Creators must find the correct equilibrium to avoid overwhelming gamers (and controllers) with excessive buttons and actions while designing combat-centered games because, as Ghost of Yotei‘s artistic director Jason Connell indicates, there’s a danger of “cognitive overload.”
In a discussion with GamesRadar+ regarding the intricacies of combat as players unlock additional weapons and skills, Connell confessed, “the cognitive overload from all the systems and the buttons on the controller can be rather intense, and honestly, it represents a genuine challenge when you’re developing the game.”
Connell further mentioned that “while you’re crafting [a feature], you’re immersed in it” and “you lack the player perspective of someone… who’s like 60 hours in.” Consequently, when it’s time to engage in playtesting, the experience can become quite daunting.
“However, you must recall that someone began with merely the katana, then perhaps they acquired dual katanas, then might have overlooked the odachi, and later went for a while without a weapon until they obtained the Kusarigama. These intervals can span many hours, providing ample opportunity for players to think, ‘Alright, I’m going to alternate between one weapon, OK, now I’ll switch between two weapons.’ It’s not usually the scenario when we’re developing it, like moving from one to five, and abruptly you’re engaging in pretzel hands, striving to ascertain exactly what to do and how to manage it during intense combat,” Connell elaborated.
How does Sucker Punch navigate this obstacle? Naturally, they conduct extensive playtesting and conceptualize it akin to a pressure cooker: “‘Do we require a pressure relief valve? Should we introduce captivating curveballs?’ Being disarmed is like the ultimate curveball, isn’t it?… Thus, we’re continually evaluating ‘are we overloaded, are we not overloaded, do we need to genuinely infuse some excitement into the mix?'”
The entire procedure “undergoes numerous years of deliberate reflection by a highly specialized team focused exclusively on this,” as per Connell, perhaps clarifying why Yotei doesn’t feel unmanageable, even when players wield more weapons than Atsu could realistically conceal in her pocket.
