Games & Virtual Worlds Series
Winning, Losing & Ending
Understanding Games: How Video Games & Board Games Work
When playing a game, the goal is to win, but it is the goal that is important, not the winning.
— Reiner Knizia
Victory, end, and loss conditions are criteria that determine how the game will end and who will win or lose. There are three main types of conditions: victory conditions, end conditions, and loss conditions.
Victory conditions are criteria that must be met for a player or team to win the game. These can include achieving a certain score, capturing a certain objective, or defeating all opponents. Examples of victory conditions include reaching the end of a board game, capturing the enemy base in a strategy game, or scoring the most points in a card game.
End conditions are criteria that must be met for the game to end, regardless of whether a player has won or lost. These can include reaching a certain point in the game, exhausting all resources, or fulfilling a certain objective. Examples of end conditions include running out of cards in a deck-building game, completing all levels of a video game, or reaching the end of a match in a sports game.
Loss conditions are criteria that, if met, result in a player or team losing the game. These can include running out of resources, being defeated by an opponent, or failing to meet a certain objective. Examples of loss conditions include being eliminated in a tournament, running out of units in a strategy game, or losing all of your lives in a video game.
These conditions determine how the game will progress and come to an end, affecting the gameplay experience as players must strategize and make decisions with the goal of achieving victory or avoiding loss.
Momentum
Momentum refers to the accumulation of advantage or disadvantage over the course of the game. It can be thought of as a kind of “tug-of-war” between players or teams, with one side gaining an advantage while the other side falls behind.
Momentum can be created by a variety of factors, such as scoring points, making good decisions, or capitalizing on opportunities. It can also be disrupted by setbacks, mistakes, or unexpected events.
Momentum can be an important factor in many types of games, as it can create a sense of progress for players and teams. It can also add drama and excitement to the gameplay experience, as players try to build and maintain an advantage over their opponents.
Momentum can be a powerful force in games, as it can create a sense of progression and excitement for players, and provide an additional layer of strategy and decision making.
Stability
Stability refers to the degree to which the game’s state or balance is maintained over time. A stable game is one in which the relative positions of players or teams are relatively constant, while an unstable game is one in which there are frequent shifts in the balance of power.
Stability can be affected by a variety of factors, such as the game’s mechanics, the players’ strategies and decisions, and the availability of resources. A game with simple and straightforward mechanics may be more stable, as it is less prone to sudden shifts in the balance of power. On the other hand, a game with complex and dynamic mechanics may be more unstable, as it is more susceptible to sudden changes in the game state.
A stable game may be more predictable and strategic, while an unstable game may be more unpredictable and chaotic. The appropriate level of stability for a particular game will depend on the goals and design of the game.
Further Reading & Exploring
http://thesportdigest.com/archive/article/importance-balance-and-stability-mastery-sport-skills
Stability refers to the degree to which the game’s state or balance is maintained over time.
https://openstax.org/books/organizational-behavior/pages/14-2-causes-of-conflict-in-organizations
The appropriate level of stability for a particular game will depend on the goals and design of the game.
Related Articles
The Game State, Information & Movement
Chance, Probability & Fairness
Trade-Offs, Dilemmas, Sacrifices, Risk & Reward
Actions, Events, Choices, Time & Turn Taking
Ethics, Morality, Violence & Realism
Overview of Video Game Systems
Non-Core Mechanics: Progression
Non-Core Mechanics: Social Interactions
Common Digital Gaming Platforms
Bibliography & Further Reading
- A Game Design Vocabulary: Exploring the Foundational Principles Behind Good Game Design by Anna Anthropy and Naomi Clark
- A Theory of Fun for Game Design by Raph Koster
- Advanced Game Design: A Systems Approach by Michael Sellers
- An Introduction to Game Studies by Frans Mayra
- Basics of Game Design by Michael Moore
- Blood, Sweat, and Pixels: The Triumphant, Turbulent Stories Behind How Video Games Are Made Blood, Sweat, and Pixels: The Triumphant, Turbulent Stories Behind How Video Games Are Made by Jason Schreier
- Board Game Design Advice: From the Best in the World vol 1 by Gabe Barrett
- Building Blocks of Tabletop Game Design: an Encyclopedia Of Mechanisms by Geoffrey Engelstein and Isaac Shalev
- Character Development and Storytelling for Games by Lee Sheldon
- Chris Crawford on Game Design by Chris Crawford
- Clockwork Game Design by Keith Burgun
- Elements of Game Design by Robert Zubek
- Fundamentals of Game Design by Ernest Adams
- Fundamentals of Puzzle and Casual Game Design by Ernest Adams
- Game Design Foundations by Brenda Romero
- Game Design Workshop by Tracy Fullerton
- Game Mechanics: Advanced Game Design by Ernest Adams and Joris Dormans
- Game Writing: Narrative Skills for Videogames edited by Chris Bateman
- Games, Design and Play: A detailed approach to iterative game design by Colleen Macklin and John Sharp
- Introduction to Game Systems Design by Dax Gazaway
- Kobold Guide to Board Game Design by Mike Selinker, David Howell, et al
- Kobold’s Guide to Worldbuilding edited by Janna Silverstein
- Level Up! The Guide to Great Video Game Design, 2nd Edition by Scott Rogers
- Narrating Space / Spatializing Narrative: Where Narrative Theory and Geography Meet by Marie-Laure Ryan, Kenneth Foote, et al.
- Narrative Theory: A Critical Introduction by Kent Puckett
- Narrative Theory: Core Concepts and Critical Debates by David Herman, James Phelan, et al.
- Narratology: Introduction to the Theory of Narrative, Fourth Edition by Mieke Bal
- Practical Game Design by Adam Kramarzewski and Ennio De Nucci
- Procedural Storytelling in Game Design by Tanya X. Short and Tarn Adams
- Professional Techniques for Video Game Writing by Wendy Despain
- Rules of Play by Salen and Zimmerman
- Storyworlds Across Media: Toward a Media-Conscious Narratology (Frontiers of Narrative) by Marie-Laure Ryan, Jan-Noël Thon, et al
- Tabletop Game Design for Video Game Designers by Ethan Ham
- The Art of Game Design, 3rd Edition by Jesse Schell
- The Board Game Designer’s Guide: The Easy 4 Step Process to Create Amazing Games That People Can’t Stop Playing by Joe Slack
- The Cambridge Introduction to Narrative by H. Porter Abbott
- The Grasshopper, by Bernard Suits
- The Routledge Companion to Video Game Studies by Bernard Perron and Mark J.P. Wolf
- The Routledge Encyclopedia of Narrative Theory by David Herman
- The Ultimate Guide to Video Game Writing and Design by Flint Dille & John Zuur Platten
- Unboxed: Board Game Experience and Design by Gordon Calleja
- Video Game Storytelling: What Every Developer Needs to Know about Narrative Techniques by Evan Skolnick
- Writing for Video Game Genres: From FPS to RPG edited by Wendy Despain
- Writing for Video Games by Steve Ince
- 100 Principles of Game Design by DESPAIN
