0:00:02.710,0:00:07.880
In the manual for Elder Scrolls 2: Daggerfall,[br]Bethesda left a message encouraging players

0:00:07.880,0:00:11.230
to avoid the “replay the save game” strategy.

0:00:11.230,0:00:16.930
They said, “most computer gamers use the[br]save game to maximise their playing ability.

0:00:16.930,0:00:20.960
Anytime something goes wrong, they return[br]to a saved game and replay it until they get

0:00:20.960,0:00:22.030
it right.

0:00:22.030,0:00:26.099
The final history of their game looks like[br]an endless streak of lucky breaks and perfect

0:00:26.099,0:00:27.099
choices.

0:00:27.099,0:00:29.890
[But] role-playing is not about playing the[br]perfect game.

0:00:29.890,0:00:32.890
It is about building a character and creating[br]a story.

0:00:32.890,0:00:37.230
In fact, you will never see some of the most[br]interesting aspects of the game unless you

0:00:37.230,0:00:39.469
play through your mistakes.

0:00:39.469,0:00:43.899
If your character dies, by all means return[br]to your last saved game and replay it.

0:00:43.899,0:00:49.030
However, if your character is caught pickpocketing,[br]if a quest goes wrong, or some other mundane

0:00:49.030,0:00:51.719
mishap occurs, let it play out.

0:00:51.719,0:00:55.269
You may be surprised by what happens next”.

0:00:55.269,0:01:00.190
This is a noble stand against “save scumming”,[br]which is the art of returning to an old save

0:01:00.190,0:01:05.340
file the second you get spotted in a stealth[br]game, or lose a beloved team member in an

0:01:05.340,0:01:09.460
RPG, or get a bad roll in a game with random[br]numbers.

0:01:09.460,0:01:13.881
And it’s sorely tempting to simply undo[br]your mistakes or reset an unlucky event, but

0:01:13.881,0:01:19.210
- as Bethesda says - if you do that, you might[br]just miss some of the best anecdotal stories

0:01:19.210,0:01:20.659
the game has to offer.

0:01:20.659,0:01:25.050
You know, like coming “this close” to[br]dying, but turning it around and winning anyway.

0:01:25.050,0:01:28.950
Or killing a panicked guard, seconds before[br]they can raise the alarm.

0:01:28.950,0:01:32.759
Or an exciting extraction when your stealthy[br]plan starts to go hideously wrong.

0:01:32.759,0:01:37.299
Or having to sadly move on through the story,[br]while bearing the loss of your favourite party

0:01:37.299,0:01:38.299
member.

0:01:38.299,0:01:40.119
And so it’s a lovely sentiment.

0:01:40.119,0:01:45.200
But, ultimately, there’s no point putting[br]this sort of thing in the manual.

0:01:45.200,0:01:49.119
If you’ve got an intention for how players[br]should experience the game, you’ve got to

0:01:49.119,0:01:51.570
build it into the game itself.

0:01:51.570,0:01:55.420
So how can we make games where players don’t[br]want to return to a quick save at the first

0:01:55.420,0:01:57.060
point of adversity?

0:01:57.060,0:02:01.909
Games where you are, in fact, encouraged to[br]play on past mistakes, failures, and setbacks

0:02:01.909,0:02:06.439
- and potentially see some of the most interesting[br]aspects of the game?

0:02:06.439,0:02:12.420
Well, for some games, the strategy is to make[br]sure that setbacks are tolerable - and not

0:02:12.420,0:02:16.890
so critically damaging that you’re better[br]off just returning to a previous save point.

0:02:16.890,0:02:20.620
One way to do this is to give the game a really[br]wide “failure spectrum”.

0:02:20.620,0:02:26.220
That’s a term dreamt up by Tom Francis - creator[br]of Gunpoint and Heat Signature - and it describes

0:02:26.220,0:02:29.860
the range of states between perfect success[br]and total failure.

0:02:29.860,0:02:34.640
Think of a game like XCOM, where you can successfully[br]finish a mission with all your team members

0:02:34.640,0:02:39.560
alive, or botch your objective and leave with[br]two injured units, or come home without a

0:02:39.560,0:02:41.430
single living soldier.

