PREVIOUS MENU

Game Design Patterns

Jussi Holopainen1 & Staffan Bjrk2
1

Nokia Research Center

Visiokatu 1
33721 Tampere
Finland
[email protected]
2

PLAY, Interactive Institute

Hugo Grauers gata 3
411 33 Gteborg
Sweden
[email protected]

Table of Contents
Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 2
Why Design Patterns? ........................................................................................................ 3
Template for Game Design Patterns ............................................................................... 4
Criticism of Patterns ........................................................................................................... 5
Using Design Patterns........................................................................................................ 7
What Design Patterns exist? ............................................................................................. 8
Creative tool for experimental game design ................................................................ 13
Bibliography ..................................................................................................................... .14

Content Patterns in Game Design

Introduction
This text is one half of the notes for the Game Design Patterns lecture at GDC
2003. The lecture is the result of the game design community and the research
community identifying that the development of semi-formal and formal game design
methods would advance the way game design is discussed. We believe that Game
Design Patterns offers a viable method to achieve this that can be used both for
commercial and academic use and can bridge the difference between the two
communities, allowing them to collaborate and share knowledge to a greater extent
than before.
As stated in the lecture description, we believe patterns are only useful as long as
one can learn and apply them with reasonable effort and that they can be tailored to
any given project. In other words, patterns need to support practical work such as
developing the initial game design or problem-solving particular interaction elements
in a game. Thus, the lecture focuses on practical use, and includes workshop-like
elements. These notes go beyond the practical use of patterns and discuss more
general aspects of design patterns, e.g. the choice of pattern definition and the advantages and disadvantages of pattern use.
The notes make no attempt at defining a "canonical pattern language". For a language to prove its merit, it has to be used and expanded by speakers. Therefore,
we do not wish to present a complete and finalized collection, or even definition, of
patterns but instead show our work-in-process so that designers can influence the
technique to better suit their needs. One structure for patterns is described in this
text while the other text for the lecture focuses on how to apply patterns as a technique, creating ones own set of patterns. These two approaches have been developed from different perspectives and offer two possibilities for pattern use within
game design. Further material can be found in the companion material of the GDC
2002 roundtable (Kreimeier 2002a) about design patterns and in Gamasutra article
The Case for Game Design Patterns (Kreimeier 2002b). This part of the notes is a
continuation of work presented at Computer Game Design Patterns workshop
(Bjrk&Holopainen 2002).
If patterns are widely adopted by practitioners and researchers we expect several
different approaches and pattern collections to appear. Regardless of the specific
formalism that becomes the norm this can be seen as a success as the game designers and researchers have gained one language to express the knowledge and
experience contained in the community.

Content Patterns in Game Design

Why Design Patterns?

Before presenting the details of our model for using game design patterns, motivations for using design patterns at all are in place. We believe that the following
points are valid reasons for using patterns, independently of if one is an experienced project leader leading a large group, a new designer daunted by the task of
completing ones first game concept, or an interested hobbyist.

Problem-Solving for Game Interaction Design

Patterns contain descriptions of identifiable elements of interaction within a game
together with approaches to ensure the presence of those elements. If one as a designer has a problem with a specific part of the interaction within a game concept,
the approaches describe in patterns containing the wanted interaction offer several
potential solutions.

Inspiration
Having a collection of patterns is in essence having a listing of concepts that other
game designers have found useful for designing games. Having these concepts at
ones fingertips provides a game designer with a knowledge base that can be used
to find the core of a new game design or tweaks that make a game different.

Creative Design Tool

The original use of design patterns as described by Alexander et al (Alexander
1977) was that of a tool that helped designers (architects in this case) to work
through all levels of a design in a structured fashion. A collection of game design
patterns can be used in the same way. One begins by selecting a few patterns
based on the core game concept (and external requirements). These patterns are
analyzed in the specific context for the designers and potential subpatterns are
identified. The subpatterns are analyzed and chosen based on their feasibility and
their subpatterns are identified. This activity goes on recursively until an initial design has been completed.

Communicating with peers

Patterns offer definitions of elements found in many games. Describing ones design in terms of patterns offers one possibility to describe the design in a standardized format to make the understanding and comparison of different designs easier.
Further, if readers are unfamiliar with the game concept described by a pattern, the
definition of the pattern is available in the same sense definitions of words are
available in a dictionary.

Communicating with other professions

The method of using design patterns have been introduced in a number of disciplines, including architecture (Alexander 1977), software engineering (Gamma
1994), Human-Computer Interaction (Borchers), and Interaction Design (Erickson).
Although not all of these areas are usually part of the competences of developing a
game, software engineering and HCI usually are. Using patterns for the design of
the actual game play can make the transferal between different parts of a project
group easier as the general working technique is familiar and gaining a basic understanding of patterns from another discipline is usually easy.

Template for Game Design Patterns

3

Content Patterns in Game Design

Gamma (1994) quotes Alexander: "Each pattern describes a problem which occurs
over and over again in our environment, and then describes the core of a solution to
that problem, in such a way that you can use this solution a million times over, without ever doing it the same way twice" (Alexander 1977). Thus, a pattern can be described as an identifiable characteristic that can found in otherwise totally different
designs. A typical template of a pattern consists of its name, a description of a problem and its solution together with the consequences of having or applying the pattern. For the design of games, we are currently working with the following template:

Name: Giving short and expressive names to patterns make them possible to use as
self-sufficient concepts. "Naming a pattern immediately increases our design
vocabulary. It lets us design at a higher level of abstraction" (Gamma 1994).
However, naming can be difficult for patterns are connotations can create problems,
e.g. the pattern Paper-Rock-Scissors describes the strategy of avoiding dominant
strategies but could easily be thought to describe the act of secretly choosing a
strategy and simultaneously revealing the choices.

Description: Unlike most design patterns we have chosen not to define patterns as a
pure problem-solution pairs. This is due to two observations. First, defining patterns
from problems creates a risk of viewing patterns as a method for only removing
unwanted effects of a design. In other words, using patterns as a tool for problemsolving only and not as a tool to support creative design work. Second, many of the
patterns we have identified described a characteristic that more or less
automatically guaranteed other characteristics in a game, i.e. the problem described
in a pattern might easily be solved by applying a more specific subpattern.

Consequences: Each solution has its own trade-offs and consequences. Solutions
can, in turn, cause or amplify other problems. To take a design decision for or
against a given solution, its costs and benefits have to be understood and
compared against those of alternatives. This section describes the likely or possible
consequences of applying the solution suggested by the pattern.

Using the Pattern: As patterns are general solutions the application of a pattern to
any given situation requires a number of design choices specific for the current
context. However, the high-level choices can often be divided into categories. This
section is used to mention the common choices a designer is faced with when
applying a pattern, often exemplified by specific game elements from published
games.

Relations: Here the relations between different game design patterns are stated.
These are basically three forms of relationship: patterns that are superior in the
sense that they describe more abstract characteristics (often mentioned in the
consequences section) and can be implemented by applying the given pattern,
subpatterns that can be used to implement the given pattern (often mentioned in the
using the pattern section), and conflicting patterns that are difficult to implement with
the given pattern.

Criticism of Patterns
The use of patterns in other fields have received criticism for several different reasons (being a fad, being too formal, being not formal enough, being too arbitrary)
and we direct interested readers to the companion material of the GDC 2002 roundtable about design patterns for that discussion (Kreimeier 2002a). However, the use
of patterns for game design can be criticized for similar reasons as well as reasons
specific for games. Below we address some of the possible objections to the use of
pattern in game design.
4

Content Patterns in Game Design

Patterns a fad
Question: Patterns have become popularized in other fields, is the use of patterns in
game design simply a way of taking advantage of that popularity?
Answer: We believe the strength of design patterns is that they represent a general
method of helping design processes, in essence helping to define a language for
specific design fields. Patterns have become popular within other fields only to be
replaced or challenged by other methods. Whatever the cause for this, e.g. trends
or the introduction of methods developed specifically for the field, the game community currently lacks a common language to discuss design. We believe patterns
may be a solution to this but other solutions may be equally suited, the important
point is that a solution is found.

