Time-keeping systems in games
Encyclopedia
In video and other game
s, the passage of time
must be handled in a way that players find fair and easy to understand. This is usually done in one of two ways:
Real-time gameplay is the dominant form of time-keeping found in simulation video game
s, and has to a large degree supplanted turn-based systems in other video game genres as well (for instance real-time strategy
). Time is an important factor in most sports; and many, such as soccer or basketball
, are almost entirely simultaneous in nature, retaining only a very limited notion of turns in specific instances, such as the free kick
in soccer and the free throw
and shot clock
in basketball. In the card games Nertz
and Ligretto
, players must compete to discard their cards as quickly as possible and do not take turns.
While game time in video games is in fact subdivided into discrete units due to the sequential nature of computing, these intervals or units are typically so small as to be imperceptible to the player.
Turn-based games come in two main forms depending on whether, within a turn, players play simultaneously or take their turns in sequence. The former games fall under the category of simultaneously-executed games (also called phase-based or "We-Go"), with Diplomacy
being a notable example of this style of game. The latter games fall into player-alternated games (also called "I-Go-You-Go", or "IGOUGO" for short), and are further subdivided into (A) ranked, (B) round-robin start and (C) random—the difference being the order under which players start within a turn: (A) the first player being the same every time, (B) the first player selection policy is round-robin
, and (C) the first player is randomly selected. Some games also base the order of play on an "initiative
" score that may in part be based on other, outside factors as well as dice rolls.
The term turn-based gaming is also used in Play-by-mail game
s and to refer to browser-based
gaming sites that allow for game-play to extend beyond a single session, over long periods of time—often taking months for complex games like Go
or chess
to finish.
, for instance, a pair of stop clocks may be used in order to place an upper limit on the game length.
In exchange chess, four players on two teams play on two boards with each team taking one white and one black side. Any taken piece is given to a teammate, and can be placed on his board as a standard move (in any position that does not put his opponent in check). A common strategy is to gain a temporary material advantage, pass it on to a teammate, and then stop playing on one's own board—thereby allowing the teammate to use the advantage for many future moves on his board. To avoid this, players are often limited to ten seconds per move—with their opponent being allowed to remove one of the player's pawns from the board for each additional ten seconds consumed.
Puzzle games such as the Bejeweled
series (2001-) often feature time limits that can be extended through skilled play.
The turn-based strategy
game Utopia
(1982) featured an early example of timed turns. The early Ultima role-playing video game
s were strictly turn-based, but starting with Ultima III: Exodus (1983), if the player waited too long to issue a command, the game would issue a "pass" command automatically, thereby allowing enemies to take their turns while the player character
did nothing. Further, many browser-based games allocate a number of turns that can be played within a certain period of time, called a tick (see next section).
Time compression is a feature commonly found in real-time games such as flight simulator
s, that allows the player to speed up the game time by some (usually adjustable) factor. This permits the player to shorten the subjective duration of relatively uneventful periods of gameplay.
s, tick-based games differ from other turn-based games in that ticks always occur after the same amount of time has expired. Conversely, in a typical turn-based game, a turn would end only once every player has made all of his or her moves. In real-time games players are not limited, time-wise, in the number of actions they can take.
In some real-time games, a notion of rounds exists, whereby game actions are timed according to a common interval that is longer than 'real time'. For instance, units might only begin or cease to act at the beginning or end of a round. In video games such as the Baldur's Gate
(1998–2001) and Neverwinter Nights
(2002–2008) series, the notion of rounds is carried over in part from the pen-and-paper rule systems they are based upon; and a similar (but unrelated) example is when a game unit's ability to act is limited by the length of its combat animation, in which case the unit may become unresponsive until the animation has completed.
Online turn-based gaming uses the term rounds differently: in these games a round refers to when a new game begins following the completion of a previous one (i.e. after someone or some group of people has "won").
in Final Fantasy IV
(1991). In this system, time-keeping does not stop at the end of a turn. Instead, each character has an ATB meter that gradually fills over time in real time, and players must think and act quickly lest they miss their chance to take their turn. Once filled, the player is allowed to issue a command for that character. The fact that enemies can attack or be attacked at any time is credited with injecting urgency and excitement into the combat system. The ATB system was fully developed in Final Fantasy V
(1992), which improved it by introducing a time gauge to indicate to the player which character's turn is next. The ATB system has since been used in most later Final Fantasy
role-playing video games until Final Fantasy X-2
(2003) as well as other Square games such as Chrono Trigger
(1995). Final Fantasy VII
also introduced "limit breaks", which allowed players to make an extra, high-powered attack when a character suffered sufficient damage. On March 16, 1992 Square Co.
, Ltd. filed a United States patent application
for the ATB system under the title, "Video game apparatus, method and device for controlling same", and was awarded the patent on February 21, 1995.
(2003), and the Combat Mission (2000–2007) and Master of Orion
(1993–2003) series.
