What makes a game, a game

A game is a rule-based system with a variable and quantifiable outcome, where different outcomes are assigned different values, the player exerts effort in order to influence the outcome, the player feels emotionally attached to the outcome, and the consequences of the activity are negotiable. Jasper Juul, half-Real (2005)

Games are the voluntary attempt to overcome unnecessary obstacles. Bernard Suits (1978)

The Witcher 3 examples-

The Witcher 3 rule-based system with a variable and quantifiable outcome is that the player is given a quest that have certain objectives the player must complete in order to complete the quest.

There are often different ways of completing each quest and the way in which the the player completes the quest will determine the outcome (like and increase or decrease in the rewarded gold).

The player can influence the outcome by choosing wether or not to carry out a quest in a certain way (for example a player could choose to simply slay a beast without listening to it and will be given the rewarded gold they were promised or the player could listen to the beast to find out it was cursed and then help the beast by going on a mission to retrieve a certain item to help the beast and be rewarded a larger sum of gold from the beast).

The player will feel emotionally attached to the outcome as the player has the power to either kill a character to help them and both ways will effect the character as well as other characters as well as there reward.

The player can choose to just play the main missions to only get the main story and ignore all over side quests, the consequence of this is that the player will miss out of getting extra gold and items which they otherwise could have got if they were to complete the side quests.


The player can choose to carry out a set of task and overcome obstacles for the quest or not as they are given the freedom to simply ignore the quest entirely.