DMC Multiplayer

Design
AGD4_A01

Sasan Sepehr 121812

Quinten Buijs 120956

11/28/14

Advance Game Design

Subject

Page

History

Premise

Multiplayer adaptation

Target audience

Multiplayer Modes

Social Feature

Play and Replay

Mach making

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Balancing

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History
Dev eloped by Ninja Theory and published by Capcom, DMC (Dev il May Cry) is the
5th instalment of the Dev il May Cry series. Released on 15 January 2013 and selling
just ov er 1.6 million copies by June 2014. The lacking sales figures w ere pointed to a
decline in quality due to excessive outsourcing.
Various other reasons w here a "delayed response to the expanding digital contents
market," and "insufficient coordination between the marketing and the game
dev elopment divisions in ov erseas markets (Luke Karmali, 18 April 2013). Despite
these sales figures there was an all-round good reception of the game, scoring 85 on
Metacritic.

Premise
The main game rev olves around Dante w ho goes through the world of limbo in his
quest to bring dow n an ev il organization lead by demons w ho are controlling
society in v arious ways.
Gameplay rev olves around hack and slash w ith v arious w eaponry obtained
throughout the game. Small puzzles and platforming sections giv e the player small
resting points betw een the intense combat.
A rank at the end of each combat section rew ard the player and giv e bonus
collectables based on style, time and v ariety of combat mov es.

Multiplayer Adaptation
Among this genre DMC is in a special entry w ith a unique situation. The game series
has a huge fan base, and DMC w as received w ell by critics over its technicalities.
How ever despite having all this on its opposite side the game couldnt meet the
expectations of the publisher in numbers. This w as especially true for the Asian
market (and specifically Japan).
For us as a company, an opportunity lies betw een these lines. With this multiplayer
concept w e hope to pull in more of the new and old fan base that did not buy this
latest w estern DMC. Capcom has reduced its sales target for Ninja Theory's Dev il
May Cry reboot. Capcom had hoped to ship tw o million copies of the action game

by the end of its financial year. I t now expects to ship 1.2 million copies - 800,000
short of the initial target.
By adding elements such as character customization, online competition,
encouraging fan based engagement such as tournaments (Andrew Groen May 14,
2013) w e hope to attract more people to DMC.

Target audience
the target audience are mostly hard-core people who want to inv est time into
perfecting their strategies and skill. I n Bartles character types, the Killer and the
achiev er will be the prime focus group. This is inherent in the games design of fast
paced action and conflict, to w hich DMC belongs. It will be the Killer and the
Achiev er who will probably dominate the upper tournaments and rankings. However
this does not mean that the Socializer and the explorer w ill have nothing to seek in
the game. The option to add friends in combination w ith the fact that there are
w ays to create equal play betw een stronger and w eaker opponents (the ranking
system, pow er-ups, etc) w ill ensure that also the socializer can compete in the
game. As w ell as talk w ith opponents after each game, or just hav e casual fun w ith
friends. The explorer w ill find fun out of finding out how all the characters and items
w ork. There might not be an immense open w orld for the explorers, but there is a
w ide range of characters and items to be explored.

Multiplayer Modes
Take on the role of your fav ourite Nephelim (means borne by a demon father and
angel mother). As story mentions during the game Dante and Vergil are alw ays in
competition betw een each other. They are natural competitors and the like to
prov e which one is the better brother.

Heaven VS Hell

HVH is simply a race betw een the two brothers. In this mode, our famous brothers will
compete from tw o opposite w orld. Dante in Hell and Vergil from Heav en. Both
player w ill spaw n in a random location of each assigned w orld and starting a race
tow ard Checkpoints. In between there are randomly spaw ned enemies.
These enemies can v ary from normal paw ns to medium or large bosses. These
enemies are env ironment related, w hich means demons can only be spaw ned in
hell and Angels only in heav en.
The goal of the race is to clear sections and hit the checkpoint to finish the race.
Whenever each character kills an Enemy (no matter the type) they w ill send that
enemy to their opponents w orld. This w ay, slow er player will get either slowed down
or killed by the more enemies he or she w ill face.
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Brothers in Arms

I n this mode tw o players w ill help each other to ov ercome the w aves of enemies.
This mode consists of 70 lev els. Ev ery 10t h stage w ill force players to face one of the
bosses from the game.