Pattern methods too formal

Question: Doesnt the formalizing of design processes risks inhibiting the creative
processes of designers and artists?
Answer: Design Patterns should be seen as tools; one should only use them as
long as they are appropriate. By their definition they are open to interpretation, leaving considerable room for creative freedom. Further, they focus on the game interaction so that e.g. the actual content creating characterization and narrative structure is left untouched.

Patterns too abstract

Question: It doesnt seem that game design patterns can provide any help with actually writing code for a game. Arent the patterns too abstract?
Answer: Game Design Patterns deal with the design of games from an interaction
perspective rather than one of expressing games in programming code. Thus, they
are by definition more abstract than methods used to formalize game design into
code and should not be used for that activity.

Patterns not formal enough

Question: The game design patterns do not seem formal enough to be translated
e.g. into design patterns for software engineering. Assuming that one has design a
game and described it through game patterns, what practical use does one have of
the effort?
Answer: We do not believe that there is a simple one-to-one mapping from game
design patterns to design patterns for object-oriented programming. However, having a game description using game patterns gives programmers a blueprint expressed in a form using the same basic structuring model that they use for programming. We believe this translation is easier than one from e.g. scenarios or
story-boards.

Patterns too arbitrary

Question: How are patterns identified? Is there a formalized selection method?
Answer: Creating a collection of patterns can be compared to creating a dictionary.
One has to study how people use words (and decide if they are talking the language
one is interested in or not). Identified words need to be described and related to
other words. If the dictionary is to have any influence, it has to be used by the
practitioners.
We are currently collecting patterns by studying the use of concepts within the gaming industry. Looking both at computer games and traditional games, we have identified several patterns (primarily from game genres and game mechanics) by study5

Content Patterns in Game Design

ing written material about games, interviewing game designers and, of course, playing the games. However, even more patterns have been identified that do not currently have names; the evidence for these patterns being present in the final game
designs or the activities of designers. All these patterns are currently in the process
of being described and analyzed. These will then be presented to the game design
community as a selection method. Only the patterns that make sense for designers
and are actually used should be kept.
Using Design Patterns
For those that are interested in using game design patterns we can see three important questions that may be asked. In this section we try to briefly answer them; other
questions no doubt will occur for interested parties and we invite you to contact us
with them.

Do Patterns work for game design?

It is still too early to answer this question in a meaningful way. That one can use
game patterns in the design process is apparent but do the benefits of using it surpass the disadvantages? We have tried to identify the possible benefits of design
patterns as well as locate possible disadvantages and methods for mitigating them
but until design patterns have been put into wider practical use these are just
speculations.
However, we do not believe that the success of game patterns can be measured by
game sales alone. Instead, we would consider game design patterns as successful
if individual designers perceive the patterns as helping them in their design process
as well as in communicating their designs to all the other people involved in the
process of creating a game.

Do Design Patterns work for all types of games?

Our collection of patterns has been constructed by looking at different genres within
computer games, board games and card games. Thus, we believe that patterns
have a potential for being useful in these areas. Further, one of the research aims of
our work is to provide a theoretical framework that will help in the design of new
forms of games, including mobile computer games based on position or context,
games using new input and output systems, and traditional games augmented with
embedded computers.

How can I use Design Patterns?

Contact the presenters by email. We are collecting, defining and analyzing patterns
in an ongoing process to build a comprehensive collection of interrelated patterns
for use by practitioners. The patterns have to be validated by actual use to provide
their worthiness and the only people who can do that are game designers.
The second alternative is to start from scratch and build your own collection of patterns. This requires more work but allows different starting points; our collections
start from either user experience or possible interactions but other are possible, e.g.
manipulation of the game state or components of game engines.

What Design Patterns exist?

The simple answer to this question is: any that has been identified. However, what
useful design patterns exist is a question which is more difficult to answer. We are
in the process of identifying patterns which we believe are useful either as problemsolving tools, descriptions of game elements that are useful when analyzing game
6

Content Patterns in Game Design

designs, or patterns that we believe support design processes. To do this we have
studied and played many games (computer games, board games, card games, roleplaying games, etc.) but also interviewed professional game designers. Many patterns have been found or distilled when trying to describe other patterns or to relate
patterns to each other.
In this section we present a number of candidates for game design pattern that we
have identified. Besides describing a number of recurring patterns we have found in
games they exemplify our approach to using game patterns. The pattern Analysis
Paralysis described below is included as an example of a category of patterns that
usually is avoided by game designers (another examples include Invisible Wall and
King Maker). However, the patterns can easily occur in a game design by mistake
or by the combined effects of other patterns and thus deserves mention. The use of
the patterns in a way that makes a game playable may be seen as a design challenge.
Note that in examples below the related patterns are in bold and most of the patterns are not described in this paper.

Perceived Chance to Succeed

Description
Games usually have the possibility to reach certain goals as one of the primary
reason for playing them. A game where the goals are perceived as impossible to
reach by players often unplayable and the same applies to the game where success is always certain. This is especially true for multiplayer games; if after some
period of time one player is perceived as the only possible winner the game usually its appeal to the other players. Therefore many games try to let players have a
perceived chance of winning as long as possible, which includes have a chance to
succeed with the subgoals necessary to win.
Consequence
If a player perceives that he or she always has a chance to reach a goal, although it
may be minute, it will increase the probability that he or she will struggle against
the system or the other players. This in turn will increase the tension of the struggle and will make succeeding more rewarding.
Using the Pattern
When using this pattern one has to take precautions that how players play does
not become irrelevant until the very end of the game. Thus, players should feel
motivated to always do there best as this will improve their chances of winning
but this chance should not become a certainty until as late as possible in the game.
Monopoly (Parker Brothers) is an example of a game breaking this pattern as in
most of the games the winner is clear many turns before the actual end condition.
Games that use Last Man Standing pattern in victory condition, for example
Magic: The Gathering (Wizards of the Coast), violate this pattern in such way that
players are removed from the game one by one until only the winner is left.
Slowly increasing the difficulty, i.e. providing a Smooth Learning Curve, lets
player feel that the current subgoal is possible to complete while at the same time
allowing the player to learn all skills necessary to complete the whole game. For
examples, a Level-based Game let players feel that they are making progress by
completing levels where the first levels are usually very easy and the last levels
impossible for a novice to complete. An interesting subgroup is games where the
player will always lose the game in the end (Space Invaders, Asteroids, Tetris) but
7

Content Patterns in Game Design

Description
which still give the player a feeling of having a chance to succeed. This leads to a
strong 'just one more go' experience. See (Loftus&Loftus 1983) for a discussion of
a psychological basis of this effect (Partial Reinforcement).
Balancing Effect can be incorporated into game system to try and compensate for
unequal player positions. Some games use Dynamical Difficulty Adjustment to,
for example, making monsters easier to defeat or increasing the number of available power-ups if the player fails constantly. Another example is found in many
racing games where the leading players or computer controlled vehicles are
automatically slowed down to make it easier for other players to catch up. This
makes the game more compelling even to the leading player as it heightens the
perceived Struggle.
Related patterns
Superior patterns: Subpatterns: Balancing Effect, Partial Reinforcement, Smooth Learning Curve
Conflicting patterns: Early Elimination, King Maker, Last Man Standing

Analysis Paralysis
Description
Analysis Paralysis occurs when a player is confronted with so many possibilities
that gaining an overview of what the different consequences will be becomes
overwhelming and game play is affected negatively. That many possibilities exist
is not sufficient for the pattern to occur; the player has to have a sense that analyzing the situation is possible and will give the player an advantage over other
players.
Consequence
Analysis Paralysis forces players to spend time on deciding what to do instead of
interacting with the game system. This may led to experiences that the game does
not Allow Game Mastery and the Perceived Chance to Win becomes one of pure
luck.For other players Analysis Paralysis mean that the game does not have Reasonable Waiting Times but may decrease Tension as these players do not have a
pressure upon them to do something in the game.
Using the Pattern
Limiting players possibilities to analyze a game state can remove the consequences of Analysis Paralysis. Having a Time Limit sets a fixed limit to the
amount of time that can be spend analyzing a situation while Constant Player
Activity and Constant Movement forces a player to continuously weigh the benefits of continuing the analysis with reacting to events in the game. All these approaches do not actually remove the problem of analysis for players but simply
enforces that action is taken or the players is negatively affected. Gentler approaches, which do not threaten with punishments, are possible by enforcing a
Limited Foresight so that the consequences of actions are more difficult to calculate.
Analysis Paralysis may be mitigated for other players by giving them purposeful
things to do while a player is thinking which does not actually affect the game
state. Different forms of Stimulated Social Interaction are likely candidates: al-

