls is partly because I am familiar

with the game but also because I consider it to be a complex game that is worthy of analysis as

apparent by the sheer amount of research and articles that can be found online regarding the

game.

The game is an action role-playing game where one plays as the chosen undead in the bleak

and withered world of Lordran. The game is known for its difficulty and the world itself is

hostile, so the player must master the game somewhat to complete it. The game is primarily

played using a controller and the player controls the movements and actions of the undead from

a third-person perspective. Defeating enemies while collecting their souls is central to the game,

and the roll mechanic plays a big part in the combat sections of the game. The act of rolling is

simple: press a button on the controller, and the player character rolls in the direction the player

is walking, consuming some stamina. But there is more to it; during a roll, the character is

invulnerable to all enemy attacks for a fraction of a second and mastery of this small window

of invulnerability, can make the game much easier. The roll is also quicker, has a longer

invulnerability time, and longer distance the less the player character weighs. Now that there is

some context, I can start on the analysis.

How much space does the mechanic occupy? The roll mechanic plays a large part in the combat

hemisphere but is not mandatory (though encouraged and the player benefits greatly from

learning how to use it). The game allows for many different play styles, say using ranged

weaponry, magic or using a shield to block incoming attacks. While it is difficult (or perhaps

even pointless) to determine exactly, I know that since combat is so central to the game, the roll

mechanic is significant due to the game’s difficulty and the potential reward for mastery.

What are its adjacent mechanics in terms of time/space/narrative? Though still possible at all

times (except cutscenes), the roll mechanic does not have much of a function outside of combat

encounters. Though directly connected to movement and stamina, rolling becomes most

relevant in hostile areas, where a threat looms over the player. When traversing the game world

in less hostile areas, running is much faster and consumes less stamina.

From where am I approaching this mechanic; as a designer, a player, an educator, or something

else? What argument am I trying to make? The designer’s original intention behind this

mechanic is unknown and it is difficult to speculate on it as one can never know without asking

the designer. I could theorize from where I would approach this and what I have come up with

is that I don’t think any argument is being made with the roll mechanic and that it might be

there to fill a void in the combat but my thoughts soon become entangled. I had envisioned this

consideration to be introspective and help crystallize the intention of the designer, but the

intention is occluded, and I fail to put myself in the work in this instance. This might be a failing

of mine, but it makes me believe that this particular consideration needs more work.

How much of my mechanic is visible to the player? Is it meant to take center stage? The roll

mechanic is both meant as a compliment to the combat mechanics available to the player, as

well to avoid certain environmental hazards. The mechanic is very much in the background,

though with mastery it can shine through.

What is the shape of my mechanic? What story is it trying to tell? The roll mechanic allows for

the player to tell their own story, of how they defeated that enemy or how they dodged that

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rolling boulder, narrowly escaping death. Although it allows for that kind of storytelling, it does

not guarantee it. The mechanic itself is ambiguous in shape to me; it’s difficult to say where it’s

trying to say something, except for allowing a depth in gameplay. A poorly timed roll can be

disastrous and a well-timed roll advantageous, but it does require situational knowledge of the

enemy.

Is there any overlap with other mechanics? If so, what new experiences will emerge from the

overlap? Should this mechanic overlap with other mechanics? The roll mechanic overlaps with

most combat mechanics, allowing the player to go toe-to-toe with dangerous enemies, that the

player would have to otherwise had to have kept a distance with. The roll, in writing, is a

defensive maneuver but it enables the player to play aggressively and stick to the enemies but

only if the player correctly observes the enemies’ attacks, masters the timing and positioning

of the roll. A roll is a high-risk and high-reward maneuver which not only provides depth with

its overlap with other mechanics, but also gives the combat excitement. There is a lot of

decision-making to be made by the player during combat, such as, should I roll through this

attack, block it with my shield, attack with my weapon or run away? It is partly this decision-

making that makes the roll a crucial part of the combat system. Combat systems with this

decision-making is quite typical in action-RPG games, although no one does it quite in the same

way.

Perhaps a more novel and interesting overlap, can be found in the swamps of Dark Souls;

wading in the swampy areas of the game slows the player down considerably which puts the

player at risk for enemy attacks, as well as the poisoned water eating away at the player’s health.