The bosses in ev ery 10t h level are: Lilith, Bob Barbes, Poison, Hunter, Magnus spaw n
and Magnus.
After finishing each boss three chest w ill appear on the stage. I n each of these
chests, there are different type of perks. These perks w ill buff the stat of the brothers
or the enemies during the next 10 stages. The buffs differ from toughness, damage to
stage hazards. To finish this mode both players need to w ork with each other to finish
the 70t h stage. During this mode w henever an ally is fallen other player can rev ive
him.

Modes Summery
BIA

HVH

Mode Type: Time trial (optional) Co-

Mode Type: Hack and slash race

operative

Features: Random generated level,

enemies and power ups to aid players.
Kills will be sent in to other players
world

Features: Reviving, Random bosses and

perks
Goal: Both player need to help each

Goal: Hitting the checkpoint while

slowing or forcing the other player to
loose

other to beat the 70th level

Loose Condition: getting killed by the
enemies

Loose Condition: Getting killed by the

enemies or not finishing 1st place

Extra Social Features

Mid-Game interaction
One of the important aspects of hav ing a successful
multiplayer is hav ing a social interaction in the game.
As a company, w e truly believe DMC has a unique
situation (w ith the attitude of its characters) when it
comes to interactions between the tw o players. Social
interactions between players will happen on several
fields. The first field is the option w ill player can open up
during game and post-game. There w ill be sev eral
options to taunt the other player in true DMC style.
Similar systems are the ones utilized in Hearthstone
from Blizzard Entertainment w here there are a few lines
that can be selected such as greetings and w ill result
in a different line of text depending on the personality
of the character.
This w ill put a limit tor harassing behav iour that is possible in games w ith open v oice
chats. I n order to prevent spamming, there w ill be a timer on the taunts and the
option to turn them off completely.

Post-Game interaction

I f the match w as enjoyed then there will be a possibility in the post-game screen to
chat if both players w ant to engage in conv ersation. Request can be send to the
other player for a chat session by using platform specific systems. The opponent's
personal page can also be v iewed in post-game sessions.
At the second degree of social contact is the option to form a friend list. This allow s
players get more information such as notifications w hen someone is online, w hich
can also be pushed to the users phone w ith a help of companion app. This creates
social retention by hav ing friends inviting you to play matches etc.

Guild System

Abov e the friends list there is the option for guilds. A guilds pow er is the cumulativ e
amount of Red orbs of the clan members. The tw ist to guilds is that a guild either
sides w ith heav en or w ith hell. I n the multiplayer menu top guild w ill be show n in the
same structure as abov e image. This w ay players around the w orld can see these
players w ith the amount of orb they hav e and set them as their target. I n the image
Guild leader w ill appear w ith his or her unique character customization. The amount
of the Orbs and Guild name w ill appear on the board w hich character will hold up
in his hand.
Any of the matches performed by the clan's members shift the
balance of pow er towards either heaven or hell, gaining bonus
red orbs per match depending w ho has the most pow er.
How ever the faction that has lesser to ensure that there w ill not
be one single massiv e guild there w ill be a limit to the total
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amount of players in a guild. These guilds can create set up their ow n tournaments
w ithin the guild or tournaments betw een guilds. As prizes the guild can put in special
skins, w eapons and red orbs can be put in as prizes (optional, a tournament just for
fame is also possible.)

Play and replayability

Fixed Rewards:
The first come first served w ould suit this rew ard perfectly. Since we have 2 game
modes w e give one bonus boost of orbs to the player for each game mode he or
she plays in 24 hours. This means that once ev ery 24 hours the player has the option
to play 2 games to giv e them bonus orbs. This w ill ensure that at least once a day 2
matches w ill be played by a majority of the players. On the other hand, this also
means that there is a high probability that friends are online at the same time and
w ill continue to play against each other ev en after the first win of the day bonus has
been used.
After the first w in of the day there w ill be normal rew ards for each game mode
based on players performance.

Random Rewards:
I f the player plays through an entire online
multiplayer match there w ill be a rew ard for not
leav ing. this w ill consist out of a slot machine
that can spit out random rew ards such as orbs,
items, one time stat boosts( get more red orbs
on you next w in etc.) other random rew ards
schedules w ill be implemented in the planned
ev ents.

