Aporistic Game Design
What are aporias?
Sudden, puzzling elements of the game that conjure a mystery or a paradox for the player.
As tools of estrangement, aporias break the state of flow and require reflection to resolve.
From Greek ἀπορέω
1.to be at a loss, be in doubt, be puzzled
2.in Dialectic, start a question, raise a difficulty
Why do it?
Disrupting the state of flow incentivizes deeper engagement with the product. Mysteries nurture gaming communities, and targeted disruptions shape and complicate the message of the game.
Cohesively designed aporias lead the players to analyze and produce ideas through the act of play.
Design approach
For a game to be aporistic, it must have a conceptual impasse at the thematic heart of the game. The systems and narrative must be constructed around it in a way that emphasizes the impasse and avoids any definitive resolution.
Such top-down designs need planning and structure. Aporias prioritize precision, unified vision, and polish.
References:
Grey, Sarah Cameron Loyd. 2010. "A refusal to play along: videogaming and ludic thought."
Grey, Sarah Cameron Loyd. 2009. "Dead Time: Aporias and Critical Videogaming." symploke 17 (1): 231-246.
Petrus, Alexandra. 2021. "Dialectical Games: Applying Devices of Epic Theatre to Digital Games Portraying Historical Narratives."
Caracciolo, Marco. 2024. On Soulsring Worlds Narrative Complexity, Digital Communities, and Interpretation in Dark Souls and Elden Ring. Routledge.
Jagoda, Patrick. 2018. "On Difficulty in Video Games: Mechanics, Interpretation, Affect." Critical Inquiry 45 (1): 199-233.
Khusid, Vsevolod. 2024. "Towards Aporistic Games."
