User:Singingshark/sandbox

Rewards (Video Gaming)

Rewards in video games are often referred to as unlockables, achievements and trophies. Rewards are now such a huge part of gaming, home consoles keep track of the user’s rewards across all the games they have played. Mobile gaming apps also embraces this idea, in the form of daily rewards to keep users returning.

Purpose

Rewards in video games are built to challenge the player whilst keeping them engaged with playing . If the player is engaged, the amount of gameplay is increased and allows the player to do more than simply complete the game's story. Rewards are designed to engage the player and in recent times have been a way for players to earn real life discounts . Modern gaming systems contain built in reward systems that allow users to track which in-game achievements they have earned. Retro gaming systems lack these integrated reward systems however, they often had high score boards and unlockable modes. Ideally rewards should engage the player with a challenge that once beaten, grants the player an unlockable item or gameplay mode.

Methods of obtaining rewards

Pre-order Bonus Rewards 

File:CODprestiege.jpg

The Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Prestige Edition, came bundled with night vision googles, special game box casing and an art book.

Games often offer physical rewards for pre-ordering a game. These rewards will sometimes be real life items such as merchandise. Mario Odyssey for example rewarded customers who pre-ordered with a Mario hat. Other games reward customers with exclusive downloadable content. A common reward for pre-ordering is cosmetic items such as weapons. A reoccurring tend for Pre-orders is collector editions of the game which contain a bundle of real life merchandise and digital goods.

Achievements and Trophies 

The Xbox and Playstation series of consoles reward players with achievements and trophies. In a sense, these rewards are their own meta game which keeps players returning to the game to obtain more trophies. These are rewards set by the developers of the game, following a strict rule set by Microsoft and Sony. They can range from simple tasks such as killing a certain amount of monsters, to group coordinated tasks such as having a certain amount of players online.

Game Completion

Completing a game within a certain time limit or percentage can reward the player with new modes or characters. The Resident Evil series of games are well known for this method of unlocking rewards. This type of reward unlocking isn't just restricted to percentage completion or a time limit, as some games reward the player for completing the game once.

Defeating bosses

Traditionally a boss will reward the player with loot upon defeat. This loot is normally better equipment for the player character. Depending on the genre of game the user is playing, these rewards will vary. Tekken for example rewards the player with a narrative cutscene. RPGs that have branching narrative such as Fallout, will have bosses that can be beaten in different ways resulting in various rewards.

Internet Usage 

Most commonly found in mobile gaming though the use of daily or weekly rewards. These rewards are prizes given to the player for logging into the game on a regularly basis. These are prominent in casual games such as Simpson's Tapped Out. Where players get a free scratch card once a day which lets them win in game currency. These also occur disguised as daily challenges which, reward the player with premium currency for completion of a task. This method of rewards is also widespread across the MMORPG game genre. Final Fantasy XIV contain veteran rewards which rewards the player for being subscribed to the game for a certain amount of time.

Item Collection 

Certain genres of games like to task players with the job of collecting a certain number of items. In The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, the player can collect Korok seeds which reward the player with an increased inventory. Most commonly seen in platforming games such as Banjo-Kazooie. Where if player collected enough items, they would be rewarded with power ups and new worlds to explore.

Leveling up 

Typically, leveling up in a game will reward the player with a new skill or weapon but depending on the genre of game, different rewards will be available. Certain mobile games will reward the player with a small amount of premium currency. Genres that never used to use leveling up now do. Such as games like Call of Duty 4:Modern Warfare which popularised the level up mechanic within the FPS genre.

In-Game Currency 

Certain games have their own reward shop menu, where players can spend the in-game currency to unlock rewards. Games such as Mortal Kombat often include these reward shops as a way to unlock rewards.

Types of Rewards

There are various types of rewards ranging from gameplay modes to cosmetic items, depending on the genre of game. Modes are an extremely common type of reward as they offer new gameplay. Unlockable modes are usually new game plus, Boss Rush and harder difficulty modes. Certain games have variation modes. Such as in Resident Evil 2 which contains the Tofu Survivor mode, where the player gets to play as a block of tofu with restricted weapons and healing items.

Personal rewards are rewards that aren't included within the game but are still rewarding to the player. These can range from setting a new high score to creating a guild in a MMO game. This type of reward can be seen in the speed-running communities and with MMO raid teams, attempting to get world first clears in raids.

Some rewards are in the form of optional side quests. These types of rewards are to allow the player more game time and upon completion of the quests, often reward the player with currency or a unique weapon.

Life simulation games such as The Sims, offer cosmetic rewards via its career rewards system. The most prominent genre to reward players with cosmetics is MMORPGs, where players are rewarded outfits and mounts in exchange for long-time subscription. Cosmetics have seen a shift to micro-transactions in recent times such as, extra outfits for characters in fighting games.

Additional characters to add to the games current roster is a common reoccurring reward, within the fighting game genre and the Mario Kart series of games. Although recently extra characters have seen a transformation into DLC rather than rewards.

"Behind the scenes" type of rewards are primary used in games that offer a reward store. These rewards are usually artwork, “creation of” videos, developer interviews, comedic movie clips and even secret messages from the developers.