Previously, we compared game design to building a house: blueprints give us the plans, but we still need processes and tools to actually bring those plans to life. One such tool in this process is the scientific method, a way to test whether our design ideas hold up once players start interacting with them.
The Scientific Method
During the 16th century English philosopher Francis Bacon, concluded that only after observation, inductive reasoning and controlled experimentation, could scientific knowledge be obtained. Bacon’s process of scientific inquiry would be refined into what we now call the scientific method.
Stages of the Scientific Method
The scientific method consists of six steps:
- Purpose/Problem: through observation one defines a problem or a purpose for investigation.
- Research: research on a specific topic is conducted to better understand the purpose/problem
- Hypotheses: a question or idea is proposed to solve or explain the purpose/problem
- Experiment: an experiment is conducted to test if the hypotheses was accurate
- Analysis: the outcomes of the experiment are assessed
- Conclusion: the results of the experiments are published
The scientific method while developed to help answer some of the major questions regarding science is not just regulated to the filed of science. The scientific method is used and can be used in a vast majority of applications.
Scientific Method in Daily Life
Imagine that you awake one morning to find that the coffee maker is not making coffee. You first make an observation to define the problem, as the coffee maker is not working. Next, make a hypothesis. Perhaps you did not plug it in? You test (experiment) this theory by checking the plug. You analyze the situation by confirming that the plug was indeed not plugged in. You plug it in and conclude that you should always check to make sure the coffee maker is plugged in before attempting to make coffee.
Iterative Process
While the order of steps in scientific method is linear the entire process is considered iterative.
An iterative process meaning that the process is a cycle in which information is continuously revised. In the case of the scientific method, once a hypotheses is tested and data analyzed, new observations may warrant and new questions or type of experiment.
Scientific Method in Play
The scientific method may seem like a stretch for game design, but players themselves naturally use it when learning how to play. Imagine starting a platformer for the first time:
- Observe – There’s a tall ledge I need to reach.
- Hypothesis – Maybe the jump button will get me up there.
- Experiment – Try jumping toward the ledge.
- Analysis – The jump isn’t high enough to make it.
- Conclusion – I’ll need to find another mechanic, maybe a double jump or wall climb.
In this way, players constantly form hypotheses, test them, and refine their approach as they learn the game’s rules.
Clear Feedback
This process only works if the game provides clear feedback. Without the ledge being visibly too high, or without sound/visual cues that a double jump is possible, the player may remain stuck in an endless loop of failed experiments. Good feedback helps players confirm or reject their hypotheses and keeps them moving forward instead of getting lost.
Game designers go through a similar process when developing mechanics and systems:
- Observe – Players want more meaningful choices in narrative-driven games.
- Hypothesis – If we create believable, well-developed characters, players will feel greater agency in their decisions.
- Experiment – Run a playtest with different character designs and branching choices.
- Analysis – Which characters drew strong emotional responses? Which choices felt flat?
- Conclusion – Revise the story and characters to strengthen the most engaging choices.
Game design is full of assumptions; what seems fun on paper may frustrate in practice. The scientific method gives designers a framework to test those assumptions, learn from failure, and refine ideas into engaging play.
While the scientific method helps us test ideas, we also need ways to generate them in the first place. That’s where the creative process comes in, which we’ll explore next.