Morale

Diodor · 2003-07-11T00:41:11

If I''d have to pick one difference between the LotR books and, say, the Warcraft series, it should be the use of morale. In the books the tides of battle change as one side gains in courage and the other despairs, whereas the computer games are all about cold strategy. But how can it be possible to accurately simulate morale in a computer game? I''m not very concerned about psychological issues - the main problem is making the units able to predict the future - a technical problem. Once this is solved, the rest is easy. Making a last stand, surrendering, obeying orders or fleeing in dissaray, all these decisions can be calculated based on what the unit thinks the outcome of the battle will be (and the specifics of the unit itself). It is moderately easy to calculate the short term future on a very local level. But how about a higher level view of the future - a strategic one? Does the answer to this lie in the use of good AI that lets an army understand concepts like being surrounded or getting surrounded or fighting in a death zone (survival requires winning)? I think there are ways to make a good morale simulation even without good AI. The trick is the player already has a good appraisal of the future - why not use that? Heroes will offer a morale boost - but will the player put his best heroes in a forlorn hope type of mission? The morale boost the heroes give is also a guarantee of the players hopes for the mission. The same goes for special artifacts. The same goes for special map locations (as Minas Tirith - the stronghold of Gondor is in LotR). A more direct approach may work: what if the player could send messages to his armies - the likes of "you''ll receive help in three days" or "the fate of the world depends on .."? These messages would give good morale bonuses, but only as long as they turn out to be true - the false prophet holds no power.

Game Design and Theory Game Design

Started by Diodor July 06, 2003 02:43 AM

9 comments, last by Diodor 21 years, 6 months ago

Diodor

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July 11, 2003 12:41 AM

Morale should also spread across different sides in a conflict. A wavering enemy makes for a good morale boost.

About fighting to the death: there were a number of historical instances of elite forces that would do just this no matter what. Such units are worth far more than their firepower as they can raise morale for the whole rest of the army.

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Morale

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Morale

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