Couch Multiplayer – Analysis

Since SooDuel is going to be a couch multiplayer game, I thought it was appropriate to analyse couch multiplayer games and what draws people to them. These insights will provide me with greater knowledge for when I begin working on SooDuel and what features and design choices I may make and change to better accommodate its identity as a couch multiplayer game

Articles

There are several articles and blog posts discussing couch multiplayer games and what people like about them.

The Guardian

This Guardian article by Keza Macdonald essentially focuses on the human connection of playing multiplayer games. The author emphasises how playing multiplayer games in person is much more impactful for socialising than online play. The author herself is a millennial and recognises the difference in how the younger generations socialise compared to the older generations, and how younger people appear to be able to socialise just as well online as they do in real life.
This article emphasised to me how couch multiplayer games have multigenerational appeal, as older players are more drawn to engaging in real social situations over online games. This aspect makes me want to consider how I could potentially accommodate older players for my game and what design decisions I could make to make it easier for them to be able to play SooDuel.

AtomicJunkShop

This post by Spencer Keane focuses on the difference between online multiplayer versus real-life couch multiplayer. The author focuses on how, as opposed to online games, in couch multiplayer games, you can see the other players physically and how that affects behaviours for the better. For instance, online multiplayer games tend to be significantly more toxic in terms of the way players treat each other and their language usage as opposed to couch multiplayer games where in which there may be real-life consequences to players’ inflammatory words, thus encouraging players to be more respectful and restrained than they may otherwise be online. Another aspect he mentions is how, in real life, being able to visually see other players’ faces when playing games makes them much more memorable and fun. He also mentions how real-life activities tend to bond people together more than online activities.
This article reinforced to me the importance of respect in maintaining a fun atmosphere. Players of online games often completely lack respect for others, and that can hamper one’s enjoyment of the game. Since SooDuel is based upon Tahtib, a real-life martial art that emphasises respecting one’s opponents, having it be online would almost be a contradiction, as that way, no respect can be enforced or encouraged. The aspect of bonding and camaraderie is also important to Tahtib; couch multiplayer games facilitate this much more effectively than online multiplayer games. This article has reinforced to me the idea that couch multiplayer is the way to go for this game, as it makes for the most fun and memorable types of games and is in the spirit of Tahtib.

Game Developer

This Game Developer article by Eric Neuhaus reiterates similar points to the previous two articles but also offers ideas for how to keep couch multiplayer alive and why it’s important to do so. The author mentions how the lack of consequences and etiquette online negatively affects games and how he laments not being able to see his friends’ reactions when playing games with them. He also explains how couch multiplayer games have you (usually) play with people you see regularly in real life and how that changes the context of the game compared to online games where in which the players only exist in that context. The author argues that playing a game in real life can improve your overall friendship and how you interact with each other, whereas online it has a significantly smaller impact. The author goes on to talk about couch multiplayer games from a developer perspective, and how they offer an easier developing route than online games and how they can lend themselves to lots of creative ideas.
Overall, this article just reiterated the difference between online and couch multiplayer games. The aspect of games affecting real-life relationships was an angle I had not considered, and it made me consider how I may be able to encourage mutual respect between players when they compete in SooDuel.

Games

I decided to look at several couch multiplayer games and how the “couch” aspect of them affected how I played them and my relationships with the people I played them with.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is one of the best fighting games in recent memory. It is primarily a local/couch multiplayer game, although there is an online mode. The game utilises dozens of characters from different games, each with their own moves and abilities that players can take control of. There is a lot of skill expression in this game, although it can be balanced with items that add fun, random effects to the game and can level the playing field for less skilled players against their more experienced opponents. I would distinguish two types of fun this game has: wacky fun and competitive fun. The wacky, fun aspect of the game is when you and your friends play random characters and/or use items in larger matches. The game can have 2-8 players in total; 4-5 is the golden amount for dumb fun in my opinion. This way of playing the game lends itself well for just basic fun, where you and your friends are trying to win but also tend to enjoy messing with each other in the game and winning through unexpected and cartoony ways/ The competitive fun comes in the tense 1v1 matches where both players have a lot of skill and are constantly countering each other and showcasing great skill expression. This fun is totally different from the other kind, as the fun comes from getting close to or outright beating your opponent and demonstrating superior skill. This type of fun can be aggravating, however, if you are completely losing; thus, it is only really fun when you and your opponent have balanced skill.
The competitive aspect of this game, particularly how close it can get and how tense it gets when two evenly skilled players fight, is the type of feeling I would like to have in SooDuel. While the wacky 4-5 player matches are fun, that sort of experience wouldn’t fit SooDuel, and as such, is not an aspect I wish to draw from in developing my game.