Intentional or not, rolling makes the player move more swiftly through the swamps; it is no

longer just a defensive maneuver, but a method to traverse a small part of the world. More

specifically, it is walking and running that is affected by the swamp, but rolling is untouched.

The swamp area is a large, open, and quite uninteresting space, but the overlap with the roll

mechanic makes it more memorable and changes the rules for the player, in a small but

interesting way. Going back to placement, the roll mechanic is always present due to its

availability but when the swamp and the player coincide, both in terms of time and space this

unique interaction between mechanics is created, giving life to the swamp (place) and the

journey (time and narrative).

The most interesting find in Dark Souls, is perhaps that the roll is not interesting as a mechanic

on its own. It thrives in its overlap, and enriches not only itself, but also the other mechanics in

the overlap. Then, looking at mechanics in isolation is to overlook its potential which is

problematic in an analytical sense as it is not possible to understand a mechanic in its context

(game). As Dark Souls is quite a large and complex game, it is difficult to take every mechanic

into consideration. To analyze Dark Souls completely from the lens of the six considerations

would be a gargantuan task, especially for overlap and placement. It is probable that the time-

consuming process of a full analysis, would be owed to the fact that games of this size are

complex entities. However, with my analysis of the roll mechanic, Through this case study, I

have showed that this approach, or intervention does not require a full analysis to be beneficial.

The six considerations can be used like a surgeon would a scalpel and target specific areas of a

game, to identify, or even address a weak or incomplete game mechanic of a game.

In Bloodborne (2015), a game made by the developers of Dark Souls there is a similar roll

mechanic (though it is considered a dash). The games are very similar but there are some

changes surrounding the mechanic itself which changes things. In Bloodborne, there is no block

option, and the enemies tend to be more aggressive. This means that the dash in Bloodborne

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becomes more vital in combat. Bloodborne also gives the player a chance to recover lost health

by attacking. The dash of Bloodborne and the roll of Dark Souls are very similar mechanics in

isolation, but in their adjacent mechanics and overlap, they differ completely as the dash is used

considerably more aggressively. As such, the shape of the dash in Bloodborne, due to its context

tells a completely different story than the roll of Dark Souls.

5.2 Case study 2: Adding a mechanic

The game I have chosen to add a mechanic to is Minecraft (2011). Minecraft is sand-box

adventure game where the player collects resources (such as stone, ores, and wood) to craft

tools, weapons, and armor to adventure with or build whatever their heart desires (such as

buildings or entire cities even). The player has a lot of creative freedom in Minecraft and the

game has even been referred to as “digital LEGO” (Introduction section, para. 1) in Editors of

Play (Abend et al., 2015). Minecraft has different game modes, and I have chosen to look at the

survival game mode, where the player must survive, and collect resources themselves (as

opposed to creative, where there is no limit to their resources). I have decided to add the

mechanic of weight to the game.

Now there are a million ways to implement weight into a game, so I have narrowed it down to

carry weight, as in affecting items that the player carries. As the world of Minecraft is based on

an endless number of blocks stacked on top of each other, adding weight to each block would

drastically change the way the world is simulated. While an interesting idea, to keep things

manageable I have made the size of my mechanic-as-a-brushstroke smaller, only affecting items

when carried by the player. In my implementation, the more items the player carries, the slower

they are until they cannot move at all. What is the reason for this limitation? What is there to

be gained from it? This will be explored in the following section, and I have chosen this, because

it is a mechanic common in role-playing games, and I would like to see how it would fit in a

game such as Minecraft. How much weight the player can carry determines much and for the

sake of this example, let’s say the player can carry 300 items and that the player is slowed down

gradually from 150 items carried and upwards (no movement penalty when carrying less than

150 items). Each item weighs the same to keep things simple. Let us look at this carry weight

mechanic from the perspective of each question. How much space will my mechanic occupy?

The size of the carry weight mechanic-as-a-brushstroke is small compared to other mechanics

such as a mining but not insignificant in the right time/space.

