The Player's Bill of Rights

Gamasutra has a Designer's Notebook column up this week offering up a Player's Bill of Rights. Written by Ernest Adams, the article decries the many indignities that we as players should never be forced to suffer. From the article: "The Right to Feedback: The player has a right to know how she's doing, and in particular, to some means of determining if she's in danger of losing the game. If the player doesn't get feedback, she can't adjust her strategy, and the outcome will feel random. Players need to know whether their approach is working or not."

Comments

The Right Not To Be Insulted

[wbren]

I disagree with that "right"--I still can't believe I'm replying to a post about a Player's Bill of Rights, only on slashdot. In some games, insulting and being insulted by NPCs is an important part of the game. Take Neverwinter Nights as an example. Depending on whether or not an NPC insults you or is ill-tempered, you might make different choices, ultimately causing a different outcome. Likewise, if you insult an NPC they may not be very helpful, which could change the outcome as well. Overall it was a good list of what should(n't) be done in a game. I especially liked the Right to Control Cut-Scenes, that's a must-have.

Games that might have inspired the bill...

[dbhankins]

1. Right to Play
   Final Fantasy X
   
   
2. Right to Win
   Not sure on this one, unless he means arcade-style games that don't have an end. Perhaps he's referring to games which have a bug that prevents finishing, none of which I've had the misfortune to encounter yet.
   
   
3. Right to instructions
   Mortal Kombat, Tekken, and other fighting games that make you figure out the combos by trial and error.
   
   
4. Right to Feedback
   Bushido Blade
   
   
5. Right to Motivation
   Sim City, Populous
   
   
6. Right to Make Decisions
   Not sure, unless he means rhythm games like Parappa the Rapper or Space Channel Five
   
   
7. The Right to a Swift Death
   Sierra's Quest games (especially Space Quest) and any number of old adventure games.
   
   
8. The Right to Control Cut-Scenes
   Final Fantasy X
   
   
9. The Right to Quit, Pause, Save and Resume the Game
   Final Fantasy games, Tomb Raider games, and lots of other console titles. Not to mention a horde of games based entirely on checkpoints. These are why at least one PS1 emulator comes with a "save state" function.
   
   
10. The Right to Choose Not to Save the Game
    Checkpoint-only games like Killzone
    
    
11. The Right to Reconfigure the Input Device
    Lots and lots of console games. Final Fantasy Tactics comes to mind. Non-console, X-Wing comes to mind.
    
    
12. The Right Not To Be Insulted
    Never encountered this, myself.