Designing Gold Rush, a More Free-Form Mode for Stealing and Stealth in Hood: Outlaws and Legends

Hood: Outlaws & LegendsThe game is third-person cooperative multiplayer heist set against a medieval backdrop.

Gold Rush, our new exciting game mode pits Outlaw groups against one another to accumulate and bank the most gold within a set time period. Gold can be collected by killing guards, finding hidden treasures and stealing treasure boxes. You’ll need to stay vigilant however as you can be killed by the opposing team and have your gold wallets snatched! Remember to bank held gold regularly at any claimed capture point, and don’t get too greedy or your overburdened wallet may slow you down.

Here’s a little context

Before we discuss the design choices we’ve made during the creation of Gold Rush it’s important to provide context to some of the terms that will be use in this article when discussing the systems and philosophies I’ll be referencing:

• Gold:The main goal is to have the resource that supports it.
• Wallet:Players keep their gold collected in a container. The wallet will be emptied if a player dies. The player will lose all their gold, which can then be taken by another player.
• Burdened:Players who have too much gold in their pockets will feel overwhelmed. A player who is overweight will have a slower speed of movement.
• Banking:Bank is where players put all their money into their treasure chests or wallets. The opposing team cannot now steal banked gold.

Evaluate a heist

It was crucial for the group to evaluate the current game modes before discussing the future game mode. This evaluation was intended to provide information that would help us decide which areas should be improved. We can use these lessons to improve our game and also learn from past successes so that we can implement them when developing the new game mode.

Outlaw Heist and State Heist are the main modes. These were examined to find the core problems and frustrations, and then we looked at how these could be solved for Gold Rush.

1. The team became obsessed with heists and wanted to reach the targets as fast as they could. The team often threw out any stealthy techniques.
2. Players didn’t have to participate in all the objectives to win, they could just partake in the final objective and still win.
3. Only one way was available to win: extract the sole treasure chest. This meant that there weren’t any additional ways for players to meaningfully contribute.
4. Many of the most meaningful interactions during a match were around the killing of the chest carrier, or stopping players from winningching at extraction points.

After identifying the key issues we needed to address, it was time to design pillars for our new game mode.

The Pillars of Success

The design pillars can be used when designing features or mechanics for new game modes. They help determine whether a feature will work and deliver the desired gameplay. The following were used for Gold Rush

• Multi-Objective:To make the game more interesting, we wanted the players to be able to complete multiple objectives. Each objective should support different playstyles, such as. killers, collectors, explorers.
• Information: To help players plan their actions, we had to communicate as much as possible. The status of each individual, their team and the enemy team dynamically reflect. All the way to victory, right up until the last second.
• Choice:No one should have to accomplish specific goals in the same order. The main objective should not be imposed on players. They can contribute in whatever order they wish, both individually or as a group.

Objectively

Starting with the first pillar as our filter we created mechanics that allowed players multiple ways to contribute to the game mode’s objective. We created many ways for players to earn gold.

• Treasure chests Gold Rush offers three treasure boxes that can be stolen for large quantities of gold. Every map will spawn in one of three vault locations, each with a single treasure box. The key is required to unlock each vault (which should be taken from the patrolling guards).
• Assassination/Kills: Assasinating guards will result in them dropping a gold pouch that can be taken home by players. Although the pouch will be released upon killing a guard, the gold contained in it is smaller than that of an assassination. Every guard has a different amount of gold in their bag. Different guard archetypes have different amounts. e.g. Knights and soldiers have less gold than Soldiers.
• Hidden treasures There are 20 sub-treasures scattered throughout each level. These treasures are represented by urns. This will give you 50 gold in your wallet.
• Playing for Enemy: The gold that a player has in his wallet will be destroyed if it is used to kill an enemy player. The same rules apply to the players wallet as it does to the guard’s pouch when dropped.
• Capture points:Capture Points is another great way for players to contribute to the objectives. There are three capture points for each level. These are the points where players can bank gold. This makes holding a capture point, and gameplay tactics around them super important – which point do you claim?, when do you claim it?, should I steal an enemy point?

Information is the key

Information is the next pillar. Information was important because it gave players more control over how they deal with the situations during play. This was solved by giving them greater knowledge about the game’s state. They can then decide what they will do in the situation.

There are many game state options available, including vaults and keys. These game states should be clearly and concisely communicated by the HUD. Below is a breakdown of the game state.