Clock-based games tie all unit actions directly to the game clock. Turns begin and end depending on the duration specified for each action, resulting in a sequence of turns that is highly variable and has no set order. This system is frequently cited for its realism when compared to other turn-based systems. It is also possible in this system for different players' actions to occur at the same time with respect to the game clock, as in real-time or simultaneously-executed games. Examples of video games that use this type of system include Typhoon of Steel (1988) and MechForce (1991), both originally for the Amiga
.
(2003) and Final Fantasy Tactics
(1997).
Some games—notably, the X-COM
series (1993–1998) of video games and the board wargame
, Advanced Squad Leader
(1985)—allow players to act outside of their normal turn by providing a means of interrupting an opponent's turn and executing additional actions. Typically, the number and type of actions a player may take during an interrupt sequence is limited by the amount of points remaining in the player's action point
pool (or something similar) carried over from the previous turn.
The Silent Storm
(2003–2004) video game series includes an "Interrupt" statistic for each character to determine the likelihood of out-of-turn action. In the video game M.A.X. (1996), defensive units may be set to fire out of turn at the expense of being able to fire in their own turn. In the board game Tide of Iron
, the player may play a card that allows him to interrupt an opponent's turn and perform an action. In both Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
(2003) and Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time
(2005), the player has a chance to "counterattack" on the enemy's turn, causing damage.
(1974), every third player turn is "night turn" where combat is not allowed.
Other turn-based games feature several phases dedicated to different types of activities within each turn. In the Battle Isle
(1991–2001) series of video games players issue movement orders for all units in one phase, and attack orders in a later phase. In the board game Agricola (2007) turns are divided into three phases: "Upkeep", "Replenishing" and "Work". A fourth phase, "Harvest", occurs every few turns.
(1997) and Silent Storm
(2003) are turn-based during the combat phase, and real-time throughout the remainder of the game. This speeds up portions of the game (such as exploration) where the careful timing of actions is not crucial to player success. Some turn-based games have been criticized for omitting this feature.
Other video games, such as the Total War series (2000–2009), X-COM
(1993) and Jagged Alliance 2
(1999), combine a turn-based strategic
layer with real-time tactical
combat or vice versa.
Lastly, the video games X-COM: Apocalypse
(1997), Fallout Tactics (2001) and Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura
(2001) offered players the option to play in either turn-based or real-time mode via an configuration setting. The latter also offered a "fast turn-based" mode, though all three of the game's modes were criticized for being poorly balanced and overly simplified.
; and it can resolve issues that arise in other real-time games where orders must be given to multiple units at the same time (normally an impossibility in real-time games), and where players desire extra time for analysis before issuing actions.
The pausable real-time system was popularized among computer role-playing games
by the Baldur's Gate
series (1998–2001), though it was also present in the pioneering real-time strategy
game, Homeworld
(1999), as well as earlier role-playing games such as Knights of Xentar
(1991), Darklands (1992), Secret of Mana
(1993) and Parasite Eve
(1998). Further, it is used exclusively in the slow-paced grand strategy games
developed by Paradox Interactive
; and like SimCity
(1989) before it, was the originally intended mode of the Civilization
series (1991-) before the developers decided to switch to turn-based. A variation of active pause, called "Smart Pause Mode", is also an advertised feature of Apeiron's Brigade E5: New Jagged Union
(2006) and 7.62: High Calibre (2007).
There are several variations of pausable real-time combat. In Parasite Eve and Vagrant Story
(2000), the player could pause to take aim with a weapon, in Vagrant Story's case allowing specific body parts to be targeted — a mechanic later re-used in Fallout 3
(2008) and Last Rebellion
(2010). Final Fantasy XII
(2006) expanded on active pause combat with its "gambits" system, which allows players to collect and apply preferences to the artificial intelligence routines of partner characters, who will perform certain actions in response to certain conditions. A similar "tactics" system later appeared in Dragon Age: Origins
(2009) and Dragon Age II
(2011).
Knights of Xentar and Secret of Mana also allowed adjustable artificial intelligence
to take control during combat. In Baldur's Gate' s case, players also have the option to allow the artificial intelligence to take control during combat, though they can press the spacebar at any time to regain control of their characters. Further, players are able to configure the game to automatically pause when certain conditions are met, such as at the end of an arbitrary round or upon the death of a non-player character
.
Various arguments are made by proponents. Arguments made in favor of turn-based systems include:
Arguments made in favor of real-time systems include:
Game
A game is structured playing, usually undertaken for enjoyment and sometimes used as an educational tool. Games are distinct from work, which is usually carried out for remuneration, and from art, which is more often an expression of aesthetic or ideological elements...
s, the passage of time
Time
Time is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....
must be handled in a way that players find fair and easy to understand. This is usually done in one of two ways:
Real-time
In real-time games, game time progresses continuously according to the game clock. Players perform actions simultaneously as opposed to in sequential units or turns. Players must perform actions with the consideration that their opponents are actively working against them in real time, and may act at any moment. This introduces time management considerations and additional challenges (such as physical coordination in the case of video games).Real-time gameplay is the dominant form of time-keeping found in simulation video game
Simulation video game
A simulation video game describes a diverse super-category of computer and video games, generally designed to closely simulate aspects of a real or fictional reality.-Sub-genres:-Construction and management simulation:...
s, and has to a large degree supplanted turn-based systems in other video game genres as well (for instance real-time strategy
Real-time strategy
Real-time strategy is a sub-genre of strategy video game which does not progress incrementally in turns. Brett Sperry is credited with coining the term to market Dune II....
