Being Original

A question quite a few of you might be struggling with is: How do I design an original game? Doing the 100th clone of Space Invaders might become a bit boring and might not lead to the recognition you are after.

Why being original?
Before giving some tips on how to be original, let us first ask ourselves another question: Is it important to be original? If you look at most of the games that are published by the big game publishers like EA, originality does not seem to be very important. Was Call of Duty 4 original, compared to the ones before? How about the endless stream of racing games? Or soccer games, or ... There is not much originality in most of these. Normally there are improvements in the graphics and other simulation aspects. There might be some small improvements in game play and maybe another special mode. But the overall game play is largely the same. And still they sell pretty well. Actually making original games is considered as taking a big risk by the industry. The same by the way is true for movies. Most movies are about a small number of different themes and they tend to follow largely the same story line.

But originality can make a big difference and lead to big hits. The Sims was clearly original and became a big seller. The Nintendo Wii leads to original game play which, again, is hugely successful.

It also depends on the type of game. If a game uses rather standard game play there should be something else that makes it attractive. Good looking graphics can help to create a pleasant immersive experience. Also level design that leads to new challenges can make a sequel interesting. Even though the game play is the same, this does not necessarily mean that the game is more of the same.

So if you take standard game play, better make sure that there is something else that distinguishes your game for the predecessors. In particular, careful level design can make a big difference here. Try to design levels that need a different approach to solve than the previous versions of the game. This will often involve small changes in and additions to the game play. Here are some further tips:

Change the numbers
When the original game features one ship, why not use two or three. When there were 10 different monsters, why not use 100 equal ones that behave more like a flock. When the bat could move in just one direction, let it move in two directions. When levels were big, make them small. And when they were small make them big. Turn unlimited ammunition into a limited amount. Change the speed with which entities move. You should be able to come up with many ideas here yourself.

Change the scoring
Rather than scoring points, give the player a time limit. Rather than rewarding the player when reaching the end of a level, send him back when he did not discover all secrets. Rather than rewarding kills, reward the player for saving ammunition.

Change the dimension
Turn a 3D game into a 2D game. Turn a vertical scroller into a horizontal scroller. Turn a platform game into an isometric game. Change a first person game into a third person game, etc.

Change the point of view
Play the enemy, e.g. create space invaders from the perspective of the invaders. Go from the operational level (you are the soldier) to the strategic level (you are the general). For example, you are the general responsible for invading earth.

Make things ridiculous
In a fishing game, catch birds. In a racing game, drive a snail. In a shooting game, throw mud. Play a soccer game on the moon. Swim in the desert. In a platform game walk on the bottom of the platforms (and maybe make switching sides a game play element).

Turn it upside down
Rather than surviving, you should die as soon as possible (see e.g. Karoshi 2). Rather than hitting the blocks in a break-out game, avoid hitting them. Rather than wrecking other players cars, wreck your own. Try to make the most beautiful crash in ski jumping. Rather than winning, make the goal of the game to lose.

I hope we will get more of such weird games on YoYo Games in the future.