0:02:41.430,0:02:47.400
Pretty much every game has a failure spectrum,[br]but some have a much more generous one, than others.

0:02:47.400,0:02:52.400
For an example, Tom points to the stealthy[br]open worlder Metal Gear Solid V, which has

0:02:52.400,0:02:57.650
a huge range of states between being a sneaky[br]snake and a, uh, dead snake.

0:02:57.650,0:03:01.300
So, if a guard sees you, he won’t immediately[br]start firing.

0:03:01.300,0:03:04.320
He’ll just come in to investigate more closely.

0:03:04.320,0:03:08.660
If you do get spotted, you enter into this[br]slow-mo reflex mode, to give you a chance

0:03:08.660,0:03:11.250
to headshot the guard in question.

0:03:11.250,0:03:14.910
Screw that up, and the guard will need to[br]manually call up his buddies for support,

0:03:14.910,0:03:16.770
giving you a chance to stop him.

0:03:16.770,0:03:20.400
And even after all that, Snake can still escape[br]and return to hiding.

0:03:20.400,0:03:21.980
Or enter combat.

0:03:21.980,0:03:26.350
Or even call in an helicopter and just take[br]the whole “espionage” bit of the MGS slogan

0:03:26.350,0:03:28.160
and dropkick it into the ocean.

0:03:28.160,0:03:31.840
You’ll only die if you manage to screw all[br]of that up.

0:03:31.840,0:03:36.560
So this is a huge failure spectrum, with all[br]sorts of states between completing the mission

0:03:36.560,0:03:39.800
without ever being seen, and bleeding out[br]on the battlefield.

0:03:39.800,0:03:44.160
And that means that mishaps aren’t so punishing[br]that you might as well reload - they just

0:03:44.160,0:03:46.560
shove you a little further down the spectrum.

0:03:46.560,0:03:51.560
But the thing about a failure spectrum is[br]that, in a lot of cases, it’s reversible.

0:03:51.560,0:03:56.510
And if you play well you can actually turn[br]things around and crawl back towards the successful

0:03:56.510,0:03:57.520
end of things.

0:03:57.520,0:04:00.610
That’s a big part of Far Cry 2.

0:04:00.610,0:04:05.100
This is another game with a generous failure[br]spectrum, thanks to its big health bar, loads

0:04:05.100,0:04:09.270
of healing syringes, and the buddy system[br]- where you can get one extra chance to keep

0:04:09.270,0:04:10.630
playing, after your death.

0:04:10.630,0:04:13.720
And it’s also a game where you’re constantly[br]facing setbacks.

0:04:13.720,0:04:16.840
You might find your guns jamming in the middle[br]of battle.

0:04:16.840,0:04:20.960
Or find yourself suffering from a Malaria[br]attack while sneaking past an outpost.

0:04:20.960,0:04:24.740
Or have your car break down, just as you’re[br]making a getaway.

0:04:24.750,0:04:28.009
But these setbacks serve a really important[br]purpose.

0:04:28.009,0:04:33.650
You see, in a 2009 GDC talk, designer Clint[br]Hocking explained that, originally, he wanted

0:04:33.650,0:04:38.319
Far Cry 2 to be all about intentionality,[br]which is achieved by having the game split

0:04:38.319,0:04:39.639
between two phases.

0:04:39.639,0:04:44.030
There’s a planning stage, where you survey[br]the scene, look for items of interest, watch

0:04:44.030,0:04:47.280
guard patrol patterns, and plan your escape[br]route.

0:04:47.280,0:04:51.560
And then an execution stage, where you actually[br]carry out your plan.

0:04:51.560,0:04:54.849
But the creators decided that they didn’t[br]want you to either have your plan totally

0:04:54.849,0:04:56.460
work, or totally fail.

0:04:56.460,0:05:00.919
Instead, they wanted you to suffer small setbacks[br]that would cause you to bounce out of the

0:05:00.919,0:05:04.360
execution stage and back to the planning phase.

0:05:04.360,0:05:06.969
Clint describes this type of gameplay as improvisational.