). Time is an important factor in most sports; and many, such as soccer or basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, are almost entirely simultaneous in nature, retaining only a very limited notion of turns in specific instances, such as the free kick
Free kick
A free kick is used to restart play in several codes of football:Association football* Direct free kick, from which one may score directly* Indirect free kick, from which one may not score directlyAmerican football;* Safety kick...
in soccer and the free throw
Free throw
In basketball, free throws or foul shots are unopposed attempts to score points from a restricted area on the court , and are generally awarded after a foul on the shooter by the opposing team...
and shot clock
Shot clock
A shot clock is used in some sports to quicken the pace of the game. It is normally associated with basketball, but has also found use in sports such as snooker, professional lacrosse, water polo, and korfball....
in basketball. In the card games Nertz
Nertz
Nertz is a fast-paced, real-time, multiplayer card game involving multiple decks of playing cards. It is often described as a combination of the card games Speed and Solitaire....
and Ligretto
Ligretto
Ligretto is a card game for two to twelve players. The aim of the game is to get rid of all your cards faster than all the other players by discarding them in the middle of the table. Instead of taking turns, all players play simultaneously. Play is fast and lively, and demands attention to the...
, players must compete to discard their cards as quickly as possible and do not take turns.
While game time in video games is in fact subdivided into discrete units due to the sequential nature of computing, these intervals or units are typically so small as to be imperceptible to the player.
Turn-based
In turn-based games, game flow is partitioned into well-defined and visible parts, called turns. A player of a turn-based game is allowed a period of analysis (sometimes bounded, sometimes unbounded) before committing to a game action, ensuring a separation between the game flow and the thinking process, which in turn presumably leads to better choices. Once every player has taken his or her turn, that round of play is over, and any special shared processing is done. This is followed by the next round of play. In games where the game flow unit is time, turns may represent such things as years, months, weeks or days.Turn-based games come in two main forms depending on whether, within a turn, players play simultaneously or take their turns in sequence. The former games fall under the category of simultaneously-executed games (also called phase-based or "We-Go"), with Diplomacy
Diplomacy (game)
Diplomacy is a strategic board game created by Allan B. Calhamer in 1954 and released commercially in 1959. Its main distinctions from most board wargames are its negotiation phases and the absence of dice or other game elements that produce random effects...
being a notable example of this style of game. The latter games fall into player-alternated games (also called "I-Go-You-Go", or "IGOUGO" for short), and are further subdivided into (A) ranked, (B) round-robin start and (C) random—the difference being the order under which players start within a turn: (A) the first player being the same every time, (B) the first player selection policy is round-robin
Round-robin
The term round-robin was originally used to describe a document signed by multiple parties in a circle to make it more difficult to determine the order in which it was signed, thus preventing a ringleader from being identified...
, and (C) the first player is randomly selected. Some games also base the order of play on an "initiative
Initiative (role-playing games)
In role-playing games and some table-top wargames, a character's initiative is a statistic which determines the order in which player characters take actions, especially during combat or other forms of conflict resolution....
" score that may in part be based on other, outside factors as well as dice rolls.
The term turn-based gaming is also used in Play-by-mail game
Play-by-mail game
Play-by-mail games, sometimes known as "Play-by-post", are games, of any type, played through postal mail or e-mail. One example, chess, has been played by mail for centuries . Another example, Diplomacy, has been played by mail since the 1960s, starting with a printed newsletter written by John...
s and to refer to browser-based
Browser game
A browser game is a computer game that is played over the Internet using a web browser. Browser games can be created and run using standard web technologies or browser plug-ins. Browser games include all video game genres and can be single-player or multiplayer...
gaming sites that allow for game-play to extend beyond a single session, over long periods of time—often taking months for complex games like Go
Go (board game)
Go , is an ancient board game for two players that originated in China more than 2,000 years ago...
or chess
Chess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
to finish.
Sub-types
Various adaptations of the real-time and turn-based systems have been implemented to address common or perceived shortcomings of these systems (though they often introduce new issues that did not exist before). These include:Timed turns and time compression
Timed turns are designed to resolve issues of fairness where one player uses a greater amount of time to complete his or her turn than another player. In chessChess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
, for instance, a pair of stop clocks may be used in order to place an upper limit on the game length.
In exchange chess, four players on two teams play on two boards with each team taking one white and one black side. Any taken piece is given to a teammate, and can be placed on his board as a standard move (in any position that does not put his opponent in check). A common strategy is to gain a temporary material advantage, pass it on to a teammate, and then stop playing on one's own board—thereby allowing the teammate to use the advantage for many future moves on his board. To avoid this, players are often limited to ten seconds per move—with their opponent being allowed to remove one of the player's pawns from the board for each additional ten seconds consumed.
