Gerg and Muxl: A Podcast on Video Game Theory

Why add comeback mechanics and feedback loops to boost the performance of losing players? Many games seem fair and balanced without the addition of these extra mechanics so what is their purpose in game design? Gerg and Muxl discuss how these mechanics can be used to improve the gaming experience... or ruin it.

The genre of real time strategy games is surprisingly diverse as Muxl discovered playing Startcraft 1 for the first time. Join Gerg and Muxl as they discuss what makes a game "strategic" and how that effects gameplay.

Apex Legends, Fornite, Anthem, Destiny 2, what can looking at these games tell us about the audiences and demand for multiplayer shooters and why do some have such a hard time even getting off the grounds? Gerg and Muxl discuss.

Some games require focused, dedicated practice while others you can improve at almost without noticing. What sorts of game fall into each category and how does the introduction of multiplayer elements factor in? Gerg and Muxl discuss this and more.

Fighting games can be a tough nut to crack for those interested in watching and appreciating their complexities. Gerg and Muxl discuss some of the nuances and levels of understanding when it comes to these matches of "high speed chess."

We spent the last several weeks playing a came called "They Are Billions" which is an interesting combination of elements from RTS and city-planning genres. We talk about how different elements of the game work together, why this game is so spoiler sensitive, and why we loved it along with some things we missed from other RTS titles.

The UI of a game ranges from you standard screen sprites and menus into the level design itself. This week Gerg and Muxl are discussing measurements and how numerical information is conveyed to the player in the context of various game genres.

Momentum and movement seems to be a recurring theme lately on this show as Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2 got chosen for our random game stream (unfortunately Envirobear 2000 didn't work out). Tune in to find out what we thought after spending a couple of hours revisiting this skating masterpiece. 

As games get more detailed we are seeing so many more detailed environments and specific actions that players can take. How should designers tackle the increasing complexity of the game world and wield the incredible graphical power of modern titles? Join Gerg and Muxl as they discuss!

We're jumping into the world-renown platformer Super Mario Galaxy 2 in our journey through highly (and very lowly) rated games. After 2 hours with the game this was our take on this highly praised game. Check out the playthrough at https://youtu.be/nwa-L_SBhN4

What is it about collecting things that makes it fun? How can finding all the moons in Mario Odyssey be super fun while other collections feel tedious, holding you back from the good parts of the game? Greg and Muxl dive into these questions to understand the relationship between collections and games.

This week we played Perfect Dark. The last of a now-extinct breed of single-joystick shooters with fast-pace action and fun multi-player. Looking back on this game with fresh eyes it's hard to imagine how it must have felt back in 2000.

We have a special announcement about Gerg and Muxl going forward this episode! We are going to start streaming games biweekly! Also stick around for some clips from a lost recording we did on horror presentation. Unfortunately tech ate our podcast and you really don't want to sit through the distortion for the second half so we just cut that out.

What makes a good monster? Gerg and Muxl go over some of our favorites and how they uniquely embody the environment that they are a part of. Join us for this Halloween themed break down.

How can the creators of horror games use the absence of stimulation to provoke a scary moment and what role does absence play in the development of fear. Gerg and Muxl discuss on the first October Horror Cast!

The latest WoW expansion has ruffled some feathers for a number of understandable reasons. Gerg and Muxl take a look at the subjective experience of players under different progression systems as well as the difficulty of maintaining freshness and quality in the design of complex games.

Characters in video games are often more powerful than the average bear (let alone human) but something strange starts to happen as heroes approach deity levels of control. Join Mark and Greg and we discuss super hero games; what works and what doesn't when it comes to these beloved icons.

We wrap up Gaming Mechanics season 1 with this analysis of the way three different games organize their pacing into cycles and discuss the impact that has on the player's experience. Find out what kind of games lend themselves well to periodic time to slow down.

Gamification is becoming increasingly popular. Taking an everyday task and distilling it down to its most basic, measurable and rewardable elements is making its way into education, the work place and scheduling. This week we're discussing our experience with Overcooked and how it has managed to make players feel like they were managing a kitchen while still having them only press three buttons. 

Over the last decade in gaming it's becoming increasingly popular to add network and multiplayer modes to games. Even games which don't really need it... In this episode we discuss various multiplayer blunders in games and what happens when a game grow to very large scales.

After getting our hands dirty with subnautica, we're contrasting it with the lack luster debut of No Man's Sky to see how this similar concept of survival on an alien terrain is made so much more intriguing.

Cheats used to be a staple in games. Whole books and menus were dedicated to them and now they're a rare sight. So what happened to cheats? Why did they go the way of the dodo and how have developers supplemented the disappearance of cheats in modern games?

Violence, combat and competitions that end in one party "KO"d are everywhere in games. How does the pervasiveness of this seemingly brutal metaphor shape how we understand video games and those who engage in them?  Also check out our Patreon and help us get a PS4: https://www.patreon.com/gamingmechanics  

The God of War series has been known for its gratuitous violence, brutality and satisfying combat. The most recent entry to the series maintains the thrill of combat while striking a radically different tone of relationship and responsibility. The Gaming Mechanics discuss the evolution in this franchise and why this major shift seems to have worked so well.

