Plusminus: Augmenting Physics to Promote Emergent Gameplay

Emergent behaviour occurs when simple systems result in complex behaviour. In games, this allows for more meth- ods of interaction, and lets the player explore in a way they want. It is challenging to design for emergence, as it typ- ically arises unexpectedly . With "Plusminus", we devel- oped a method of augmenting physics to promote emergent gameplay using magnetism. Initial playtests demonstrated that players came up with surprising ways to play, such as using magnets to launch themselves over walls and outside the designed play area. We demonstrate that by giving the player control over magnetism, we can design for emergent gameplay.