How to Enter the Fun Zone

• High Game Difficulty + Low Player Skill = Frustration Zone
• Low Game Difficulty + High Player Skill = Boredom Zone
• Low Game Difficulty + Low Player Skill = Fun Zone
• High Game Difficulty + High Player Skill = Fun Zone

Methods to Enter Flow

Prerequisites

• Challenges that Require Skill Practice
• Clear Goals
• Clear Feedback
• A Sense of Control

Outcomes

• Autotelic (Self-Purposive)
• Intense Focus
• Temporary Loss of Self-Consciousness
• Loss of Sense of Time

Providing Diverse Pleasures

Physical Pleasures

• Survival
• Combat and Warfare
• Hunting

Social Pleasures

• Teamwork and Community
• Self-Expression
• Other Types of Relationships

Mental Pleasures

• Fulfilling Fantasies
• Story Immersion
• Puzzles and Discovering New Things

Core Components of Games

• Aesthetics
• Gameplay Process
• Game Narrative
• Interactivity

Decision-Centric Design Approach

• Providing Dilemmas
• Measurable Outcomes
• Implicit Choices vs. Explicit Choices

How to Deconstruct Game Design (Reverse Engineering)

• Theme
• Game Modes
• Victory Conditions
• Interface and Information Layout
• Gameplay Process
• Interaction Between Protagonist and Environment
• Level of Information Disclosure
• Conflict and Methods of Overcoming It
• Resource Planning and Management