He was also my favourite character as well! I think the noise of his nose going into the wall was the most satisfying part for me. I guess it what know I was safe, it just sounded so reassuring.
That makes perfect sense. I even have an unusual example for you: despite everyone, from my friends to critics complaining about climbing in the rain in BotW, once I had close to two stamina wheels and learned the 1234 jump I started to absolutely LOVE it! Looking up a hill or pole and trying to see if I thought I had enough stamina to keep climbing despite the rain and having the nail the timing made climbing more enjoyable than normal for me.
I agree man the pokio is my favourite too, the puzzles and boss fight they assembled specifically for pokio were fantastic! I never pictured the similarity between the oot and bowser kingdom puzzle, that was a great find. Great video!
Basically they took inspiracion from middle school zelda (Modern school is BotW onwards) to make Mario Bosses, which is actually much better. A big reason of that is making Mario much mor versatile, and that's noticeable on the bosses. 6 of them are still standar Mario Battles with the most basic Cappy elements (Bowser, Broodals and the dragon), while on others you have bosses designed around captures in a healty mix. By far the best boss design is the Mecha-Broodal because of you being able to use either pokios/hammer bros. or advance movement with cappy. Reimagine that boss for other Mario games: In Sunshine it would be excesively easy to cheese with hovering, in both mario 64 and galaxy it could work with a triple jump setup but there's no alternative route, in 3D land it's impossible due to the poor vertical movement this Mario has, and in 3D world the game would be forced to give you cat to make up for your poor vertical movement.
This video was great! Pokio is definitely my favorite capture, but I could never really figure out why until now. It's also pretty satisfying to stab enemies with Pokio's beak, and to use it to deflect those bombs. Pokio is just a great design all around!
Thanks for making me understand why Pokio is my favourite character in this game. I might work in the video game industry, more precisely game design, starting in september, and I swear, your videos will help me so goddamn much. I am very willing to help you create your videos, no matter in which way. Please continue to produce this amazing content.
Thank you for the support man! I love doing this and I think I’ll be with it for a long time. Glad to have you on board and that this is helping you :)
Hello dear fellow new game designer! I wish you good luck with your undertaking :) I'm currently working on a new game, too. But it's more a hobby project as I don't have the resources to fully dedicate my time to it. Have you seen the channels Extra Credits, Game Maker's Toolkit, Design Doc, ...? TH-cam is a great source for game design.
I was just going to say Pokio's movement is almost 1:1 to your own. You pull back and Pokio does as well. It's intuitive to do so. The Joystick wants to return to its neutral position and so does Pokio. Also it's a rhythmic movement. The zone that one enters when moving could be akin to tapping your foot to a song. It's a nice state to fall into
I didn't even think about that, but you're absolutely right! The joystick wants to do exactly what pokio's beak does which makes it feel so natural. Thanks so much for watching!
I'm sorry, did you just refer to the beak as the Snoot? I love it, I'm gonna do it from now on. The real question is, what would happen if you boop it?
I think good physics also has something to do with it, cause if you make good (that doesn't necessarily mean realistic) physics it feels so god to do things, while if it is slightly off, you still have the tension buildup etc. but it feels terrible and wrong.
At first I was skeptical, thinking I had no reaction to the order vs disorder argument. Then you illustrated it with pure disorder and I immediately felt uncomfortable. Excellent work!
Hrm. Whilst I agree that Pokio is definitely a satisfying aspect to use, I do have to challenge the idea of pure enjoyment. Something like this feels more akin to, say, a Mario Party mini-game where you have to press a button after a certain amount of time has passed - the release of negative tension to a positive effect, with the ticking of a bomb being used as a pressure to play against the idea. With Pokio, I feel his advantages over the Spirit Temple wall is more the amount of movement options that Pokio provides. Going up with Pokio feels less like busy work and more like a succinct platforming challenge. For me, the joy of Pokio is WHEN I release, rather than the release itself. Which... sounds a bit more naughty than I intended reading that sentence back. I can agree that the continual scaling can be mind-numbingly pleasurable, but I feel as if something like, say, Getting Over It gets at that concept a bit more strongly due to the more relaxed pace compared to Mario's action sensibilities. Pokio is one of the most direct translations to platforming of Mario's captures, a new way of interacting with the environment as opposed to, say, a Yoshi. I feel that's where the strength lies. ... I mean that said, liked commented and newly subscribed so mission accomplished here, regardless!
That's a great point! Pokio does give you a ton more options, especially since with him, you can actually jump across gaps of metal to get to more soft panels. Link can't really do that without the hookshot. Thanks for the feedback and the sub man!
The move-set of the Pokio is so engaging and fun that Nintendo could absolutely make an entire game from it! (oh lol, you even mentioned it in the video, haha) I also thoroughly enjoyed the fork flicking, which is based on pretty much the same gameplay. There is just something very entertaining about doing something in-game that was taken from real life, but then made more expressive. Awesome video, mate! I really enjoyed this one! :'D
Glad to hear it! The fork guys are another good example, I think they honestly go back to the springy platforms in super mario world, I think in like world 6. That springy rebound just works and always has
Yeah, that could absolutely be! When I talked about "taken from real life" gameplay - the way you pull the gamepad in one direction and then let go of it… It mimics how it would be done IRL and I think that's what also makes it so satisfying. It doesn't feel *artificial* but rather like something that is absolutely possible.
