Chapter 10 Congratulations! Selecting the Right In-Game Achievements
Overview • What is an in-game achievement? • What are the different types of in-game achievements? • Which in-game achievement is appropriate in which situation?
Introduction • Achievements are A HOT topic • We need to learn to utilize players to their fullest potential • Only the achievements, which were forethought designed, could have positive effects on players. • Achievements designed properly could improve the player’s experience and the quality of a game. • Alternatively, the effects of poorly designed achievements are undetermined • There are many studies about this topic. Let’s deconstruct how achievements are currently used in games first
Measurement vs. Completion Achievements • Measurement and completion achievements describe two distinct conditions under which we reward players for their actions. • Measurement achievements are given to players for completing a task to a certain degree. • Their performance can be measured against other players' performance, their own performance, or some standard set by game designers. • Completion achievements are offered as an award once a task is completed. • Performance contingent achievements: require skill to complete • Non-performance contingent achievements: awarded for simply being present
Best Practice • Use measurement achievements instead of completion achievements to increase intrinsic motivation through feedback.
Boring vs. Interesting Tasks • Achievements are earned for the completion of a task or series of tasks. • If a task is boring, the reward structure associated with it has to be different from tasks that are inherently interesting to the player. • Boring tasks (such as trade skills in MMOs) can be paired with extrinsic motivators, like achievements, in order for players to engage in them. • Interesting tasks, which the player would engage in without any form of additional motivation, do not need to be reinforced with rewards.
Best Practice • Reward players for boring tasks and give them feedback for interesting ones. Make achievements for interesting tasks attentional.
Achievement Difficulty • The difficulty of achievements is addressed twice by designers. • The actual difficulty of achievements needs to be on a level that is attainable but challenging to the players. • Players' self-efficacy for the task(s) associated with the achievement must be high enough that they feel confident in attempting it. • Achievements that are too difficult will not even be attempted by players, and those that are too easy will be completed quickly and won't provide an adequate challenge. • Player self-efficacy is another important factor that game designers must consider. • Goal commitment, strategy creation and use, and a more positive response to negative feedback
Best Practice • Make achievements challenging for the greatest returns in player performance and enjoyment. Phrase achievements and design interactions to increase player self-efficacy.
Goal Orientation • Players' goal orientation must be considered when designing achievements, as it will influence how they experience a game through goals they set for themselves. • Performance orientation and mastery orientation • Players who favor a performance orientation are concerned with other people's assessment of their competence. • Players who have a mastery orientation are concerned more with improving their own proficiency.
Best Practice • For complex tasks requiring creativity or complicated strategies, try to instill a mastery orientation. • For simple or repetitive tasks, instill a performance orientation. Try to keep new players who are still learning how to play in a mastery orientation.
Expected vs. Unexpected Achievements • Players either know what achievements can be earned before they play a game or they come upon them unexpectedly during play. Expected and unexpected achievements have different effects on players and can both be utilized to improve player experience. • Expected achievements allow players to set goals for themselves before they begin. • In addition, expected achievements also allow players to create a schema, or a mental model, of game play before they begin. • Unexpected achievements are relatively uncommon in video games but can also have potential benefits to players.
Best Practice • Primarily use expected achievements so players can establish goals for themselves and create a schema of the game. Make sure achievement descriptions accurately reflect what needs to be done by the player and why it is important. • Unexpected achievements can be used sparingly to encourage creative play.
When Achievement Notification Occurs • Players must be made aware of their accomplishment • Notified immediately or delayed • Immediate feedback can improve LEARNING and efficiency • Especially important when using measurement achievements that directly relate to player performance • Newer players benefit more from this type of feedback than more experienced players would • Increasingly delayed feedback will be more effective for experiences players • Careful! Achievement notification during play may disrupt • give players achievement notification after a natural break in play
Best Practice • For games with no clear break in play, give immediate feedback with an unobtrusive popup accompanied by a longer explanation available after play. • For games with clearly defined play sessions and those that require a greater deal of concentration, it is better to use delayed notification. • Try to give new players immediate feedback and give more experienced players delayed feedback.
Achievement Permanence • Long after a player earns an achievement, he or she may want to reflect on the experience • Permanent achievements allow players to relive their former glory • Digitally tangible: earning an achievement • Stored lists: description of the achievement • Impermanent ones exist only when the player is first notified • Verbal reinforcements
Best Practice • Give players the opportunity to go over their earned achievements using some kind of stored list. • Digitally tangible rewards are a great incentive but won't keep the player around after the reward is earned.
Who Can See Earned Achievements? • Achievements will be shared, but varies by game. • Player’s decision • Social Approval • Earned achievements that act as a resume • MMOs
Best Practice • Making earned achievements viewable to other players is a powerful incentive. • To prevent players from being excluded because of their lack of experience, create achievements for players who take other players under their wing. • Let players display a few achievements they are proud of to increase motivation and highlight their play style.
Negative Achievements • Some achievements are given to players when the player fails, he or she may earn the negative achievement. • Negative achievements are the digital equivalent of pouring salt on a wound • If players know that there are negative achievements in the game, they will try to avoid them • But be careful of using it!
Best Practice • Don't use negative achievements as a punishment for failure. Provide feedback within the system that can assist struggling players.
Achievements as Currency • Earned achievements could be used as virtual currency in games. • points, coins, or stars and later use them to purchase in-game items or real- world objects • Research: Monetary rewards have greater returns on task performance than tangible rewards • rewards were tied to inputs rather than outputs • Currency rewards have been shown to decrease intrinsic motivation for the recipients of the reward
Best Practice • Offer players currency for completing tasks instead of rewards to give them a greater sense of control. • Reward the inputs rather than the outputs • Use a currency system to enhance a game, but don't attempt to make currency acquisition the main reason players engage in an activity.
Incremental and Meta Achievements • Incremental achievements are awarded in a chain for performing the same task through scaling levels of difficulty. • Meta achievements are earned for completing a series of achievements that are for different tasks. • Both incremental and meta achievements can be used as a type of scaffolding, a "training wheels" approach used in teaching. • It's broken up into smaller pieces and sequenced like a training program. • Breaking the task up into pieces also has the side benefit of helping players create a schema about how the more complex task is structured. • The amount of challenge each one provides are important things to keep in mind.
Best Practice • Use these types of achievements to hold the players' interest for longer periods of time and guide them to related activities. • Make the spacing between incremental achievements, both in time and physical location, separated enough so that players don't feel too controlled.
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