Game Feel — QWOP vs. NBA 2K
Where does one draw the line on realism in games that heavily involve the body/bodies moving in space? As a game that simulates physical activity becomes more “realistic”, can it serve to have benefits in the real world? Can it improve your ability to perform the actual skill in real life that the game simulates? Using Steve Swink’s guide to “Game Feel” and Jesper Juul’s essay on “Failure”[1] I will examine two different approaches to “Virtual Sensation” in sports gaming: the Sisyphean internet sensation QWOP, and the massively successful NBA 2K franchise. QWOP may represent the most extreme example of realism in the history of sports games, despite being so simple in its format and objective. The NBA 2K series, on the other hand, would also belong on the realistic side of the spectrum, but in quite different ways that also allow for a degree of “arcadey-ness”. In comparing the two, this begs the question; is a degree of arcadey-ness necessary for the game to be playable, or “fun”? The narrative of praise that has surrounded NBA 2K through its past decade of dominance over the sports gaming universe has consistently been that it is the most “realistic” sports game ever made, [2] but perhaps a more accurate statement is that it sufficiently captures the experience of playing professional basketball without sacrificing a certain fantastical aspect that may fundamentally be at the root of any successful game in the sports genre. In addition to comparing QWOP to 2K technically and aesthetically, this piece will explore how exactly 2K has achieved this prevailing consensus, as well as the effects that successful game feel can have outside of the world of the game.
Swink identifies the following as the five most common experiences of game feel:
1.) The aesthetic sensation of control 2.) The pleasure of learning, practicing, and mastering a skill 3.) Extension of the senses 4.) Extension of identity and 5.) Interaction with a unique physical reality within the game.
The goal of QWOP is to run as far as you can without falling over. The keys Q, W, O, and P are each tightly assigned to a different part of each leg, creating a wholly unique control system that is so wonky and difficult that a player who manages to travel more than ten meters might be considered an expert. This provides for a sense of game feel that subverts a typical notion of “fun”, instead opting to lean all the way into the pleasure that Jesper Juul argues that “failure” can afford[3]. Repeatedly miserable failure can make a player quit in some instances, but somehow QWOP remains an effectively playable game because of how hopeless it is, relying mostly on humor, as well as the pursuit of mastery, to do so. It was, in fact, a major hit at a special event at MoMA in 2011 called “Arcade”, where it was installed on an iPad for the night [4]. QWOP renders the most minor success imaginable, that of taking a single step, as an immense triumph. QWOP usurps all players of an aesthetic sensation of control and replaces it with an aesthetic sensation of ineptitude. By defamiliarizing the sensation of running — an action every sports game typically simplifies to moving a stick in a direction — into a hyperextension of the senses, QWOP presents an example of a game that takes realism, with respect to the body, to the point of impossibility.
Looking now to 2K, it is fascinating to consider that the company’s gameplay director took a poll on Twitter during the production of NBA 2K19 asking players how “arcadey” the game should feel on a scale of 1–10, with 1 being “Sim, like real life”, 10 being “Cartoon, Over the Top”, and 5 being “Somewhere in between [5]. Over 51% of the 38,000 voters opted for 5, while only 20% voted for 1, perhaps fearing that a pure basketball Sim gameplay experience would be too complicated and difficult, like something closer to QWOP but with even more controls. The result is a game that is intuitive and seamless enough in its gameplay for newcomers to pick up, yet realistic enough to keep veteran fans of basketball and 2K as separate entities satisfied with their interactive experiences.
