On a lecture on the 16th of October, we were enlightened to a brilliant way to classify games. This enlightenment was brought by a french sociologist called Roger Caillois. He's introduced 6 different terminology that I have never heard of, but is actually present in the all of the different games that I've been playing.
The term Paidea - refers to games that does not limit freedom of players, a game that sometimes, can be played as is; according to the player's mood, and sometimes does not give a victorious experience from the game itself. A good example for a game of this term in my opinion would be The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. This game lets you do whatever that you feel like doing, whenever, and wherever in the game. There is a main story line in the game, however players can level up and become godlike without even touching the main story line. Weapons, armors, skills and whatnot aren't limited by the story line, giving players a freedom to decide and do whatever they want. There are also side quests in the game, and these quests are unlocked as players roam around the world and meet NPC's that gives side quests. Personally, I do not know how many side quests there is in the world of Skyrim as I have done a fair amount of side quests, but is only a portion of what the world has to offer. The objectives in either the main/side quests also does not constrain you in a set of rules, such as; kill boss with a bow" for example. The skill build / item build of your character is also for you to decide, as you can mix and match weapons and armors, and even your "perks" (one handed swords, two handed swords, bows, magic, etc). These perks are unlocked as the player conduct things that is relevant to the perks, giving players the experience that mimic real life; gaining ability through practice. Hence the freedom in the game puts Skyrim under the Paidea section of games.
The term Ludus - refers to games with a set of rules. I feel that this term applies to the majority of games, as sometimes, rules define the word games. A example game of this terminology can be the infamous Dota 2. Dota 2 is a MOBA game that involves an element of RTS as well, and what's common in a strategy game is the objective that is the rule of the game. In a game of Dota 2, ten players are divided into two sides, the Radiant, and the Dire. In a team of five, players are to destroy towers and advance to the opposing team's main core (for a better general understanding), and whoever destroys the opposing main core wins the game. There is a degree of freedom in the game, such as choosing heroes (of 100 heroes) that build a concrete team, and item builds; as heroes does not have a limitation of what item they can buy. This gives players the freedom to build their heroes, however the game is still of the Ludus terminology, as players have to go by a set of rules to win.
There are an extra of 4 terminologies that was given to us, but is not a huge chunk of games classification, these are;
- Agon - which refers to the competition in a game.
- Alea - which refers to chance and randomness in a game (the RNGesus)
- Illinx - which refers to movement
- Mimicry - which refers to simulation, make believe, and role play.
These terms are obvious in the sense that almost every game contains these four terms, however some are exceptional to some of the above terms; like Skyrim, which does not have Agon. In my opinion at least, the perfect game should contain all four of these terminologies, giving the game a very coloroful experience (not dull, so to speak).