Planned Events:
Another strategy that w e w ill use for keeping our players engaged with the game, is
av oidance strategy. For instance If the player hav e lost the game then w e w ant to
encourage him or her to pick up the game again. By setting monthly ev ents, special
rew ards can be obtained by completing certain actions w ithin the game such as
w in 3 games or special tag team fights against opponents that are only av ailable to
fight during that ev ent. During these special fights the Player w ill gain extra red orbs
for the first kill, and has a chance to obtain special items. The boss w ill hav e 2 drop
rates.1 of these items is a medium to low chance of dropping special item, and the
other item that has a low drop rate w hich requires specific requirements to be
fulfilled during the battle (for example; stay airborne during the course of the
round).The 2 different special drop items are in place to make new Players to hav e
the feeling that ev en they can obtain special items, and for the pro players to giv e
them an extra rew ard for being the best out there.

Social Retention:
Social retention w ill be placed in sev eral aspects of the game.
Starting w ith the inv ite a friend section of the game, the player is able to inv ite
friends w ho do not ow n the game for 5 online matches and the first lev el of the story
mode. Doing this, the player w ho invites his friend will get rewards as w ell as special
items for inv iting his friends (For example: new skin at 1 friends inv ited, new weapon
at 5 etc.).
The player w ho does not ow n the game can only play for 5 rounds of multiplayer
match. How ever before his trial expires, the Player is asked to: Personalize a
character, create a basic personal page and as the final step create an account.
We feel by doing all of this the player w ill inv est some time in the character and he
or she w ill already feel attached to the game before buying the game. After the 5t h
match is ov er the player is able to immediately buy a v ersion of the game and is also
able to keep all the stats items etc. from the 5 matches he played.

Matchmaking
Matching players:

Style is the core part of the DMCs design and it is also the main focus of the DMC
players. Players alw ays try to be as stylish as possible through the course of action.
The more stylish the players is the more score he w ill gain at the end of each fight
section. Consequently, the more beginner the player is the less score he w ill achieve
during the online matches. Thus, as show n above, having an accurate criteria for
our match making, makes our player to either race or partner up w ith a person w ho
has the closest stats to the player.
This w ay HVH w ill feel more balanced and BI A gives the feeling to both players that
there is enough room for both of them to improv e themselves. The reason that our
matchmaking system is not based on red orbs is simply because, some players might
get more orbs during the ev ents and daily first logins.

Matchmaking screen:
After selecting the desired game mode (HVH or BI A) in multiplayer menu, players w ill
go through the matchmaking screen. I n this screen, matchmaking initiates and tries
to find closest player w ith the same lev el of skill. Undeniably, the match making
process can usually take betw een 30 sec to more than 2 minutes (av erage time on
most of the matchmaking based online games).

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During this process player will be introduced to a w arm up chamber w ith a dummy.
I n this area player can start w arming him or herself up until the suitable player
connects to the session.

As show n above, in this screen player can try out different combos w ith different
w eapons. Players can also review (listed combos in the game) or learn new combos
and also track the inputs thus they can improv e the basic steps of hack and slash
game.
After finding the suitable player, both players w ill end up in the same w arm up
chamber. Players w ill remain in the w arm up chamber until both of them press and
become ready. During the w arm up chamber, mid game social interactions are
av ailable as w arm up chamber is a training lev el which player can test their skill
either indiv idually or with their partners. After readying up, both player w ill decide
their desired Lev el. I f both player chose a different levels, the game w ill randomly
choose a lev el outside of both players choices to keep equality.

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Balancing
Learning the Basics:
To create a fun experience for our multi-player v ersion of DMC, it is crucial to be sure
the player knows the essential parts for the multiplayer experience. We will start with
an NPC (non-playable character) based tutorial. This w ay w e ensure that even
players w ho never played any of prev ious DMC titles, w ill understand how the basic
mechanics w ill function and how they can get the most joyful experience out of the
game. This tutorial can be skipped by the people w ho already know the basics.
After finishing the tutorial Section, player w ill be taken into an offline v ersion of each
game modes. There w ill be a round against an AI , based upon the rank of the player
in the off-line game. The offline score will also be an initial indicator to w hich rank the
player w ill belong in the online sessions. The higher the offline rank is, the higher the
online starting rank w ill be.

