PRO DESIGN TIPS - Subverting Mechanics: The Ball (Teotl Studios, 2010)
COMMON GAME DESIGN TECHNIQUE EXAMPLE: Subverting Mechanics (FPS)
This is a subversion of a first‑person puzzle game – or even just a subversion of a
first‑person game. What the designer is doing here is providing a layer of abstraction
between you and the puzzle. Instead of using an interaction button or a gravity gun to
manipulate switches directly, you must utilise something between you and the switch
to operate it. This adds another layer to the “possibility space” with regards to creating
puzzles because you must initially manoeuvre the ball into the correct position. This
means that instead of just grabbing a switch with your gravity gun, you must ensure you
manipulate the ball into position to be able to access the switch, which then rolls onto
the pressure pad. It’s another clever subversion of the gravity gun mechanic, and also,
from a puzzle design perspective, increases the variables required to solve a puzzle,
helping to provide more options. I’d also note that it gives you a helpful flythrough (see
Box 4.9) as you enter that chamber, giving you a starter for ten on the order in which you
should approach the puzzles, effectively “chunking” them.
WANT MORE TECHNIQUES? this TEXT is an ABRIDGED EXCERPT from the BOOK: Teaching Video Game Design Fundamentals: A Guide for Educating with Practical Examples and Learning Materials. (Andy Sandham, Routledge/Taylor and Francis/CRC Press 2025)
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