In the conference room of Tianhuo Studio, Zhou Muyan, Sun Xi and several other designers have all arrived, and Sun Xi is distributing design drafts.
This is the design plan for "Bullet Marks 2" that Min Jingchao just completed and submitted this morning.
Zhou Muyan deliberately gave up the center position of the conference table, and then looked at the designers: "I was very disappointed with what happened last time."
"Mr. Pei personally designed the game, but you didn't put forward any constructive suggestions, and you didn't even gain anything!"
"The design plan has been released this time. Min Jingchao will explain it again. How much you can understand depends on your luck."
Several designers showed shameful expressions on their faces and nodded: "Yes, don't worry, Mr. Zhou, we will listen carefully!"
Zhou Muyan was already a little desperate, but Min Jingchao gave him hope again.
So, we called these designers back.
Previously, Mr. Pei’s lectures were too profound and there was nothing you could do if you couldn’t understand them, but Min Jingchao’s lectures should be more simple, right?
If you listen carefully to Min Jingchao's explanation of the design ideas of this game, you will definitely gain something.
As for these designers, they were more or less unconvinced at first.
It's not that they think Mr. Pei has gained a false reputation, but they feel that Mr. Pei may be targeting them.
Is it because this game was developed for Tianhuo Studio that Mr. Pei is so vague? Is it so confusing? Is it because he deliberately didn’t explain it clearly to us?
You want us to ruin the game?
When Mr. Pei told his designer, this was definitely not the case!
But when they heard that Min Jingchao really designed the game, they felt very guilty.
It seems that Mr. Pei has been misunderstood!
How could Mr. Pei be the kind of person who deliberately wants the game to fail?
Sure enough, it’s because we are too good at it, so we must watch and study hard this time!
It's impossible to learn from Mr. Pei's level. It's purely talent. But it's possible to learn from Min Jingchao and draw some nutrients from Mr. Pei's thoughts.
Everyone here, including Zhou Muyan, has adopted an attitude of humbly learning.
Min Jingchao pushed the door open and was stunned for a moment when he saw this posture: "Huh? There are so many people."
He knew there would be designers coming to listen, but he didn't expect there to be so many people. The conference table was almost full.
Zhou Muyan smiled and was very friendly: "Brother Min, come here quickly."
Min Jingchao saw that only the middle seat was free, and subconsciously said, "Mr. Zhou, you should sit in the middle."
Zhou Muyan immediately shook his head: "That won't work. You are the chief designer of the project. You should sit here."
"Besides, we are all learning with an open mind, so don't refuse."
Min Jingchao quickly waved his hand: "Mr. Zhou, you are too polite."
After refusing for a while, it had no effect, Min Jingchao had no choice but to sit down in the empty seat and get to the main topic of the meeting.
"Everyone has seen the first draft of the design plan for "Bullet Mark 2". It basically refines the points that Mr. Pei previously requested."
"I have already told Mr. Zhou and Sun Xi about this before."
"This meeting is mainly to talk about the core gameplay of the game and the related mechanisms of the big map that have not been finalized before."
Everyone nodded and listened carefully.
When Min Jingchao, Zhou Muyan, and Sun Xi interpreted President Pei's ideas before, they only went to the "big map" step, but there was no specific design plan for how to make this big map.
Min Jingchao said that this was the result of the gradual escalation of President Pei's tests.
Now it's up to him to see if he can come up with a constructive idea.
Min Jingchao sorted out his thoughts for a while, and then said: "Since we are making a large map, there must be many players, ranging from thirty or forty to seventy or eighty, or even more."
"The specific number of players will definitely depend on the size of the map, and the density of players on the map determines the pace of the game."
"If the player density is too high, the battle rhythm will be too fast, and many players may die suddenly; if the player density is too small, the battle rhythm will be too slow, the battle will not be intense enough, and players will feel like they are fighting
Standalone."
"Moreover, we must also consider that different players have different demands for game rhythm."
"Some players prefer to kill more people, which requires a higher player density; while some players like to search for good things and improve their resource allocation first, hoping that the player density is lower."
"So, if you want to make a big map, you must solve several key issues."
"For example: how to dynamically adjust the density of players on the map; how to adjust the rhythm of the game at different stages; how various resources should be allocated to players, etc."
Everyone nodded, and some people took notes in their notebooks.
The problems raised by Min Jingchao are all real problems. The reason why the large map mode is difficult to do is because the game rhythm is difficult to control.
Traditional FPS games are basically small map modes. The battles are relatively fierce, which can stimulate players to the maximum extent and keep them in a more active and excited state.
But if you make a large map, if the player density is low and you can't see anyone for a long time, it will make the players feel bored; if the player density is high, the same thing will happen, so what is the difference from a small map?
Obviously, we have to come up with a gameplay that can only be completed using a large map and can retain the FPS game to the maximum extent.
Min Jingchao continued: "Actually, my initial thought was that since there is a big map, there must be rich map mechanisms on the big map."
"For example, the air base can provide reconnaissance and airdrop of supplies, the bunker can provide fire suppression to a small nearby area, the field hospital can speed up the recovery of the wounded, etc."
"These unique map mechanisms are the core advantages that distinguish large maps from small maps."
"In other words, I just started thinking about providing players with two game modes: one is a pure gun-fighting mode, and the other is a multi-player cooperative mode of this large-scale battle."
"But then I realized a very critical issue, which is the issue of balance."
"In a large-scale multiplayer battle like this, it is actually difficult to make the matching mechanism of the game so perfect. Especially in FPS games, there are a lot of luck and variables, which adds to the uncertainty."
"The existence of the map mechanism is to widen the gap between the two sides and prevent the battle from being a constant tug-of-war. However, if the strength of the two sides is not balanced, then this may cause the game to become a one-sided crush."
"This is a problem faced by multiplayer PVP in established MMORPG games such as "Fantasy World". It is also a problem that I have been thinking about when I am responsible for the balance of GOG games."
Designers nodded one after another, which is obviously not difficult to understand.
It would definitely be boring for players to just shoot guns on the big map, so they must add strategic locations.
Strategic locations cannot simply add points. They must have actual functions and bring benefits to players in terms of game mechanics.
For example, a field hospital can definitely push the player's resurrection point forward, or it can provide players with first aid kits to restore blood.
However, the existence of the map mechanism will make the two sides that are already unbalanced become even more unbalanced, and the battlefield will easily become one-sided.
Because FPS games themselves are highly random, a player's historical data cannot fully explain his strength.
For example, there is a player whose marksmanship is poor, but his commanding ability is very strong. Although his KDA is very poor, he can still win. How to match a player like this?
It is also inappropriate to use game mechanisms to forcibly strengthen the weak side. After all, for players with advantages, my advantages are all worked hard, so why should the game mechanism be targeted at me?
Games like GOG can use heroes to solve this problem. For example, some heroes are late stage heroes. If you drag them to the back, you can fight one against five.
But FPS games rely on marksmanship. A player with good marksmanship will not suddenly become worse, and a player with poor marksmanship will not suddenly become better.
If we really design a very strong mechanism in the later stage, the final result will probably be that if a novice chooses it, it will be killed instantly, while if an expert chooses it, it will be very strong in the early stage, and even more powerful in the later stage, which will be completely uncontrollable.
The different characteristics of FPS games and MOBA games bring about this problem.
Once it is not solved properly, it will seriously affect the player's gaming experience.
Min Jingchao has been responsible for GOG's numerical design and game balance. He is very sensitive to balance, so he immediately realized the problem with this gameplay.
"The way I thought of was to use game mechanics to filter."
"First let the players fight freely, and then assign them to two different camps based on their performance in this game."