A bad start is a bad start
This weekend I picked up a copy of Aquanox 2 from the bargain bin. The game is set under water and you captain a small vessel and the main gameplay involves shooting at various enemies. The first mission in the game has what I consider a significant design flaw.
No matter what you do, you can’t win the first mission in the game. Your objective is to take someone out, but he flees before you can do what you’re supposed to do. At this point, the game tells you that you have failed your objective and let’s you continue on your way. I thought I just had to get to grips with the controls, so I tried again - Aquanox let’s you replay your last mission whenever you want to - but the result was the same. As it turns out, you simply can’t reach your first objective, no matter how often you try.
If you ask me, it’s not a very smart idea to start the player off with a forced failure. The first part should be about learning the ropes of the game, especially in a game that can be tricky to control, like Aquanox. Starting out with a mission that is doomed to fail doesn’t really create the ideal learning experience. Chances are the player will feel frustrated with the game. Even if she doesn’t quit right away, it may shape her opinion about the game and she’ll be harsher in her judgement when she encounters small problems that she otherwise might be able to forgive.
In the case of Aquanox, the problem could have been solved in several ways. The easiest would’ve been to change the mission objective. Instead of destroy the enemy it could be changed to chase off the enemy, because that is exactly what you’ll end up doing. Even if you don’t want to change the mission objective, you might still consider telling the player that she succeeded at her mission, even if the enemy wasn’t destroyed. That at least tells the player she is starting off on the right track.
(19 votes, average: 4.26 out of 5)
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