Paragon
Game
Documents about Paragon
Game Developers Conference29 min
Bridging the Gap Between UX Principles and Game Design
This analysis explores the integration of User Experience (UX) principles into game design, arguing that both disciplines share the fundamental goals of clarifying player intent, fostering empathy, and providing meaningful experiences.
- Apply Gestalt laws of proximity and similarity to 3D combat encounters to help players intuitively prioritize threats without relying on intrusive UI elements.
- Use consistent visual language, such as specific shapes to denote safety or danger, to guide player navigation through 3D environments instinctively.
- Implement backend adjustments, such as the 'magic bullets' system used in Gears of War, to ensure core mechanics remain rewarding for both novice and expert players.
Game Developers ConferenceOct 2020
Game Developers Conference43 min
Interactive Storytelling in Mass Effect 2
Interactive storytelling in Mass Effect 2 centers on the successful integration of cinematic design with player agency, shifting the traditional role-playing paradigm from a purely subjective avatar experience to an objective character-driven model.
- BioWare treats game design and narrative as symbiotic, refusing to differentiate between the two by starting with story and building gameplay around it.
- The 'conversation wheel' interface uses 32-character paraphrases to provide players with a condensed, predictable preview of dialogue options, ensuring they understand the intent behind their choices.
- Mass Effect 2 shifted from a purely subjective role-playing model to an objective one, where the player controls a pre-defined character (Shepard) rather than a blank-slate avatar.
Game Developers ConferenceApr 2017
Extra Credits7 min
Enriching Lives - What Mass Effect 2 Teaches Us about Morality - Extra Credits
Interactive media possesses a unique capacity to facilitate profound moral introspection, as demonstrated by a specific narrative dilemma in the video game Mass Effect 2.
- Mass Effect 2 utilizes narrative dilemmas, such as the choice to destroy or reprogram the sentient Geth faction, to force players into active ethical introspection regarding free will and ideological indoctrination.
- The game’s binary morality system—categorized as Paragon and Renegade—ultimately limits the complexity of moral choices by pre-assigning ethical value to specific player actions.
- Developers intentionally grounded the game's moral framework in historical and theological discourse, exemplified by the mission title 'A House Divided,' which references both Abraham Lincoln’s rhetoric and biblical passages.
Extra CreditsFeb 2012
Companies behind it
As the documents state it.