Character & Items:

Seeing DMC has a fairly ov er the top action driv en style w e want to go for the
technique to make ev erything feel overpowered. Having a lot of characters, items
and boosters to balance w ill require extensive pre-launch testing. The basic
balancing and testing w ill be done by in house QA team to ensure that balancing of
core items, and a core characters will be done. After this is done a closed beta w ill
be held in w hich new items characters and pow erups will be gradually introduced.
This w ill ensure that w e can get a lot of data before the game officially launches
and, as a positiv e side effect, will generate buzz v ia social media.
To ensure new players w ill not be totally obliterated in their v ery first player v s player
match w e w ill implement few characters that can perform quite simple yet v ery
pow erful. This w ill giv es new players feeling of immediate pow er, and w ill lower the
necessary skill level new players need to do HVH matches. How ever these
characters are never as powerful as the ones that w ill take more skill to master. For
example a 3 hit combo w ith character A w ill do 4 dmg w hile the 3 hit combo w ith
character B might do only 2 dmg. How ever the 8 hit combo of character B w ill do 12
dmg w here the 8 hit combo of character A w ill only do 8 Dmg. this w ill ensure that
players w ho put in more time to hone their skills to master the more difficult
characters, will in the end be doing more damage.
(Extra credits: Balancing for skill)

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during the beta testing metrics w ill be tracked to look for dominant strategies,
ov erpowered characters, items etc. besides launching the beta, an exclusiv e beta
tester forum w ill be created to closer identify any problems in the game. The forums
also are a place for beta Players to make friends, ensuring that ev en before launch
there are friends playing together.

Balancing of randomness:
Because some of the game modes hav e the possibility to predict the outcome of
the game fairly quickly, there w ill be random pow erups in the game, things such as
extra combat pow er, health pickups or sending an extra w ave of monsters to your
opponent. This is an extra part of rubber-banding and the same league of items as
Mario karts blue shell. This w ill ensure that the fight w ill stay competitiv e and exciting
throughout the mach. How ever since hard-core players do not really like the
element of randomness in their optimum strategies there w ill be an option to play
w ithout random items.

Stages:
Some of the stages w ill hav e an element of random hazard to them w hich can be
activ e or deactivate based upon w hich player is in the lead. Things such as lav e, fire
or other dangerous objects come in 2 classes. 1 is the player controlled objects,
w hich can be activ ated by using pow er ups. The second class hazard that are
activ ated if one of the players is too far ahead of the other player. This w ill mean
that some of the stages become harder for the player that is in the lead. Also this
option can be turned off to the players liking.

Conclusion
We think that there is a great opportunity to be found w ithin a multiplayer mode of
DMC. With its huge loyal fan base and w ide v ariety of characters, there will be more
than enough content to keep the mode fresh and new .

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Monetization
Business Model:
Our target business model for our DMC multiplayer mode is Free to play
(standalone). For players w ho only w ant to try the multiplayer mode, they can
dow nload the standalone v ersion from XBLA, PSN or steam. The retail and digital
v ersion of the full game w ill receive an update w hich will add the multiplayer mode
to the base game. To show appreciation to the fans w ho bought the game, they w ill
receive extra Red/Gold orbs and limited editions w eapon/skin set.

I n the game there is a possibility to Recruitment Keys to friends to try a demo

v ersion. The Demo includes currently available single player demo plus, free trial to
try a single match from each online mode. After finishing any of these demos player
w ill be asked that if he or she w ants to buy the experienced game mode. Also,
discount and exclusive items w ill be offered if the player buys both modes together.
To still generate a consistent stream of rev enue of the
multiplayer mode, I GP (in-game purchase) w ill be shipped w ith
multiplayer mode. Because this game is all about skill and style
w e w ant to make sure ev eryone can get any content that
could hav e an influence on their experience. This w ill decrease
the chance of being out of reach for the items that could suit
users play-style. As a result, characters, weapons and other
items that hav e direct influence on gameplay are all purchasable by using red orbs.

