This is my Kingdom Rush manifesto. My thesis statement. The holy grail of all ideas I've ever come up with for Kingdom Rush (and probably will ever come up with). So grab some popcorn and a beer. This'll be a long one.
The Challenge Editor is a tool used to customize gameplay within Kingdom Rush, allowing the user to modify challenge rules, towers allowed, gold, and other elements. It's primary purpose is to give the user freedom to play Kingdom Rush in a variety of ways besides the default settings (similar to the
level editor idea but now with several enhancements). Here we will discuss the user interface, balancing, social considerations, and lastly, incentives to Ironhide and the commmunity.
Stage screenThis is the main page of the editor. On the left side, the player can choose the stage, mode and difficulty.
On the right side, the player can set the rules by choosing the Upgrades level, whether heroes are allowed, which towers are allowed, starting gold and lives. The player simply clicks the icons to enable and disable them. The Stage screen is the simplistic section of the editor, for players who would like a different challenge without too much customization. A star is awarded to the player for completing the stage with the rules he chose. It also has other uses which I discuss later.
At the bottom of the page, the player can save the settings of the entire editor by naming it, loading it at a later time, resetting the editor if he makes a mistake, and of course, playing the game with the rules he chose. This bottom section is available on all screens of the editor for convenience. The Random button basically uses the computer to choose the rules, but I will go into more detail about it later.
Towers ScreenHere, the player can choose which tower skills he wants enabled or disabled by clicking the icon. Below that he can choose the maximum number of towers that can be built on stage at one time (recommended values are 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and Any).
Heroes screenHere, the player can choose which heroes, if any, are allowed to be used in the stage. If a specific hero is selected, the player can then choose which skills that hero can use (which will be quite useful for Frontiers heroes).
Enemies screenHere, the player can choose how powerful the creeps are in the stage. There are only three values for each of the creep stats: Low, Normal, and High. It functions the same way that the difficulty setting modifies the creeps health, except now it can be applied to all creep stats. "Normal" is the default setting, so by changing a stat to either Low or High, all creeps in the stage will receive a nerf or a buff relative to their default stat. So by setting Physical Armor to High, all goblin armor is set from None to Low, and all orc armor is set from Low to Medium. Modifying the creep settings is useful for players who want to do insane challenges.
Now comes the really really easy part! Balancing!
BalancingLet me begin this section by saying up front that it isn't necessary to make changes to the creeps for
every setting that can be changed in the editor. All that really matters are which towers are allowed, as we will see below.
As it stands, all enemies and waves for each stage and mode were manually chosen by the developer. So the good news is that each stage and each mode is already balanced with its own set of creeps and the order in which they come down the road. We can use this as the baseline for achieving balance using the editor.
Because all creeps were
manually chosen, this means they are
constants. My proposal is to take those creeps, turn them into
variables, and then use what I call a "creep replacement" process to achieve balancing. Here's how it works:
Let's say that for the default balanced version of a stage, the first wave of creeps are 10 goblins. When the settings are changed in the Challenge Editor, certain creeps are replaced or switched out by others based on those settings. So if mage towers are disabled, then increase the number of the magic-resistant creeps. If a melee hero is selected, then increase the number of armored creeps. If more gold is selected, then increase the number of stronger creeps:
Flexibility could be added by making the computer randomly select from a pool of creeps with similar attributes. Because shamans and shadow archers are resistant to magic, one form of randomization could be:
If the creeps were variables, another method of balancing could be achieved in which creeps are assigned in real time, a form of dynamic balancing based on which towers the player uses in-game:
So the overall suggestion here is go from manual hand-picking, to some form of automation whereby the computer makes the choice.
While the first example above uses heroes and gold as factors, those aren't necessary because at its core, at the most basic level, the only factors that really determine which enemies should be changed to achieve balancing are which towers are enabled or disabled. That's it. Not upgrade levels, not heroes, not gold. Just which towers are allowed on the stage, because the towers are what's really needed to kill the creeps, all other settings either strengthen or weaken the towers.
