Chance

To explore chance in games I was asked to read chapters 5&6 from "Challenges For Game Designers" by Brenda Braithewaite and Ian Schreiber.

Delaying or preventing solvability

Games become solvable once all the possibilities in the game are shown to the player to make the game able to be figured out completely by just looking at it, when nothing is hidden a game is solvable. Tic-tac-toe is an easily solvable game due to the lack of possibility and options to the player and so the game will play out similarly each time resulting in many tied games.

A game such as Chess or Checkers are solvable games since everything on the board is visible to the player. Since there are so many more options open to each player it remains entertaining due to replay value through the large field of possibilities allowing each game to play out in a different way.

Competitive for all players

Games such as chess and checkers are unsuitable for casual play due to the huge skill gaps between each player. For high intensity and dynamic competitive play this is perfect as it's easy for the player to see why they lost and how they can improve for the next game, adjusting their strategy accordingly. For casual play however, players will often choose to play a game driven less by competition by skill and more by randomness which would allow for children and less skilled gamers an equal chance in winning giving everyone an enjoyable game experience.

Increasing Variety

Variety in games can be increased by adding random elements, games with no random elements always start the same way and exposes players to similar situations each time the game is played.

Players must cope with a wide variety of situations once random elements are introduced such as in the random setup of 'Settlers of Catan'. Random battles in Risk force players to change their strategies depending on the outcome of the battle thus forcing players to make new strategic decisions and adding variety. Variety increases the replay value of a game.

Dramatic Moments

Dramatic tension is easily created by using the outcome of a random dice roll to determine an important part of the game. The more at risk over the roll the more tense the moment will feel and the more excited or anxious the player might become.

Enhancing decision making

Decisions in games are far more interesting when there are more options available for the player to choose from and those decisions all have very clear outcomes. Random decisions and obvious decisions aren't very fun for the player as it denies them a lack of control over the game and gives them a feeling of the game playing itself out.

Mechanics of Chance

Dice

When you add a dice mechanic into a game you're always going to be adding randomness. 1 dice is the most random you can get as the chance of a player rolling any number from 1-6 is equal. Once you add a 2nd dice there becomes more of a chance of rolling numbers towards the middle of the dice roll and less chance of rolling numbers at each extreme. This is due to a 7 being able to be made by 1+6, 2+5, 3+4, 4+3, 5+2 and 6+1 whereas a 2 is only obtainable by 1+1 and you can only roll a 12 with 6+6. Similarly the more faces on the dice, the more random it becomes.

Cards

Cards are great for adding randomness to a game. They can be shuffled, randomizing their order and then dealt out to be used as the game instructs. Cards can be used in many ways, a standard deck of 52 cards is used in many ways and unlike a dice is a finite resource. You can roll a dice infinite times although cards run out which can make a great ticking clock mechanic.

Cards can be used in other games without using the standard deck of 52. Cluedo uses cards as a way of exchanging information between players. Monopoly uses cards as a way of managing properties. Chance and Community chest cards act as random elements within Monopoly to add dramatic moments.

Pseudo-Random number generators

Pseudo-random number generators are complex algorithms used to create a close enough random number for games purposes on a computer.

Hidden Information

RTS games often implement a 'fog of war' mechanic to conceal information from players, this makes the hidden information random for the player but not for the opponent. When playing against a human opponent this adds to the games enjoyment in my opinion as it adds strategy. Players must know all the possibilities which may come out of the 'fog of war' in order to defeat their opponent. A 'fog of war' mechanic gives players incentive to find out what the opponent is doing and forces action as there is never certainty that you will be safe until you know what if going on within the game.

Completely Random Games

There are two main types of completely random games. Childrens games which are designed for the game to play itself such as 'Snakes and Ladders' and gambling games. Although not all children or gambling games such as 'Roulette' or 'Craps' are completely luck based there is a high chance that if you find a 100% luck driven game it will be one of the two.