Game Analysis: For Honor

Summary

  • JOHN, PLEASE WRITE YOUR SUMMARY HERE. THANKS! – Mr. Le Duc Dec 20th, 2020

Game Play Analysis

Formal Elements
The Basics
Name of the gameFor Honor
The platformPC, Ps, Xbox
Time played (should be at least 30 minutes)45 min
If you could work on this game (change it), what would you change and why?The damage values because some heros don’t do much damage when they do their maximum combo.
Players
How many players are supported?1-8
Does it need to be an exact number?no
How does this affect play?Some of the bots are very basic or sometimes they are god like.
Some types of player frameworks:Single Player – like Solitare.Head-to-head – 1 vs. 1, Chess.PvE – Player vs. Environment, or multiple players vs. the game. Common in MMOs like World of Warcraft.One against Many – Single-player vs. multiple (obvy).Free-for-all – Every man for himself (1 vs. 1 vs. 1 vs. 1..). Most common for multiplayer games, from Monopoly to Modern Warfare.Individuals Against the System – Like Blackjack, where the Dealer is playing against multiple players, but those players have no effect on each other.Team Competition – Multiple vs. multiple, i.e. sports.Predator-prey – Players form a circle and everyone’s goal is to attack the player on their left and defend themselves from the player on their right.Five-pointed Star – Eliminate both players who are not on either side of you.PVP
Objectives/GoalsNOTES
What are the players trying to do?Trying to capture points and gain 1000 so enemys have no more respawns.
Some common objectives include:Capture/Destroy – Eliminate all your opponents pieces (Chess).Territorial Acquisition – Control as much territory as you can, not necessarily harming other players (RISK).Collection – Collect a certain number of objects throughout the game (Pokemon).Solve – Solve a puzzle or crime (Clue).Chase/race/escape – Anything where you are running towards or away from something (playground game Tag).Spatial Alignment – Anything involving the positioning of elements (Tetris or Tic-Tac-Toe or that game at Cracker Barrel).Build – Advance your characters or build your resources to a certain point (The Sims).Negation of another goal – The game ends if you perform an act that is forbidden by the rules (Jenga or Twister).Capture and hold and then kill.
Rules/Mechanics
There are three categories of (what the book Rules of Play calls) operational rules:Setup – the things you do at the beginning of a game.Progression of Play – what happens during the game.Resolution – How an outcome is determined based on the game state.You begin to capture your home point and then try to get other points and get 1000 to take away respawn of the enemy team. if they all die when there is 1000 points or more, then you win.
ControlsNOTES
What controls are used?Heavy and light attacks, feint, roll, emote, dodge, and guardbreak
Was there a clear introductory tutorial?Yes
Were they easy to understand or did you find yourself spamming the controller?It might be harderfor new players since this game works differently.
Resources & Resource ManagementNOTES
What kinds of resources do players control?They control capturing points and attacking.
How are they maintained during play?They work with a team to capture points and they respawn if they die.
What is their role?
A resource is everything under the control of a single player. Could be the money in Monopoly or health in WoW. Other examples are:Territory in RISK The number of questions remaining in 20 Questions Objects picked up during videogames (guns, health packs, etc.)Time (game time, real-time, or both)Known information (like suspects in Clue)Their health is what they can control.
Game StateNOTES
How much information in the game state is visible to the player?They are given damage values and visible gaurd
A snapshot of the game at a single point is the game state. The resources you have, the un-owned properties in Monopoly, your opponent’s Archery skill all count towards the game state. Some example information structures are:Total Information – Nothing is hidden, like Chess.Info per player – Your hand of cards is only visible to you.One player has privileged info – Like a Dungeon Master.The game hides info from all players – Like Clue, where no one knows the victory condition.Fog of War – In video games, where certain sections of the map are concealed if you do not have a unit in sight range of that area. You also cannot see other players’ screens, so each player is unaware of the other’s information.Total information
SequencingNOTES
In what order do players take their actions?They are always in action, fighting others.
How does play flow from one action to another?It could be a 1v1 or it can turn to a 4v4 very quickly
Some structures include:Turn-based – Standard board game technique.Turn-based with simultaneous play – where everyone takes their turn at the same time (like writing something down or putting a card down in War).Real-time – Actions happen as fast as players can make them. Action-based video games.Turn-based and time limits – You have this long to take your turn.Real time action.
Player Interaction
Some examples:Direct Conflict – I attack you.Negotiation – If you support me here, I’ll help you there.Trading – I’ll give you this for that.Information Sharing – If you go there, I’m warning you, a trap will go off.Direct Conflict
Theme & NarrativeNOTES
Does it have an actual story structure?Yes
Is it based on a historical event (or similar)?No
Does the theme or narrative help you know how to play?Their are tutorials on the hero you are playing
Does it have emotional impacts?yes
Also, look for en media res (does it start in the middle of the game)?no
The Elements in MotionNOTES
How do the different elements interact?It is basically i hit you, health is take away.
What is the gameplay like?It could be fast pace or it can be very slow if you are fighting someone who only waits for you to attack so they can parry.
Is it effective?Yes
Are there any points where the design choices break down?Some characters have moves that if they miss they can’t be punished from it which can be spammed.
Design CritiqueNOTES
Why did the designer make these particular choices?It is a unique way to start a fighting game with a three way guard system
Why this set of resources?They chose this way because no one has ever done this kind of fighting.
What if they made different decisions?They might have changed the punishments for things that you do wrong in a fight.
Does the design break down at any point?Sometimes there are glitches in where characters fall through maps from a move.
Graphics & SoundNOTES
Does the game art pair well with the mechanics?No
Did you find any bugs or glitches?Yes
What about sound?Sound is good
Can you spot any technical shortcuts?No
Various Stages of the GameNOTES
To wrap up, some things to keep in mind (as if there aren’t enough already) as you play:
What challenges do you face, and how do you overcome them?I find myself not punishing people when they make a mistake.
Is the game fair?No
Is it replayable? Are there multiple paths to victory or optional rules that can change the experience?It is replayable
What is the intended audience?teens and older
What is the core, the one thing you do over and over, and is it fun?You fight over and over and it can be fun if the other person is skilled as you are.

This analysis form was adapted from https://notlaura.com/a-template-for-analyzing-game-design/

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Mr. Le Duc’s Game Analysis Resources

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