Puzzle games such as the Bejeweled
Bejeweled (series)
Bejeweled is the name of the first game and series of puzzle games created by PopCap Games, first developed for browsers in 2001. Four follow-ups to this game have been released, Bejeweled 2, in 2004, Bejeweled Twist in 2008, Bejeweled Blitz in 2009, and Bejeweled 3 in 2010, all also by PopCap...
series (2001-) often feature time limits that can be extended through skilled play.
The turn-based strategy
Turn-based strategy
A turn-based strategy game is a strategy game where players take turns when playing...
game Utopia
Utopia (video game)
Utopia is a video game, released on Intellivision in 1981 and often regarded as among the first sim games and god games. It is also regarded as setting the scene for the real-time strategy genre. It was designed and programmed by Don Daglow....
(1982) featured an early example of timed turns. The early Ultima role-playing video game
Role-playing video game
Role-playing video games are a video game genre with origins in pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, using much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics. The player in RPGs controls one character, or several adventuring party members, fulfilling one or many quests...
s were strictly turn-based, but starting with Ultima III: Exodus (1983), if the player waited too long to issue a command, the game would issue a "pass" command automatically, thereby allowing enemies to take their turns while the player character
Player character
A player character or playable character is a character in a video game or role playing game who is controlled or controllable by a player, and is typically a protagonist of the story told in the course of the game. A player character is a persona of the player who controls it. Player characters...
did nothing. Further, many browser-based games allocate a number of turns that can be played within a certain period of time, called a tick (see next section).
Time compression is a feature commonly found in real-time games such as flight simulator
Flight simulator
A flight simulator is a device that artificially re-creates aircraft flight and various aspects of the flight environment. This includes the equations that govern how aircraft fly, how they react to applications of their controls and other aircraft systems, and how they react to the external...
s, that allows the player to speed up the game time by some (usually adjustable) factor. This permits the player to shorten the subjective duration of relatively uneventful periods of gameplay.
Ticks and rounds
A tick-based game is a game that is played using ticks, or units of time. Not to be confused with a game round, a tick can be any measurement of real time, from seconds to days or even months, and is the basic unit upon which all important game actions take place. Players in tick-based games are allocated a certain number of turns per tick, which are subsequently refreshed at the beginning of each new tick. Predominantly found in browser-based MMORPGMMORPG
Massively multiplayer online role-playing game is a genre of role-playing video games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world....
s, tick-based games differ from other turn-based games in that ticks always occur after the same amount of time has expired. Conversely, in a typical turn-based game, a turn would end only once every player has made all of his or her moves. In real-time games players are not limited, time-wise, in the number of actions they can take.
In some real-time games, a notion of rounds exists, whereby game actions are timed according to a common interval that is longer than 'real time'. For instance, units might only begin or cease to act at the beginning or end of a round. In video games such as the Baldur's Gate
Baldur's Gate (series)
Baldur's Gate is a franchise of action role-playing games released under the Dungeons & Dragons Video Game Licenses. It is set in the fictional campaign setting of Forgotten Realms and takes place in its fictional continent of Faerûn. It takes place mostly in the Western Heartlands, but has also...
(1998–2001) and Neverwinter Nights
Neverwinter Nights (series)
Neverwinter Nights is a series of video games developed by BioWare, Obsidian Entertainment and Cryptic Studios, based on the Forgotten Realms campaign setting of the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game...
(2002–2008) series, the notion of rounds is carried over in part from the pen-and-paper rule systems they are based upon; and a similar (but unrelated) example is when a game unit's ability to act is limited by the length of its combat animation, in which case the unit may become unresponsive until the animation has completed.
Online turn-based gaming uses the term rounds differently: in these games a round refers to when a new game begins following the completion of a previous one (i.e. after someone or some group of people has "won").
Active Time Battle
The "Active Time Battle" system was introduced by Hiroyuki ItoHiroyuki Ito
, also credited with the spelling Hiroyuki Itou, is a Japanese game producer, game director and game designer who has been working for Square Enix since 1987. He is famous for being the creator of Active Time Battle and Active Dimension Battle...
in Final Fantasy IV
Final Fantasy IV
is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square in 1991 as a part of the Final Fantasy series. The game was originally released for the Super Famicom in Japan and has since then been rereleased for many other platforms with varying modifications. An enhanced remake with 3D graphics...
(1991). In this system, time-keeping does not stop at the end of a turn. Instead, each character has an ATB meter that gradually fills over time in real time, and players must think and act quickly lest they miss their chance to take their turn. Once filled, the player is allowed to issue a command for that character. The fact that enemies can attack or be attacked at any time is credited with injecting urgency and excitement into the combat system. The ATB system was fully developed in Final Fantasy V
Final Fantasy V
is a medieval-fantasy role-playing video game developed and published by Square in 1992 as a part of the Final Fantasy series. The game first appeared only in Japan on Nintendo's Super Famicom . It has been ported with minor differences to Sony's PlayStation and Nintendo's Game Boy Advance...