Minigames can be the cherry on top or a fly in the ointment of a good game. When does this game-within-a-game work well to complement the larger project and when does it leave players frustrated? The Gaming Mechanics put it all under the microscope.

How can some games go their entire existence without people shouting about "lack of content" while others seem to get that criticism right out of the gate? What do people even mean by that criticism and what can developers do about it? The Gaming Mechanics take on these tough questions.

Gaming has gone through a renaissance over the last 15 years with amazing, genre defining titles like Super Mario, Halo, War Craft but recently these main stream giants have been challenged by indie developers and major changes in the publishing landscape. The Gaming Mechanics talk about the cycles of innovation in gaming and give you a deeper insight into the dynamics of technological progress.  Credit to MatPat of The Game Theorists for inspiring this episode. Check out his video here (https://youtu.be/gxzKZdTxNp8)

In recent years gaming has gone global and this has profoundly effected the competitive landscape. Matching making systems seem geared toward pushing you along in skill but what happens to players who don't want to be the best and how can competition be fostered at higher levels?

Time is dilated to give narrative weight or summarized in a montage to give the summary of a process and In some video games time is more than just a setting for linear causality but a character in itself. This week the Gaming Mechanics are talking about the many ways that players interact with time!

RPGs are a broad genre of video games born out of the pencil and paper games of old. The Gaming Mechanics discuss how these high-tech counterparts stack up against their tried-and-true counterparts. The differences might surprise you.

Fornite has exploded onto the gaming scene and elevated the Battle Royale to its own genre! Join The Gaming Mechanics as we discuss the differences between these two popular games. From asthetic, to item selection and pacing everything is on the table!

How do you follow up a smashing success and why are the second iterations of games often better than the first? The Gaming Mechanics take on these questions and more in this episode of Gaming Mechanics!

Continuing our discussion on 3D gaming, we're turning our attention to combat! Just as with movement, combat saw a jump in complexity as games moved to including a 3rd special dimension but are players really able to cope with this complexity? The Gaming Mechanics discuss the possibilities and shortcomings of fighting in 3D.

Some of video gaming's most iconic characters originate from platforming, a genre which came into its own in the early 1990s and then became virtually unrecognizable while its fast-paced sibling made a clean transition. How can two genres with similar ideas interact so differently with the advance of technology? Join the Gaming Mechanics as they discuss.

In any art there are epoch-defining innovations which create both creative space and a lot of hype for a particular sub-genre of that art. 3D technology was just such an innovation for video games. Join Greg and Mark as they intro a series on the changes that the 3rd dimension brought to the gaming landscape. 

A lot of games aren't over even after the ending. There are special challenges, secret items, and a completion percentage on your save file that offensively glows "43%" Just what is the purpose of having a game after a game in both single and multiplayer genres? 

Endings of stories are usually bittersweet. It's the culmination of everything and also then end of a journey but games aren't just stories, they also rich experiences involving unique skills. End a game might mean there's still much left to explore so what does it look like to conclude a video game? 

Ever finished your favorite game only to go back for seconds? As part of our series about finishing games it felt fitting to talk about how to keep things fresh during replays. Join Greg as he discusses just what makes a game replayable!

Bosses can bring an epic note of finality to a section of a game or be a sour note in the harmony between player and game. What makes for a good boss fight? and where did bosses even come from to being with?

The controversy surrounding the use of loot boxes in triple A titles has come to a head with the release of EA's Battlefront II (2017). The Gaming Mechanics take you on a psychological tour of loot boxes, the problems they present and what they might still be good for. 

Destiny 1 and 2 were hugely anticipated titles with all the space-opera epicness you've come to expect from Bungie. How that epicness is communicated to you, the player, has been a point of controversy, consternation and, at last, this podcast. Greg and Mark discuss what worked and what didn't in Destiny 1 and 2's presentation of lore (no spoilers).

Games are so complex and unique that it is necessary for games to teach themselves to players. From the in-world tutorial of Red Dead Redemption to the tutorial-as-world of Portal, the Gaming Mechanics tackle tutelage and trajectory in all its forms.

After much spookiness and fright, Greg and Mark take a look back at the last month of gaming and a look forward at what the future might hold for horror genre. Join us as we discuss the innovations taking place to scare gamers (There's also some creepy pasta at the end!).

What separates those games which are dark or merely brutal from those which are horrific? Can we come up with a helpful way to categorize games which are designed to cause fear from those which use a dark aesthetic?

Psychological horror is plausibly unnerving. Join Mark, Greg and special guest Xander as they discuss the internally unknowable, frailness of sanity and their experience of Doki Doki Literature Club (spoilers are well marked). 

Survival, death and horror often go together in gaming. The question on our minds today is how can we make survival seem important and avoid making death feel cheap or inconsequential in a game which poses no bodily risk?

Expectations play a huge role in any game so it should come as no surprise that the creators of horror games weave the expectation of being scared into virtually every aspect of their game. Mark and Greg discuss how this can be done well and how it might backfire.  

Controversy abounds when it comes to discussing the effect of violent games on gamers. Thankfully the Gaming Mechanics are at home sorting through psychological research and presenting some of the more pertinent findings. It's not conclusive but it's food for thought.  

The way a game is rated plays a crucial role in its expectation, audience and reception. Greg and Mark discuss the history and present state of rating games in the US and some notable cases in the history of ratings.