Content Patterns in Game Design

Description
lowing communication for negotiation of tactics or alliances or out-of-game conversations. Other examples are support for studying the game rules or training
various aspects of a game while waiting.
Relationships
Superior patterns: Subpatterns: Conflicting patterns: Reasonable Waiting Times, Allow Game Mastery, Reasonable Waiting Times

Mutual Goal
Description
The players, or some of players, try to reach the same goal or subgoal within the
game. This pattern occurs whenever more than one player has exactly the same
goal, e.g. "we both want the red car to come first" and not "we both want our respective cars to come first" (which are Symmetrical Goals).
Consequence
Defining a victory condition for several players by giving them a mutual goal
creates Team Play. Mutual goals that are subgoals in a game can either be used to
strengthen the advantages of cooperating within a team or be used to create a
Temporary Alliance between players. In all cases, the mutual goals promote
Stimulated Social Interaction.
Using the Pattern
Just as any kind of goal, mutual goals can either be Predefined Goals that are
either known or unknown (Unknown Goals) before game play begins or goals
that are Player-Constructed Closures with rewards defined by the players. An
example of the latter is Diplomacy (Avalon Hill) where players can negotiate and
define own Mutual Goals ranging from simple 'support this unit' to far ranging
'defend Italy'.
Mutual goals that are unknown may either be unknown to the other players or
the players having the goals. In the first case this leads to Secret Collaboration
which the other players try to disclose while in the second case the players have
Unknown Allies and one part of the game is to determine who is on your side
without revealing your intentions to the other players. One example of this is
Royal Turf (Reiner Knizia, Alea 2001) where money is won by betting on the outcome of a horse race. Once a secret betting is done, players take turns moving the
horses around the track. Only moving the horse one has bet on gives away ones
strategy but at the same time one would like to identify other players that have
bet on the same horse in order to cooperate.
The division of rewards (if any) from a mutual goals is vital for the level of cooperation between players. Individual Rewards can create Tension as players compete to be the first to achieve a given game state while Shared Rewards promote
cooperation depending on the exact sharing procedure. One example of the latter
which promotes cooperation is automated distribution of experience points or
gold in role-playing games (although the distribution of magical items typically is
up to the players). In the case where the reward is vaguely defined, e.g. the mu9

Content Patterns in Game Design

Description
tual goals in Diplomacy, the mutual goal can lead to Tension between the players
as the value of the goal for the other players, and thereby the effort they will put
into fulfilling the goal, is difficult to judge.
If the players can negotiate the other players participating in the mutual goal can
lead to a Balancing Effect since players lagging behind are more likely to form
temporary alliances against the current leaders. This, however, is heavily influenced by the distribution function of Shared Rewards.
Relationships
Superior patterns: Team Play, Temporary Alliance, Stimulated Social Interaction, Narrative Structure, Punctuated Equilibrium
Subpatterns: Predefined Goals, Unknown Goals, Player-Constructed Closures ,
Secret Collaboration, Unknown Allies, Individual Reward, Shared Reward,
Balancing Effect
Conflicting patterns: Asymmetrical Goals, Symmetrical Goals

Shared Reward
Description
The players which have been involved in some way in reaching a closure in the
game usually share some form of reward. It is not necessary for all the players
sharing the rewards to actually cooperate as in some cases other players can, for
example, bet on the result of an adventuring party on a quest.
Consequence
Shared rewards opens up a number of possibilities for player interaction. In the
case of the shared reward being the achieved by Collaboration, the shared reward gives players a Mutual Goal and promotes Stimulated Social Interaction.
In the case where the reward has to be shared between players the pattern encourages Competition between the players. Further, rewards that can be shared
between competitors have a certain Balancing Effect as the reward does not benefit only one player. This is especially true in situations where players have to
choose whom to share the reward with; one usually chooses the player that is
furthest from winning.
Using the Pattern
The use of shared rewards greatly depends on whether the size and distribution
of the reward is set or it is depending on the game state. If a player gets the same
quantitative reward regardless of the number of other players sharing the reward
the player does not lose anything by cooperating. This however requires an
Unlimited Resource Pool, at least during the actual reward distribution and can
lead to Inflation.
If the size of the reward is fixed (Limited Resource Pool), players have to compete against each other to receive as large part of it as possible. How the distribution function is defined greatly influences game play for these kinds of rewards: a
first-come-first-served function creates a Race, distribution of rewards based on
chance promotes Investment, predetermined relationships between shares and
reward encourages struggles with a set Time Limit when the reward is distributed. In the last case Geometrical Reward for Investments creates more competi-

10

Content Patterns in Game Design

Description
tion than Arithmetical Reward for Investments. Note that the number of shares
does not need to be fixed even though the size of the reward is fixed.
How players receive shares of the reward can either be by merit or by concession.
For players to receive shares by merit simply means that they have to fulfill certain criteria to be entitled to a share, e.g. having stock in a company. Shared by
concession means that players have to give away parts of a reward to other players in order to get their part. For example, the board game Kohle, Kies & Knete (Sid
Sackson, Schmidt Spiele 1994) is a game of making deals where each deal gives a
certain amount of money. However, deals can rarely be closed by only one player
and the lead player of a deal will have to seek help from the other players in exchange for a piece of the payoff.
The actual content of the shared reward can be the results of the process of negation between players. An example of this is Trading, which can be seen as a
shared reward since the players that trade get a benefit over those players who
weren't a part of that trade. In trading rules that allow for Bluffing, the actual
content of the shared reward is uncertain creating Uncertain Reward.
Relationships
Superior patterns: Stimulated Social Interaction, Collaboration, Mutual Goal,
Competition, Balancing Effect
Subpatterns: Trading, Geometrical Reward for Investments, Arithmetical Reward for Investments
Conflicting patterns: Individual Reward

11

Content Patterns in Game Design

Creative tool for experimental game design

As has been mentioned earlier in the text, we believe that patterns can be used not
only to analyze existing games but also to assist in the design process itself. One of
the benefits of using patterns is that the designer is able to formulate the design
problem in a clear and consistent way thus giving the opportunity to consciously
make different kinds of design decisions than in the previous games.
This is especially important in what can be called experimental game design (see
http://www.experimental-gameplay.com) where the goal is to create games that
break the traditional genres, themes, or game styles of existing games. It is easier
to innovate and experiment when the basic elements and building blocks are known
and formalized to some extent, even if the innovation lies in not using a well-known
game element but instead trying out the opposite. One example of how this can be
done is given below, describing how one of the authors designed a prototype of a
small multiplayer game for mobile phones. Design patterns are indicated with bold
type.
The main design requirement was that the game should have Stimulated Social
Interaction between players. This pattern has Trading as a subpattern, given that if
players have to trade with each other they have to communicate which easily can
turn from purely formal communication to social interaction. In order to have something to trade the Source/Sink pattern was used to define the basic game mechanics. As the game was required to be simple only four different resource types were
defined. The pattern version of Asymmetric Distribution (Falstein 2002) was used
in resource generation, the Source part of Source/Sink pattern, in such way that
for each of the players it was randomly biased to one of the resource types. This,
combined with the design decision that the players needed all resource types
roughly equally to succeed in game, the Sink part of the Source/Sink pattern, lead
to the situation where trading and haggling were necessary parts of game play.
Trading, however, was considered not to be enough so Mutual Goals and Shared
Rewards patterns, also subpatterns of Stimulated Social Interaction, were used
to create a system where players have the same or supporting subgoals and that
players shared the rewards of reaching the goals. In this case the reward was simple victory points.
The Bluffing pattern was used to create more Tension between the players. The
players now secretly selected their own goals from a set that ensured that the there
was sufficient overlap. The selection was also connected to the resource generation
in a way that made it impossible for a single player to reach any of the goals single
handedly. Thus, the game design requires players to cooperate but also makes it
possible to trick other players to use their resources for your own good.
Several other patterns for multiplayer games, such as Spectators, Voting and Personalization, were used in the creation of the final design. At least in this experiment, even the preliminary patterns were very helpful in the design process. More
information about the final design is available from Jussi Holopainen, see above for
contact information.
Bibliography

Alexander, C. et al. (1977): A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction.

