Fusion of the Elements: The Secret Ingredient of all Great Videogames

 

 

 

Even though all videogames share the same 3 core Design Elements (namely Gameplay, Level Design and Storytelling), some turn out as classics while most others simply can’t come close. And this article will attempt to explore the reason behind this with just as much detail as to not hinder an enjoyable reading experience too much. And for full breakdown of the Design Elements along with how they work together to create the videogame experience we all know and love, you can read up on the Anatomy of Videogames trilogy of articles. Besides, it’ll also help you comprehend this article fully.

The difference between truly great games and the not-so-great ones lies solely in how the 3 Design Elements are working in them. We know that these work together in tandem to create the experience the devs intend, but in most games these elements merely support each other whereas in case of any great game ever made, the elements or at least some of them, completely fuse with one another—complimenting each other at every moment.

Take Max Payne 3 for example, which I consider as one of the greatest modern third person shooters, and see how the 3 elements behave in that game. If you have really played it thoroughly, you have definitely noticed the almost symbiotic relationship between it’s Gameplay and the Level Design, it’s quite subtle but if you play the game on the higher difficulties, you can’t miss it. In fact, you really need the help of the level design itself if you intend to complete the game on the higher difficulties, where it actually becomes more pronounced how the layout of the levels including the placement of different objects—all of that is complimenting the gameplay at every moment.

The entire Level Design of Max Payne 3 is built around the Gameplay, so much so that you need to take advantage of the former to maximize the latter, it’s hard to explain in words but you need to play it to know what’s really going on in there. In Max Payne 3, we find a complete fusion of these two elements—and this is exactly what makes the game so darn amazing to play.

So what does the fusion actually mean for the games? Well, it simply makes the gameplay feel organic and satisfying to such an extent that you can play it over and over again and still experience something fresh each time. This is the true hallmark of all great games ever made.

In Max Payne 3, there’s the fusion of 2 elements but there are games that has all the 3 design elements fused together, and these are the creme-de-la-creme of gaming. Half Life 2 is a great example where Gameplay, Level Design and Storytelling is completely fused and act as One single element—where you can’t separate the gameplay from the level design or the storytelling from the gameplay. They're all in a symbiotic relationship with each other.

In Half Life 2, the storytelling is happening through the gameplay, and the level design is built in a way to take advantage of the gameplay to the point we can hardly separate one from another. Never for once do the game takes the control away from the player, instead the player experiences the story while the gameplay is happening, in real time. All 3 elements are working in perfect synergy at every instance—and this is exactly what makes the game as great as it is.

Where in most other games, the 3 elements just act as in support of each other. Never do the Levels feel like they actually add anything to the gameplay or compliment each other quite like the aforementioned games do. And that’s why the gameplay tires itself out after a certain period of time, cause they simply don’t have the longevity as a game where there’s a fusion of at least in 2 of it’s design elements.

The Fusion of 3 elements is much more rare than games that at least have 2 elements fused. That’s why classics like the Half Life series is so few and far between in gaming.

Of course, this also results in a much more controlled and linear experience than Open World games, where this kind of fusion is much rarer cause it goes against the kind of experience they aim for.

And this is what separates the greats from the rests in videogames, the relationship between it’s core Design Elements and how they’re interacting with one another on a moment-to-moment basis. Hopefully this article explained the fundamental reason, the secret recipe behind all the classic games ever made and what makes them as great as they are.