0:05:06.969,0:05:12.840
It’s this idea of constantly moving between[br]planning and execution - but within a single,

0:05:12.840,0:05:14.180
continuous playthrough.

0:05:14.180,0:05:18.430
And so that’s another benefit of making[br]people play through mistakes and bad luck.

0:05:18.430,0:05:22.800
Because suffering adversity causes you to[br]change your goals in an exciting, dynamic

0:05:22.800,0:05:25.800
way - so you can claw your way back to victory.

0:05:25.800,0:05:29.419
Like in a shooter - if you take a lot of damage[br]you’re forced to change your focus away

0:05:29.420,0:05:33.820
from combat - and towards getting into cover,[br]finding health packs, or maybe even crafting

0:05:33.820,0:05:34.820
a medkit.

0:05:34.840,0:05:38.660
And in a stealth game, getting spotted means[br]you’re forced to run away and get back into

0:05:38.660,0:05:43.600
cover, or just give up on sneaking around[br]and deal with your enemies in the old fashioned way.

0:05:43.600,0:05:48.199
And this only works if players don’t reload[br]their save game the second they get thrown

0:05:48.199,0:05:49.289
off course.

0:05:49.289,0:05:53.789
So to reduce the chance of this happening,[br]Clint made sure these setbacks were small,

0:05:53.789,0:05:55.950
unpredictable, and recoverable.

0:05:55.950,0:05:59.889
Things like Malaria attacks and jamming guns[br]might wreck your plans but they’re far too

0:05:59.889,0:06:05.120
tiny to warrant a reload, they’re easy enough[br]to turn around, and are often completely unpredictable

0:06:05.120,0:06:06.360
when they’re about to occur.

0:06:06.360,0:06:10.659
“It is exactly because the loss is small[br]and unpredictable that players don’t attempt

0:06:10.659,0:06:14.430
to reload the game to escape it,” says Clint.

0:06:14.430,0:06:20.009
Now all of this falls apart if the player[br]is rewarded for perfect play, or punished

0:06:20.009,0:06:21.969
for making mistakes.

0:06:21.969,0:06:25.740
Meaningless ranks and achievements for never[br]getting spotted in a stealth game are fine.

0:06:25.740,0:06:28.440
They’re aspirational rewards for highly[br]skilled players.

0:06:28.440,0:06:32.550
But if making mistakes will cause the rest[br]of the game to be significantly harder, then

0:06:32.550,0:06:37.300
it’s no surprise that a player will reload[br]to a previous save game the second they screw up.

0:06:37.300,0:06:42.080
Back to XCOM: losing soldiers and suffering[br]casualties means you’ve now got to recruit

0:06:42.080,0:06:47.139
feeble rookies, making you less likely to[br]succeed at future missions - creating a nasty

0:06:47.139,0:06:49.689
positive feedback loop of death and failure.

0:06:49.689,0:06:55.080
No wonder, then, that some gamers will resort[br]to save scumming to keep their favourite soldiers alive.

0:06:55.080,0:06:56.860
It’s just too harsh, otherwise.

0:06:56.870,0:07:02.009
Perhaps a better approach is to try and make[br]failure as interesting as success.

0:07:02.009,0:07:06.099
Look to the Shadow of Mordor games, where[br]getting killed by an Ork captain means that

0:07:06.099,0:07:08.939
they’ll remember you and bring up your history[br]in a later encounter.

0:07:08.939,0:07:14.069
So if there’s no tactical benefit for perfect[br]play, and there are meaningful outcomes for

0:07:14.069,0:07:18.490
imperfect play, then gamers will naturally[br]want to roll on past their mistakes and let

0:07:18.490,0:07:21.330
events play out naturally.

0:07:21.330,0:07:25.960
Of course, one easy way to fix all of this[br]is to simply remove the ability to reload

0:07:25.960,0:07:27.520
a previous save file.

0:07:27.520,0:07:32.270
In Darkest Dungeon, the game is always saving[br]over the top of your file, making it near

0:07:32.270,0:07:34.669
impossible to rewind your mistakes.

0:07:34.669,0:07:37.190
Developer Redhook Studios did this for two[br]reasons.

0:07:37.190,0:07:42.729
For one, they wanted players to have to live[br]with bad decisions, and truly awful dice rolls.