Oxford University Press.

12

Content Patterns in Game Design

Bjrk, Staffan & Holopainen, Jussi: Computer Game Design Patterns. One-day
workshop Computer Games & Digital Textualities 2002 conference, Tampere,
Finland.
Borchers, Jan: The HCI Patterns Pages.
http://www.stanford.edu/~borchers/hcipatterns/
Erickson, Tom: The Interaction Design Patterns Page:
http://www.pliant.org/personal/Tom_Erickson/InteractionPatterns.html
Falstein, Noah (2002): Better by Design: Asymmetrical Distribution in Game Developer Magazine, August 2002.
Gamma, E. et al. (1994): Design Patterns: Elements of Reusable Object-Oriented
Software. Addison Wesley Longman
Kreimeier, B. (2002a): Content Patterns in Game Design. GDC 2002 Roundtable.
http://www.onearrow.org/game/pattern/
Kreimeier, B. (2002b): The Case for Game Design Patterns.
http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20020313/kreimeier_01.htm
Loftus, Geoffrey R. & Elizabeth F Loftus (1983): Mind at Play: The Psychology of
Video Games. New York: Basic Books

13

Pattern Practice
A Supplement to the "Game Design Patterns"
GDC 2003 combined lectures by Bernd Kreimeier, Jussi Holopainen, Staffan Bjrk
Supplement by Bernd Kreimeier

Extended Abstract
There is a wide consensus in the game design community that semi-formal or even
formal game design methods must be developed (see e.g. the GDC 2002 roundtable
discussion on "Game Design Patterns" [5] as well as the "400 Project" started at GDC
2001 [9], as well as Doug Church's "Formal Abstract Design Tools" [10]). We must
advance the way we discuss game design details. However, at this time it is not clear
which, if any, of the approaches proposed to date are best suited for practical use in the
game development process.
Some game industry professionals already use derivatives of Alexandrian "Design
Patterns", usually in the context of software engineering. Christopher Alexander's
original pattern language has also been referred to in discussing level design and level
architecture (see [4] for details and references). Patterns are also used by parts of the
research community concerned with Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), of which
games (or at least the design and analysis of game User Interfaces) can be considered a
specialization. (For a HCI perspective on patterns see e.g. [7] by Sally Fincher.) The
work by Microsoft Game Studios' User Testing group (see [2] for an introduction) is also
oriented within an HCI context [1]. The connection between HCI problems and game
design issues is not a recent insight: witness the popularity of Brenda Laurel's
"Computers as Theatre" [3] within parts of the game designer community.
The authors propose the use of "Game Design Patterns" [4,6] as a tool to analyze,
document, and discuss game design techniques and recurring game elements. The game
design pattern approach is loosely based on Alexander's work, but deviates from it in
several ways essential ways. While pattern-based methods can be used to express
imperatives (see e.g. the normative rules of the "400 Project"), one important advantage
is their adaptability to the specific needs of a given team or project. The lecture focuses
on patterns as a method. Individual patterns, and small pattern collections, will be
discussed as examples, but no attempt at defining a "canonical pattern language" is made.
There is a variety of game genres, and within each genre, a variety of game design
philosophies that make it difficult, possibly counterproductive, to attempt to define a
pattern collection that could serve so manifold objectives without becoming unwieldy.

Pattern Practice
Patterns, like any semi-formal method, are only useful as long as reasonable efforts to
memorize and apply them suffice. Furthermore, in an artistic context, patterns can be
very specific to the project or the individuals involved. Consequently, the lecture focuses

on methods to recognize and harvest patterns, on how to define and refine them for
documentation, how to document them, and on their application within small groups. The
resulting pattern languages should assist the designers in their day-to-day design work,
first as tools to document and evaluate designs, and last, but certainly not least, to enable
designers to consciously expand the design spaces of computer games.
Pattern-based methods (in game design) are in their infancy. However, even experienced
game designers might find the different perspective offered by pattern-based approaches
helpful for their own attempts to develop and improve other formal methods (like FADTs
or rules). Ultimately, any practical application of patterns requires the individual
designer to define and use design patterns in their day-to-day work, as a semi-formal,
flexible method to express, evaluate and reflect upon design choices both within the
team, and with others outside the development group. Fincher [7] points out that
Alexander specifically intended patterns to permit communication between designers (in
his domain, architects) and users. For practical purposes of game development,
communication with the programming and engineering members of the team, as well as
communication with formal User Testing [2] (or more informal user feedback/playtest)
groups, as well as communication with production (see also [8]) and management, could
potentially benefit from pattern-based documentation and methodology.
Aspects of practical pattern use to be covered in the lecture include the issue of
harvesting/mining for patterns ("in every clich hides a pattern waiting to be
understood"), and issues of documenting and discussing patterns:
-

Pattern writing process [13,17]

Pattern writing styles [12,14]
Pattern writing templates [4,6]
Minimal mnemonic representation
vs. Use-centered reference
vs. Full pattern documentation
Pattern misconceptions [15]

Specific to the efforts aiming at game design patterns are the topics of:
-

Anecdoctical representation of knowledge

Empiric data and patterns: observation vs. "best practice"

Pattern names and forms: object-centric vs. problem-centric

Purpose vs. effects
Pattern categories: spatial vs. behavioral

Levels of abstraction: building blocks or guiding principles

Hierarchy, alternative solutions, aggregation, dependencies
Composite patterns

Patterns as narrative [11]

Pattern extraction from walkthroughs

Pattern extraction from project post-mortems [4]
Pattern mining by introspection [16]
Pattern review (e.g. [17])

Of particular interest are the differences between the rule based approach of the "400"
project [9] and a pattern approach:
-

Pattern made from rules

Patterns formulated as rules
Patters vs. rules: trade-offs vs. trumping hierarchy

Comparisons between FADTs and patterns can also serve to better understand either
approach. Other possible topics include support for structured editing by off-the-shelf
(e.g. XML) tools, pattern review by inversion, use of patterns as creative (i.e.
exploratory) tools, as well as patterns as a tool for introspection.

Outlook
The combined lectures on "Game Design Patterns" and the IGDA roundtable on "Game
Design Methods" at GDC 2003 complement each other in an attempt to advance the
discussion of how to develop formal, abstract tools for game design, a discourse if not
begun, then made explicit by Doug Church in 1999 (see [10]). The authors believe that
among the approaches proposed to date, patterns offer the most flexibility and versatility
to accommodate the wide spectrum defined by different genres, different design
objectives and philosophies, and the different levels of abstraction to match the varying
needs of pre-production and core production of an increasingly complex (and
increasingly expensive) development process.

Note: an updated version of this document, as well as other documents related to the
GDC
2002
and
2003
roundtables,
can
be
found
at:
http://www.oneArrow.org/pattern/game/, as well as on the official GDC website at
http://www.gdconf.com/.

