The following is a refactored translation of the talk I gave at the EVA10 Expo in Buenos Aires, on 11/12/10. It does not mirror exactly what I said during the talk, but it should give you a general idea. I’ve divided it into three parts: Player limits and systemic constraints, Cheap tricks and easy ways out (this post) and Best practices.
I’ve detailed in my previous post all the most evident pitfalls and traps a designer must work around when designing motion mechanics to make them more accessible, fun and engaging. Now I’d like to illustrate by listing some of the most common default solutions (read: bad) solutions that have been used far and wide by most developers (including me, I admit) when time, skill or budget were lacking.
Hopefully you’ll be now able to identify them and at least understand some possible reasons that led the designers in adopting it.