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"Life is a game, you just have to learn the rules."
— Mager Bluetooth
Hello, this is Mager Bluetooth here on TV Tropes! For those of you who don't know me, I am a Po of very peculiar taste. I always tend to put more work into a project than necessary, and I enjoy anything related to technology. On TV Tropes, my motto is "It can't be bad unless I've watched, played, or read it." You can find me all over the internet by searching for my name and I am always looking for new things to try. I've you're still reading this, I should point out that I find swearing completely distasteful in any form so I censor any tropes I name that have any swearing in them. If you're STILL reading this, thanks for stopping by and enjoy my page!
Favorite Trope: Lampshade Hanging
Least Favorite Trope: Last Note Nightmare
The 26 Elements of Gaming
By Mager Bluetooth
When it comes to gameplay, there are many different genres out there. The gamer's preferences towards each of these genres determine the type of gamer that person is. However, after video games evolved past bleeps and dots on a black and white screen, we moved into an era where all games share 26 different elements: 13 Physical and 13 Mental.
Physical Elements- The Physical Elements are usually physically seen one way or another in a typically physical manner. Metaphorical appearances can happen as well, though.
- 1. Fire - You know the cliche. Every video game has lava in it. Fire has been a common video game element even before the invention of the Fire Flower. While its role is generally antagonistic, occasionally the hero uses it and when it does, the gamer usually ends up watching stuff burn and explode.
- 2. Water - Water, water, everywhere and either you can't swim in it or you'll do nothing but. Water is known for being both a healing and hurting element. Depending on the game, it can either bring the gamer great joy or great dread.
- 3. Air - Where would we be without air? Air varies greatly in its use. It can be used as a form of attack, an enemy, an item, an obstacle, or what prevents you from drowning. Air is quite possibly the most common physical element since it's so omnipresent in Real Life.
- 4. Earth - Your hero is probably going to need something to walk on. If you're playing Zelda, you're probably headed into a forest somewhere near the beginning. Earth is another very common element in gaming as it is a very sturdy source of power for both good and evil. Basically, where there's walking, there's earth.
- 5. Light - Do you think your hero will need to see? Well he/she's not seeing much without light. Since light is basically the opposite of darkness, and Dark is Evil, you will probably need some light in order to vanquish the dark. Of course, sometimes, Light is Not Good.
- 6. Darkness - Ah yes, the bad guys have to have some kind of power that only they can use, right? Otherwise, they wouldn't have any advantage. Generally reserved for the villains, the dark plays a crucial part in gameplay to add some ambiance, and let's not forget Blackout Basement.
- 7. Electricity - Electricity is just cool, right? Electricity has the interesting tendency to sometimes cause immediate death. Expect it to be the fastest attack out there unless the game developers failed physics. More common as an enemy's attack or an obstacle than something useful, and it may or may not paralyze the player.
- 8. Metal - It's like Earth, only harder! It becomes what you walk on when you have an indoor level and unless you can get some serious firepower, you're probably gonna need to find a key if its in your way. The most common form of metal in a video game has to be when you fight the inevitable giant robot boss.
- 9. Poison - This is the least likely element to actually help the player. Unless you need to get the enemies to fall into it, poison is the element you need to avoid at all costs. It commonly serves to either immediately kill the player or slowly drain its health. Sometimes it poisons the water and makes them lose air faster. If a boss uses poison, it may cause the battle to have a time limit or reverse the controls. Expect anything when it comes to this tricky element.
- 10. Ice - Big deal, it's just cold water. Is it? Then why does it have completely different properties in most video games? Unless you have to melt ice or freeze water, ice and water have little to do with each other. Mainly ice's purpose is to make the ground slippery, freeze stuff(mainly the player), and make something indestructible shatter into a million pieces. If the enemy uses ice, they can and will freeze and attack you before you can escape.
- 11. Gravity - Have you ever seen a video game character ever jump before? Then you've seen this element in a video game. From defying gravity to increasing it, to just completely removing it, gravity is a pretty constant element. Its the force that keeps the characters on the ground, and most game developers don't like that one bit. As the most intangible of all the elements, gravity is certainly a force to be reckoned with.
- 12. Specter - (Un)Fortunately in video games, death happens. But what happens after something dies? Depending on the video game, they could either disappear or eventually come back to life. Either way, your almost guaranteed to see this element present as things switch from life to death to undeath to relife to redeath to afterlife to just plain nothingness. Ooh, spooky.
- 13. Magic - Finally, we have the ever-present magical element of magic. This element is going to appear somewhere whether you like it or not. Since video games are generally about fiction, there's going to be something that wouldn't make sense in Real Life that happens in-game. Everything from glitches to the One-Winged Angel transformation sequence qualifies here along with almost anything strange enough to consider.
Mental Elements- The Mental Elements of Gameplay generally are not physically seen, but you should know them when you see them. They are really more like concepts than actual things you can touch and see.
- 1. Music (Harmony) - OK, name one video game that does not have music in it. Even Pong had sound effects! Not to mention all of the video games that have parts where you play your own music. Music is everywhere, and it's sometimes quite epic.
