While talking to Rock, Paper, Shotgun about* Peggle Nights*, the upcoming sequel to the most addictive game ever to feature a crying unicorn, Jason Kapalka explained some of the tricks PopCap uses to make their games so habit-forming.
The first step is to avoid being too brainy. Games with "really cerebral" puzzles "that you cant really replay are just not as popular as infinitely replayable mechanics that don't require a ton of deep thought," explained Kapalka.
Makes sense so far. The puzzles of a game like Myst might present an engaging challenge, but once you know the solution, there's no real reason to play the game again, whereas the possibility of a new high score will keep players glued to games like Bejeweled and Zuma.
Some of the other tricks up PopCap's sleeve are more subtle, however. In the case of Peggle, says Kapalka, it's important to "always have sound cues of rising pitch associated with combos, and never award points in increments of less than 10. These are often non-intuitive little things that just work with gamer psychology for some reason."
Knowing a few tricks is no guarantee of success, of course. "[I]f it were really that simple to understand the elements of what makes a great game, everyone would be cranking them out like popcorn, and that just isn't the case. It comes down to a lot of trial and error, abandoned prototypes, and trying different things until you find something that's fun," says Kapalka.
Though Kapalka was happy to explain that* Peggle Nights* is pretty much just more Peggle, offering "dozens and dozens" of new levels (that's all we really wanted), he kept mum on the subject of the mystery zombie game that PopCap has in the works. Bah!
RPS Interview: PopCap on Casual, Peggle, and Valve [Rock, Paper, Shotgun]
