Year: 2025
Type: conference-paper
Abstract: We discuss how navigation works in video games with a focus on how it provides challenge for players. Informed by work on how humans navigate real world space we propose a framework to guide the analysis and design of games. The framework considers three steps in the process of navigation: Destination (determining where the player needs to go), Routing (determining how to get there), and Execution (traveling along the route). We further articulate our framework by showing some of the ways that difficulty in navigating game spaces is managed. Our analysis was conducted on games in the Metroid series; a hallmark of the Metroidvania genre. Metroidvania games emphasize exploration, navigation, and non-linearity in terms of how the gameworld is traversed. Although we limit our analysis to 2D games, the framework is extensible to other kinds of spaces.
Authors: Keaton Hoek, Jose Zagal
Institution: University of Utah
Language: English
Topic: Digital Games and Media
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
OpenAlex ID: W4412008564