FUNDAMENTALS OF GAME DESIGN, SECOND EDITION
Defining the Role
Playing a game, especially board games and computer games, often involves playing a role of some sort. In Monopoly, the role is real estate tycoon. In From Russia with Love, the role is James Bond. Defining the player's role in the game world is a key part of defining your game's concept. If the player's role is difficult to describe, that role might be difficult for the player to grasp as well, and that may indicate conceptual problems with the game. This doesn't mean that the role always has to be simple or that the player sticks to just one role per game. In many sports games, for example, the player can be an athlete, a coach, or the general manager. In team games, the player often switches from one athlete to another as play progresses.
Shifting roles work well in a sports game because the game's audience understands them, but if your game takes place in a less familiar world with less familiar objectives, you must make the roles especially clear. If the player's role changes from
time to time—especially involuntarily—the player must know why it changed and how to adapt to the new circumstances.
If you explain the player's role clearly, it helps him understand what he's trying to achieve and what rules govern the game. In America's Army, for instance, the player takes on the role of a real-world soldier. Real soldiers can't just shoot anything that moves; they have to obey rules of engagement. By telling the player that the role is based on reality rather than fantasy, the game designer ensures that the player knows his actions will have to be more cautious than in the usual frenetic shooter.
In defining the player's role, you face the question of how realistic you want your game to be. At the concept stage, you need not—and should not—start defining the details of the core mechanics and the presentation layer, but you should have a general idea of whether you want your game to be abstract or representational. Other considerations, such as the target audience (discussed in the section "Defining Your Target Audience," later in this chapter) may influence that decision.