References
[1] Randy J. Pagulayan, K Keeker, D. Wixon, R.L. Romero and T. Fuller, "UserCentered Design in Games", In: J.A. Jacko and A. Sears (eds.), "The Human-Computer
Interaction handbook: Fundamentals, Evolving Technologies and Emerging
Applications". Lawrence Erlbaum Assoc., 2003. ISBN 0-805-83838-4

[2] Bill Fulton, "Beyond Psychological Theory: Getting Data that Improves Games".
Game Developer's Conference 2002 Proceedings, San Jose CA, March 2002.
See http://www.gamasutra.com/gdc2002/features/fulton/fulton_01.htm
and http://www.gamasutra.com/gdce/2002/bill_fulton.zip
[3] Brenda Laurel, "Computers as Theatre", Addison Wesley Longman Inc. 1991, 1993
ISBN 0-201-55060-1.
[4] Bernd Kreimeier, "The Case for Game Design Patterns".
See http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20020313/kreimeier_pfv.htm
[5] Bernd Kreimeier, "Game Pesign Patterns", supplement to GDC 2002 roundtable,
GDC 2002 proceedings CDROM, see also http://www.oneArrow.org/game/pattern/
[6] Jussi Holopainen and Staffan Bj"ork", "Game Design Patterns", GDC 2003 lecture,
Proceedings CD ROM.
[7] Sally Fincher, "Patterns for HCI and Cognitive Dimensions: two halves of the same
story?"
Submitted to 14th annual PPIG workshop, 2003.
See http://www.pliant.org/personal/Tom_Erickson/FincherOnPatterns.pdf
[8] Mark Cerny, "Method". GDCE 2002 Web Lecture
See http://www.gamasutra.com/features/slides/cerny/index.htm
also http://www.gamasutra.com/gdce/2002/mark_cerny.zip
[9] Noah Falstein. "Better By Design: The 400 Project". (Game Developer magazine,
Vol. 9, Issue 3, March 2002, p. 26.)
[10] Doug Church. "Formal Abstract Design Tools." (Gamasutra, 1999. Originally Game
Developer magazine, Vol 3, Issue 28, July 1999.)
See http://www.gamasutra.com/features/19990716/design_tools_01.htm
[11] Andrew Rollings and Dave Morris. Game Architecture and Design. (The Coriolis
Group, 2000.) ISBN 1-57610-425-7
[12] Aamod Sane "The Elements of Pattern Style." December 1995.
See http://choices.cs.uiuc.edu/sane/elem.pdf
[13] John Vlissides. "Pattern Hatching - Seven Habits of Successful Pattern Writers."
C++ Report. Nov/Dec 1996, and Pattern Hatching: Design Patterns Applied (Addison
Wesley, 1998).
[14] Gerard Meszaros and Jim Doble "A Pattern Language for Pattern Writing"
See http://hillside.net/patterns/writing/patternwritingpaper.htm

[15] John Vlissides. "Patterns: The Top Ten Misconceptions". Object Magazine, March
1997. See http://www.research.ibm.com/designpatterns/pubs/top10misc.html
[16] NN. "TIES Patterns- Pattern Mining". From Jim Coplien's pattern writer's workshop.
See http://hillside.net/patterns/patternsmining.htm
[17] Doug Lea, "Pattern Checklist" See http://hillside.net/patterns/writing/checklist.htm
See http://hillside.net/patterns/writing/checklist.htm

Speaker Info
Staffan Bjrk
Staffan Bjrk is a Ph.D. in informatics with a background in computing science. He was
one of the initial members of the PLAY group of the Interactive Institute in Sweden and
has been director for the studio since the autumn of 2001. His research interests include
design patterns in games, ubiquitous computing, information visualization, and the use of
emergent narratives in computer entertainment. His work has been published in
SIGGRAPH, ACM CHI, ACM UIST, IEEE Information Visualization, IEEE ISWC,
HUC (now UbiComp), AVI and Interact. He is currently co-chair for the Short Talks &
Interactive Posters at SIGCHI 2003, Community of Practive Liaison for the Games
Community for the CHI 2003 conference, one of the guest editors for a special issue on
Ubiquitous Games in the journal Personal and Ubiquitous Computing, and a member of
the executive board of Digital Games Research Association (see http://www.digra.org).
Jussi Holopainen
Jussi Holopainen is a Research Scientist at the Visual Communications Laboratory of
Nokia Research Center in Finland. His research interests include entertainment
applications for wearable and mobile devices, as well as the aesthetical foundations of
game design process. His work has been presented at HUC (Handheld and Ubiquitous
Computing), ISWC (International Symposium on Wearable Computing), E-Culture Fair
(in conjunction with Doors of Perception), Consciousness Reframed, SIGGRAPH and
UbiComp. He is also one of the organizers of Jyvskyl Arts Festival, a member of the
programme committee for Computer Games & Digital Cultures conference, one of the
guest editors for a special issue on Ubiquitous Games in the journal Personal and
Ubiquitous Computing, and a member of the executive board of Digital Games Research
Association (see http://www.digra.org).
Bernd Kreimeier
Bernd Kreimeier is a writer, physicist, and coder, currently employed as a Senior
Programmer for a game development studio in California. He has pursued the topic of
game design patterns since 1997, and is currently working on a related book to be

published by Wordware in 2003. His credits include Linux ports of Heretic2 and Quake3;
Team Arena; as well as an Xbox launch title. He has lectured at GDC in 2001 and
moderated a GDC Roundtable on Game Design Patterns in 2002, and has been published
in Game Developer Magazine and on Gamasutra. He has the equivalent of a masters
degree in experimental physics from the University of Dortmund in Germany, and served
as research and teaching staff member at the Universities of Duesseldorf and Bonn. He
has published several novels and short stories in the german language.

The Case For Game

Design Patterns
By Bernd Kreimeier
Gamasutra
March 13, 2002
URL: http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20020313/kreimeier_01.htm
Game design, like any other profession, requires a formal means to document, discuss, and plan.
Over the past decades, the designer community could refer to a steadily growing body of past
computer games for ideas and inspiration. Knowledge was also extracted from the analysis of
board games and other classical games, and from the rigorous formal analysis found in
mathematical game theory.
However, while knowledge about computer games has grown rapidly, little progress has made to
document our individual experiences and knowledge - documentation that is mandatory if the
game design profession is to advance. Game design needs a shared vocabulary to name the
objects and structures we are creating and shaping, and a set of rules to express how these
building blocks fit together.
This article proposes to adopt a pattern formalism for game design, based on the work of
Christopher Alexander. Alexandrian patterns are simple collections of reusable solutions to solve
recurring problems. Doug Church's "Formal Abstract Design Tools" [11] or Hal Barwood's "400
Design Rules" [6,7,18] have the same objective: to establish a formal means of describing, sharing
and expanding knowledge about game design.
From the very first interactive computer games, game designers have worked around this
deficiency by relying on techniques and tools borrowed from other, older media -- predominantly
tools for describing narrative media like cinematography, scriptwriting and storytelling. Computer
games are a visual medium, and game designers are increasingly relying on design techniques
developed for movies - to the detriment of efforts to identify methods genuinely suited for game
design. The discussion of narrative techniques has come to dominate the discourse on game
design, almost extinguishing alternatives.
If the techniques borrowed from other media were sufficient to express and address game design
issues, there would be no need to search for alternatives. However, the metaphors and devices
borrowed from narrative media are usually insufficient (or even inadequate) to capture the essence
of the interactive game medium. The community is aware of this [12], although the response is
often an attempt to reconcile the contradiction by redefining the term "narrative" [24]. Taken to the
extreme of an artificial playwright [23], this constitutes proposing a technological solution to a
conceptual problem. The real issue is not the shortcomings of narrative techniques with respect to
their utility in game design, but the lack of techniques genuinely suited for interactive media.
The game design pattern method proposed here is concerned with content patterns, as opposed to
software engineering patterns [19], specializations of which that have been proposed for game

programming [33,20] . Similarly, process patterns to organize and manage game development
projects (such patterns could be extracted from [17,28] ) are beyond the scope of this article.

What Are Patterns?

In a nutshell, patterns are simply conventions for describing and documenting recurring design
decisions within a given context, be it game design or software engineering. Specific patterns are
the result of applying this method consistently, leading to collections of design patterns which have
been assigned a name and are documented by an anecdotal or abstract description. Pattern
methods provide semi-formal tools for problem domains in which rigorously formal methods cannot
easily be applied, or are simply not available or even conceivable.
Patterns are traditionally expressions of problem-oriented thinking. The seminal book by Gamma et
al., Design Patterns: Elements of Reusable Object-Oriented Software, quotes Alexander [3] : "Each
pattern describes a problem which occurs over and over again in our environment, and then
describes the core of a solution to that problem, in such a way that can you can use this solution a
million times over, without ever doing it the same way twice." There can be several alternative
solutions to a given problem, each one defining its own pattern, but the combination of problem
statement and solution proposal is the essence of any Alexandrian pattern.
A game design pattern collection would provide a shared design vocabulary that allows experienced
designers to:
l

l
l

communicate efficiently with each other, with less experienced designers, and with members
of other professions (like software engineers and game coders)
document their insights, organizing individual experience as written knowledge
analyze their own design as well as the designs of others, e.g. for purposes of comparative
criticism, re -engineering, or maintenance

It is important to distinguish between pattern-based methods, which are very generic and general,
and specific pattern collections created for a given purpose. The decision to use patterns merely
determines form, not content. The conventions of any pattern template do not guarantee (or
prohibit) that useful patterns will be found and documented. Pattern methods are simply a
successful way to express existing knowledge.

