The “Flow” state’s influence during game design process.
The video game entertainment industry nowadays has grown in such exponential way that the possibilities a consumer has seem almost limitless. With all the options we can find in a store such as steam, X Box, Playstation or Nintendo it is logical that a parameter to measure the quality of the product was born, for the video games this parameter would be how entertaining the product is, or more precisely how “Fun” it is. If we search in a dictionary, we will find that fun is defined as the production of amusement and enjoyment for a certain activity, however this definition is subjective and easily re interpretative by different people. Jenova Chen, the game designer for Journey, creates a relation between the definition of “Fun” and a concept known as “Flow”. The application of “Flow” during the design process of video games can be the difference between a game staying in a virtual shelf with low downloads and a game with good good reviews and recommendations.
Starting by the beginning, the “Flow” concept was first proposed by the psychology professor Mihály Csíkszentmihályi in his book “Flow: The psychology of optimal experience”. He determines the “Flow” state as a state of maximum focus, dedication and immersion in an activity, the characteristics of this state are the transformation of time perception and loss of self-consciousness, which means feeling that time flies and all the problems and ideas in a person’s head clear away. In his book Csíkszentmihályi lists eight principal components that a flow state has.
- A challenge activity that requires skills.
- The merging of action and awareness.
- Clear goals.
- Direct feedback.
- Concentration of the task at hand.
- The sense of control.
- The loss of self-consciousness.
- The transformation of time.
Though not all the components are always needed for the flow to be experienced. (Csíkszentmihályi 1990).
This Flow state has been investigated in other areas like work, cinematography and sports, in this last one the flow state received a name which is more well known, “The Zone”. In sports it is defined as a state of full awareness and dedication to the activity being done, reacting to situations almost instinctively. While being in “The Zone” due to the fact that there is no extra information in the person’s head and the input of sense’s information is meticulously used to give the best performance the person is capable of give. This may seem abstract and part of an anime’s plot, but haven’t you ever experienced something similar with a challenging fight in Street Fighter , while defeating a boss in Dark Souls, even making maths to see if your attack can beat the league’s champion in Pokémon or during the hardcore riff solo of Through Fire and Flames in Guitar Hero?
Jenova Chen defines the Flow state in an experience as the equilibrium point between challenge and ability. If the challenge is quite higher than the ability the result will be the person getting frustrated and with the feeling of anxiety, on the other hand if the person’s skill is higher than the challenge presented he will experience boredom. Of course a person has tolerance which creates upper and lower thresholds in which the designers can play with the pace and rhythm of a game without losing the state of flow achieved, playing in lower boundaries when relaxation, attention and learning is needed, and going to upper boundaries when the expected reaction is effort, ecstasy and what we know in the industry as “tryhardness”. However it is well known that not all players are the same, like the same and play the same way, so the real challenge is to apply this methodology to a game that can be played by numerous people and still be considered fun by all of them. There is no magic formula to always be applied in this cases, as the industry has thought me it all requires testing and failing many times until closest result to the expectations is achieved. Of course there are some tips than can always be taken in consideration to start with.
- Difficulty modulation: Not all players have the same skills and interests, so a way to make the game easier or harder with stats modifications will come in handy.
- Feedback: It is frustrating to make things and don’t know where you’re standing at. A player will dedicate more effort and time the closer he/she perceives the goal.
- Clarity in goals: Worst than not knowing where you are standing at is not knowing where you are heading. Even if it’s implied in the story telling or in a menu called “goals” the player should know what’s his next move expected to be.
- Perception of control: The player is playing a video game, not watching a movie or reading a book. He needs to feel that his presence matters in the game’s universe and that his decisions make the game move forward. Even if it’s a linear story or a puzzle game with no dramatic argument a game is not a game if there is no player to play it. Such as toys are not toys if there’s no boy to plat with them (sorry, needed to do the Toy Story’s reference).
Going back to the Flow state in video games it is easy to connect the immersion to the presence of fun in playing it. I’m sure in this moment anyone could think of a game in which time flew by and everything else disappeared, you just wanted to know more about it, feel more about it, experience more about it. That is what a “Flow” state feels like and is what every idealist game designer such as me wants to achieve while developing a game, of course this helps to increase the income of money the game may produce, which creates a win-win scenario.
In conclusion, although this can be explored and investigated furthermore, this is just a quick introduction of all the possibilities we as developers have to create and expand our boundaries. Making experiences to communicate ideas and feelings is what we do and a flow state is the best way I’ve found for someone to listen. With great power comes great responsibility, but first lets make sure we cultivate and harness that power. (Sorry, couldn’t help myself with that Spiderman’s reference, too.)
- Jenova Chen, Flow in Games. Recovered from http://jenovachen.info/abstract on June 16, 2018.
- Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Flow: the Psychology of Optimal Experience. Harper Perennial, 1990