What are the adjacent mechanics in terms of time, space, and narrative? Is my mechanic placed

appropriately? The carry weight mechanic will be most active during the moments of the game

when the player is collecting resources, specifically mining. Mining for resources can be

dangerous, as the player is often mining in unknown territory where there can be skeletons and

zombies. Being bogged down by the weight of amassed resources can be fatal, as one might be

outmaneuvered by the enemy non-player characters or fail to make that jump across the chasm

back to the base. If the player is adventuring or exploring, instead of mining, the player is less

likely to have an issue with the carry weight, as the player’s inventory is not being constantly

refilled with resources. If the player is building something, they would also have to pay attention

to the carry weight, especially if the player wants to build efficiently.

From where am I approaching this mechanic; as a designer, a player, an educator, or something

else? What argument am I trying to make? I am approaching this as a designer because I want

to see how this mechanic would fit into the game, but also as a storyteller as I am interested in

what kind of emergent narrative can come out of this addition. How much of my mechanic is

visible to the player? Is it meant to take center stage? As the mechanic is detrimental to the

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player’s movement speed, a constraint forced upon them, it is going to be noticed, probably in

a negative light.

What is the shape of my mechanic? What story is it trying to tell? The shape of the mechanic-

as-a-brushstroke is a thorn in the player’s side, but hopefully it will create new interesting

emergent narrative. Going spelunking for ore, is no longer a matter of finding the ore and

mining it, but there is also the challenge of bringing it all back; the more resources mined, the

larger of a hassle it is to haul it all back to the base. Hauling a huge number of resources, is not

only a boon, but also a great risk. I want the players to remember the time they found that

bountiful cave, and they spent hours hauling it all back into base.

Is there any overlap with other mechanics? If so, what new experiences will emerge from the

overlap? Should this mechanic overlap with other mechanics? The carry weight mechanic

overlaps with other mechanics concerning storage and mobility. A logistical challenge is

created and existing mechanics that overlap, such as rail, minecarts, rideable animals, boats and

specifically the minecart with chest are given new purpose. Using the minecart with chest would

bypass the hassle to carry it all on the player and would encourage the player to create a railway

network between their base and their mine. Aesthetically, the mines in the game would also

actually look like mines. Horses, boats and even running water could be used as modes of

transportation in the mining operations. As Minecraft is a multiplayer game, it also allows for

new logistical roles for players to assume on servers. An added note, Minecraft is a game that

supports modding (to a certain degree) so adding something like this would not be too difficult

if one wanted to test this mechanic further in the game itself.

Looking at adjacent mechanics in terms of narrative becomes difficult if the narrative is

emergent, would be interesting to look further at games with a more traditional narrative; I

suspect that it could become more useful, paired with a game with a linear narrative such as

Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune (2007). When adding an established game mechanic such as the

carry weight mechanic one would assume that the result would be somewhat predictable.

However, the mechanic is transformed by the context, and the context transformed by the

mechanic. In this case study, although the carry weight mechanic itself is detrimental to the

player, it managed to give other mechanics depth in its overlap.

5.3 Case study 3: Creating a game

How does one create a game with these six considerations in mind? It’s difficult for me to create

an entirely fictional game just like that, so I’ll need a little help from my everyday life. Recently

I’ve been trying to grow tomatoes, which is something I have failed before. No matter what I

do, they seem to just die eventually, usually from an insect attack. I will try making a game

about this, with these principles in mind and draw from my personal experiences with those

pesky tomato plants. The main subject of the game is the tomato plant, and the goal is to get

juicy tomatoes out of it. The obstacles are watering it correctly, dealing with pests, making sure

it does not freeze and all these must be done daily. There is also very little feedback to actions.

Keep in mind I have a horrible track record in keeping these alive, so this is by no means a

guide, but lately I’ve been doing well. I’ll start by creating rough outlines of my mechanics,

and then prod them with my questions to see what ideas might sprout. For this case study, I will

not state the questions before each paragraph as before, but each question will be considered

for every mechanic. Some mechanics are longer than other, as the questions generate a varying

number of thoughts regarding each one.