I just stumbled into your channel and you have incredible content here. I love delving into the psychology of video games and your channel is the perfect mix of the two. Keep up the great work!!!
Pokio is great but my fav is Uproot from the Wooded Kingdom. Great video, really interesting that the release of tension and completing those drawings can have a similar output. Beyond that I think Nintendo knows very well how all kind of tactile sensations can give a great feel to players. First of all the animators know that because that is one of the most important parts of their work (tension is a part of what they call "weight"; I'm not a pro character animator but I do know and use weight for motion-graphics and I know the principles). It is also a fact known to marketers and graphics who can take advantage of all sort of tactile senses to provoke certain reactions in the viewer. And I suspect Nintendo also have internal psychologists who check all their software features and hardware materials, clics etc. They are too good in that sense to be "casual".
You know I hadn't thought about it from an animation perspective but that makes a lot of sense. So interesting how much can go into a single mechanic. Thanks for watching!
The release of tension. We KNOW those dominoes aren't supposed to, nor CAN they stay standing forever. The slightest disturbance can knock them down. But worse, we know the transition state itself is a beautiful work of art and leaving them standing denies the art it's ability to bloom fully. This creates a tension IN US instead of in the object. A tension where we desire to see the artwork be at its best while ceasing to be in a constant state of "waiting to be ruined". If the dominoes MUST fall, we want them to fall properly so the obvious hassle of setup doesn't get wasted and we want to SEE it happen so we can feel lucky to watch what we anticipate to be moving art during the short moments it CAN be at its best. CAAAAAAP LOCK USE FOR EMPHASIS
The dual reinforcement is applied really well in sekiro. Deflect and be rewarded with a counterattack as well as the *meaty* sword clash sound, and also be rewarded with not dying from posture break!
0:47 not even lying when I say I’m playing Ocarina of Time 3D and walked into this exact room right when you said “do you remember this obstacle in ocarina or time?” Only difference is I’m wearing the red tunic. Wild.
Pokio kinda reminds me of the Game Jam theme Mark Brown had a year or two ago where everything was centered around a single mechanic. You're a bird and your ability is stretching your nose, and everything you do stems from that one action.
Excellent analysis Daryl! I absolutely love the Pokio, so I appreciated that you detailed what makes it so psychologically rewarding. I never thought it that way, but it makes so much sense. Also, I'm that friend that charges Mega Man's shot forever...
THANK YOU FOR RELEASING THE ROCK AT THE END. I had completely forgotten that tension was there at all, but I guess I subconsciously remembered. When the rock flew away, it felt like a sip of cool water after a workout.
For the Ocarina of time comparison I think it's important to note that Bowser's kingdom has risky alternatives to waiting for a platform to get close creating a small but exciting risk reward system, whereas in Ocarina you are just forced to wait. So maybe the level design on top of the satisfaction of playing as Pokio is what makes playing him (her?) so great!
Let's make a list of satisfying mechanics! I'll go first: Paper Mario's hammer swing. The tension of holding back as long as possible, followed by the satisfying "SMASH!" forever changed the way I experience turn-based combat!
I just like it because there;s some skill involved - which climbing mechanics usually don't have - in aiming the jumps, and you could fling yourself around pretty quickly if you practiced, but this is really interesting too.
When you mentioned how you could make a game based on that form of movement alone, I remembered the game Twang, by Nitrome. It's not actually much like that, but based on the name, it (of course) involves you slinging things to move.
I called it. +300 subs in 3 days. I congratulate you to your expected million followers in the near future ;) Keep it up! The quality of your videos is awesome. Your focus on the satisfactory part of order is something I would have never thought of when looking at the Pokio. A very unique idea as an explanation. I still believe that the mastery of the controls, reaching the top of a wall, is the main point that gives you the endorphines, but I get your point. Psychological aspects can be very subtle, to the point that you don't notice it anymore (as I described with "mechanics that help the player without them noticing" in the other video's comment section). ...as the video goes on I more and more agree with your argument about conclusion. Hey, you convinced me with something unusual. That doesn't happen that often. ....and yes, I tend to write many and long comments. You better get used to it xD
Haha I welcome the long comments man! You're absolutely right, the psychological aspects can be very subtle, and I think that's why they make for good topics haha. Thanks for watching my stuff all the way to the end, I genuinely appreciate the kind words and the feedback.
Love your videos Daryl! I would love to see a side video to this one that goes more into possitive and negative reinforcement. The possitive/negative reinforcement/(4th part I can never remember which is why I'm making this comment) has always seemed like a critical piece of psychology, but I can never seem to keep it in my head. Relating them to video game mechanics has been the first time it has really stuck with me on how to use it in a "real world" setting for games. I would love to see a more in depth, I dunno a tutorial? Lecture? Schooling? About it. Keep up the awsome vids!
