A Gameplay Definition through Videogame Classification

TLDR

The paper is part of an experimental effort to develop a videogame classification. The study aims to examine the nature of gameplay bricks and their relation to manipulation and goal rules, to generate a hypothesis about gameplay. Inspired by Propp's fairy‑tale classification, the authors identified recurrent diagrams in videogame rules, termed “Gameplay Bricks.” Combining these bricks can yield a classification of all videogames based on their rules.

Abstract

This paper is part of an experimental approach aimed to raise a videogames classification. Being inspired by the methodology that Propp used for the classification of Russian fairy tales, we have identified recurrent diagrams within rules of videogames, that we called “Gameplay Bricks”. The combinations of these different bricks should allow us to represent a classification of all videogames in accordance with their rules. In this article, we will study the nature of these bricks, especially the link they seem to have with two types of game rules: the rules that allow the player to “manipulate” the elements of the game, and the rules defining the “goal” of the game. This study will lead to an hypothesis about the nature of gameplay.