(1992), which improved it by introducing a time gauge to indicate to the player which character's turn is next. The ATB system has since been used in most later Final Fantasy
Final Fantasy
is a media franchise created by Hironobu Sakaguchi, and is developed and owned by Square Enix . The franchise centers on a series of fantasy and science-fantasy role-playing video games , but includes motion pictures, anime, printed media, and other merchandise...
role-playing video games until Final Fantasy X-2
Final Fantasy X-2
is a console role-playing game developed and published by Square for Sony's PlayStation 2. It was released in 2003 and is the sequel to the best-selling 2001 game Final Fantasy X...
(2003) as well as other Square games such as Chrono Trigger
Chrono Trigger
is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1995. Chrono Triggers development team included three designers that Square dubbed the "Dream Team": Hironobu Sakaguchi, the creator of Square's Final Fantasy series; Yuji Horii, a...
(1995). Final Fantasy VII
Final Fantasy VII
is a role-playing video game developed by Square and published by Sony Computer Entertainment as the seventh installment in the Final Fantasy series. It was originally released in 1997 for the Sony PlayStation and was re-released in 1998 for Microsoft Windows-based personal computers and in 2009...
also introduced "limit breaks", which allowed players to make an extra, high-powered attack when a character suffered sufficient damage. On March 16, 1992 Square Co.
Square Co.
was a Japanese video game company founded in September 1983 by Masafumi Miyamoto. It merged with Enix in 2003 and became part of Square Enix...
, Ltd. filed a United States patent application
Patent application
A patent application is a request pending at a patent office for the grant of a patent for the invention described and claimed by that application. An application consists of a description of the invention , together with official forms and correspondence relating to the application...
for the ATB system under the title, "Video game apparatus, method and device for controlling same", and was awarded the patent on February 21, 1995.
Simultaneously-executed and clock-based turns
In simultaneously-executed games (also called "phase-based" or "We-Go"), turns are separated into two distinct phases: decision and execution. During the decision phase each player plans and determines his units' actions. The decision phase occurs at the same time for everyone, so there is little wait for anyone to finish. In the execution phase, all players' decisions are put into action, and these actions are performed more or less automatically and at the same time. The execution phase is non-interactive, and there is no waiting for other players to complete their turns. Video game examples include Laser Squad NemesisLaser Squad Nemesis
Laser Squad Nemesis was a 2002 multiplayer turn-based tactics computer game developed by Codo Technologies. The lead designer, Julian Gollop, previously designed the X-COM series and the original Laser Squad.-Gameplay:...
(2003), and the Combat Mission (2000–2007) and Master of Orion
Master of Orion
Master of Orion is a turn-based, 4X science fiction computer strategy game released in 1993 by MicroProse on the MS-DOS and Mac OS operating systems. The purpose of the game is to lead one of ten races to dominate the galaxy through a combination of diplomacy and conquest while developing...
(1993–2003) series.
Clock-based games tie all unit actions directly to the game clock. Turns begin and end depending on the duration specified for each action, resulting in a sequence of turns that is highly variable and has no set order. This system is frequently cited for its realism when compared to other turn-based systems. It is also possible in this system for different players' actions to occur at the same time with respect to the game clock, as in real-time or simultaneously-executed games. Examples of video games that use this type of system include Typhoon of Steel (1988) and MechForce (1991), both originally for the Amiga
Amiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
.
Unit initiative and acting outside one's turn
In some games the sequence of turns depends on the initiative statistic of each unit no matter which side the unit belongs to. Games of this type are still technically sequential (e.g. "I-Go-You-Go"), as only one unit can perform an action at a time, and the duration of actions is not tied to the game clock. Examples include the video games The Temple of Elemental EvilThe Temple of Elemental Evil (computer game)
The Temple of Elemental Evil is a computer role-playing game by now-defunct Troika Games. It is a re-creation of the classic Dungeons & Dragons adventure of the same name using the 3.5 edition rules. The game was published by Atari, who then held the interactive rights of the Dungeons & Dragons...
(2003) and Final Fantasy Tactics
Final Fantasy Tactics
is a tactical role-playing game developed and published by Square for the Sony PlayStation video game console. It is the first game of the Final Fantasy Tactics series and was released in Japan in June 1997 and in the United States in January 1998...
(1997).
Some games—notably, the X-COM
X-COM
X-COM is a series of strategy games created by Julian Gollop. In 2010 2K Marin announced the official reboot of the series, entitled simply XCOM. The original game has a cult following.- Original series :...
series (1993–1998) of video games and the board wargame
Wargaming
A wargame is a strategy game that deals with military operations of various types, real or fictional. Wargaming is the hobby dedicated to the play of such games, which can also be called conflict simulations, or consims for short. When used professionally to study warfare, it is generally known as...
, Advanced Squad Leader
Advanced Squad Leader
Advanced Squad Leader is a tactical-level board wargame, originally marketed by Avalon Hill Games, that simulates actions of approximately company or battalion size in World War II. It is a detailed game system for two or more players . Components include the ASL Rulebook and various games called...