• Icons:Icons are used to represent the keys, vaults and treasure boxes. All of these icons can be found on the HUD together.
• Track:The game objective is three separate chains that run on different tracks. To open a vault, the key must be used. The vault also needs to be opened to access the treasure chest. Also, the HUD reflects this. First, the keys icon is shown. After a key has been used, the key will change to a vault. The key icon changes to a treasure box if the key is picked up. The state of each one of these three chains is shown on the track.
• Colour:The use of colour is to identify who has the object or the person that interacted with it. The enemy team is red, the friendly team green, and the state guards neutral are white.
• Animation:To flash icons that have been dropped, a pulsing animation can be used. The key or treasure box.

Importantly, the UI showed the amount of gold each team had banked and the gold each team carries.

These bars represent the total team gold banked. The transparent bar shows how many gold each team has. A solid bar shows team total gold banked. These numbers are also displayed alongside the bar.

Even though this information is important, we didn’t want it to distract or confuse players as to which team is winning. Therefore the team with the most banked gold bar has a highlight that pulses to show they’re in the lead.

Last but not least, we want players to be able to see how much gold or silver a guard, player, or other member of the team has in their wallet. We decided to include this information in the tagging system. Players can identify other players or guards by tagging them. This will allow them to check how much gold they have in their wallet.

While it’s important to provide the players with access to a lot of information, we also need to balance against overwhelming them with too much data which could cause analysis paralysis and prevent the player from enjoying the game.

Players Choice

Multiple objectives allow the player to choose how they wish to approach their decisions in the game mode. I’ll highlight this with a few examples below.

What strategy do I choose to get gold? Are you focusing on the theft of treasure chests or assassinating guards to collect sub-treasures?

The chances are that players will attempt a combination of at least two to three of the objectives. However, it allows them to still contribute towards the overall goal.

Which do I prefer, defensive or offensive? Do I go and harass the enemy team making it hard for them to collect gold but also reducing my team’s gold collecting efficiency?

A treasure chest is hidden in the enemy’s camp. What do you think? Do I hunt the treasure chest, or go to the capture points and stop them banking?

To get better rewards, do I kill the guard or wait to assassinate his body? It is urgent that we get gold to keep up with our enemy team. But will this be enough?

These choices are not all that the player has to make. Each one has a degree of risk. This means there isn’t a dominant strategy so in some games if the player made the less optimal decision this time, next time it might be the more optimal decision.

Different types of player

Player choice is also influenced by the player’s type. Player types are the categories that players can be sorted into, these categories however aren’t rigid as many players fit in multiple categories. The types do influence the player’s choices. Here are some examples of Hood’s player types and their playing styles that can be adapted to gold rush.

• Player vs Player (PvP): Players who play PvP like to challenge other players and get in on the action. They like to interrupt their strategies, keep them from getting the gold they want, and to just stand up to the opposing players.
• Playing against the Environment (PvE). People who are PVE players avoid the PVP. PvE players prefer to be in the physical environment and achieve their goals. The gold rush permits this because they focus their efforts on assassinating guards to obtain gold and claim capture points.
• Explores. Explorers love discovering new things and seeing the world. This is supported by the scattered sub-treasures all over the map. Also, you will need to locate the key locations and vaults.
• Lone WolvesThese players prefer to be alone and not part of a team. This game mode offers multiple methods for players to collect gold, all of which can be used in achieving the goal.
• The Team Players:Team players who enjoy working together to reach goals. The gold rush mode allows team members to choose to concentrate on one method of collecting gold. Or, they can delegate to other team members to do the same method.

Final Thoughts

It’s been a fun and challenging experience to create a new game mode that supports both the existing game pillars of HoodIt adds something different to the game. I believe we’ve created a fun and engaging game mode that provides players with plenty of options and the flexibility to support more emergent gameplay and playstyles.

Gold Rush will be as fun for you as the team created it. This is only the beginning of the journey, as with any live game. Now it’s time for you to start stealing!

Hood: Outlaws & Legends

Focus Home Interactive

☆☆☆☆☆
232

★★★★★

$19.99

We are all Outlaws… but some of us will become Legends.

Rebels and rogues fight to be remembered in a world where the state is uncontrollable and merciless. Rival gangs fight for influence over oppressed populations by daring to rob the rich where they hurt. Only the most talented will be able to escape with their hard-earned fortunes, whether they are folk heroes or outlaws who want gold.

In medieval settings, two teams of four players must execute the ultimate heist. They will be accompanied by AI-controlled guards. You can use your unique talents and mystical powers to either stealthily steal the treasures or take control through brutal, loud fighting.

There will be bloodshed. Wealth will be taken. Legends will rise again.

• Outplay opponents in intense PvPvE multiplayer heists
• Experience a violent medieval world where mysticism competes with man-made power and corruption
• Claim your loot and invest in perks, weapons and bold new looks
• Post-launch support with new maps, characters, game modes and events