interview with Church paster about game karma systems

Introduction:

The pastor has asked not to have his name revealed in the post. So for the purposes of the blog ill be calling him Pastor Bob. Pastor Bob is one of many pastors at the church in the neighborhood. Most of his time is spent in his office goign about his work. He has played a few games here and there but never anything serious. The Questions asked were:

• Do you think current game karma systems work?
• Why do you feel this way about the system?
• What would you do to change it?

Do you think current game karma systems work?

Pastor Bob thought about the games he played trying to rember anything he could about the games karma system. he answered by saying "well seeing as I can not recall one to mind I would have to say that it doesnt work." Pastor Bob also felt he didnt rember it cuase it had no spiritual impact on him.

Why do you feel this way about the system?

Pastor bob didnt take to long in answering. he started with how he thought it was barely noticable in the game. He said if it worked it would have had a impact on him in the game which he felt there was non. He continued on a tangent before saying that it boiled down to that everyaspect didnt work well together.

What would you do to change it?

Pastor Bob thought a few minutes then said "well quiet honestly i dont know if i could do much of anything about it." he was asked to think about what his idea of a karma system was to get some thoughts of improvements in his head. he then said "well when u put it like that put the meter somewhere where the player can see how they re progressing with out being constantly reminded where there karma was." He then went on about making some sort of quests that impacted karma or make the quest clear that it will affect karma upon completion. He ended with wanting a clear line between good and bad.

Interview with Bestbuy Store manager about Game Karma Systems

Introduction:

John is a store manager at the local Best Buy in town. He was kind enough to take the time out to answer a few questions about game karma systems. the questions were:

• Do you think current game karma systems work?
• Why do you think its that way?
• What would you do to improve the system

Do you think current game karma systems work?

John admitted he dint play a lot of video games but he had played a few that had a karma system in them. He didn't really have an opinion on weather or not it worked. He thought current ones were ok.

Why do you think its that way?

John seemed to pause while he thought of a way to explain.  after some time he said that he thought they were ok because there only purpose was too show the player which way they were tipping on the scale. He further went on to say he doesn't really understand the mechanic other then to advance the storyline in a direction.

What would you do to improve the system?

John again paused for awhile before answering. He said that he felt there wasn't much he could other then too possibly make the effects on the game more noticeable so it actually impacted the players in some way. He also thought that maybe there should be some sort karma award for moving a certain way. he was asked to expand on what he meant by karma award, and he said "well say ur going bad karma and in most games that means just killing random ppl for fun. well say u get to certain level and you wish you had a different sword.  well then there should be a sword rewarded to the player after so many kills to keep players going on that path."

How to Max Karma In Fallout 3

Introduction:

Fallout 3 is a post apoptilitic Role-playing game and has a karma/morality system that affects game play.
There is a way to do a neutral karma path but theres no extremes and some aspects of the game wont trigger. Here are a few tips to maxing karma in Fallout 3.

Sticking with one side:

First off its always easier if you choose one path and stick with it. Trying to switch path mid game can be hard to get max karma because of certain plot elements that may have already fired in the game. Examine each karma moment and save often so if it doesnt go the correct path u can redo.

Avoiding a netural option:

While there is an option to stay in the middle on this game it is extremely hard because there are so many quests that affect karma in a big way. also its quite easy to gain karma without trying too. For example if you help people for a quest and your neutral u can gain good karma for saving someone. another example would be when you enter an occupied house and steal you gain bad karma. while not impossible to stay neutral its just unadvised because u have to balance your good and bad acts throughout the entire game.

Look and read up on all quests:

There are numerous online sources that give you infromation abotu quests and the karma out comes on them. One quest i know about is the tranquil lane quest if you do what the little girl wants you to do to get out you get lots of bad karma. However, there is a good karma option that people are unaware of. There is an abandon house that has clickable objects (all version pc and consoles) there is a certain order you have to click the items to get out. however i do not know the order but the information can be found on numerous sites.

Get advice from other players

If you are unsure which way you will want to choose you can ask your friends and other gamers about their experience playing the game. You can also ask others for some tips on the harder quests in the game as well as what are the benefits to playing one way over the other. always be polite and nice when asking so you can get a timely and nice response.

InterView with Gamestop manager about Karma Systems

Introduction:

The local Gamestop manager TJ took some time outto answer a few of my questions. specficallyi was interested in game karma systems. the questions asked were:

• Do you believe karma systems work in games?
• Why do u believe this to be true
• What would you change about the karma systems?

Do you believe Karma Systems work in games?

TJ thought for a few minutes and then said "I believe that karma systems work in some games but not others." as he elaborated abit he further went to explain that most karma systems wer ebased on the game developers and tthere vison for the game plot. He Also explained that he doesnt believe there is a "perfect" karma system out there as of yet.

Why do you believe this to be True?

Tj started in on specfic examples to explain what he meant. the first one he though was good was the Fallout series karma. He explained this was becuase it impacts the game in ways that are seen and unseen so it can still throw curve balls at the players. while he went off on a tangent about his thoughts on fallout eventually he got back to his other example.  for one he didnt like he used Starwars force unleashed. he believed it was too similar to the knights of the old republic karma system and that one didnt work. he explained that the star wars karma system only affected player appearance and really nothing else and that it didnt really affect gameplay too much.

What would you change about the karma systems?

Tj thought there need to be a clear effect on gameplay so that players could have a different experience based on the choices they made. he also would keep the karma quests as they do in infamous and fallout have. as well as a clear difference in character appearance or attitude as the choices affected the gameplay .

Philosophy Behind Game Karma System

Explanation of karma

Karma is the religious belief that each persons actions have consequences and that these choices will affect you in the next life. In Buddhism however, karma mainly refers to one's intention or motivation while doing an action.(http://viewonbuddhism.org/karma.html) Accirding to Buddhism there are 4 laws of karma.

