Thoughts on Prisoner Dilemma and It's Implementation

    Earlier we were discussing our notes on chance and skill from the Challenges for Games Designers book and we covered something called the 'Prisoner Dilemma' which really interested me. This was in the midst of talking about dilemmas in games in which a player is forced to choose a path from several, all of which will damage them in some way. I think this makes a nice change from the ordinary 'choose the strategically 'right' option in order to win the game'. Giving a player a decision in which there is no obvious clear answer I think introduces other non-game related factors into the experience, for example morality or personal preferences. Just referring back to my risk experience, there was a dilemma I faced during my table-sized international conquest in which I had the choice to pull back some troops from a country that was inevitably about to be taken by an opponent with far superior numbers to me or keep them there and thus weakening another region which was also at risk. I think when a player is faced with unavoidable loses they begin to react in different ways, some might keep the ultimate goal in mind and choose the decision which they consider least damaging to their progress, some might begin getting reckless due to a sense of lurking defeat, I for example starting getting sentimental over which country I prefer (in the example of risk) and which troops I liked best, which again I think is a really nice feature of a game, when a player has to begin getting emotionally involved in the experience.
    The famous Prisoner Dilemma example used in the text book was this, two players must either choose to cooperate with each other, often meaning a minor penalty to each, or both defect incurring a major penalty to both, or if one chooses to betray the other by defecting whilst the other is willing to cooperate, then the defected is rewarded (materially, perhaps not morally) and the cooperative player is then punished. I played a videogame recently called 'Kane & Lynch 2", which is the videogame equivalent of this. One of the online multiplayer modes puts this problem into practice, in this mode one team play as the 'robbers' attempting to shoot past the cops, break into a bank, grab as much money as possible and then proceed to the getaway vehicle which leaves after a certain amount of time, whilst the other team plays as the 'cops' attempting to protect the cash. I wasn't a massive fan of the game for a few aesthetic reasons, however this game mode kept me investing hours into it for a lot longer than I would ordinarily put into a game which I didn't like as much as this one.
    This game mode works for numerous reasons, initially the struggle is the shootout which occurs whilst proceeding to the money stash between attackers and defenders, however it slowly becomes apparent that players from your own team are attempting to race ahead in order to begin grabbing money before you, turning into into a race against allies and beginning to create a sense of rivalry. Once the cops have been killed they then respawn near the getaway vehicle, awaiting the robbers' escape. Players are then free to begin looting the bank. A nice touch implemented which is worth mentioning is the amount of money that a player has taken is indicated on screen, allowing everyone on your team to know who has the most dosh. This is where the Prisoner Dilemma comes into play, attackers can then decide to cooperate with each other in fighting off the next wave of cops and each gain a small cash bonus for making it out with other players or alternatively they can decide that they can take down a fellow team member and escape with their as well as their own loot. It would be common for a player to appear loyal, assisting team members to the getaway van only to put a bullet in their back as soon as it arrives.
    This is why I particularly loved this style of dynamics, players are challenged initially by more twitch based mechanics in shooting past the cops, which then gradually develops into a more cerebral game, using knowledge gained from previous rounds on player behaviors and weighing out your chances and the possibilities of success, which then turn back into twitch mechanics.
    Playing this game mode with the same seven/eight people for a few rounds certainly creates a lot of tension when alliances begin to form and people become wary of greedy players. I was playing a round the recently where paranoia had set in so bad, that players were backed up against the wall, each pointing their gun at each other without the balls to shoot due to fears of becoming branded as 'The Traitor', whilst waiting for the getaway truck to turn up. The time limit aspect of the game mode also contributed significantly to the drama and tension of the game, causing players to make quick decisions before the getaway vehicle drove off, often resulting in people making rash decisions that come back to bite them in the arse in later rounds, this consequently created a great sense of relief when you were sitting safe and sound in the van being taken away to safety.
    Just to round this post off, I'll just echo what I previously mentioned that the Prisoner Dilemma is such a good tool to be used in a game purely because it varies from some of the standard dynamics that players experience in attempting to progress towards winning, it's just a nice reminder that it's not just about racing to the finish but making vital choices, which emphasises that games are just as much about creating an experience as well as achieving victory, I feel anyway.