Nidhogg

Nidhogg is a fast-paced, tense duelling game. There are only two players in a match, and the goal of each match is to get to the other player’s goal. Every time a player defeats another player, they get the “advantage” which just allows them to progress to the other player’s goal, forcing the other player into a defensive position. The players are essentially trading between defensive and offensive positions throughout the game (assuming they’re both skilled) until one continuously wins enough and outmanoeuvres the other player well enough to get to the goal. The fun comes from how tense it can get, and especially when players are locked on a single screen that neither can progress through due to their equal skill. As well as the adrenaline rush, both players get when one starts rapidly making progress to their opponent’s goal. The game is couch multiplayer, as such, due to how tense the game gets it’s common for players to trash-talk and shout out and give animated reactions to every decisive moment in the game. This makes it all the more fun and engaging as you can see your opponent’s reaction to you gaining the advantage, and you can express your frustration to them if you start losing.
Nidhogg was one of my primary inspirations for SooDuel. The game encapsulates an aspect I want to capture in SooDuel. The intensity of evenly matched duels and the adrenaline rush the players get when one begins to win is addictive and incredibly engaging. If SooDuel can capture this aspect of couch multiplayer games, I would be satisfied. This aspect will be captured via the gameplay loop and how the players will constantly be going from keeping rhythm to attacking (and defending themselves from) their opponents.

Wrassling

This is an online browser game that is all about throwing your opponent out of the ring. It can be played alone against bots or against one other opponent, both of you using the same keyboard. You can move left, right, jump, and move your arms clockwise or counterclockwise. Moving your arms is used to try to pick up your opponent so you may throw them out of the ring or to defend yourself from being thrown out. It is a very simple game, but it is very effective as the simplicity allows it to be easily played on one keyboard. The game also has very cartoony and goofy physics, making it very humorous to play. It isn’t a game with lots of skill expression, which makes it so that there is only a slight level of competitiveness, but never enough to make it “sweaty” and/or unenjoyable.
The way this game makes you laugh and enjoy playing with your friends is something I would like to see in SooDuel. However, SooDuel would ideally be more challenging and tense, as well as potentially having more skill expression; thus, this isn’t the ideal experience I want SooDuel to have. Although the humorous and fun aspect of this game, and the way this is achieved through the local multiplayer aspect, is an experience I would like to recreate in SooDuel.

Reflection

Overall, reading the articles and analysing some of my favourite local multiplayer games has reinforced to me one of the appeals of couch multiplayer games, that being the emotions they make us feel and how we express them. It also reinforced the experience I want players to feel playing SooDuel, that being the rush one gets during a tense match. This analysis has assisted me in contemplating the design decisions I will make for SooDuel throughout its development and what aspects I want to emphasise.
For instance I have come up with the idea of being able to extend matches in SooDuel by being able to regenerate health by perfectly timing rhythm attacks during the rhythm phase, this could allow matches to last longer and create more tension between players which would all come to a head at the decisive point when one player wins, which would then lead into the players wanting to play again, making for a fun and addictive game. Of course, this has to be playtested before one can be sure that it is an effective idea, but the idea is that I have already begun thinking and ideating as a result of simply analysing other games and reading what others have written about couch multiplayer games.
To conclude, I now have a better understanding of what makes couch multiplayer games so appealing and what design decisions I could make to enhance the experience I will create in SooDuel.