Incredibug

Similar to some MMO Raid Bosses, the Great Devourer enters an enraged state when it is about to be defeated

Designing a boss battle and dramatic gameplay moments for the game "Incredibug"

Researching in parallel to creating a prototype can often be frustrating, as there is no realistic way to let all the research of good practices flow directly into the prototype that just one person is working on within a limited timeframe. I believe that for the design of a mechanically complex boss like the Great Devourer, the work is never finished. There is always information that could be communicated better, and even minor visual tweaks can make large contributions to the quality of a boss battle. Some crucial components like animation and music had to be neglected, but I believe that even despite its deficits, this prototype can serve as a great foundation for a future iteration of the battle against the Great Devourer. By combining movement-focused mechanics, simple puzzles that could be found in lower-difficulty MMO content, and the already existing mechanics of Incredibug, the battle accomplishes its goals of testing the player’s mechanical skill and understanding of fundamental abilities while combining it with short moments of memorization with the color-buttons.

There are many things that developers can do right when designing dramatic gameplay moments, and even when deliberately making good choices, those decisions need to resonate with the expectations set by the rest of the game and previous dramatic moments. Dramatic gameplay moments can have countless functions, and no single encounter can fulfill all possible roles to the same degree while preserving the designer’s creative vision and its meaning for the game. Even one of the most impactful game studios of the current time, FromSoftware, is not infallible when designing dramatic gameplay moments, and that’s not even a bad thing, because it demonstrates how design patterns that revolutionized the design of Dramatic Gameplay as we know it still have room to grow and should motivate designers to keep pushing their limits to make great games.

Every type of game and genre has its design conventions, but designers should not be afraid to take risks and challenge those widely accepted design conventions, because, just like when beating a tough boss battle, designers be rewarded for taking on difficult challenges while designing a game, by contributing to the ever-evolving game industry while letting the players have new, innovative experiences. People have so many great design ideas that can be refined into great gameplay moments if given the required attention and I believe it’s important that these ideas are allowed to take root and hopefully create a fun experience for players.

Masterarbeit von Moritz Naab, betreut von Prof. Jens Müller und Prof. Dr. Jan Bernkopf