A Pattern Template
Pattern templates typically contain these four essential elements:

1. Name. "Naming a pattern immediately increases our design vocabulary. It lets us design at a

2.
3.
4.

higher level of abstraction". Names have to be mnemonic and evocative, but the
connotations also pose problems. "Also Known As", frequently part of pattern templates, is
actually an indication of a naming problem: "Finding good names has been one of the
hardest parts of developing our catalog" (again, Erich Gamma et al.).
Problem. This describes the problem, including its inherent trade-offs and the context in
which the problem occurs. The description of the problem implies a goal that we want to
accomplish, and the obstacles we encounter when we attempt to do so.
Solution. A description of a general arrangement of entities and mechanisms that can be
used to solve the problem. This is not a particular design or concrete implementation, but an
abstract structure that describes an entire family of solutions that are essentially the same.
Consequences. Each solution has its own trade offs and consequences. Solutions can, in
turn, cause or amplify other problems. The costs and benefits of a solution should be
understood and compared against those of alternatives before making a design decision.

Around this essential core, pattern templates often add other elements, or subdivide a core
element.
Gamma et.al. uses Name - Intent - Aliases - Motivation - Applicability - Structure - Participants - Collaborations Consequences - Implementation - Sample - Known Uses - Related Patterns . Meszaros and Doble describe pattern writing
itself in patterns organized as Title - Problem - Context - Forces - Solution - Indications - Resulting Context - Related
Patterns - Examples - Samples - Rationale - Aliases - Acknowledgements [25]. Alexander et. al. use Name - Example as
Picture - Context within larger patterns - Problem - Solution - Solution as Diagram - Relation to smaller patterns [3].
Ultimately, the details of the format chosen do not matter as much as the fact that one format has been elected and is used
consistently (for more details on how to write patterns, see [31,34,5]).

Pattern Examples
To show the method in action, let's look at some pattern candidates. The following examples are
admittedly very simple, and weren't selected necessarily for their particular relevance to game
design.

PROXY
Problem: It might not be possible or desirable to
require that a game action is applied to the target
object directly. In other words, we have to avoid
proximity to or collision with the ultimate target of
a given action.
Solution: Introduce another entity (object) that is
used as a proxy, standing in for the target object.
The proxy can be placed and moved independently of the
target object or objects. The restrictions that apply
to the target(s) do not by default apply to the proxy.
Multiple proxies can be used for the same target or
targets.
Consequence: The link between the proxy and the actual
target has to be communicated to the player, if the
player is supposed to exploit this connection and
indirection. Restrictions on placement of proxy and
target with respect to player field of view, and
restrictions on player view control might apply, to
ensure that the player perceives the effect on the
target.
Examples: Munch's Oddyssee has several proxies for the
player characters: the possession orb which enables
Abe to take over other game characters (thus turning
them into proxies), and the Snoozer robot and H-Crane,
which served as proxies for Munch. One benefit of
player character proxies is that of a safe death:
loosing a proxy does not end the game.
Buttons/Switches/Levers that open doors or start/stop
machinery are often placed in different locations,
instead of being part of the target object. In these
cases, the designer wants to separate trigger from
target to permit more elaborate puzzles. Half-Life's
final boss had a vulnerable location inside its head.
That vulnerable spot could be considered a proxy for
the entire (invulnerable) boss. As a second order
vulnerability, the boss was dependent on three

crystals that supplied energy for healing and attack.

Attacking the crystals destroyed them, thus permitting
effective attacks on the boss monster itself.
PROXY was chosen to illustrate potential problems in using the same name for different patterns
existing in different contexts. There is a software engineering pattern with the same name,
introduced by Gamma et al. However, there is no meaningful connection between the two
concepts. On the other hand, in some cases a given pattern language might translate into a
sensible OOP implementation hierarchy, if there is a correspondence between the purpose of a
given game design entity within the design context, and its implementation in the software that
constitutes the game engine.
PREDICTABLE CONSEQUENCE
Problem: The player has to perceive
consequence of her mistakes, not as
predestined event unrelated to, and
any reasonable choice of actions on

failure as a
a random or
unavoidable by,
her part.

Solution: The player cannot take a meaningful decision

to act (or not to act) if the result of a possible
action can not be anticipated. A meaningful player
decision is an informed decision: she has to be able
to guess the result of her action before she ever
takes it. Choose game mechanisms that communicate
predictable behavior by visual appearance relying on
knowledge the player already has (either from real
world experience, or from experience with other games,
or from experience with preceding parts of your game).
Do not break consistency of your visual language, i.e.
make sure that objects that behave identical look
identical.
Consequence: It is no longer possible to implement
surprises that are impossible to anticipate. The
player might rely on the out-of-context assurance to
anticipate the designer's ambush, and either outwit
the designer, or find herself locked into performing
an action against her better judgment as the designer
has prevented alternative courses of action.
Ultimately, the designer might arrange for actions
that the informed player will never perform, as they
are predictably to her disadvantage. The designer
might have to go to considerable length to communicate
the rules that govern the outcome of actions, to the
player. The design might be biased towards using
mechanisms resembling real world objects, to minimize
the need for explanations. A lack of uncertainty on
the player's side makes the game more transparent,
potentially removing the need for exploration and
experimentation. Ultimately, the need for Predictable
Consequence is determined by the need for backtracking
(severity of failure) and costs of backtracking
(latency between choice and consequence, see also
behavioral science on timing issues). Another possible
consequence is that the design might have to restrict
itself to a smaller set of player actions, in order to
be able to enable them consistently throughout the

game world. Actions only available once or in a very

few locations do not amortize the costs of
communication and teaching/learning on the
designer's/player's part. The design might also have
to exaggerate the differences between distinct objects
to avoid ambiguities. Any kind of variation or range
has to follow rules that can easily be observed and
complied with.
Examples: Doug Church's article relied on Mario 64 as
the textbook example [11] of predictable consequence.
This pattern could be applied to any game with a
consistent physics approximation, such those exhibited
by bouncing grenades in FPS games. Other examples
include crates and barrels that are marked as
explosive actually explode, fireballs that hurt a
player when they hit, burning fire, water that drowns
if you do not swim, and lava which kills. Counterexamples are plentiful: switches and buttons that say
"Push Me" to unleash a necessary ambush (an ambush
that also opens the only way to move on) anticipated
only as such. Openings in which to jump without
knowing what is on the other side such as those found
in Opposing Force and Ico. This is often a necessity
imposed by the level partition/transition mechanism
the engine uses.
References: Doug Church introduced the concept of
perceived/perceivable consequence [11], which he uses
also do describe predictable outcomes. There is a
difference between the requirement for immediate
feedback that the player can connect to her actions,
and the requirement that the player has to have a
chance to anticipate the likely outcome of her action.
This pattern was derived from the latter, the former
would require another pattern.
PREDICTABLE CONSEQUENCE is my rewrite of FADT "Perceivable Consequence" introduced by
Doug Church (see [11] for the original description). Aside from changes to the description itself to
refine its meaning (as I perceived it), this pattern candidate illustrates that FADTs can expressed
as patterns.

PAPER-ROCK-SCISSORS
Problem: Avoid a dominant strategy that makes player
decisions a trivial choice.
Solution: Introduce nontransitive relationships within
a set of alternatives, as in the game of paper-rockscissors.
Consequence: The player is no longer able to find a
single strategy that will be optimal in all situations
and under all circumstances. She has to revisit her
decisions, and, depending on the constraints imposed
by the game, adjust to changing situations, or suffer
the consequences of an earlier decision.

