Let's talk about fun. A board game is a mechanism that causes people to have fun. Different people have fun in different ways, such as by winning, by getting revenge, by creating something or destroying something, by helping someone, or by enjoying the social atmosphere created when other people are having fun. We all know what it feels like to have fun, but how do you /define/ it? It's something that's difficult to nail down in words. What is "fun"?
What is "fun"?
Tue, 04/23/2013 - 15:19
Tue, 04/23/2013 - 17:08
#1
Fun is definitely hard to
Fun is definitely hard to quantify, but you know it when you are experiencing it. I have fun gaming when I "get lost in the game" and time passes without a care. Last Saturday, while playing "Keyflower", it dawned on me that we had been playing for well over an hour and that it had only felt like about five to ten minutes of play - that is when I know I am having fun.
Tue, 04/23/2013 - 21:07
#2
Fun is such a broad adjective
Fun is such a broad adjective by one's perception it’s next to impossible to define the definite otherwise neutral feelings of “fun." What some see as fun others would see it mind numbingly boring.
What’s fun to me is adversity and the uncertainty of failure versus success, the risk factors through critical strategies that can make or break the game. That small thrill of having your wits tested and being rewarded for pulling off that dastardly move that no one expected.
Sat, 04/27/2013 - 09:11
#3
I don't use "fun" in this context
I don't use the word "fun", because so many people enjoy playing games yet wouldn't call some of them fun. "Enjoyable", "interesting". See my book, or the earlier version of why we play on GameCareerGuide:
Sat, 04/27/2013 - 14:38
#4
A Challenge
What might be considered "fun" is a CHALLENGE... as in playing a game better than an opponent. What makes this a challenge is because both players are playing the same cards/deck. Then it becomes about how each player uses the deck to defeat his opponent.
I believe this type of challenge is "fun". At a convention show, when I was demoing my first game Quest Adventure Cards(tm), a youngster remarked: "Is there any battling in this game?" The youngster was hinting that he enjoyed playing games which are duals (like Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, etc.)
That is why my current game is a *dual*. What is more is with the First Edition, all players will have the SAME deck/cards. There may be some *luck* involved in the process since my game uses dice, but there is also a bunch of strategy surrounding those very dice...
What also might be considered "fun" is LEARNING how to play a new game... I find this personally satisfying since I learn how the game works, the mechanics, etc. That's not to say I am better the 2nd time around...
Sat, 04/27/2013 - 15:15
#5
nail that jello to the wall
Trying to define fun is a lot like trying to quantify humor. It hits everyone differently - not everyone gets the joke. Not everyone appreciates the punch line. The only way you can quantify it is by the public response. The larger the audience, the more universal the acceptance, the better you can say that a piece is FUN or FUNNY. It's real easy to tell the difference when something sells 100,000 copies as opposed to less that 1,000 copies. One is definitely fun, while the other is not.
Sun, 04/28/2013 - 16:11
#6
Choices
When I did increase the opportunity of choosing from visible choices in my ongoing game prototype project, the game felt immediately more fun to me. So, reasonable choises (or crazy choices) are a fun factor, if player can see where they lead to.
Mon, 04/29/2013 - 09:46
#7
I think there is two parts to
I think there is two parts to this.
1) Game fun.
2) Social Fun.
Inherently, board games are designed, for the most part, to be played with other people in the same room. A gaming experience can be fun just because you are with your friends. There is a social side to gaming. Some games can increase this through mechanics.
As far as why a game is fun, I think that differs from person to person. I think subject matter has some impact. I think mechanics that have depth but are not overly complicated helps. I think people believing they have a chance to win throughout most of the game is helpful. I think games have to balance challenge so that people are not overburdened. Similarly games should not be to easy.
Mon, 04/29/2013 - 13:36
#8
An Academic Theory
I'm currently reading Ralph Koster's "A Theory of Fun". He define it as solving and recongnizing patters. Different types of people are better at learning certain patterns, a pattern must not be complex enough to cause undue frustration or simple enough to be tedious.
I'm simplifying alot, but that's the bare bones.
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Thank you for your responses, and for these leads on academic articles and more in-depth information. As a game designer, I think it's our main objective to maximize the total fun in the game. To do that, ideally,
(1) All players have to have as much fun as possible no matter who wins.
(2) The game has to be able to continue to be fun after being played many times.
(3) The game should appeal to a broad variety of personalities.
This is what we want to do. Understanding fun (the topic of this conversation) allows us to have that background of possibilities. The "how" is the bridge in between the understanding and the objective. How do we maximize fun? That's the challenge that we are becoming experts in solving.