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5.3.1 Mechanic - The tomato plant

The tomato plant itself, it needs to be watered regularly so the soil does not dry up, but not too

much either. It needs to be taken inside for nights that are cold, its leaves should be sprayed

with soapy water if insects are attacking it and the soil needs nutrients occasionally. A careful

balance needs to be upheld for it to grow or even survive. Visually the tomato plant somewhat

indicates what it needs (but not always in good time), for example if it needs water the soil will

be dry, and if there are insects, there will be bites on the leaves.

In this game, the size of this mechanic-as-a-brushstroke is vast as the tomato plant is the goal,

the subject, an indication of progress, an indication of obstacle and what the player works with

in terms of all other mechanics. In this game, one can almost see the composition, like one of

those classic flowers in a vase painting, but a tomato plant on a balcony, with all the mechanics

(watering can, nutrients etc.) all around it on the balcony floor. I am approaching this game as

someone who desperately wants to grow juicy tomatoes and wants to vent my frustrations with

the process and share my struggle. As with the composition, in terms of visibility, this mechanic

is at the center of it all. The shape of this mechanic is trying to tell the story of a selfish plant

that doesn’t play by anyone’s rules, it’s very much the antagonist of the story. In terms of

overlap, this mechanic, like a plant does, sucks the nutrients out of all the other mechanics, and

every other mechanic is necessary to keep the plant alive.

5.3.2 Mechanic – Day/night cycle

Time goes on, and I occasionally forget to water my plants and take care of them. A day is ten

minutes of in-game time and a night is also ten minutes of in-game time. A day can either be

rainy or sunny and a night can be either warm or cold. A sunny day will make the tomato plant

grow extra fast but will dry out the soil quicker. A rainy day will make the plant grow, but the

soil will get moister. One does not need to do much on a warm night but on a cold night the

plant must be taken inside. The seasons are a prerequisite for anything to grow, so the size of

this mechanic is quite big as there would be no game without it. In terms of placement, this

mechanic dictates the pace of the game, this is sort of a background (or for a more fitting

analogy, a sky) for all the other mechanics. I am approaching this from my personal experience,

but more specifically, as someone forgetful. The 10-minute day/night cycle is supposed to be

long enough that the player can walk away from the game and forget it. I want the game to

require that the player must make an appointment with it, because the gameplay itself will be

boring, unless the player goes and does something else. But of course, to drive the point home,

there can’t be any notifications of the sort. The day/night cycle, while visible is more like a

background; the player needs to pay attention to it, to read the weather and temperature, but it

will not directly interact with the player. The mechanic is trying to tell a story of nature, weather,

days and nights, all conditions for which growth requires. The mechanic overlaps with the

watering can, as in, almost a competition between them, the day/night cycle mechanic can feed

the plants enough but not always. It gives the player an interesting choice such as: do I need to

water the plants or has it rained enough, what if it rains tomorrow?

5.3.3 Mechanic – Watering can

The watering can is an essential tool, especially on a sunny day. The player must water the

tomato plant regularly, but by how much and how often? That depends on several factors, such

as relative humidity, state of the soil and more. Unfortunately, there is not much indication to

what is the right amount, the player must try their way forward. The size of the mechanic, while

not the largest on the canvas is still significant as it is a vital part of the ritual that is taking care

of a plant. When there are so few mechanics, it occurred to me that it could be helpful to think

17

of what it isn’t adjacent to, which would in this case study be the spray bottle with soapy water

mechanic and move the plant mechanic except in terms of narrative. Narratively, the ritual of

taking care of a tomato plant is an everyday occurrence, where these mechanics are situated one

after another. Though in this game, there is no guarantee that such a ritual is formed, perhaps

one could form out of habit. I am approaching this mechanic as a cultivator, meaning as

someone who is determined to see the fruits of my labor. The watering can is a signature tool

of a balcony-based cultivator such as I and thus it has a high visibility to the player; if this were

a first-person shooter game, then the watering can would be the main weapon, an extension of

the player. The story it is trying to tell, is that of the human intervention, the will and even

stubbornness that is required to grow on one’s balcony. The mechanic overlaps with the rain

from the day/night mechanic, its interaction explained in the paragraph above. And as with

every mechanic, it overlaps with the plant itself.

