220 Blanket Strategy and Compounding Strategy

It seems like there are two types of game-wide strategy progressions, blanket strategy and compounding strategy. Blanket strategy is a game system that sets rules from the start, and alters the situations and interactions around them as the game moves from level to level. Compounding strategy is instead when a new element is introduced into the system each level or periodically.

Blanket strategy examples include classic games like chess and checkers, and modern games like X-COM: Enemy Unknown, Fire Emblem, and Civilization. This is defined by the fact that all the same strategies are available from the first game through to the last. In other words, you could solve the final level of a game using the tactics and skills you had during the first level. Most modern board games have blanket strategy, as well as many turn-based strategy video games.

Compounding examples include Candy Crush, League of Legends, Kingdom Rush, and most real-time strategy games. The basic definer of these is that the fundamental strategies required to progress depend on rule changes, additions, or enhancements over time. That is to say, you couldn’t use strategies from the first level to finish the last, and vice-versa.

I’ll revisit this topic in the future, as it is slightly half-baked. Also, to discuss which type of game is a superior experience, in my opinion. :)

[ Today I Was Playing: Ironclad Tactics and Persona 4: Golden and Kingdom Hearts HD ReMix 2.5 ]

#game-mechanic-system, #game-opinion