- 2. Art (Beauty) - Now let's say a game has no art...OK, what is the gamer looking at? A black screen, that's what. You will find art in all its forms in various video games. Ever heard of Scenery Porn?
- 3. Construction (Progress) - Building stuff is just way too common in video games. Now, not all games have you making skyscrapers and putting together giant robots, but considering how many games have collectibles and how much you really need to construct your collection if you want to win, this element should be pretty easy to spot. (Power Stars, anyone?)
- 4. Cooking (Change) - This one's a bit of a tricky element. In a way, it's very similar to Construction, but instead of building new things, you're changing existing things to make them new things. Mixing, matching, and modifying different things to improve and create is this element in its natural form. Not always related to food, but very often it is.
- 5. Theatre ((Presentation) - It's true that there aren't too many Broadway plays in video games, but most characters aren't going anywhere without talking to each other. Where there's conversations, there's also rehearsed conversations a lot of the time. Ever had a character perform a Face Heel Turn? Ever infiltrated an enemy base disguised as the enemy? Ever worn a mask? Then you've seen this element!
- 6. Logic (Understanding) - 2+2=4. And there's nothing you can do about it. While most video games attempt to avert logic, there have to be things that make sense. You eventually have to figure out what the A Button does and if pressing Start actually pauses the game. If you happen to be playing a puzzle game, this element is about to go Up to Eleven.
- 7. Sports (Competition) - Your heroes have to get some good ol' fashioned exercise every now and then. While the most popular occurrence of this by far is swordplay, sports are all over the place in video games. When it comes to this element, you may find your characters running, jumping, swimming, or actually playing baseball if the game is so inclined.
- 8. Law (Stability) - Ok, so most of the time, you play as the good guy. What does the good guy like to do more than anything? The answer is usually the right thing. You know, unless... When you do get a do-gooder as the main character, law is usually the reason for your journey. Save the Princess, Banish the Evil, Take Down The Mafia, Pick Up Trash, etc. The list of laws you want to protect go on and on.
- 9. Crime (Freedom) - On the other hand, no matter how good-natured the hero is, there's probably going to be a bit of some gray morality used to complete his goal. Maybe you need to commit horrific acts of murder in order to rid the world of evil, or perhaps you can't save this one idiotic kingdom without knocking out the guards and threatening the king. Either way, you sometimes need to break the law for the good of society. On the other hand, maybe you're just controlling that kind of hero.
- 10. Literature (Information) - Is it possible to play a video game without knowing how to read? Probably, but you may not understand the entire story. Sometimes it's the dialogue, sometimes there are signs along the way, and sometimes you find the old journal with all the Foreshadowing. Then we have times when you provide the literature, like when they ask you to name something or input an answer. Of course, if you can't read it, you'll have no idea what they're saying, so let's hope it's all in a language you can understand.
- 11. Service (Assistance) - No, the hero never helps anyone. He's completely self-centered and only after what he wants. Since that's obviously not true, I think it's pretty obvious that this element is pretty common. We also can't forget about other people helping the hero (sometimes even the bad guys).
- 12. Operation (Control) - For all the times when the character gets behind the wheel or pulls out the keyboard. Anytime you have to learn how to use a new mechanic, you are learning how to "operate" it, right? Generally relating to machines and mechanisms of all shapes in sizes, but it's still there if you're learning how to ride an elephant or swing on a vine. This one may be one of the easiest to realize since you invoke it by using the controller.
- 13. Science (Discovery) - Ah yes, science. The element of a thousand different meanings. Observation, experimentation, asking questions, learning about "the world," and making graphs and tables. OK, maybe not the last one, but science is the 26th and final element and you are probably going to find it in your favorite video game even if you end up being the reason it's there.
Once a game reaches a certain complexity, it becomes very difficult to not be able to find all 26 elements pretty easily. Here's an example if you don't believe me:
The Original Super Mario Bros.: (At least one example of each)
- Fire-Fire Flower, Bowser Flame, Podoboos, etc.
- Water-World 2-2
- Air-Lakitu
- Earth-Beanstalks + Ground
- Light-Above Ground Levels
- Darkness-Bower's Castles and Underground
- Electricity-Warp Zones + Running Over Bottomless Pits (figurative)
- Poison-Piranha Plants (figurative)
- Ice-Freezing Koopa Troopas by jumping on them (figurative)
- Metal-Bullet Bills+Blasters, Hammer Bro Hammers
- Gravity-Trampoline, Bottomless Pits
- Spectre-Many, many Goomba deaths
- Magic-Starman
- Music-One of the most popular of all time
- Art-Fireworks for good timing
- Construction-100 coins = 1 Up, Your High Score
- Cooking-Mushroom+Mario=Big Mario
- Theatre-Fake Bowser, Your Princess Is in Another Castle
- Sports-Running, Jumping, Swimming, etc.
- Logic-Mario gets bigger, so he can break blocks now since he has a bigger mass, ergo a bigger force. It's only logical.
- Law-Save the Princess
- Crime-Murder and Arson (only one thing missing)
- Literature-Your Princess Is in Another Castle (on screen text)
- Service-Enemies help you jump higher
- Operation-Timing your jump on Trampoline
- Science-"Maybe that axe over there does something..."
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