Mechanics Automatically Recognized via Interactive Observation: Jumping

TL;DR

This paper develops models of jumping mechanics across various NES platform games using semi-automated experiments, providing insights into how jump behaviors differ by developer, series, and game history.

Contribution

It introduces a semi-automated method to analyze and model jumping mechanics in NES games, revealing variations and design insights across different titles and developers.

Findings

Models of jump mechanics vary significantly across games.

Jumping feel is influenced by developer and game series.

Semi-automated experimentation enables large-scale mechanic analysis.

Abstract

Jumping has been an important mechanic since its introduction in Donkey Kong. It has taken a variety of forms and shown up in numerous games, with each jump having a different feel. In this paper, we use a modified Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) emulator to semi-automatically run experiments on a large subset (30%) of NES platform games. We use these experiments to build models of jumps from different developers, series, and games across the history of the console. We then examine these models to gain insights into different forms of jumping and their associated feel.