Examples: The example given by Andrew Rollings is the

set of warrior-barbarian-archer from the Dave and
Barry Murray game The Ancient Art of War (Broderbund
1984). He also describes Quake's weapon/monster
relations in similar terms: Nailgun beats shambler,
shambler beats rocket launcher, rocket launcher beats
zombie, zombie beats nailgun [28].
References: Chris Crawford (see "Triangularity" in
[15]) provided the first explicit description of the
use of nontransitive relationships. Andrew Rollings'
discussion of examples uses game theory including
detailed payoff, as well as informal fictional
designer dialogs.
PAPER-ROCK-SCISSORS is a recurring game design device that may have been the very first to be
semi-formally described. It can also be presented as a pattern. There is no new information in this
rewrite; the existing knowledge has merely been reorganized to match the other examples. The
pattern could be extended to include a description of payoff matrices and examples for sets larger
than three (see [28] for such a discussion), but even the minimal description captures its essence.
PRIVILEGED MOVE
Problem: Sometimes a given game entity cannot be
permitted to interfere with others, or other entities
cannot be permitted to interfere with it.
Solution: Introducing exclusive moves and locations
separates and protects game entities. These exclusive
moves and locations cannot be entered or left without
being able to perform the respective privileged move.
By introducing different, separate spaces or media,
the game environment is broken down into distinct
areas, which can serve e.g. as safe zones or safe
passages.
Consequence: Depending on the implementation, this can
be a very heavy-handed way to ensure protection.
Unless protection is implemented in a way that is at
the player's disposal (a door that only she can open
and close), the player might perceive the constraint
as annoyance and disappointment. If the restriction is
meant to be temporary, the mechanism to allow it to be
lifted has to be communicated to the player, and
initiated by her.
Examples: In DOOM, monsters could traverse acid pools,
but the player could only at the expense of damage
that quickly turned to be lethal. In Half-Life and
Halo, enemy soldiers can be dropped from flying
vehicles, a transportation mechanism not available to
the player, and impossible to interfere with. HalfLife also had a spider-like boss that was capable of
breaking through its own nets, which blocked the
player's way until she forced the monster to retreat.
In Thief, the player traverses rooftops in relative
safety, permitting preview and outlook on the level

bottom. In Ico, the ghostly opponents traverse the

world in a different dimension, and emerge from
portals without apparent restriction. In Munch's
Oddyssee, water was inaccessible to enemies, providing
one player character a privileged swim move and safe
passage (in the absence of snipers and mines). In many
games, water enemies are in turn restricted to that
medium (e.g. Quake, Half-Life). In many games flying
opponents (e.g. the harpies in Heretic 2) can perform
moves the player cannot, and thus enjoy some amount of
safety.
PRIVILEGED MOVE is a pattern proposal for a mechanism rarely discussed, but frequently used for
a multitude of purposes. A single solution can solve or address multiple problems; a situation that
is not clearly addressed in Alexandrian pattern languages that emphasize the problem-oriented
aspect of pattern use. PRIVILEGED MOVE is also a very close relative of FILTER. This example set
is by no means comprehensive. As Gamma et al. wistfully remark: "Finding patterns is much easier
than describing them."
FILTER
Problem: If the player is given means to create new
game objects, and/or new combination of existing
objects, and/or move game objects arbitrarily, the
resulting complexity might become overwhelming for the
designer.
Solution: Limit local complexity by filtering, thus
creating smaller, clearly defined subsets that can be
dealt with.
Consequence: Player freedom is restricted by implicit
or explicit means. Accidental filtering can lead to
game situations that the player cannot solve. Ideally,
the filtering is obvious to the player, and inherent
part of the game world. FILTER can be an intended
consequence or unintended side effect of PRIVILEGED
MOVE.
Examples: FILTER as a means of dealing with
combinatorial complexity of possible game states is
extracted from Jon Blossom's postmortem of DroidWorks
([9]). Quote: "Our level designers [..] could never be
entirely sure what kind of droid would be walking into
their rooms [...] In many cases, they created
ingenious physical filtering mechanisms that would
guarantee only certain types of droids went beyond
certain points in the level: A steep hill would weed
out biped droids in favor of droids with tractor
treads, a chasm would weed out wheeled droids that
couldn't jump, a narrow canyon would weed out wide
droids, and a short door would weed out tall droids.
The designers used the terrain leading up to key
puzzles to reduce the complexity of the puzzle itself
[...]"

WEENIE
Problem: Players might loose their sense of direction
with respect to how the game world unfolds. This is a
particular problem with player-driven scripting
proceeding in lockstep with player actions.
Solution: The game has to establish clear leads that
communicate to the player where to go, and what
actions to attempt once there.
Consequence: The player will over time come to depend
on the level of guidance, and will be confused if this
guidance is dropped or omitted, which introduces a
bias towards WEENIE CHAIN. Depending on the rigidity
of the guidance mechanisms, players might become aware
the out-of-game agenda behind the in-game setups.
Examples: On occasion this has been called the "carrot
on a stick" approach to level design [8]. Stephen
Clarke-Wilson [13] explains: "This somewhat bizarre
term was coined by Walt Disney, who suggested that
when designing massive 3D environments (theme parks),
it was necessary to lead visitors through the
environment the same way one trains a dog-by holding a
wiener and leading the dog by the nose. Obvious
weenies at Disneyland are Sleeping Beauty's Castle,
which encourages guests to travel from the main
entrance to the central hub; the former Rocket Jets,
which encourage guests to explore Tomorrowland; the
Mark Twain Steamship and dock, which encourage guests
to explore Frontierland; and the King Arthur Carousel,
which encourages guests to walk over the castle moat
and into Fantasyland. [...] Your 3D VR environment
needs to have standout landmarks so that it's easy to
navigate without a map. The best games, which have
typically been designed with very limited graphics,
always save a few graphics to denote special and
interesting things that should be investigated."
Alternative means to communicate to the player the
next proposed or mandatory step are explicit messages
delivered by NPCs, or brief camera cuts that draw
attention to doors opening in nearby locations, like
that used in Munch's Oddyssee. Cliff Bleszinksi
describes as the most subtle and always present WEENIE
the incentive of seeing a new area: the player is
always inclined to move from "been here, done this"
into unknown territory [8].

WEENIE CHAIN
Problem: The player can lose sense of direction in the
absence of clear indicators of where to go next. This
is particularly a problem in games with large or nonlinear environments that do not rely on rails or cut-

offs to constrain player movement, or employ

"revisiting" of areas [8].
Solution: Create an uninterrupted chain of WEENIEs,
with each link of the chain clearly perceivable from
its predecessor, guiding the player from start to
finish.
Consequence: WEENIE CHAIN might be limited in
employing branches or otherwise introduce ambiguity or
player choice. Enforced, WEENIE CHAIN might resemble a
rail.
Examples: Noah Falstein refers to Indiana Jones and
the Fate of Atlantis as an example of how to establish
a chain of clear player goals using messenger NPCs
[18]. His other examples are Super Mario 64 and its use
of signs and NPCs, as well as Halo. Munch's Oddyssee
also uses signs, as well as a Shaman NPC for initial
guidance.
Pattern candidates can be harvested from many sources. For example, the pattern FILTER is taken
verbatim from a game postmortem. WEENIE is taken from a discussion of theme parks and
techniques of environmental storytelling, and has been presented under a different name in
lectures on level design. WEENIE also is the foundation of WEENIE CHAIN, illustrating pattern
dependency, composition, and hierarchy.
Once you start looking for patterns, you start noticing them everywhere. Erich Gamma et al. point
out that whether they are aware of it or not, novelists and playwrights already use patterns. Many
"narrative devices" (see e.g. [32]) could also be described using a pattern template.
Sometimes the need to differentiate patterns on distinct levels of abstraction leads to different
labels: "One person's pattern can be another person's primitive building block" (from [19]).
Alexander et al. present a total of 253 patterns, subdivided into three sets for "Towns, Buildings
and Construction" [3] . Preferences regarding the virtues of a given purpose might apply: patterns
are just recipes, means not ends, and disagreement on the ends is beyond the scope of a pattern.
Designers might also have different views on the quality of a given solution: one person's pattern
might well be another's "anti-pattern" -- a recurring example of a bad design decision. Ideally, the
pattern description itself is just a candid summary of cause and effect, describing one way to reach
a given objective.
Alexandrian patterns are not unknown to game developers. Many programmers are familiar with
Gamma's concept of software design patterns. Will Wright of Maxis credits the same book as the
original inspiration for The Sims, and refers to Christopher Alexander's works (namely [1] ). Steven
Chen and Duncan Brown, former level designers at LucasArts, refer level designers to the 253
Alexandrian patterns merely as a guideline to create "meaningful environments" [10].
Instead, game developers strive to develop their own forms and templates. The Formal Abstract
Design Tools (FADTs) proposed by Doug Church can easily be rewritten to fit the canonical pattern
template. Another recent attempt to document game design knowledge in semi-formal ways is
"The 400 Project" by Hal Barwood and Noah Falstein, is a project to collect proven game design
rules and techniques. This 400 Project dates back to a GDC 2001 lecture by Hal Barwood, in which
he also presented four examples.
Their effort has now spawned a column in Game Developer magazine, in which Noah Falstein

