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How Are Locks Misused?

Many designers fail to use Locks properly. When Locks are poorly implemented they can have a very negative impact on the overall gaming experience. Sometimes Locks are overused in a game. Or they may be boringly similar to one another. Or they may kill the flow of the game by making the player stop and search for a Key just when suspense was building in the game. As an example of poor use of Locks, I would like to examine how they were mishandled in a game which was released a few years ago. (I will not name this game, for obvious reasons.)

This was an Adventure game, and it could have been great. The game concept was fine: an Adventure game in which players would explore a series of dungeon levels, seeking treasure and battling monsters along the way. There were a number of problems with the final product, but one of the things which doomed it right away was its horrid misuse of Locks.

All of the Locks in this game were either Switches or Doors. All of the Switches looked and functioned identically. All of the Doors looked and functioned identically. The Locks were overused, and were not implemented creatively. Even had the rest of the game been great, this misuse of Keys doomed the game to failure.

Here is the pattern which the gameplay followed, almost exactly. On any given level, the player was required to do the following: 1) Find the Silver Key, in order to 2) Unlock the Silver Door, allowing him to 3) Find the Red Key, which would enable him to 4) Unlock the Red Door, beyond which he must 5) Find the Gold Key, so that he could 6) Unlock the Gold Door and 7) Acquire yet another worthless magic sword and 8) Proceed to the next level, where the tedious proceedure would be repeated.

This unimaginative routine was already stale before the end of the first dungeon level, and grew more tiresome with every passing moment. What should have been an adventure was instead a frustrating experience. It goes without saying that the game was a dismal commercial failure.

Proper Use of Locks

The sort of design nightmare featured in the last section can easily be avoided. A game designer who cares enough to invest some time and imagination can easily master the art of using Locks effectively. In some games, like that awful Adventure, misuse of Locks can detract from the gameplay. But there are a few simple rules which will guarantee that Locks have a positive impact, leading to a better game experience.

The first rule is that the Locks must be varied. If a player encounters one or two locked doors in the course of a 50 hour game, there is no problem. But if, after the first fifteen minutes of play, the player has already encountered four of them, there is an obvious problem. On the other hand, if a player has come across one surly castle guard, a trap door in the ceiling, a backstabbing Goblin and a secret door he cannot figure out how to open, the game is much more interesting. So rule one is: Locks Should Be Varied. The designer should use his imagination as much as possible. This can be a real challenge, but the effort will be rewarded with a much better game.

The second rule deals with efficiency. If the player is required to find a Key to every Lock in the game, there will be too much time spent on finding Keys, and not enough time enjoying the game. Therefore it can be useful to use one Key which opens multiple Locks. An example of this might be when the player has the favor of the King. It is amazing how many doors this Key will open! So the second rule is: Keys Should Be Efficient. With proper planning, a game world may be devised so that a single Key may open several sections of the game world without any detrimental effect.

Sometimes a player may be required to go to considerable trouble to acquire a Key. When this is the case, being allowed to progress further into the game may not be enough of a reward. This is particularly true when the much-sought Key becomes just a worthless entry on an inventory list. "Gold Key," a player might sigh. "That’s that darn key I had to spend an hour trying to find. It’s useless now. I suppose I may as well just discard it."

But Keys do not have to become useless once they have served their purpose. A useful magic item, weapon, spell or tool can also be used as a Key. This leads to the third rule: Keys should be useful. A player is bound to have far less appreciation of an inventory item named "Key" than for one named "Fireball."

One aspect of Lock design which is often overlooked by game designers is realism. The game world is bound to have its own, unique reality. And yet, even in a game, things can be unreasonably unrealistic. Consider the way some designers use Switches. In some game worlds, Switches are everywhere: on the walls, on the floors, in the garden, on the roof, on the family’s pets..., (Well, O.K., the pets are usually safe. But nothing else seems to be!)

But is this logical? What kind of moron would design his house so that the bedroom door could only be opened by throwing switches in the kitchen and diningroom? The idea is insane! Yet many game designers expect their players to accept similar inconsistencies.

Using Locks illogically also endangers the "suspension of disbelief," one of the most important elements of game design. For these reasons, the fourth rule is: Locks and Keys Should Be Realistic.

In some game genres, most notably Horror, the mood of the game is of critical importance. Creating and maintaining a necessary mood are difficult tasks. So it is unfortunate that designers sometimes ruin the mood of their games by using Locks which are not in keeping with the mood of the game. Once lost, mood is something which is difficult to regain. So the fifth rule, which is very important in some games, is: Locks and Keys Should Be Compatible With the Mood of the Game.

And finally, the single most common misuse of Locks may be overuse. Finding a Key may not be a hassle once in a while, but too much searching for Keys can be tiresome. In some games, a player is required to search for Keys almost constantly. In these games, searching for Keys is usually used as a substitute for gameplay. In other games, the player must constantly backtrack to fetch Key items. In my opinion, these are both signs of poor game design.

I would like to point out that finding a Key should almost never entail backtracking. The Lock mechanism should be used as a tool to make the player explore areas not yet visited. Backtracking, on the other hand, forces the player to return through an already explored area. This is why fetching Keys is such a boring process in many games.

So the last rule is: Do Not Overuse Locks. There are few things which can ruin an otherwise great game so quickly as overused Locks.

Next : A Shining Example