subject: Key Elements Necessary To Make Serious Games [print this page] Talented software developers have learned that extreme violence is not necessary to make serious games that will hold the attention of the gaming community. Games for video game platforms and for online gaming must create believable, relatable characters; detailed environments with rich colors and depth; and a plot and challenges that are interesting and motivating, making the player want more. Violence may be a be necessary part of the game, if the plot is dealing with battle or law enforcement, but a skilled designer with a creative vision for entertainment will understand the limits between realism and gratuitous violence, and will not step over the line.
In order to gain and hold the interest of the gaming communities, software professionals have learned to make serious games with characters gamers learn to care about. These may be people who are very much like themselves, or they may be characters with depth and complexity, almost like those in a movie, who will move the player to care about what happens to them, or to hate them, or feel whatever reaction the game developer is seeking. A number of very different, relatable characters will add more to the final product than a mass of shooting, violence, and blood.
The setting, or environment, done right, almost becomes another character in the game, and the setting needs to vary with changing levels. Realistic settings may include Las Vegas, New York City, or an Afghanistan village. Perhaps a level takes place inside a theater or a church. Whatever the case may be, expert developers who make serious games that sell will include details like billboards, flower pots, and sound effects that give the gamer a sense of truly being there with their characters. Complex settings, rich in color and detail, that changes drastically with each level, enhances game play, not only by stimulating the senses, but also by affecting the characters activities and challenges.
The purpose different developers and distributors have to make serious games vary widely. Some are simply looking for a new, creative way to stimulate the game player and sell games with a new twist on a tried and true staple in the gaming world. Others are looking to make a point, whether that message is social, political, or religious. These games may target specific audiences, or the hope may be to shield the message in a more general-looking game, and so doing, get the message to a new audience altogether. For example, teen players may be seeking a new game involving battle and strategy, and inadvertently purchase and utilize a product with an underlying message about the dangers and futility of war. This is totally acceptable, provided the product meets or exceeds the players expectations in all other areas of the game.
Characters, settings, challenges, and choices are all important elements that must be included in order to make serious games that will be widely accepted and played. The games must include an adequately complex plot, in order to keep the interest of the players, and they must offer choices and options in order to remain interesting.