Also keep in mind that players who choose more restrictive settings do so with the knowing that they may not be able to beat the stage. They're looking for a challenge. So again, it isn't necessary to go in and arrange the creeps to match every option in the editor in order to make it "balanced" and therefore "beatable".
All things considered, balancing through a creep replacement process could work out quite well, because the editor would determine the type of creeps that may be encountered. In other words, the player can tinker with different settings and see a new pattern of creeps every time. High replay value.
Social ConsiderationsI'm assuming that there are two major questions the devs have about the editor as it relates to social aspects. The first is, "How can we simplify this tool so that players will want to use it without worrying about all the details of the editor?" The second is, "How can we connect and grow the community with this tool?" Let's start with the first.
Before I address simplification, let me emphasize that the ability to
manually change the settings is crucial to the sustained use of the editor. What's the point of creating an editor, if too many restrictions are imposed on its uses? Players are going to want to choose how to play the game, giving them the freedom to do things differently every once in awhile.
With that said, simplification, as I see it, can be achieved by the computer randomly selecting challenges on the player's behalf. When the player clicks "Random" on the editor, the computer instantly selects a new stage, mode, difficulty and challenge rules, and the player can see what those rules are before deciding to play.
In addition, everytime the player completes a stage, the computer will log the settings that were used in the editor, and then use that information as a basis for suggesting future challenges (I recommend the computer remember the settings for the last 5 plays). So if the player played several stages on Easy, and clicks Random, the computer might suggest a challenge on Normal difficulty, and so on.
But such a suggestion should not be so shallow. The computer should not neglect imposing other challenge rules throughout the editor. Ideally, it should suggest a challenge that the user hasn't completed, and one which matches his skill level, or at least slightly harder than some of the previously completed stages. Remember that the player is using the editor to experience something different. So by asking the computer for a random challenge, the player is actually wanting the computer to suggest unique rules for playing, such as Archer towers only, or use Magnus as the hero, or one skill is disabled for each advanced tower, or all creeps now have magic armor.
Further Simplification
So far, the Challenge Editor has been described to be operated manually. However, there is another layer of simplification. A way to integrate the editor into the story-based game and have it run automatically, where the player doesn't have to see the editor at all.
This is accomplished by configuring the editor to run in the background of the game, and allowing the computer to choose the rules dynamically based on the player's history.
So the way it works is, first the player goes into the game options and enables the challenge editor (notice that the Difficulty option is disabled in the options once the editor has been enabled. This is because the editor will now handle the difficulty). Then when the player clicks a stage on the map, the computer will generate a new challenge for him to play on that stage, based on the player's history of past completed stages and their settings (remember I recommended the computer remember the settings for the last 5 plays). It works the same way as the Random button, except this time, the player never has to see the editor at all if he doesn't want to. As long as the editor is enabled, he will always play a different kind of challenge when he clicks on any given stage on the map.
In short, Random Challenges will be crucial to the continued use of the editor. It adds convenience, as sometimes the player would like do something different on Kingdom Rush without having to think about it. While there will be times he's going to want to play a certain stage with certain rules, there are going to be times when he doesn't want to worry about the details. He wants to just jump on a play immediately. One click and the player has a different playing experience every time. High replay value.
Foundations for Connecting the CommunityBefore discussing how the editor can be used to connect the community, we have to lay a foundation from the single-player level, then expand to the community level.
Scoring PointsWhenever the player completes a stage using the editor, he is awarded points based on the settings used in the editor. The basic premise for scoring is, the more restrictive the settings, the higher the player's score. Factors that determine the score include the name of the stage, its mode, difficulty, upgrade levels, whether heroes are allowed, which towers are allowed, which tower skills are allowed, starting gold, and whether enemy stats have been modified (other factors could include how many towers were built, how many upgrades were made, how many times Rain of Fire and reinforcements were used, how fast the stage was completed, the number of lives remaining, and how much gold was left over at the end of the stage without selling towers). Each of these are given a point value, with more points being awarded for more restrictions or harder settings. Of course, the higher level stages award more points for these factors.