Because you only control one player on the court at a time, the A.I. in NBA 2K19 is programmed with individual tendencies that match every single professional player’s physical traits and decision-making abilities. With such an intelligent A.I. system, this makes for an experience that mimics the extension of both the physical senses and the mental processes that basketball players engage in while on the court at rapid speeds. Thus, while one will learn the game as they practice, one will also benefit from having real experience because they may know how to attack the CPU better because the A.I. is so perfectly aligned with players’ real tendencies. This touches on what is known in the 2K community as a “skill gap”. Having a greater “skill gap” essentially means that 2K rewards players who play the game with a certain awareness and skill level (knowing what shots are more efficient, understanding dribble combinations, having a strong passing IQ, etc.) more than players who simply chuck up three pointers at random, which differentiates it from most other sports game franchises which tend to level the playing field more.
Most sports games also leave quite a bit of space for players to succeed with unrealistic approaches to the game (EA Sports’ NBA Live franchise has long been criticized for being “too easy” compared to 2K). 2K does allow you to adjust the sliders of your game to make it easier, but this is typically frowned upon within any respectable 2K community. Yet, within 2K’s simulations and multiplicity of game modes, it leaves room for players who are pedestrian in real life to conquer the “inadequacy” Juul references and reach new heights in the fantasy world that they otherwise could not (Juul).
To Swink’s points about the notions of “Identity” and a “unique physical reality within the game”, 2K has also added Park and Neighborhood modes to its expanding immersive universe. For better or worse, these modes enable players to customize themselves, scanning their faces onto their digital avatars, and interact with players on the virtual interface of local playgrounds — a basketball version of The Sims, essentially. In fact, in NBA 2K19, someone could theoretically buy the game and spend all their time at the Park watching other people play without ever touching a virtual basketball. In this era of YouTube and Twitch, many players also create substantial web content, like building year-long episodic series around the narratives they create around their characters, for audiences that are quite large. 2K has become more than simply a basketball simulation; it is also a storytelling platform now.
This leads to another question: if a game that is more realistic is more desirable for the members of the 2K community, most of whom do play real basketball but certainly not at a professional level, then what value does a virtual basketball game have for someone who is actually living their dream and playing in the NBA? What does it say about a game that someone who already does what the game simulates for a living would want to use the game as an outlet for fantasies? The episode of the The Office when it is revealed that Dwight’s character in the game Second Life is a paper salesman comes to mind.
2K is so realistic that many professionals in various other fields use it for purposes beyond amusement or interactive entertainment. Brian Mazique, a writer for Forbes and a basketball coach, explained that he uses 2K to teach his players and students about key plays and fundamental principles of the game [6]. LeBron James, who by some people’s estimations is the greatest player to ever walk the earth, has said in interviews that he uses 2K simulations to experiment with his own team’s lineups and discover strategies against his competitors [7]. There are serious implications here to consider: this is the greatest player in the world, someone who plays and processes real basketball better than anyone else can with virtual basketball, saying that he brings his console on the road with him during the season not just as a recreational pastime, but also as an essential tactical tool. LeBron, a bonafide basketball genius, trusts the A.I. as much as his own coach to make important decisions about his real team. Could we see an A.I. coach, or an A.I. general manager, some day? That remains to be seen, but if the success of the game feel of NBA 2K can inform a player of Lebron’s influence and stature on crucial decisions which affect millions worldwide, then that certainly opens up the potential for New Media to continue to impact and reflect changes in a rapidly evolving landscape where art and athletics may continue to overlap.
[1] Swink, Steve. Game Feel: A Game Designer’s Guide to Virtual Sensation. Morgan Kaufmann, 2008.
[2] https://www.ign.com/articles/2018/09/11/nba-2k19-review
[3] Juul, Jesper. The Art of Failure: An Essay on the Pain of Playing Video Games.
[4] https://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2011/07/28/moma-hosts-kill-screen-arcade-where-everybody-can-play/
[5] https://twitter.com/beluba/status/1008465285223870464?lang=en
[6] https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=285&v=cN1_84IvN-U
[7] https://www.forbes.com/sites/brianmazique/2018/09/04/nba-2k19-a-i-blog-reveals-matchup-exploiting-new-play-art-pick-and-roll-and-double-team-logic/#6ffd749b5e58
