Player Agency

How much players feel in control of their own experience.

Designers shape player agency by encouraging or enforcing how players interact with the game.

Encourage

Create conditions where good play feels rewarding, not required. Players find the fun themselves. E.g. combo systems, style meters (Devil May Cry, three-point shot in basketball)

Enforce

Remove friction and guide players directly into the fun zone

• Too much freedom → feel lost
• Too much restriction → feel controlled