The game keeps track of the player's score for a particular stage and its settings, and adjusts the score only for those settings that have been set higher or harder for that stage. This prevents points-spamming from playing the same stage with the same settings over and over again.
StarsThe player also earns a star everytime he completes a stage with different settings, even if it's the same stage, as long as the settings are different for each play. The star also serves as a visual indicator to let the player know whether or not he completed a certain stage with certain settings. Stars are also used for buying spells that can be used in-game. More on this later.
Experience LevelIn order to give the player the feeling of progressing through the use of the editor, a leveling-up system is employed. In its most simplistic nature, the leveling system works similar to how leveling up works with heroes, except it applies directly to the player. The easier the stage and the easier the settings, the less experience earned (like the hero doing a normal melee attack). Conversely, the harder the stage and the more restrictive the settings, the more experience earned (like the hero using a special skill). I propose the system caps at level 10.
Now that we've established Scoring, Stars and Skill Level at the single-player level, we can use this to connect and grow the community.
Connecting and Growing The CommunitySo our second social aspects question is, "How can we connect and grow the community with this tool?" This can be accomplished in three features, all of which are essential to keeping the community active and involved through the editor.
Feature 1: LeaderboardsA simplistic leaderboard is displayed on the Editor tab, when the player selects a stage. It will show the community high score for the stage, the player's current score, and the potential score that can be earned based on the current settings chosen in the editor.
In the below image, the Leaderboards tab is a little more detailed, displaying the top 3 leaders in the game. Clicking "See Full Leaderboards" will reveal the complete Leaderboards.
A player's score and rank in the Leaderboards is based on the stages and how hard the settings are, not from collecting stars. So someone who plays Dark Tower one time on hard would outscore and outrank someone who plays Southport several times with different settings. As you can see here, Cheesecake has the highest score but has less stars than most other players. This means he used the editor to play mostly hard challenges (either that, or he hacked the leaderboards. Most likely the latter
). Overall, leaderboards stimulates the community as players continually play harder and harder challenges in order to get a higher score.
Feature 2: Community ChallengesThe Challenges tab displays a few challenges submitted by the community, and how many points the player can earn if he completes that challenge. By clicking "Load", the editor settings for a particular challenge will instantly populate on the player's editor, where he can play the stage and settings of that challenge, or adjust those settings to achieve a higher score. Clicking "See All Challenges" will display the full list of challenges by the community.
The ability to share challenges is crucial to connecting the community. Most players are going to want to submit their own challenge. And many players find unique and quite entertaining ways of playing the game, such as "two towers only", or "only barbarians allowed", or "polymorph towers only". By displaying a rating and number of plays, players are going to want to make a name for themselves by submitting unusual and entertaining challenges to get high votes and plays for them. And just like the random feature, there are going to be players who want to play those unique challenges without having to figure it out. Overall, the community is stimulated and has the potential for growth as players continually submit challenges for everyone to play.
Feature 3: Online CompetitionsCompetitions connect the community by having members challenge each other in real-time:
All competitions start in the online lobby. A player comes online, sets up a new game, and waits in the lobby for another player to compete against, where he can socialize with others through chatting. As the host, this player has authority to choose the stage and challenge settings in the editor. Once a game begins, other players can spectate the game. In this image, we see a group of players in the lobby. The number in parenthesis next to their name is the player's experience level.
When a user clicks "Join" in the lobby, he is taken to a game room with the host, where he can review the rules before deciding to play:
Here are some starter options for actual in-game competitions:
Option 1: Versus ModeVersus Mode is a casual, 2-player competition. Once the game begins, each player has their own individual map to see and manage just like single player (so there's no map-sharing). Because both players use the same challenge rules for a given stage, points are determined by factors such as how many towers were built, how many upgrades were made, how many times Rain of Fire and reinforcements were used, how fast the stage was completed, the number of lives, and how much gold was left over at the end of the stage without selling towers. The ability to chat and spectate each other's map further connects players while in-game. The player with the most points at the end of the stage wins.