introduced the rule "Provide clear short-term goals" as the opening example. The 400 Project uses
a five -part template: Imperative Statement - Domain of Application - Dominated Rules Dominating Rules - Examples Aliases (see [18] for details). The concept of dominance (that some
rules take precedence over others, and might in turn be trumped themselves) is absent from
Alexandrian patterns. An Alexandrian pattern simply lists one possible solution to a given problem,
acknowledging that other solutions might exist. Alexander sees each pattern as a recipe that
strives to balance competing imperatives and conflicting forces in order to achieve the best
possible results with respect to a specific objective. The decision to use a given pattern will also
depend on whether there are multiple objectives to fulfill or when aside effects of applying a given
solution, influence the. Falstein's rules appear more rigid, implying that all games have the same
goals, and the same concerns. The names of the rules in the 400 Project are imperative
statements, like Provide clear short-term goals, and their description contains only the solution
part of a pattern. The problem to be solved by the pattern is merely implied or presumed obvious
in this revision of the rules. WEENIE, as well as WEENIE CHAIN, capture parts of Provide clear
short-term goals but also explicitly state the role of the pattern. Like rules, pattern names typically
name the solution, not the problem: a matching pattern might just be called SHORT-TERM GOALS.

Outlook
Patterns are a formal means of documentation, and such means open the door to software tools for
maintaining and editing game design documents. Take screenplays: word processors can be
configured to handle the canonical format for scriptwriting, and some applications have been
designed specifically to support that movie industry format. Many game companies and game
designers have devised their own internal standards for game design documents. But defining a
standard format for game design documents is of limited use unless there are editing and search
facilities that support and enforce the format.
A pattern language is a natural match for descriptive markup, e.g. XML, with a huge potential for
tool support based on off-the-shelf software. The value of any "living" document is directly related
to the ease of its maintenance. Structured editing aids structured thinking: if a design document
does not have clear organization, its use of keywords and names is inconsistent, and relevant
information can not be located quickly when needed, the document is practically useless.
Consequently, game developers have to make a sustained, conscious effort to define and describe
the recurring elements of their daily work - whether as patterns, rules or some other method -- so
we can begin to create software tools made or adapted specifically for game design purposes. The
case for Alexandrian game design patterns [22,29] seems strong: they have proven themselves in
other and diverse professions; they are intuitive, well documented, and a familiar concept to
software engineers, yet are flexible enough to permit anecdotak or informal descriptions of artistic
choices.

Bibliography
[1] Christopher Alexander. Notes on the Synthesis of Form. (Harvard University Press 1964, 1966,
1979.) ISBN 0-674-62750-4 (cloth) ISBN 0-674-62751 -2 (paper)
[2] Christopher Alexander, Murray Silverstein, Shlomo Angel, Sara Ishikawa, and Denny Abrams.
The Oregon Experiment. (Oxford University Press, 1975.) ISBN 0-19-501824-9
[3] Christopher Alexander, Sara Ishikawa, Murray Silverstein, Max Jacobson, Ingrid Fiksdahl-King,
and Shlomo Angel. A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction. (Oxford University Press,
1977.) ISBN 0-19-501919-9
[4] Christopher Alexander. The Timeless Way of Building. (Oxford University Press, 1979.) ISBN 0-

19-502402-8
[5] Brad Appleton. Patterns and Software: Essential Concepts and Terminology. Last update: Feb.
2000.
[6] Hal Barwood. "Four of the Four Hundred 2001". (GDC lecture, 2001.)
[7] Hal Barwood and Noah Falstein. "More of the 400: Discovering Design Rules 2002" (GDC 2002
lecture)
[8] Cliff Bleszinski. "The Art and Science of Level Design." (GDC 2000, pp. 107--118.)
[9] Jon Blossom and Collette Michaud. "Postmortem: LucasLearning's Star Wars
DroidWorks" (Gamasutra 1999.) Originally Game Developer magazine, Vol 3, Issue 28, pp. 52-58,
July 1999.
[10] Steven Chen and Duncan Brown. "The Architecture of Level Design." (GDC 2001 Proceedings,
pp. 167--175.)
[11] Doug Church. "Formal Abstract Design Tools." (Gamasutra, 1999. Originally Game Developer
magazine, Vol 3, Issue 28, July 1999.)
[12] Doug Church. "Abdicating Authorship: Goals and Process of Interactive Design." (GDC 2000,
San Jose, Lecture 5403 (not in proceedings).)
[13] Stephen Clarke-Willson. "Applying Game Design to Virtual Environments" ( Digital Illusion,
ACM Press, Vol. 2, Issue 1, January 1, 1998.)
[14] (N/A).
[15] Chris Crawford. The Art of Computer Game Design, Chapter 6: "Design Techniques and
Ideals." 1984.
[16] Troy Dunniway. "Using the Hero's Journey in Games." (Gamasutra, 1999. Originally published
in Game Developer magazine, August 1999.)
[17] Troy Dunniway. Professional Game Design. (New Riders. To be published June 2002. ISBN 07357-1184-4. )
[18] Noah Falstein. "Better By Design: The 400 Project". (Game Developer magazine, Vol. 9, Issue
3, March 2002, p. 26.)
[19] Erich Gamma, Richard Helm, Ralph Johnson, and John Vlissides. Design Patterns: Elements of
Reusable Object-Oriented Software. (Addison Wesley Longman, 1994.) ISBN 0-201 -63361-2.
[20] Chris Hecker and Zachary Booth Simpson "Game Programming Patterns & Idioms." Game
Developer magazine, Sep. 2000.
[21] John Hopson "Behavioral Game Design." Gamasutra, April 2001.
[22] Bernd Kreimeier. Game Design Patterns. Wordware Publishing, Inc. To be published March
2003.) ISBN 1-55622-967-4

[23] Brenda Laurel. Computers as Theatre. (Addison Wesley Longman, Inc. 1991, 1993 ISBN 0 201-55060 -1.)
[24] Marc LeBlanc. "Formal Design Tools: Emergent Complexity, Emergent Narrative." GDC 2000,
San Jose, Lecture 5304 (not in proceedings).
[25] Gerard Meszaros and Jim Doble "A Pattern Language for Pattern Writing"
[26] Pierre -Alain Mueller. Instant UML . (Wrox Press, Ltd., 1997) ISBN 1-861000-87-1.
[27] Karen Pryor. Don't Shoot The Dog! (Bantam Doubleday, 1999) ISBN: 0-55338 -039-7 (revised
paperback edition)
[28] Andrew Rollings and Dave Morris. Game Architecture and Design. (The Coriolis Group, 2000.)
ISBN 1-57610-425-7
[29] Andrew Rollings and Ernest Adams. Patterns in Game Design. (The Coriolis Group, to be
published May 2002.) ISBN 1-57610 -873-2
[30] Richard Rouse. Game Design: Theory & Practice. (Wordware, Inc., 2000) ISBN 1-55622 -735-3
[31] Aamod Sane "The Elements of Pattern Style." December, 1995.
[32] Viktor Shklosvsky. Theory of Prose Dalkey. (Archive Press 1990, 1991.) ISBN 0-916583-54-6
(cloth) ISBN 0-916583-54-6 (paper).
[33] Zachary Booth Simpson "Design Patterns for Computer Games." 1998 CGDC Austin, TX,
November 1998, also San Jose, CA, May 1999.
[34] John Vlissides. "Pattern Hatching - Seven Habits of Successful Pattern Writers." C++ Report.
Nov/Dec 1996, and Pattern Hatching: Design Patterns Applied (Addison Wesley, 1998).
[35] Christopher Vogler. The Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers. (Michael Wiese
Productions, 1998.) ISBN 0-941188-70-1