Chicken Noodle Soup

Photograph courtesy of RecipeTin Eats

Towards the end of GDC I caught a rather nasty flu. So instead of working I wrote up this blog post because everyone I met during GDC is playing Balatro on their flights and while we’ve seen this phenomenon many times before, there hasn’t been much written about it. Many business types seemed perplexed about a game like this but it’s also the type of game that I enjoy working on so this is a recipe for a comfort food-like video game. If you came here looking for an actual chicken noodle soup recipe, then I recommend a mirepoix base, egg noodles, and a hearty stock made from chicken bones. Here’s a recipe from RecipeTin Eats whom I got this photograph from (I asked for permission and they said yes. How nice of them!)

In the world of game development, there tends to be an emphasis on fresh mechanics, unique or beautiful visuals, heartwarming stories, guerilla marketing, novel ways of interacting socially, and the newest technology. However, I don’t care about any of that because I’m most at peace when quietly playing the same game for a long time. This sort of game may not be exciting enough to tell your friends. You play them quietly when you want to unwind. These games are always there for you. They are the chicken noodle soup of games.

Games like Helldivers 2, which is an incredible cooperative action game with razor sharp Starship Troopers satire is NOT chicken noodle soup and that’s okay. It is challenging, stressful, visually impressive, and potentially requires teaming up with bossy 8 year-olds to succeed. All of it culminates in an exhilarating experience each time you play. Legends of your conquests are shared, you read patch notes, and you upgrade your computer so it runs 10 frames faster.

There are circumstances where this isn’t the type of game you want to play. You want to tune out. You want to fill a void of time. But you don’t want to be bored and sad with all those feelings you have bottled up inside. It’s time for soup. Some games don’t always start off being comfy, but over time you form a relationship with these games where they feel like your friend. I’ll list a few in case you have never experienced this:

• The Binding of Isaac
• Nova Drift
• Orb of Creation
• Valheim
• Factorio
• Ragnarok Online
• Stardew Valley
• Vampire Survivors
• Spelunky

Casey Yano’s Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe

Ingredients

• The drive to create a design-first game which prioritizes the player’s flow state above all else
• Obsession for UX and a respect for processes to eliminate friction
• Rejection of monetization tactics and dark patterns which make players feel guilty or even ashamed the longer they play
• Precise visuals and controls which prioritize accessibility and legibility over visual fidelity
• A clear goal that a player is working towards at all times. These can be designed to be intrinsic and/or extrinsically motivated

The Recipe

1. Identify the flow-state: Do you find the laning phase of dota to be enjoyable? Maybe you wish to infinitely climb a moving colossus. Perhaps the flow-state you get from drifting and hitting boost pads can be isolated into a simple project. Maybe repetitively learning the AK47 spray pattern gets you in a good mood. Whatever it is, think of all the variables that go into the core mechanic and it’s time to…
2. Prototype: It’s time to make a small project to see if it’s actually fun. Identify what 10 to 20 minutes of gameplay may look like in the full game and then cheat. You don’t need to actually make those systems. Truly prototype. Are there random drops? Don’t make a generator, just drop the items with the set variables in a way that feels random for someone who has never played. Need a proc gen map? Who cares, make 2 levels that feel like they were randomized. Try to make this barebones prototype as quickly as you can (hopefully in less than 2 weeks). Your character needs to be a hard boiled detective? Nope, your hero is a green square now. Don’t do what-ifs. Make the prototype.
3. Go/No-Go: Speaking of green things, it’s time to decide if the prototype was good. After running some unguided Kleenex playtests with your prototype, you need to see if the game has potential. There are three possible results: GREEN. Hell ya. RED. Hell no. YELLOW. It sucks to be in yellow… if only you fixed or changed some things you could really know if it’s good or bad. If your standards are too high, you’ll be in yellow forever and that sucks. In my defense, any game I release from now until the end of time will be compared to Slay the Spire.
4. Pad it Out Thoughtfully: It’s now time to make a game around this flow state. Maybe you learn more about the world as you play. Maybe it’s fun to improve your dexterity and spatial awareness in the game. Perhaps there are strategic game concepts for you to master. Maybe it just feels great to introduce more ways for your numbers to go up. Maybe maybe maybe… so many things that can be added and expanded. Pick the best things, figure out what’s possible for you to make, and now it’s time to commit.
5. Leap of Faith: Once you’re greenlit and you’ve formed a long term plan to expand the game you need to believe in yourself. That’s right. BELIEVE. ONE HUNDRED PERCENT. You cannot back out. Is it toxic to have this mindset? Yes. But will you hate yourself for not finishing the thing you believe in? Yes as well. Stop doubting yourself and make the game. You’ve greenlit yourself. You don’t need the approval of your peers. Don’t work to appease others, only your future players. People like you. A version of you who has never played the game before. Imagine that person and make the perfect game for them.
6. Fail: Turns out that believing in yourself wasn’t enough and that’s okay because now you are smarter. Past you was an idiot with poor taste but the new you is better in every way (except for your lower back).
7. Evolve: Hone your chicken noodle soup making skills. Believe in your taste buds. Try other soups. Make more soups. Pretty soon you will have the ability to discern good soup vs bad soup in a way sommeliers describe wine or how dog owners know why their dog loves them. I don’t believe them, but I believe that they believe.

I got carried away writing these last few steps and they shouldn’t be taken too seriously. Somewhere around step 4 and 5 you should maybe seek advice from other, more experienced peers. Maybe run an internal playtest and start forming a group of friends who’s opinions you deem honest without a hint of pandering. Identify where people get stuck or frustrated with your game’s flow state and polish the heck out of the core experience of your game.

Don’t try to wow people with cheap one-off tricks. Wow people with how well you implement the basics. The foundation of why games feel good to play is what you’re after. Unlock the secret of why you enjoy playing the same thing over and over.

Anyways, that’s my secret recipe for chicken noodle soup. I hope one day I’ll get to try yours and say, “Damn! That’s good soup.”