I played a free game on the PlayStation Store last night called Interaction Isn’t Explicit. It’s free, and it’s a playable study about interactivity in video games that teaches you about design through actual play.
I’ve been thinking about it all morning and perhaps it will be valuable to you, so here’s the link. Again, it’s free, it only takes about an hour to knock over (and it even has trophies if you’re looking for an easy platinum). My thanks to good mate Kieron Verbrugge for bringing it to my attention.
The study’s purpose is to explain how interactions in video games actually work. It does this in ways that make sense to gamer brains rather than developer brains. That’s an important distinction.
Explicit and non-explicit
The game digs into the two types of interaction: explicit and non-explicit. Simply put, a non-explicit interaction is one that does not require interacting with the game world itself. It’s a subtle barrier placed between the player and the game. This can manifest in any number of ways — a button prompt appearing as you approach a door, a quick time event, or the crafting system in The Last of Us are all good examples. Explicit interactions are moments where the game asks you to interact with it in direct ways without a barrier. Running up a flight of stairs to gain a height advantage. Shooting and general combat. That sort of thing. Neither form of interactivity is inherently good or bad. Deployed correctly, both can be used to great effect.
I like the way Interaction Isn’t Explicit presents its information. It takes its time to explain each concept and demonstrate them all fully. The game ties each example to contemporary games like God of War, Call of Duty, and Far Cry. By taking the time to step through each concept and then having you perform those interactions yourself, Interaction Isn’t Explicit reinforces its lessons.
Yes good more please
Developer Fears Ahead Studios promises more titles like this are coming in the future. I welcome every last one of them. This is such a smart and effective way to teach people the language of game design. It’s never too academic about its lessons, but it also trusts that you’re switched on enough to pick up what it’s putting down. It even throws a boss fight at you at the end that is designed to feel just a bit frustrating. It uses that fight to demonstrate how explicit and non-explicit interactions can be used to inform our emotions. Just ripper material.
Fears Ahead has another game currently in development called Tuesday Morning. It’s a single player action adventure game, and while there’s a demo available in the US, that apparently isn’t currently available in Australia. A bummer. I look forward to giving a play.
Anyway, if you have a spare hour to kill this weekend, and you’d like to learn something about game design, play Interaction Isn’t Explicit.
Image: Fears Ahead Studios
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