[quote][b]3) Exotic restrictions will make your choices much more meaningful.[/b][/quote]Have you ever wondered why modern games have been trending towards highly customizable character experiences? There are many reasons, but the one I would like to focus on today is that when you ask a player to customize his character, you are asking that player to invest himself into your game, creating endogenous value which gives players a reason to continue playing your game for long after it came out. However, simply giving players a ton of choices to make isn't enough. You're asking players to invest themselves into a character, if the choices you ask them to make don't matter to the character, then why should they matter to the player? Endogenous value is only created if there's actual value to be had. As you can imagine, attempting to maximize the value of choices leads to greater player investment. Perhaps it wasn't the original or main intent of the mechanic, but Bungie's exotic restrictions absolutely make build decisions more important. Which decision is more profound? Choosing an Exotic Cloak over every other Exotic Cloak, or choosing an Exotic Cloak over every other Exotic Armor Piece? The former feels like you're simply checking a box off of your build, at best it feels like you're trying to MinMax that particular slot. On the other hand, the latter choice is a much larger commitment, and as a result has a higher chance of having a personal story attached to that choice. In particular, since a simple change of exotic equipment can drastically change the way your Guardian approaches combat, the choices of exotics you make will speak volumes about you as a Player and what you're trying to accomplish with your Guardian. If you choose to wield the exotic sniper rifle known as Closing Time, then perhaps you are trying to become the ultimate long range sniper by taking advantage of the weapon's ADS Cloak and the abillity to remotely collect Ammo Crates. Or, by choosing the exotic auto rifle known as Red Death, perhaps you are trying to become an unstoppable bandit juggernaut, surviving withering fire using the weapon's increased health regeneration to get back into the fight faster. Or perhaps you'll find the Gjallerhorn's abillity to take over and control enclosed areas with its sentry turrets much more appealing. It's conversations like these that I'm really looking forward to once the Beta approaches. Everyone knows what character they are trying to create, but with so many different approaches towards creating a character of that archetype, there is certain to be clever solutions and interesting debates on the merits of different Exotics and Focuses. It truly will be a delicious time to be a member of this community. [quote][b]Conclusion:[/b][/quote]Bungie's exotic restrictions exemplifies a certain design philosophy that goes along the lines of "Restrictions breed Creativity". If players are given a straight shot to their goal, then of course everyone's journey is going to be the same, and that's really not interesting. But if a Game Designer places obstacles in the path of the player, then several solutions will arise that solve that problem, some better than others, and the playerbase will begin to diverge. When enough obstacles are introduced, the journey that any individual player takes to reach the goal will be radically different from everyone else's. Why did Halo restrict players to only two weapons at a time? Why can I not wield both a Rocket Launcher and a Large Machine Gun in Destiny? Why can Link not jump in the Legend of Zelda? Why can I only use up to Six Pokemon in a Party? Why can't I put more than four Lightning Bolts in my Magic the Gathering Deck? Restrictions breed creativity. Now this isn't to say that any restriction will breed creativity, if the restrictions you place on players take away too much depth or are far too frustrating, then players will give up long before they reach their goal as the experience just isn't enjoyablel. Like every aspect of Game Design, this philosophy is very situational, and cannot be followed blindly, you must strike the balance that is right for your experience. I feel that so far Bungie has struck that balance with their Exotic Restrictions, the benefits have vastly outweighed any negatives. I'm getting serious vibes from Destiny that reminds me of many other games and genres that I've really enjoyed over the past couple of years, from RPGs like Dark Souls to MOBAs like League of Legends. I think this game is truly special, and I can't wait until more is unveiled. As this thread comes to a close, I would like to mention that I first created my Bungie.net account on January 5th, 2008. That makes today my Sixth Bungie.net Anniversary. I've enjoyed my time on this site tremendously, I've made friends, played games, and enjoyed many bad jokes as a part of this community. You guys inspire me to push beyond myself and become a better person, and to that end I would like to say that one of my resolutions this year is to improve my writing. I really enjoy writing these sorts of Game Design threads and sharing my passion with the community, and reducing the turnaround time from when the idea is first incepted to when the thread gets posted while raising the quality bar will help me share more content with you guys. We'll see how that goes, but any feedback you have is appreciated! As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please let me know! Game Design is difficult to write about and misunderstandings can occur, if there's anything I can do to try to clear things up or explain myself better then I'd love to take a stab at it. Here's to a legendary seventh year on Bungie.net! ~Hylebos [quote][b]Related Threads: 1) [url=http://www.bungie.net/7_Destiny-Speculation-Exotic-Ascension/en/Forum/Post?id=63605619]Destiny Speculation: Exotic Ascension[/url] 2) [url=http://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post?id=64293430]Destiny's Design: Exotic Exclusivity[/url][/b][/quote]