(1985)—allow players to act outside of their normal turn by providing a means of interrupting an opponent's turn and executing additional actions. Typically, the number and type of actions a player may take during an interrupt sequence is limited by the amount of points remaining in the player's action point
Action point
An action point, commonly abbreviated AP, is a point in games to determine how much action a player, unit, or video game character can do in a single turn.Within computer and video games they are predominantly used in the turn-based tactics genre...
pool (or something similar) carried over from the previous turn.
The Silent Storm
Silent Storm
Silent Storm is a tactical role-playing game for Microsoft Windows, developed by Russian developer Nival Interactive and published by JoWood in 2003. The game is set in World War II Europe. The player commands a team of up to six elite soldiers on the Axis or Allied side, undertaking a variety of...
(2003–2004) video game series includes an "Interrupt" statistic for each character to determine the likelihood of out-of-turn action. In the video game M.A.X. (1996), defensive units may be set to fire out of turn at the expense of being able to fire in their own turn. In the board game Tide of Iron
Tide of Iron
Tide of Iron is a wargame designed and published by Fantasy Flight Games, also notable for publishing other large games containing a large number of counters and/or other components such as World of Warcraft: The Board Game and Arkham Horror....
, the player may play a card that allows him to interrupt an opponent's turn and perform an action. In both Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, known in Japan as , is a role-playing game developed by AlphaDream and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance in 2003...
(2003) and Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time
Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time
Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time, known in Japan as , is a role-playing game developed by AlphaDream and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS handheld game console in 2005. It is the second game in the Mario and Luigi RPG series, and is the sequel to Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga for the Game...
(2005), the player has a chance to "counterattack" on the enemy's turn, causing damage.
Special turns and phases
In some turn-based games, not all turns are alike. The board game Imperium Romanum II (1985), for instance, features a "Taxation and Mobilization" phase in every third turn (month), which does not occur in the other turns. In the board game NapoleonNapoleon (game)
Napoleon is a strategic-level board wargame covering the Waterloo Campaign of the Hundred Days after Napoleon's return from Elba starting with the French invasion of Belgium on June 15, 1815...
(1974), every third player turn is "night turn" where combat is not allowed.
Other turn-based games feature several phases dedicated to different types of activities within each turn. In the Battle Isle
Battle Isle series
Battle Isle is a series of turn-based tactics computer games developed in the 1990s by Blue Byte Software. The settings are wars on a fictional planet, Chromos.-Storyline:...
(1991–2001) series of video games players issue movement orders for all units in one phase, and attack orders in a later phase. In the board game Agricola (2007) turns are divided into three phases: "Upkeep", "Replenishing" and "Work". A fourth phase, "Harvest", occurs every few turns.
Partially or optionally turn-based and real-time
Many other games that are not generally turn-based retain the notion of turn-based play during specific sequences. For example, the role-playing video games FalloutFallout (computer game)
Fallout is a computer role-playing game produced by Tim Cain, developed and published by Interplay in 1997. The game has a post-apocalyptic and retro-futuristic setting in the mid-22nd century, featuring an alternate history which deviates some time after World War II, where technology, politics...
(1997) and Silent Storm
Silent Storm
Silent Storm is a tactical role-playing game for Microsoft Windows, developed by Russian developer Nival Interactive and published by JoWood in 2003. The game is set in World War II Europe. The player commands a team of up to six elite soldiers on the Axis or Allied side, undertaking a variety of...
(2003) are turn-based during the combat phase, and real-time throughout the remainder of the game. This speeds up portions of the game (such as exploration) where the careful timing of actions is not crucial to player success. Some turn-based games have been criticized for omitting this feature.
Other video games, such as the Total War series (2000–2009), X-COM
X-COM
X-COM is a series of strategy games created by Julian Gollop. In 2010 2K Marin announced the official reboot of the series, entitled simply XCOM. The original game has a cult following.- Original series :...
(1993) and Jagged Alliance 2
Jagged Alliance 2
Jagged Alliance 2 is a tactical role-playing game for PC, released in 1999 for Windows, and later ported to Linux by Tribsoft. It is the third game in the Jagged Alliance series, and was followed by two expansions: Unfinished Business and Wildfire...
(1999), combine a turn-based strategic
Turn-based strategy
A turn-based strategy game is a strategy game where players take turns when playing...
layer with real-time tactical
Real-time tactics
Real-time tactics or RTT is a subgenre of tactical wargames played in real-time simulating the considerations and circumstances of operational warfare and military tactics...
combat or vice versa.
Lastly, the video games X-COM: Apocalypse
X-COM: Apocalypse
- Story :Half a century after the end of the second X-COM campaign, the last battle of T'leth has severely damaged Earth's biosphere. As a result, several self-contained Megalopolis-type cities were proposed to provide habitation for humanity. The game follows Mega-Primus, the first of these...
(1997), Fallout Tactics (2001) and Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura
Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura
Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura is a single player / multi-player computer role-playing game developed by Troika Games and published by Sierra Entertainment. It was released in North America and Europe in August 2001 for Microsoft Windows...
