What is this?

This project is a catalog of the mechanisms and systems that game designers use to create structure and challenge when creating games. Although the focus will be on video games, we’ll also look at games utilizing physical objects other than computing equipment (e.g. card games or board games) and even physical sports involving the entire body (e.g. golf or baseball). The majority of my personal experience is with RPGs, but games from any genre are up for analysis.

What isn’t this?

Not a goal: play every game matching some criteria in chronological order. There’s already projects underway for many of the major genres and I simply don’t have the time to undertake anything like that.

Not a goal: define specific game genres. It’s hard enough to define and systemitize mechanics; I’m not interested in arguing if Heros of Might and Magic 3 qualifies as a RPG or not. (For the record, I don’t think it is.)

Not a goal: review or rate specifc games. I’ll probably have something personal to say about most of the games analyzed here, but there won’t be any cleverly named 6-category rating systems.

Inspirations

My generation was the first to grow up with the concept of a “video game”, and it is not surprising that as our cohort entered their 30s and 40s nostalgia arose for the video game and the 80s in general. From a researcher’s point of view, this is an amazing time to be working - many of the personalities involved in the creation and marketing of games from the late 70’s are still with us today (2024) to share their stories. Plus, much of the original hardware is still available in (somewhat) working order for those that want the most genuine recreation, or in emulation for those that don’t have the space for several dozen computer and console systems.

Three individuals that I’d like to specifically recognize for inspiring the creation of this project are:

Dr. Matt Barton: Dr. Barton has conducted interviews with nearly 100 individuals involved in the video game industry, written several books, and posts regularly on both his blog and Youtube channel. I first encountered Dr. Barton’s work in a series of articles on the history of role-playing games for Gamasutra (links here) back in 2013, but didn’t become aware of his channel until few years later.
Jimmy Maher: Maher brings us the stories of the people who made these games, their inspriations and goals, and what eventually happened to the companies they formed. His site, The Digital Antiquarian, is frequently updated. He has also written a book on the history of the Amiga and has an ongoing historical project, The Analog Antiquarian. I stumbled onto The Digital Antiquarian in 2016 and have enjoyed it ever since. On one of his posts I found a link to…
Chester Bolingbroke (not his real name), a.k.a the CRPG Addict: His goal? To play every CRPG - in chronological order - and critique them. Whenever a title comes up that I played 30 years ago, I’m always excited to see how it will get rated.

Many thanks to Matt, Jimmy, Chester, and others they have inspired, in their efforts over the last 10+ years to preserve the history of this medium and the RPG genre.