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01/10/99: Analysis of botmatch and single player:
Disclaimer:
This article is NOT an article against bots and botmatch, and should NOT be misinterpreted as such. Bots must be the greatest general modification of all time: A replacement for human
opponents that allows players to experience deathmatch on a huge variety of maps with player loads of their choice in a lag-free enviroment, and for that they deserve much credit.
Introduction:
The premise:
Simple: there are very clear differences between botmatch and single player, so that using the term "single player" broadly to include botmatch is misleading and uninformative. Thus, these
differences need to be stressed so the most appropriate terms are used to describe these two distinct aspects of FPS gaming.
Why make a distinction??
Well, accurately describing types of FPS gaming is always important to avoid confusion, but the botmatch/single player distinction has taken on particular prominence now that two major
FPS games will not have any normal single player, and instead will combine multiplayer with a highly structured botmatch game. Confusing botmatch with single player can lead to misleading
claims and impressions of such games. Furthermore, referring to botmatch as single player not only denigrates single player (as single player includes so much more), it also denigrates
botmatch, which is a seperate and worthy game aspect in it's own right (For example, if the two were lumped together, you could get ridiculous comments such as "Single player is really good
practise for deathmatch" - which actually means that botmatch is good practise).
Defining terms:
It's necessary to get the terms right, to avoid spurious objections to the single player/botmatch distinction. It's particularly important to be aware of what "single player" traditionally and
commonly refers to, for two reasons: 1. To avoid the pointlessly pedantic defintion of single player as "playing on your own" - this is completely uninformative about the nature of
single player and too vague a definition to describe anything (it's comparable to using the phrase "deathmatch" as a blanket term to include deathmatch, CTF, RA, etc). 2. To
ensure that people know this is an distinction in FPS games, and does NOT refer to other games - other games have entirely different definitions for single player, and cannot possibly be
compared to FPS games for terminology.
"Single player" refers to the type of single player gameplay found in almost all previous FPS games, which includes progression through a series of maps, fighting series of
enemy, with a series of tasks to complete. Essentially, the definition that the FPS gaming community and the majority of FPS gamers have traditionally used and understood single player to
mean.
"Multiplayer"refers to any gameplay that includes other players. Obviously this includes deathmatch, RA, CTF, TF, and all mods....whether it should include cooperative
gameplay is another matter, as coop has far more in common with single player gameplay than any other multiplayer gameplay (including the lack of conflict with other players that all other
multiplayer has).
"Deathmatch"refers to that common aspect of multiplayer everyone knows and loves: straight up combat against other players, be it in FFA, 1on1 or teamplay (maybe teamplay
should be a seperate term??)
"Botmatch"refers to exactly the same gameplay as multiplayer (originally this was just deathmatch, but with advanced bots, it now includes most other multiplayer gameplay
types), with one difference: instead of human players, the player plays against computer controlled bots which are designed to mimic human opponents.
General facts about botmatch that make it different to single player:
The crux of the issue:
Here is where the distinction lies - in a series of straightforward facts about botmatch and single player.
1. The purpose of botmatch is to replicate multiplayer:
By far the most important difference between the two gameplay types. The whole purpose of botmatch is not to provide single player gameplay, rather it is to replicate, mimic, imitate or even
replace deathmatch. Bots are designed as a replacement for human opponents, they are not designed as a replacement for single player enemy/monsters. All attempts are made to ensure
they mimic human behaviour, and botmatch mimics multiplayer gameplay as accurately as possible. Therefore it is almost as different from single player as multiplayer is....in fact, the more
accurate the botmatch, the more different it is to single player.
2. Botmatch has almost all the similiarites to multiplayer, and only one difference:
The success of botmatch is measured in how well it replicates multiplayer gameplay, and in that respect it does pretty well (despite the imperfect bot behaviour) - for it has almost all the
similarities to multiplayer, which are discussed below. Of course, it does have one difference to multiplayer and one similarity to single player: the opponents are controlled by the computer - in
the same way that single player enemy are controlled by the computer, though the purpose and the gameplay are very different.
2a. Botmatch (in deathmatch) has no overall goal nor purpose beyond excelling at combat:
The purpose of botmatch is exactly the same purpose as deathmatch: to kill your opponents, and keep killing them when they've respawned. There is no overall goal or purpose beyond
the combat - even structured, rank orientated tournament botmatch is just the same as tournament deathmatch - the goal is to keep killing the opponents and increase your rank compared to
other players. Of course, playing botmatch in different modifications such as CTF will use differing goals, however these goals will still be identical to playing the same mods in multiplayer.
2b. Botmatch has no "A to B" route progression through maps:
Crucially different to single player (and of course identical to multiplayer), botmatch does not involve starting at an entrance point to the map, and progressing to an exit in another area -
rather it involves appearing at a random location and playing for the duration of the match with no exit to be progressed to. This of course applies to an entire game - with single player, the
maps are supposed to lead naturally onto each other, with roughly linear progression through them - while with botmatch, maps maybe set up to give a sense of progression, but it would be
arbitrary and progression would have little to do with the gameplay.
2c. Botmatch has respawning for the player and the bots:
Another crucial difference to single player: in single player, if you die, you die permanently and have to restart the map (saving games aside), and when your enemy die, they die permanently
too. The polar opposite to this is in multiplayer and botmatch, where if you die, you respawn, and if you opponents die, they respawn. This is probably the most important difference in terms of
actual gameplay - botmatch can't be the same as any type of FPS single player while respawning is a part of it.
2d. Botmatch gameplay does not attempt to mimic a coherent reality:
Perhaps a more subtle distinction, and one which, apart from respawning, some botmatch gameplay modes may not be affected by. However unrealistic or even ludicrous single player FPS
games might seem, there is always supposed to be a coherent reality behind them....a reality with magic, monsters, hi-tech weapons, bizarre scenery, and a whole context that might be
nothing to do with Real Life™ reality. But nevertheless, there is a certain coherence, a certain point to it, that botmatch and multiplayer gameplay doesn't have. Even adding complex
stories to botmatch gameplay, there is still something unreal about arbitrarily killing respawning opponents in scenery designed specifically for that purpose, compared to the more
purposeful, progression and goal-driven single player gameplay. Not that there is anything wrong with the arbitrary nature of multiplayer/botmatch, of course - these are games after all!!
Further thoughts:
Changing botmatch into single player:
Some of the aspects listed above can be (or are being) changed to make botmatch more like single player, to give it some of the same characteristics (and vice versa)....and with enough
changes to alter all those aspects, the differences between botmatch and single player could be removed. But if this was the case, botmatch wouldn't be the same as single player, it would
BE single player, and then it would no longer be botmatch - the differences make botmatch what it is.
Redefining single player:
Of course, one could redefine FPS single player to include botmatch (and perhaps some people want to do that). But doing so would reduce the point of defining single player at all - it would
be too broad a focus and too vague a definition. For example, if someone was using the term "single player" then, no-one would know what that person was really referring to. Vague
definitions like that would make communication hopeless.
What now??
Where to go from here?? Nowhere, this was just to clear the botmatch/single player distinction up, and hopefully people understand it better now... So enjoy your single player, your
multiplayer, your deathmatch, your botmatch - all the diverse aspects of FPS gaming.
Credits:
SCRAD, a general FPS enthusiast, for checking over this article.
Yogi @ FreshTeam for suggesting I write this.
Paul @ MPQ for arguing with me in this IRC chat.
Send any sensible comments via email to myself
Send any flames or insults straight to the Recycle Bin (I know I will).
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