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Red orbs can be gathered by w inning matches. On the other hand there w ill be
another currency. Gold orbs can be bought w ith real w orld money. The Gold orbs
let players buy, skins for w eapons, characters etc. by converting the real money to
gold orbs. This means ev ery item in the game w ill hav e two price tags. Player can
choose to buy the item w ith either spending Red or gold orbs. I t is essential to point
out, there w ill be items that can only be bought by Gold orbs.

Items are more expensive with Red orbs than gold orbs
This system seems to generate enough revenue for both MOBA and F2P games thus
it can create flexibility for casual players who doesnt w ant to spend countless hours
to collect red orbs.

User Generated Content:

There is no Denying that Dev il May Cry is a fan fav ourite serious which has a big
history for gamers. The most iconic aspect of Dev il May Cry series, is its characters
therefore, community members w ill be allow ed to submit models, textures,
alternativ e animation sets etc for their fav ourite characters. There w ill be some
requirements and standards to be uphold, so there w ill be a protocol each asset has
to go through before being accepted. This w ill sav e a lot of time and w ork for in
house artist. The contributing artist w ill get a percentage of the amount that item
w as sold on the store. The prospect of making money out of the asset that make it
into the game w ill attract more talented artist, and w ill further boost the quality of
the created art assets.

Purchase Accessibility:

To make shopping more accessible for the player, there will be a dedicated button
on the controller/keyboard thus player can easily bring up the shop anytime,
anyw here and look in to the catalogue. This also means player can bring up the
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shop ev en in-midgame. A typical purchase w ould require having the player go to

the in game store. After that the player is giv en a v ariety of different categories for
easy brow sing. After finding the desired item, the game w ould show the player, the
items personal page. I n this page player can find a show case the items usage and
a description w hich describes the use of the item, Weapon or skin. Also at this page
alternativ e skins that can be bought using gold orbs can be seen for the item. I f the
Player w ants to buy the item the game show s how many red (or gold) orbs the item
w ould cost and how much w ould be left after the purchase.
I f a player does not hav e enough orbs to purchase an item this w ill be able to
choose from either supplementing the amount necessary to buy the item w ith real
money. A message w ould spring up, telling the player you dont hav e enough orbs,
w ant to buy the remaining ones? Or buy an entire pack here.
Payment methods are platform specific (PSN, XBLA and Steam). Players can charge up
their wallets by using platform specific methods such as (PayPal and credit cards) and
then proceed to their in game purchase.

Catalogue:
The catalogue w ill feature many type of items. The first one w ill be gameplay
affecting items such as: new characters or new weapons. These w ill be organized
accordingly to their class. Weapons will be categorized as heav y, medium, light and
I conic. Those classes would branch out in type of w eapons. This might consist of:

Light: daggers, w hips and hand guns

Medium: spears, sw ords and semi auto guns
Heav y: Hammers, Broad sw ords and shotguns
I conic: character specific iconic weapons

To ensure easy browsing a number of filters w ill be added from the beginning such
as range or melee. Also characters w ould be organized based upon their basic
mov e sets. For example ranged, melee light, melee medium and melee heav y.
These items w ill hav e a direct impact on gameplay meaning that new characters
w ill hav e new move sets, and based upon the w eapon they are carrying, they
obtain a few extra mov es that are specific to that w eapon. To spare production
cost, these mov es w ill be the same regardless of which character equips w hich
w eapon. Otherwise the amount of animation w ork w ould end up costing too much.
The second type is skins. The term skins is taken broadly here, because under them
fall taunts (taunts are skin based), alternativ e move animations for weapons, and the
usual character and w eapon skins.

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All of the skins w ill be purely cosmetic and w ill not add anything to gameplay. This
also means that the new animations w ill not take longer or mov e the players hit box
in any other w ay than the its original state (to prev ent animation impacting the
gameplay).
Additional filters w ill be added to only show skins for certain type of w eapons or
classes. I f an opponent Player has an interesting item, during w arm up and postmatch the option w ill be av ailable to look at the other players current gear. If an
item of interest is founded, the player can propose a trade or go directly to the store
and buy it from there.