The Four Laws of Karma

1. Results are similar to the cause. Simply said, when I cause other people harm, I will harvest suffering myself. It is important to note here, that "positive" actions are defined as actions that have happiness as a result; "negative" actions are defined as actions that lead to suffering as a result.
2. No results without a cause. As is obvious within science, things do not just appear out of nothing.
3. Once an action is done, the result is never lost. Similarly as above, things do not just disappear into nothing.
4. Karma expands. Once we have an imprint of an action in our mind, it tends to be habit-forming. As is often said in wars for example, killing the first enemy is tough, but after a handful, one quickly loses count and it becomes "normal". Also psychology often stresses a similar point when e.g. explaining actions of adults from their childhood experiences.

In conclusion karma is just a belief more then anything so its more accurate to call it a morality.


Designer intent with morality/karma system

Game designers intended for players to make their own choices as they would in real life situations. there is no strict moral code to be followed.  The karma system is designed on what most of society has deemed good or bad decisions.  As their is no strict moral code to be followed playing through the game then its all based on players choice alone and them accepting the consequences.

Sources:

Parker, L. (2009, November 17). Black or White: Making Moral Choices in Video Games - Features at GameSpot. GameSpot is your go-to source for video game news, reviews, and entertainment. Retrieved November 17, 2011, from http://www.gamespot.com/features/black-or-white-making-moral-choices-in-video-games-6240211/

Karma. (2011, September 11). View on Buddhism: (Tibetan) Buddhist practice and philosophy. Retrieved November 17, 2011, from http://viewonbuddhism.org/karma.html 

Schulzke, M. (n.d.). Game Studies - Moral Decision Making in Fallout. Game Studies - Issue 1102, 2011. Retrieved November 30, 2011, from http://gamestudies.org/0902/articles/schulzke

Character Alignment - Television Tropes & Idioms . (n.d.). Home Page - Television Tropes & Idioms . Retrieved November 30, 2011, from http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CharacterAlignment

Adkins, N. (2011, November 28). Morality in Games. 1UP.com: Video Game Reviews, Cheats, and More. Retrieved November 30, 2011, from http://www.1up.com/do/blogEntry?bId=9091877

Starwars Knights of the Old Republic Karma/ alignment

Basics

StarWars Knight of the Old Republic is a game set in the StarWars universe.  The player takes on the Role of a brainwashed sith lord know as Darth Revan. The main character has limited customization options. (gender and then your standard traits and talents setup) in starwars all jedi control a mysterious power know as The Force. The Force has two sides: a light side (good karma for the purposes of the game) and a Dark side (bad/evil karma).

Karma System and Gameplay

Gameplay rules are "The game's system is based on Wizards of the Coast's Star Wars Roleplaying Game, which is based on the d20 role-playing game system derived from the Third Edition Dungeons & Dragons rules. Combat is round-based; time is divided into discrete rounds, and combatants attack and react simultaneously. However, the number of actions a combatant may perform each round is limited. While each round's duration is a fixed short interval of real time, the player can configure the combat system to pause at specific events or at the end of each round." (http://www.search.com/reference/Star_Wars:_Knights_of_the_Old_Republic) Game developer Bioware uses an alignment system(which for the purposes of most games is a karma system). the two sides are light or dark.  "The alignment system tracks actions and speech — from simple word choice to major plot decisions — to determine whether the player's character aligns with light or dark side of the Force. Generosity and altruism lead to the light side, while self-serving or violent actions will lead your character to the dark side, which will alter the character's appearance, turning their skin gray and scarred." (http://www.search.com/reference/Star_Wars:_Knights_of_the_Old_Republic)

Dark Side/ Bad Karma

Light Side/ Good Karma

Sources:

Reference for Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic - Search.com. (n.d.). Metasearch Search Engine - Search.com. Retrieved November 17, 2011, from http://www.search.com/reference/Star_Wars:_Knights_of_the_Old_Republic

Dark side picture from http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i135/phenormenon/jadzian_kurr.jpg

Light side picture from http://images.wikia.com/swgames/images/2/25/Light_Side.JPG

Infamous 2 Karma System

Basics

Infamous 2 is a followup to Sucker punches hit game Infamous.  The same factors that contributed to karma in the first infamous still apply in Infamous 2. Although there are few additions and changes.

Improvements

Brian Fleming of Sucker punch said in his blog "When we spent time thinking and designing the improved Karma system, we ultimately concluded that there was a way to make these choices both clearer and much more believable: to make your Karma decisions more about relationships and less about the specific choice at hand. So instead of a question that really didn’t relate to our primary gameplay (e.g. “should we take this food or give it away?”), in I2 we let the player decide who to ally with on a quest, or choose between Kuo’s surgical strike or Nix’s no-holds barred assault. You aren’t just choosing a mission, you’re choosing an ally and alienating another person. This was both clear for players, and more real." After playing Infamous 2 i can agree that the karma choices aqnd affects are much clearer then in Infamous.  They also updated there quest icons to let the player know concisely which way your karma will go from doing this quest.

Evil/ Bad karma from quest

Good karma from quest

Sources:

Fleming, B. (2011, February 11). What Goes Around Comes Around: More on the inFAMOUS 2 Karma System. Playstation Blog. Retrieved November 17, 2011, from blog.us.playstation.com/2011/02/11/what-goes-around-comes-around-more-on-the-infamous-2-karma-system/

Bad karma icon from http://images.wikia.com/infamous/images/8/86/Badmission.png

Good Karma icon from http://images.wikia.com/infamous/images/a/a1/Goodmission.png