(2001) offered players the option to play in either turn-based or real-time mode via an configuration setting. The latter also offered a "fast turn-based" mode, though all three of the game's modes were criticized for being poorly balanced and overly simplified.
Pausable real-time
In real-time games with an active pause system (also called "pausable real-time", "real-time with pause" or "smart pause"), players are able to pause the game and issue orders such that once a game is un-paused, orders are automatically put into effect. This type of system can offer additional tactical options compared to games like DiabloDiablo (video game)
Diablo is a dark fantasy-themed action role-playing game developed by Blizzard North and released by Blizzard Entertainment on December 31, 1996....
; and it can resolve issues that arise in other real-time games where orders must be given to multiple units at the same time (normally an impossibility in real-time games), and where players desire extra time for analysis before issuing actions.
The pausable real-time system was popularized among computer role-playing games
Role-playing video game
Role-playing video games are a video game genre with origins in pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, using much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics. The player in RPGs controls one character, or several adventuring party members, fulfilling one or many quests...
by the Baldur's Gate
Baldur's Gate (series)
Baldur's Gate is a franchise of action role-playing games released under the Dungeons & Dragons Video Game Licenses. It is set in the fictional campaign setting of Forgotten Realms and takes place in its fictional continent of Faerûn. It takes place mostly in the Western Heartlands, but has also...
series (1998–2001), though it was also present in the pioneering real-time strategy
Real-time strategy
Real-time strategy is a sub-genre of strategy video game which does not progress incrementally in turns. Brett Sperry is credited with coining the term to market Dune II....
game, Homeworld
Homeworld
Homeworld is a real-time strategy computer game released on September 28, 1999, developed by Relic Entertainment and published by Sierra Entertainment. It was the first fully three-dimensional RTS. In 2003, Relic released the source code for Homeworld...
(1999), as well as earlier role-playing games such as Knights of Xentar
Knights of Xentar
Knights of Xentar is an eroge role-playing video game released for PC DOS in North America in 1995 by Megatech Software. It is also known as Dragon Knight III in Japan and is part of the Dragon Knight series of games created by Japanese game developer ELF, who originally released the game for the...
(1991), Darklands (1992), Secret of Mana
Secret of Mana
Secret of Mana is an action role-playing game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System developed and published by Square in 1993. The game was re-released for the Wii's Virtual Console in 2008, and was ported to Japanese mobile phones in 2009...
(1993) and Parasite Eve
Parasite Eve
Parasite Eve is a Japanese science fiction novel by Hideaki Sena, first published in Kadokawa Horror Bunko in 1996. The book was published in North America by Vertical, Inc. in 2005....
(1998). Further, it is used exclusively in the slow-paced grand strategy games
Grand strategy wargame
A grand strategy wargame is a wargame that places focus on grand strategy: military strategy at the level of movement and use of an entire nation state or empire's resources.-Scope of games:...
developed by Paradox Interactive
Paradox Interactive
-External links:*...
; and like SimCity
SimCity
SimCity is a critically acclaimed city-building simulation video game, first released in 1989, and designed by Will Wright. SimCity was Maxis' first product, which has since been ported into various personal computers and game consoles, and spawned several sequels including SimCity 2000 in 1994,...
(1989) before it, was the originally intended mode of the Civilization
Civilization (series)
Civilization is a series of turn-based strategy, 4X video games produced by Sid Meier. Basic gameplay functions are similar throughout the series, namely, buiding a civilization on a macro-scale from prehistory up to the near future...
series (1991-) before the developers decided to switch to turn-based. A variation of active pause, called "Smart Pause Mode", is also an advertised feature of Apeiron's Brigade E5: New Jagged Union
Brigade E5: New Jagged Union
Brigade E5: New Jagged Union is a real-time tactical role-playing game game developed by Russian developer Aperion. It was released in 2005 in Russia, and on 17 October 2006 in North America. It has received poor reviews and has a rating of 41 out of 100 from Metacritic...
(2006) and 7.62: High Calibre (2007).
There are several variations of pausable real-time combat. In Parasite Eve and Vagrant Story
Vagrant Story
is a Japanese-developed console role-playing game developed and published by Square for the PlayStation video game console. The game was released in 2000, and has been re-released through the PlayStation Network for the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable consoles eleven years later...
(2000), the player could pause to take aim with a weapon, in Vagrant Story's case allowing specific body parts to be targeted — a mechanic later re-used in Fallout 3
Fallout 3
Fallout 3 is an action role-playing game released by Bethesda Game Studios, and the third major installment in the Fallout series. The game was released in North America, Europe and Australia in October 2008, and in Japan in December 2008 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360...
(2008) and Last Rebellion
Last Rebellion
Last Rebellion is a console role-playing video game developed by Nippon Ichi Software and Hit Maker and published by Nippon Ichi Software in Japan as well as in North America and Tecmo Koei in Europe exclusively for the PlayStation 3...