Economy and Trading:

Trading is v ery much encouraged in the store. This w ill ensure that players have a
w ay to sell the items they w on on a v irtual market place. Players can trade items
w ith friends (or strangers) or they can sell their goods to an online NPC merchant for
gold orbs. The option to sell for gold orbs w ill allow non-paying consumers to also
obtain skins and other items. How ever most of the items sold w ill only yield a small
amount of gold orbs. How ever since there can be no other w ay to obtain gold orbs
w ithout spending money, people w ill still choose for this option and by selling items,
w e prevent an ov er flooded market that w ill diminish the existing pricing of the items
that are too many.
I f there is an item that is in danger of becoming too ov er used, the merchant w ill
simply offer more golden orbs for the item. This w ill generate a w hirlpool of that
specific item, w here a lot of those items w ill be sold to the merchant, diminishing its
numbers and making it a v aluable item to be bought again.
This w ill ensure a healthy flow of money throughout the entire system.

Pricing Strategy:
A basic v alue needs to be attached to certain items. There are 2 basic w ays of
doing this based upon economic principles.
1 creates scarce goods, and 2 create a demand and supply.
The first one is easy to get into the system. Re adjusting drop rates to certain items
can ensure that goods w ill be more or less scarcity for certain type of items.
The demand of the supply is done through the merchant and its price offering
system explained in the prev ious section. However a real marked also w ill features
goods that are alw ays in supply, but v ery limited. This is w here the tournament and
ev ent items come into the equation. These items can be regulated to the unit
precise. Adv ertising that an ev ent boss run w ill only drop x amount of items that can
be set by the designers allow for the market to price these items itself. Since they are
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rew ards for skill, they get no inherit v alue with them w hen they are released. The
regulation w ill be done by the community itself. This means that the community
decides how much something is w orth. This w ould mean that based upon ascetics,
or the specific event the item could be obtained at w ill be the offers w ill rise or drop
accordingly. I t could be that a special skin is considered w orth a lot in the
beginning, how ever by new events that w ill release cooler skins the interest in the old
items w ill drop. Until they reach a point w here they become vintage or become
trending again, w hereupon their price will increase again. For the items that can
be bought in the store one basic rule w ill be kept in mind.
High skill lev el is high price. This means that how harder an items mov es are, the more
expensiv e something w ill be if it is gameplay related. This w ill prevent new Players
from buying expensiv e items, than regretting it because they think the mov es are
too hard to do. This w ould just bring a lot of disappointed consumers, w hich in turn
w ill be bad for the rev enue.

Promotion:
To promote our assets there will be a big initial promotion each time a new item is
released. This will usually be once per month, with exceptions to national themed holy
days. Before the item release, small teasers and hints will be given, this might be a mini
cartoon or manga, a short story or a small animation. This will generate buzz before the
item comes online. Than on release day there will be a special part of the main game
page dedicated to these new assets. This will be a small video playing showing off the
new items and their moves. W hen clicked the full video is shown with more in depth
information and a quick guide the specific new items. W hen a Player decides to buy the
new promoted item, the Player is directed to the catalogue with according filers put
over it by the game to make that item show up. However if for example the Player
wants to buy a new flaming sword, the filters applied by the game will not only show the
sword ( although it is highlighted) but also a flaming armour set and a + flame damage
accessory. During holydays special themed items that will only be available during that
holyday period will be put on the market place, besides the new monthly item. This
retains the player in 2 ways.
It will make the player go back each month to look for new cool items, and secondly
during holydays they will look for fun new exclusive items. For social retention there will
be the option to link an item in a message. This will make friends send notifications of
weapons they think that would be nice for their friends. This also gives novice Players with
a friend who plays for a longer time the option to ask their friends to send an advice
item list. To ensure that there is always something to buy the market is set up in such a
way that it might be a good idea to invest. For novelty there will be released items each
month, what should be enough for even the heaviest of buyers to always have
something new.

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Thrust:
Player feeling is very important for a series as DMC. It was a feeling that made the latest
instalment not sells as much copies, and it can be a feeling that can destroy the
multiplayer modes. To give the audience the feeling that they are investing in a quality
product, we want to give good customer service. Account hacking etc. is just a matter
of time, but we can at least do things such as returning of stolen goods. As well as
costumer service we want to ensure that there will be always way to make that the
consumer can be heard. Be it through forum or e-mail service. In regards to a second
market, this will be controlled trough the fact that all transactions must go through the
Games network. To ensure that there will be a limited second marked, we already
provide the quickest way to do everything a second marked

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