Option 2: Battle ModeBattle Mode functions the same way as Versus Mode except this time, players can attack each other with Battle Spells, adding a bit of interaction to gameplay. When the player enters a game room with another player, he can access the Battle Spells screen and choose which spells he wants to use in battle. Along with Rain of Fire and Reinforcements, players can select up to 6 additional spells, each with say, a 40-second recharge time, making a total of 8 spells. Using battle spells works just like the star upgrades screen is used to buy skills, except it requires the stars earned from playing different challenges using the editor. This an incentive to players for using the challenge editor to play the game:
Here are some battle spell ideas to whet your appetite:
In the below image, Ashbite and Big Bad Bug compete against each other. Bug cast the Lightning spell to kill off Ashbite's soldiers. To counter this, Ashbite teleported a group of enemies to Bug's map. On the top left, Ashbite can see which spell was cast on him. On the bottom right, he can spectate Bug's map to determine the best time strike again. Players can spectate each other's map to determine when and how to strike, but they can't see the opponent's gold or which spells are possessed. They can only see the effects of the spells. Also, in-game chat would further connect the players.
Option 3: TournamentsTournaments are formal competitions for large numbers of players. This is a multiplayer version of competitions. On a set date and time, all players come online into the lobby, and prepare to play. Here are some tournament ideas for considerations:
Option 1: Casual Mode
All players are presented with a series of stages they must complete (for example, from Southport all the way to The Dark Tower). Each stage has unique rules for completion, and all players play the same series of stages with the same series of rules, each stage progressively harder than the last. Points are determined using the same factors as in 2-player Versus Mode.
The only condition for playing in the tournament is the player must play the stage without quitting. He can pause, but he can't quit a stage once he starts. If he quits or closes the game, he forfeits all points for that stage. This prevents players from replaying a stage in order to get a higher score. Any player who is defeated in a stage is disqualified from the tournament. As long as the player completes all stages, he can rank in the leaderboard. The person with the highest number of points across all stages is the winner.
Option 2: Last Man Standing
Similar to Casual Mode, except the server checks the points of all players who played a particular stage, and whoever has the least amount of points is disqualified from the tournament. The competition continues as stages and rules get harder and harder until one person is left standing as the winner.
Option 3: Follow the Leader
In this mode, the player with the most points for a stage gets to choose the next stage and challenge rules for all other players. The only condition is that player must then beat that stage with the rules he chose. If he gets defeated, he is disqualified from the tournament, along with his chosen stage and rules, and the next high score player can choose the stage and rules. This prevents players from frivolously imposing hard settings on everyone else. However, if the player beats the stage he chose, then all other players must complete that stage.
Option 4: King of the Hill
The holy grail of all tournaments. King of the Hill works similar to the tournament chart used in sports, where the server pairs up players to compete against each other. All players start with the same stage and challenge rules. Whoever scores the most points between the two, moves up and competes against another winning player on a harder stage. Losing players are also paired up to compete against each other. The server will use a match-making system to pair up players based on their score for a completed stage. The person with the highest number of points across all stages is the winner.
Financial Incentive:Another major question from the devs is, "How can we get filthy rich from this tool?"
The Challenge Editor could be made available in the form of paid DLC. The three most commonly used features players will want to use are modifying gold, modifying tower skills, and online competitions. So I suggest making the editor available for free, and simply disable those three features as premium content. Plus by adding a few exclusive stages and heroes that's available only through the editor, it would be an irresistible incentive to fans of the game (I suggest a price point of $4.99, of which I receive $1 for every sale made.
).
So with The World's Greatest Kingdom Rush Challenge Editor, players get high replay value from highly customized challenges, greater connection with other players through leaderboards and online competitions, and Ironhide gets some dough.