Singleplayer?

When you make a game that is supposed to be a multiplayer experience, and then comes to the conclusion that you need a singleplayer part, you are going to have problems. That is what we are experiencing right now. The whole development process and concept around vertigo have always circulated around making the best multiplayer game possible. And when you start taking Singleplayer into consideration it starts giving you severe gameplay problems.

So, how do you transfer the whole concept of what Vertigo is into a Singleplayer experience that is supposed to be as good as the multiplayer part? I mean, the most central part of a multiplayer game is the other players which you, of course, don’t have in singleplayer.

So a simple solution but a solution that takes a lot of time to do, is to throw in some AI controlled "BOTS". And that’s it, right…?

Noooee, not at all. When removing your social partners you’re also removing the goal in what vertigo is much built around. The Competition. You’re no longer racing against your friends, your racing against AI controlled characters, and mocking a computer is (believe it or not) not the same as mocking your best friend if you manage to win. The goal to beat the computer is not enthralling enough… but… if you make the player feel that he is not playing against the computer, if you make the player take part of something bigger, something more immersive than “ready, start, go”.

Narrative… It’s not by itself a solution. But it’s a starting point. A starting point on which you can build a lot of stuff that will keep the player engaged. Let’s say the computer instead starts mocking the player, by saying you can’t do this or you can’t do that! The situation dramatically changes, and the player starts feeling challenged by the “computer”. And the response to that would be to “show the computer what you’re made of”.

But still, that isn’t enough, because Narrative can only do so much. What a singleplayer experience also is critically built upon is to give the player a lot of stuff to do, Content. So besides the short term goal (beat the computer), and the actual gameplay experience the player need long term goals as to, unlock levels, get new gameplay modes, find new characters to race against. We want the player to be engaged in the game for a long time, it’s not meant to be a 5min experience.

Of course there is stuff in the actual gamedesign/gameplay that we also need to revise. And also to add stuff in there since singleplayer opens up for a lot of cool stuff not possible in a multiplayer game!

But you guys have a lovely Easter holiday! And hope ya don’t choke on any Chocolate Easter bunnies!

PS: The work on the website is moving slowly forward, it still isn’t close to finished yet, but we’re getting there! Cheers!