5.3.4 Mechanic – Spray bottle with soapy water

Spraying the leaves with this soapy water is a great way to repel insects, but be careful not to

spray during the day, or the sun will damage the leaves of the plant due to the soapy components

of the water. While not as big as the watering can, it still essential as it is a weapon against the

insects. Thematically (and perhaps narratively), it’s adjacent to the watering can as they are

both tools, using water to help the plant in their own way, but they are not necessarily adjacent

in terms of time and space. The approach to it (as where am I from) is much the same as the

watering can, but not exactly. With the watering can, the plant is the antagonist but here, the

insects are. With all the other mechanics, the player is fighting the plant, but suddenly they are

protecting the plant or perhaps protecting their interest and investment. The visibility of the

mechanic is dependent on the presence of insects. It’s not a pesticide, so not quite a weapon in

itself, but in terms of the story this mechanic is trying to tell, it is a weapon, in fact it is the

player’s only weapon against the insect. As all other mechanics, it overlaps with the plant itself.

5.3.5 Mechanic – Nutrients

Adding nutrients to the plant will help the plant grow faster and have a better protection against

insects but be careful not to add too much or the plant will die. The size of the nutrients is about

the same as the soapy water. Expect to its adjacency with the plant, this mechanic is isolated,

except narratively, where it is an act of caretaking. The visibility for the player of this one is

lowest out of all the mechanics that are an interaction from the player. It is difficult to tell

whether the correct amount of nutrients have been added, and more difficult still to know

precisely when to add. Adding nutrients to the plant tells a similar story to that of water, but its

shape is different, or the ritual is different as the interval for adding nutrients is bi-weekly as

opposed to daily. Besides the overlap with the plant itself, improving the soil to give the plant

what it needs, it does not overlap with other things.

5.3.6 Mechanic – Move the plant

The player can move the plant inside at any time, useful during cold nights or poor weather.

Moving the plant takes up a moderate chunk of the canvas. It’s adjacent to, or perhaps closest

to the day/night cycle mechanic, as this mechanic is a reaction to it. I am approaching this

mechanic as someone stubborn, as someone who is trying to fight the weather when it does not

cooperate. The mechanic is very visible to the player as they are changing the environment of

the plant itself which lies at the center of the game. The shape of it, is similar to the watering

can and tells the story of human intervention but does not take the shape of a tool. Moving the

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plant between the human world and the natural world is like trying to tame the elements, or at

least work around them. In terms of overlap, one of the more interesting overlaps of the game

can be found in this mechanic. Moving the plant inside or outside drastically affects the plants

needs and can both stunt and promote growth. It overlaps with the watering can, as one might

not need to water as much, and it overlaps with the day/night cycle as it allows one to control

the temperature in a limited way. Moving the plant inside or outside is a big decision, and nearly

every mechanic, except perhaps adding nutrients overlaps in some way. The weather can disrupt

the ritual; not only does the player have to water the plant every day, but through this moving

mechanic, the tomato plant reminds them that they are not in control. The overlap affords for

the player to react and plan, but also, if not done properly, stunt the growth or potentially even

kill the plant.

Can a tomato plant be considered a game mechanic? Is the humidity, the soil, the insects, all

separate mechanics? If I am using Lundgren and Bjork’s (2003) definition then no, this is not a

game mechanic, especially since the player only interacts with the tomato plant using other

mechanics (such as the watering can). Does it fall under rules then? Conceptually, as a part of

a painting, I believe one can nestle all those conditions (humidity etc.) under the tomato plant,

as it pertains to the needs of the plant, a central theme. When examining the driving mechanic

in Grand Theft Auto IV (2008) Sicart states that “When playing, and, on occasion, when

analyzing, it is useful to think about these compound mechanics as a whole and not as a

collection of formally differentiated mechanics.” (Interlude: Core, Primary and Secondary

Mechanics section, para. 11). As Sicart stated, it was useful to consider the tomato plant as a

single mechanic because it helped to place it in the context.