0:07:42.729,0:07:46.349
This is a game where rotten things happen,[br]and you’ve got to deal with them.

0:07:46.349,0:07:50.789
And also because they wanted players to really[br]struggle over whether they should take certain

0:07:50.789,0:07:55.479
risks - knowing that they can’t just restore[br]a previous save game if things don’t go

0:07:55.479,0:07:56.479
their way.

0:07:56.480,0:08:00.180
In a 2016 GDC talk, designer Tyler Sigman[br]says

0:08:00.180,0:08:02.460
TYLER SIGMAN: “Permanent consequences were what we were after.

0:08:02.460,0:08:07.680
We want you to, at all moments, be like, ‘should[br]I go a little further and get a little more treasure.

0:08:07.680,0:08:11.260
Do I think I can make to the end of this quest[br]even though these two characters are afflicted

0:08:11.260,0:08:13.340
and this one is almost dead?’

0:08:13.340,0:08:19.620
And to do that you know we needed this terrible[br]save system that is just really really mean”.

0:08:19.620,0:08:24.500
Other games do this too, like survive ‘em[br]up The Long Dark, which automatically saves

0:08:24.500,0:08:28.469
over your game the moment something bad happens[br]- like getting attacked by wolves or hurting

0:08:28.469,0:08:32.830
yourself - so you’re forced to keep playing[br]from that most dramatic point.

0:08:32.830,0:08:36.930
And ultimately, this is pretty common in console[br]games, where saving your progress isn’t

0:08:36.930,0:08:40.650
so easy to do and you must rely on actual[br]save points or checkpoints.

0:08:40.650,0:08:44.770
This doesn’t mean you can’t let players[br]easily save their game when they need to take

0:08:44.770,0:08:45.810
a break, though.

0:08:45.810,0:08:50.440
In Dark Souls you can only permanently save[br]your progress at bonfires - but you can suspend

0:08:50.440,0:08:52.290
your game at any point.

0:08:52.290,0:08:55.750
This quits the game, and lets you continue[br]from that point next time you play.

0:08:55.750,0:09:01.180
But then that save is deleted, meaning you[br]can’t rewind to that point if you do something silly.

0:09:01.180,0:09:05.090
So, there are lots of compelling reasons to[br]keep players in the game - and not reaching

0:09:05.090,0:09:07.910
for the quick load button the second something[br]goes wrong.

0:09:07.910,0:09:11.200
Screwing up causes you to dynamically shift[br]your goal, and do something different for

0:09:11.200,0:09:12.200
a while.

0:09:12.200,0:09:14.800
Awesome stories can occur when things go horribly[br]wrong.

0:09:14.800,0:09:19.200
And risky play is far more meaningful if you[br]can’t just rewind and try again.

0:09:19.200,0:09:23.430
But it can’t be up to the player to enforce[br]this pure way of playing.

0:09:23.430,0:09:28.160
I’ve quoted Civ 4 man Soren Johnson before,[br]who says “given the opportunity, players

0:09:28.160,0:09:30.770
will optimise the fun out of a game”.

0:09:30.770,0:09:34.650
So if designers really want to keep players[br]in the experience, they’ve either got to

0:09:34.650,0:09:39.500
lock off easy save scumming, make setbacks[br]so tolerable that they’ll want to keep going,

0:09:39.500,0:09:44.270
remove rewards for perfect play, or make failure[br]as fun as success.

0:09:44.270,0:09:46.820
Only then will players “let things play[br]out.

0:09:46.820,0:09:50.560
And be surprised by what happens next”.

0:09:50.560,0:09:51.840
Hey! Thanks for watching!

0:09:51.840,0:09:55.970
Game Maker’s Toolkit is made possible thanks[br]to everyone who pitches in over on Patreon.

0:09:55.970,0:10:00.780
You may have noticed that I’m back on YouTube[br]for streaming - Twitch didn’t really work out.

0:10:00.780,0:10:05.800
I stream at 8PM BST on Wednesdays, so hit[br]that Notification Bell thingy if you want

0:10:05.810,0:10:07.390
to get a heads up when I go live.