Let’s make a choice-based game as a prototype for your simulation.
I’m choosing a Spent or Reigns-like gameplay as a template due to several features:
-it’s minimalistic and easily implemented
-it can be paper prototyped, and the deck metaphor makes it immediately intuitive
-it distills the “game as interesting choices” idea
– it allows you to present heterogeneous views and choices without creating complex subsystems
-it has a clear separation between content/data and engine, so you can build upon it with little coding
-it combines interactive narrative and resource management. You can use it to tell a story or to prototype a more complex simulation
-it can be a component for more complex games (the event system in a game like Crusader King) or a starting point for more complex card games
It also has some notable limitations like:
– the player’s agency is limited to reacting to events, no initiative or strategy
– it can be hard to convey a sense of progression and build-up (which are important aspects of simulation games)
Brainstorming
The scenario
Let’s list some (real world) systems or situations that could be interesting to “simulate” as a series of choices + a small set of variables.
What are characteristics that would make a scenario interesting?
Pick a scenario that intrigues you and answer the following questions in relation to it.
Your goal
As a creator/artist, you want to ask yourself what the goal of this project is: entertainment, education, comedy, maximum accuracy, raising awareness.
What is your position (and positionality) regarding the subject matter?
The role
What would be the most interesting role to play in such scenario? Why?
The stocks
What are some aspects of the world that would make sense to quantify as variable?
Which ones and when should be visible to the player? Which ones should be hidden and why?
What are some ways to present them visually?
Agency
Given the player’s role and the variables at play, what actions could the players take?
For each variable, describe at least one action that increases it and one that decreases it.
Do the same with events beyond the player’s control.
Now, for each possible pair of variables imagine an event that constitutes a trade-off between these two variables.
What are some interesting dilemmas?
Thresholds/tipping points
What are some crucial thresholds that a variable can trigger?
What are some effects?
What are the winning and losing conditions?
Eg: when money is 0 the company goes bankrupt, it’s game over.
Assignment
Make a paper prototype for a choice game.
Make a deck of event cards (20 or more).
Prepare a list of variables with initial values.
Each event card should have a description.
Each event can present multiple choices to the player.
The choices can have conditions to be selected (eg a cost) and effects
A choice can change any game variables using any mathematical formulas or card/deck operations (discard etc).
An event can also have a single choice if the player has no control over it.
The effect of a choice can be hidden to the player until the choice is made – you can write them on the back of the card
-You can operate the prototype as a kind of dungeon master, it doesn’t have to be a functioning solitaire.
-The goal is not to make a fun game but to figure out if the premise and scenario is compelling to explore
Here’s a preview of the unity template:
