Re: Game construction and design.
Firstly, my experience with game construction and design is modest. But
there has been talk of further changes to this game, so I will wade into
deep water. Perhaps a useful discussion will result.
Let it be postulated that intellectual games (as opposed to physical
ones) can be placed on a linear scale. One end of this spectrum we will
call "constrained" while the other end of the scale we will label
"horizonless".
An example of a "constrained" game would be chess. It has infinite depth
but is highly formalized and the four corners are well established. It
is rook to QB4 check. The rook neither operates off the table nor jumps
other pieces.
An example of a "horizonless" game might be Myst. More shallow than
chess but with fewer boundries. An unending series of puzzles with a
decision matrix as broad as the imagination of the designer.
Many people have difficulty operating in a "horizonless" environment.
Some remind me of Persian King Darius in the Ukraine. Everywhere the>king looks he sees only grass and sky. Oh yes, there is that cloud of
horse archers. No matter what the king does they neither come closer nor
get further away. Persons unable to operate without horizons either quit
in frustration or demand boundries and reference markers.
My belief is that GOOD simulations of human conflict edge more towards
the "horizonless" side of the scale. Be this combat or the
prevention/supression of prison disturbances. Military thinkers, such as
Saxe and Vegetius, have stressed the uncertainty and imponderables of
war.
If the above is accepted as a point of discussion, let us look at the GSI
roots of this game. The player received a 124 page rulebook. Contained
within are the two ways to win the game, the one thological commandment
(no player shall play more than one position in a game), lots of color
and some useful guidelines. Myst -like the player blunders through the
game relying on common sense, a knowledge of Tolkien and an expanding
experience base. Eventually, the laws of this particular universe take
shape.
The rulebook also deliberately contains errors, omissions and
ambiguities. The rulebook contains two understated and often overlooked
items. These are: Espionage is specifically allowed and players may
misrepresent themselves. The rook not only operates on the 64 tiles, butmay operate off the table and under the table.
So, if this is worth discussion, perhaps some insights might be obtained.
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