(2010). Final Fantasy XII
Final Fantasy XII
is a console role-playing video game developed and published by Square Enix for the PlayStation 2. Released in 2006, it is the twelfth title in the Final Fantasy series and the last in the series to be released exclusively on the PlayStation platform...
(2006) expanded on active pause combat with its "gambits" system, which allows players to collect and apply preferences to the artificial intelligence routines of partner characters, who will perform certain actions in response to certain conditions. A similar "tactics" system later appeared in Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age: Origins is a single-player role-playing video game developed by BioWare's Edmonton studio and published by Electronic Arts. It is the first game in the Dragon Age franchise...
(2009) and Dragon Age II
Dragon Age II
Dragon Age II is a role-playing video game developed by BioWare's Edmonton studios, and published by Electronic Arts. It is the second major game in BioWare's Dragon Age franchise...
(2011).
Knights of Xentar and Secret of Mana also allowed adjustable artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. AI textbooks define the field as "the study and design of intelligent agents" where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its...
to take control during combat. In Baldur's Gate
Non-player character
A non-player character , sometimes known as a non-person character or non-playable character, in a game is any fictional character not controlled by a player. In electronic games, this usually means a character controlled by the computer through artificial intelligence...
.
Real-time vs. turn-based gameplay
A debate has emerged between fans over real-time and turn-based video games (usually some type of strategy or role-playing game) based on the merits each system.Various arguments are made by proponents. Arguments made in favor of turn-based systems include:
- Players are able to plan their moves to a greater degree given the extra time available to them, allowing game designers to cater to these players by offering additional tactical and gameplay options. The same options when used in combination with the time-pressures of real-time games, on the other hand, can cause new players to feel overwhelmed.
- Games are more fair due to a lack of reliance upon player reflexes. A player with slower reflexes is not at a disadvantage compared to faster players; rather, only the ability to think through and solve the current problem is important.
- Games can in theory have better artificial intelligenceArtificial intelligenceArtificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. AI textbooks define the field as "the study and design of intelligent agents" where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its...
due to the greater amount of computer processing power available to them. - It is more realistic to control multiple units intelligently using this system, as players do not have to divide their attention among multiple independent units all moving simultaneously. Likewise, it is easier to keep track of what the enemy is doing at all times since the player is typically informed of every move in advance (not taking into account fog of warFog of warThe fog of war is a term used to describe the uncertainty in situation awareness experienced by participants in military operations. The term seeks to capture the uncertainty regarding own capability, adversary capability, and adversary intent during an engagement, operation, or campaign...
).
Arguments made in favor of real-time systems include:
- Armies pausing mid-combat to take turns and act in a sequential manner is unrealistic. Real-life combat occurs simultaneously with no side pausing to let the other side move.
- Thinking (and acting) quickly is part of the strategy and constitutes an additional element of challenge.
- Real-time systems are viscerally exciting and add to players' sense of immersionImmersion (virtual reality)Immersion is the state of consciousness where an immersant's awareness of physical self is diminished or lost by being surrounded in an engrossing total environment; often artificial. This mental state is frequently accompanied with spatial excess, intense focus, a distorted sense of time, and...
. Players feel more like they are really "there" and experiencing game events first-hand. - Turn-based games have too many rules and are difficult to master.
- Real-time games are more multiplayer-friendly. Sitting around and waiting while other players take their turns can become tiresome, and can be used as means of retribution against a winning player.
- The added element of a shared clock ensures that each situation cannot be reduced to an easily repeatable sequential series of steps. Rather, the reliance upon player timing introduces an element of chaos and ensures that outcomes are highly variable.
See also
- Real-time strategyReal-time strategyReal-time strategy is a sub-genre of strategy video game which does not progress incrementally in turns. Brett Sperry is credited with coining the term to market Dune II....
- Real-time tacticsReal-time tacticsReal-time tactics or RTT is a subgenre of tactical wargames played in real-time simulating the considerations and circumstances of operational warfare and military tactics...
- Role-playing game (video games)Role-playing game (video games)Role-playing video games are a video game genre with origins in pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, using much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics. The player in RPGs controls one character, or several adventuring party members, fulfilling one or many quests...
- Turn-based strategyTurn-based strategyA turn-based strategy game is a strategy game where players take turns when playing...
- Turn-based tacticsTurn-based tacticsTurn-based tactics , or tactical turn-based , is a computer and video game genre of strategy video games that through stop-action simulates the considerations and circumstances of operational warfare and military tactics in generally small-scale confrontations as opposed to more strategic...
External links
- Time Systems - RogueBasin - Discusses several different types of timing systems used in roguelikeRoguelikeThe roguelike is a sub-genre of role-playing video games, characterized by randomization for replayability, permanent death, and turn-based movement. Most roguelikes feature ASCII graphics, with newer ones increasingly offering tile-based graphics. Games are typically dungeon crawls, with many...
s. - 12 ways to improve turn-based RPG combat systems - Editorial discussing how to design turn-based combat systems.
- Taking Turns (Or Yes, It IS Your Job to Make Me Have Fun) - Editorial at Gamasutra.
- Turn Based Strategy Makes Me Care - Editorial at Gamasutra.