Two years ago, independent developers Martin Jonasson and Petri Purho (Jesus vs. Dinosaurs), argued that one of the the best ways to make a satisfying game is to make it “juicy” — the “juicier” your game is, the more fun it will be to play, as they explained in their “Juice It Or Lose It” talk at GDC Europe 2012. Sets and Settings developer Folmer Kelly thinks that approach has value, but also significant weaknesses. He gave a talk at the GDC Europe Independent Games Summit this year in which he countered the “Juice It Or Lose It” philosophy of design by suggesting that while adding polish makes a game feel more alive, we’re actually losing a level of immersion. There has been such a tremendous focus on putting eye candy in our games, says Kelly, that the context doesn’t get enough consideration. His brief, design-centric talk is worth watching for all developers, regardless of how “juicy” you like your work to be. The free video (embedded above) of “Don’t Juice It or Lose It” is now available to watch here on the GDC Vault.
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