Spector and Hoekstra on FPS Design
Warren Spector (Deus Ex) and Kenn Hoekstra (Soldier of Fortune) have been interviewed by 3D Action Planet in an article looking at the design of first-person shooters and what direction it is heading in. They talk about the most influential games over the past few years and where they want to take the genre. It is unfortunately short, though anything with Spector involved rarely goes on for as long as you want it to.
We have to get away from the designer-as-author model and find ways to allow players to participate — in real and meaningful ways — in the telling of “our” stories. If “interactivity” really is what sets gaming apart from other media, aren’t we obliged to give players something more than a couple of prefab choices, made up to masquerade as choice? Shouldn’t we cede some of our power as crafters of game experiences to players by giving them control over the minute-to-minute gameplay experience?
We have to get more gameplay from our simulations and the ways players choose to interact with them. We could do with a lot less gameplay that arises from contrived puzzles and pre-scripted scenes.
We have to find ways to bring non-player characters — allies, enemies, humans and “monsters” — to life. The day you really give a damn about a character you’re interacting with in a 3D game will be a very big day, indeed…
posted by splash · at 11:44 am · filed under News