In fact, to think of game mechanics outside of strict definitions and instead as a part of a painting

was liberating for me. In applying the principles throughout the case studies, the questions

started to evolve. In size, I was mentally building a hierarchy of influence, comparing them to

each other, trying to sort them as I went. I thought of placement not only in terms of adjacent

mechanics, but also placement of itself. Overlap proved to yield much interesting discussion

regarding depth.

During my speculations for this tomato game, I realized that no person will ever get the same

results from the six considerations as another person would except perhaps in the case of using

them as an analytical tool. The six considerations are open for interpretation, and they all require

for the designer to pour a bit of themselves into them, especially in a game that the designer has

created from scratch. This leads me to believe that there is plenty of expressive opportunity in

the six considerations, something I wanted to preserve from the painting process.

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6 Conclusion

In the Dark Souls and Minecraft case studies, I found it difficult to keep the metaphor of the

brushstroke alive in the mind when working with the six considerations, it felt as if my mind

was not equipped to make the translation from art to game design on the spot, but the six

considerations themselves were easy to follow. However, in the tomato plant case study I found

it much easier to consider the game as a painting in a metaphorical sense. This difference could

be due to having a lack of control in Dark Souls and Minecraft as they are games made by

someone else, and their intent is concealed, which in turn made the analogy break down

somewhat in both those games for me. In Making deep games, Rusch (2017) makes a case for

the use of metaphors in games and explores “the role of metaphors to grasp complex, abstract

concepts” (3.1 Introduction section, para. 3). A single game mechanic is a complex concept,

and even more so a game made from many, as shown through the case studies, which is why

using a metaphor, not as something intended for the player, but as something to assist the

designer is useful.

In all case studies, each of the six consideration had a varying degree of usefulness, depending

on what context they were applied to. Sometimes, the consideration of size did not yield as

much discussion as the others and in the consideration of angle in Dark Souls, I had trouble

determining how the consideration should be used. I was not using the six considerations in a

rigid fashion demanding concrete answers to every single one, but instead I considered the

questions from within their context. This leads me to conclude that some of the six

considerations needs further testing, to see if the lack of discussion could be due to context in

a specific game, in the considerations themselves or perhaps even due to the person applying

them.

As RtD benefits from a healthy dose of introspection (Lankoski, P., & Holopainen, J., 2017), I

want to discuss how my view of realism has changed during the writing of this paper. This

paper started partly as a refutation of realism, more specifically the capitalistic realism I found

in AAA studios such as Red Dead Redemption 2 which has even founds its way into The Elder

Scrolls V: Skyrim mods. The focus of my work has drifted somewhat during the writing, and

while the refutation of realism propelled me forward in the beginning, my interest in using art

as a perspective on game design got me all the way through. I wonder if I could travel back in

time and send the developers of Red Dead Redemption 2 my approach, what would the game

look like? Maybe it would not look so different as it still exists within the paradigm that Whitson

(2013) described, but it could help them understand their game better, an outcome I would be

happy with. All the mechanics in the case studies have been heavily inspired by reality,

especially the tomato plant case study. Reality is not our enemy, but an ally, something that can

inspire us, just as it inspired Florent Maurin (2016) to develop reality-inspired games like Bury

Me, My Love (2017), a game about a Syrian immigrant finding her way to Europe. Reality-

inspired games have been able to explore subject matters that AAA games have not (McMillan

et al., 2020). McMillan et al. attributes this difference to maturity and while that might be so, I

also believe that reality-inspired games have better design tools to discuss reality and realism

as opposed to the design by numbers that rule over AAA games.

The impressionists did not try to build reality in their paintings, instead they painted reality as

seen through their own eyes, including all the visual imperfections and effects of light otherwise

omitted in conventional painting of their time. They were efficient in capturing the scene and

would not waste time painting one thing especially detailed, but work on the entirety. An

impressionist game designer would not bother using their time on the beard growth mechanic

in The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt, a fantasy game spanning countless of hours of play because

20

that would be too granular, and not a part of the impression. Applying my approach analytically

would enable us to quickly establish that the size of the beard growth mechanic, in a game of

that size, would not even register on the canvas when compared with other game mechanics

and in terms of placement, it is isolated from the other mechanics. In a world where there is

much risk associated with game development one would think that AAA studios would embrace

the efficient approach of an impressionist.

