Final Fantasy Zero Design Diary: A Theory of Fun

A few months back, I stumbled on this little wonder. If you'd give it a check, it's a pretty short read, by a pretty good designer (brownie points when you name the games he's been involved in!).

Now, it's oriented toward a general computer game audience, but part of FFZ's particular magic is in synthesizing the computer game with the pen-and-paper game, to create something with the action and ease of a computer game, but with the modability and customization of a PnP game.

A quick summary of the idea is that people have fun when learning a new pattern, but that as they master the pattern, they have less fun with it. So, the argument goes, a "matured" game shouldn't be about a predefined end result, it should be open to interpretation. Specifically, with randomized and user-generated content.

What a wonder for me that PnP games have been doing that for 30 years, now!

But an early point that he makes is that, in learning this new pattern, games are teaching us things (as playing lion cubs are being "taught" to hunt). We're being taught hand-eye coordination, aiming, strategy, mathematics, and, as we figure out how to do these things better, we figure out the pattern, and we manage to achieve mastery over the game.

So I've analyzed FFZ in this light, and here's what I've found:

FFZ is teaching you how to tell a story.

That's not to say you don't already know the basics of telling a story. I mean, anyone can pick up a controller and figure out how to move Mario around pretty quickly. The basics are already there. But FFZ uses this "storytelling" skill as a way to gain "success."

And "success," because this is a Pen and Paper RPG, will differ for different players and different DMs and different campaigns.

I'm writing the introductory adventure now, which is designed to sort of take the player and the DM through an "example campaign." It includes, as part of the description of a particular scene, the option for the party and the DM alike to completely ignore the rest of the adventure. And it gives you options and advice for when you do that, it doesn't just abandon you to your own devices!

I'm proud of that adaptability in FFZ. It helps the game be more "mature."

FFZ becomes the same art that every PnP game has the potential to become: it is about communicating an experience. About understanding and figuring out the world and your characters in it (as in a sandbox-style game), about sadness and joy and fear (as in a more narrative-style game), and, ultimately, about combining those sensations so you have the fear of new dangers, the joy of a new discovery, the sadness at the death of a key NPC.

This is FFZ's (somewhat lofty) goal. I think it can achieve that, being cast in the mold of great storytelling that has come before, in the FF games.

At this point, I have penned a rough draft of the intro adventure. A few short pages, mostly consisting of branching options, that sets up something broader. I have diagrammed out the One Year Game, and the FFZ Adventure Path should take you through that, while unveiling different aspects of the game.

That's right, I'll have a schedule.

But I want to get some serious playtesting done on this thing. So I'm going to pretty it up, and probably put it up here, along with the character sheets. I'm in the "page layout" phase of this thing, basically. The mechanics are done and stoned, I've got enough rules to handle the intro adventure, I just need to put them all together and make them pretty and slap them up somewhere that the world can appreciate them.

I'd love to hear from anyone who would be interested in running the FFZ Intro Adventure (at least) for their own group. Gimmie a shout in the comments. I'm more likely to get this out sooner if I know people are waiting for it.