A Comprehensive Model of Automated Evaluation of Difficulty in Platformer Games
Yannick Francillette, Hugo Tremblay, Bruno Bouchard, Bob-Antoine MenelasDifficulty constitutes a key component of games. It both serves as motivation to play the game and as a way to control progression. Usually, a video game offers a gradual progression in gameplay difficulty, starting with easy levels that allow players to grasp the basic mechanics, and incrementally introducing more challenging obstacles as they progress. Needless to say, the success of a game heavily relies on its ability to provide a well-balanced difficulty curve and a satisfying progression. Therefore, designing a game entails a complex and time-consuming process that involves extensive playtesting, one potential approach to address this challenge is the utilization of software tools capable of automatically evaluating the difficulty of game levels. In this paper, we present a comprehensive model for automatically evaluating the difficulty levels of platformer games. Our model is based on the formal calculation of static danger zones within levels and the analysis of enemy movement patterns using simulated pheromones. To validate our model, we implemented it and conducted tests using the complete set of levels from the game ” Super Mario Bros. ”. Futhermore, the paper includes a detailed presentation of the model, the tools developed, a comparative analysis showing the computed results, and a discussion on the limitations and advantages.