Tools

The Formal Elements

Define the structure of your game, so you can make sure that you keep all the building blocks in mind

WHAT IS IT?

The Formal Elements are those elements that form the structure of a game. Without them, games cease to be games.

There are 8 formal elements:

Players
Here you can think about the number of players, the role of your players and player interaction patterns.

Objectives
Well know objectives are:

  • Capture: to take or destroy something of the opponent’s (terrain, units, or both), while avoiding being captured or killed
  • Chase: to catch an opponent or elude one, if you are the player being chased.
  • Race: to reach a goal – physical or conceptual – before the other players.
  • Alignment, to arrange your game pieces in a certain spatial configuration or create conceptual alignment between categories of pieces.
  • Rescue/Escape: to get a defined unit or units to safety.
  • Forbidden Act: to get the competition to break the rules by laughing, talking, letting go, making the wrong move, or otherwise doing something they shouldn’t.
  • Construction: to build, maintain, or manage objects.
  • Exploration: to explore game areas.
  • Solution: to solve a problem or puzzle before (or more accurately) than the competition
  • Outwit: to gain and use knowledge in a way that defeats the other players.

Procedures
Procedures are the methods of play and the actions that players can take to achieve the game objectives. One way to think about procedures is: Who does what, where, when, and how?

Rules
Rules define game objects and allowable actions by the players.

Resources
Resources are assets that can be used to accomplish certain goals.
Well know resources are:

  • Lives
  • Units
  • Health
  • Currency
  • Actions
  • Power-ups
  • Inventory
  • Special Terrain
  • Time

Conflict
Conflict is designed into the game by creating rules, procedures, and situations (such as multiplayer competition) that do not allow players to accomplish their goals directly. Most common conflicts are:

  • Obstacles
  • Opponents
  • Dilemmas

Boundaries
Boundaries are what separate the game from everything that is not the game. This can be physical, like the playing field, or metaphorical, like the act of agreeing to play and the acceptance of the rules.

Outcome
The outcome of a game must be uncertain to hold the attention of the players. That uncertainty is generally resolved in a measurable and unequal outcome, such as a win or lose. However, many massively multiplayer online worlds do not have the concept of a winner or even an end state.

WHY USE THIS?

When you have your game concept clear, the next step is to translate this into well-formed designs. To get you started, you can use the Formal Elements to make a first draft of the structure of your game, so you can make sure that you keep all the building blocks in mind. It is a great way to create an overview of the game before you are going to design it even further with more elaborate tools. It is useful to use in a Game Design Document.

HOW DO I USE THIS?

You can use the Formal Element Canvas to create a first overview of the formal elements in your game.

Download The Formal Elements Canvas

REFERENCES:

Tracy Fullerton – Game Design Workshop: A Playcentric Approach To Creating Innovative Games