Game Design and The Number 3

I got so irritated with Halo 4 last night that I actually turned off the game. In a move that is definitely not restricted to the Halo series or the fine folks at 343 Industries, Cortana, the digital desire of nerdy fetishists the world over, informs Master Chief to disable 3 relays.

This after I'd just spent a chunk of time taking out three other things and disabling three force field installations.

Another "three directive" and I was out. It just struck me as utterly lazy and I turned off the game -- just pressed the power button and was done with it.

But thinking about it for a handful of minutes while brushed my teeth, the number 3 is endemic to games in general. Right back to Super Mario Bros. on the NES, which most everyone has played, as an example. World 1-1, 1-2, 1-3, then the castle level, "Our princess is in another castle," then onward.

Strong Silent Type

I'm glad I'm not the only one that has been picking up on the silent protagonist connection between Dishonored, Half-Life, and BioShock. But the games really do share more in common than just a protagonist that says absolutely nothing in reaction to things happening around him. Even bone-breaking falls illicit little in the way of reaction.

Strong silent type and creepy walkers.
Another  connection with Half-Life.

What really connects these games is the way the story is spun out. There's a mythos to each game that the developers do their best to not spoon feed the player with information about what is happening. The player is left to fill in the blanks from what's laid out in each level, and the bits of evidence and "filler" that textures the whole experience.

In Dishonored, the first time I came across a rat trap I was a little taken aback. Not content with snap traps or poison, Dishonored showcases rat traps as big dumpsters. What they're baited with or how they work isn't provided -- at least not so far, from what I can tell -- but my mind fills in those blanks quite easily.