Expanding on core mechanics, Sicart (2008) sees the need to split the concept into primary

(core) mechanics and secondary (core) mechanics as there are games such as Grand Theft Auto

IV that “have such a vast number of mechanics, and so many are used to make the game

progress, that the very use of the core mechanics concept may be useless” (Interlude: Core,

Primary and Secondary Mechanics section, para. 5). Later in the article, he also recognizes that

“these terms should not be used as rigid categories: on occasions, secondary mechanics can turn

into primary mechanics during the designed gameplay progression, and some primary

mechanics may even disappear in the length of a game.” (Interlude: Core, Primary and

Secondary Mechanics section, para. 10). When the language of primary and secondary

mechanics proves insufficient, my approach can be a complement to Sicart’s definition of game

mechanics. For example, the issue of a mechanic only being a primary mechanic for a certain

part of the game can be discussed using my consideration of placement, which allows us to

explore and even map the temporality of mechanics in games. For the game mechanics that fall

outside the definition for primary and secondary Sicart states that “It is still relevant to

understand them and to describe how their importance is perceived in actual gameplay.”

(Interlude: Core, Primary and Secondary Mechanics). Through my case studies, I have showed

that my approach can generate meaningful discussion not only on core mechanics but also

smaller mechanics like the roll of Dark Souls.

Using my approach, or the aptly named six considerations of size, placement, angle, visibility,

shape and overlap as lenses to analyze and explore game mechanics can help developers faster

understand what lies at the core of their experience. It can also help the designer understand

where their efforts are best needed. For researchers and designers these six considerations can

be used to analyze game mechanics, inside the context they exist in (games) rather than looking

at mechanics in isolation. In The Assemblage of Play (Taylor, 2009), the author argues that

"Thinking about games as assemblage, wherein many varying actors and unfolding processes

make up the site and action, allows us to get into the nooks where fascinating work occurs” (p.

332), a sentiment I have come to share after the three case studies. In fact, looking at game

mechanics in isolation is limiting and the approach outlined in this paper provides a language

for discussing, analyzing, and creating game mechanics in the context of a game. The approach

I have designed is non-disruptive, as it takes up a supporting role in the process of developing

game mechanics. It is complementary to existing methods of creating and analyzing game

mechanics and can even be stretched to encompass rules as well, depending on what definition

one is using.

Sicart’s (2008) definition proves useful in analysis but not in production and the same goes for

Lundgren and Bjork’s (2003) definition. In turn, the game industry, and the players themselves

have formed their own definitions of what game mechanics are, something observed both by

Sicart (2008), Lundgren and Bjork (2003). My approach, as observed in the case studies, has

the potential of being useful both in theory and practice, bridging the gap in language between

developers and researchers. My goal in the introduction was to provide myself, and others with

a larger vocabulary to talk about game mechanics, something I believe I have achieved. I urge

21

game designers to involve art more in all stages of the design process as it is, what I believe to

be a great and fitting source of inspiration for games.

7 Future Work

I want to reiterate something I stated in the introduction: There is no reason as to why we

designers should limit ourselves to looking at game mechanics exclusively when using art to

inspire the game development process. To me, it was a matter of scope that led me to game

mechanics, but I believe impressionism can be used in every part of game development.

Impressionism was not only an art form, but a movement which echoed into other art forms. As

a designer, I want us to create more diverse and interesting games, and I urge developers to

look everywhere for inspiration, wherever their interest may lie. When I first started this quest

to use impressionism to inspire the game development process, I had intended to look at many

of its different aspects. In this paper, unfortunately I only had time to look at the brushstroke,

which is incredible by itself but hardly manages to capture impressionism. This leaves much

for future work such as plein-airism, where the artists immersed themselves in nature, what

would that look like for a modern-day developer? The impressionists paved the way for so

many other art movements so where would a similar movement for games take us? For this

paper, I chose impressionism because it appeals to me, but what would pop art or surrealism

teach us? The impressionists even worked swiftly, managing to capture just enough detail to

make it recognizable and even beautiful, doesn’t that sound incredibly useful for the slow and

expensive process that is game development?

22

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