... I am that friend who holds the charge shot for way too long, I only ever use the charge shot except for bosses where I use the special weapons, (I think those are somewhat related with me only ever wanting to use the most powerful weapon at my disposal while wanting to save the limited weapons until it is guaranteed that I no longer need to save them)
Great video! This deep dive was really interesting and this information is actually pretty applicable, especially when thinking about creating game feel. I actually held off on watching this until I finished Mario Odyssey but the wait was certainly worth it. I feel as if Odyssey barely scratched the surface of the birds utility.
I'm glad you held off! Mario Odyssey is fantastic, and it deserves the full experience. But I totally agree, at least in Bowser Kingdom it left a lot on the table. I have heard that Pokio makes a return in the postgame Darker Side Kingdom (which I have yet to play), so maybe things get a little more interesting there? Thanks for watching!
Even though it isn’t DIRECTLY related to the vid, I’m still a little sad you didn’t show his float-twirl mechanic. It lets you control your movement slightly, but not too much. It’s sooo satisfying, because you don’t have complete control, but you can do what you want.
While Pokio has a tension and release, I don't know if it's categorically the same as the videos of work getting done. While those are, as you mentioned, disorderly things moving to order, that's not really where Pokio's tension comes from. In that case, it's literal tension, because the player has an idea of the result of the tension that's being built up, and that expected result gets more intense as the tension builds. The sound and motion that follows are the reward in that case, and it's less comparable to cleaning your room, as it is like firing a rubber band.
Obrigado Leo Inis! ótima contribuição para os brasileiros que curtem conteúdo de qualidade sobre esse mundo dos games e que não tem a oportunidade de falar inglês
i absolutely love the mix of psychology and video game analogy's with the video essay spice to it, your videos are very well polished and i hope you can bring this work to fruition keep em coming man
I've always wondered why Spider-man's web swinging was so satisfying and I believe your point works in a similar vein. Though there isn't a negative reinforcement but it relates to the timing of release in accordance to the velocity.Keeping up the momentum creates perpetual positive reinforcement. I think you missed a point where timing is involved, repoking the beak at just the right time also serves as positive reinforcement and helps with the satisfaction as the player has control over when to complete the positive reinforcement.Similar to your mega-man argument, letting go of the button also serves as a way for the play to feel in control of the positive reinforcement. I think a video on the similarities of Spider-man's web swinging, Tony Hawk's skating, Sunset Overdrive's movement, and even CS:GO surfing would get great reception. I've always wondered how these games could feel so relaxing in just the movement. Take away the whole game and just moving around the world feels so cathartic. I think this type of cathartic movement started with Quake's strafe jumping. Just moving around in a continuous velocity is so fun, Titanfall adopted this movement to be a core gameplay mechanic. To help you with your point, I would say that the base movement in these games are very bad in comparison to the fun movement, which serves as a contrast, negative and positive reinforcement. Running around in Spider-man isn't as satisfying as web swinging, running in Titanfall is waay slower than Bunny hopping. Other games like Tony Hawk, Sunset Overdrive and CS:GO surfing negatively reinforce you from trying to use the fun mechanic by cutting your combo score (Tony Hawk, Sunset Overdrive) or just straight up dying (CS:GO surfing). I haven't found a video on this in any channel and I was hoping you would make one since I enjoy your writing and presentation in your videos. I enjoy how you apply your lessons in other situations to conclude and it really brings the point home. Let me know if this sounds plausible to you.
Hey thank you for writing this! I really need to look into these games, I've only played spiderman and a bit of Tony Hawk, so some research is definitely needed. But I think I know exactly what you're getting at. I really like when games give you an interesting way to get around since its kind of what you spend 90% of the game doing, so it should be fun, right? Haha, I''m definitely interested in making a video on this, so when and if I do, I'll be sure to give you a big shoutout :) thanks for the feedback and recommendation!
Either my controller was messed up (I think i was using my joycons at this point and nowadays their sticks do no work properly to a point where it is almost impossible to calibrate them because it doesn't go far enough in some directions so it thinks Im not spinning it properly) or I did not understand the controls for pokio (which I find rather unlikely given how much wall you have to climb and IK I at least understood the basics) BUT this was by far the hardest part of the main game for me. If you remember the frog and waves of poison puzzle in the lake kingdom... it was several times harder than that. Pokio would just never face the direction I wanted him to go in
Really love this! Resonates a lot with both my experiences playing and something I'm working on (will be helpful!) One thing I'm unclear on, however, is how Pokio's two states match up with disorder and order? How is his tense state disorderly? Is it because of the tension, the shaking and the noise? And how is being flung returning to order, especially when it can be frantic and panic-inducing? Everything else I think is spot on, just seeking clarification! Keep up the awesome videos!
Hey thanks for watching! To me the bent beak has tension because it’s containing a lot of potential energy. Normally the beak is straight. But when it’s bent, it’s in a temporary state that’s not “neutral”. When it finally does release and let Pokio fly, it goes back to normal. So the flying around isn’t exactly the order, but rather the energy built up in the beak being released and reset to 0 is. Does that make sense? It’s a bit tricky to describe, it’s more of a feel thing I think.
To me they both feel the same. The only difference is that OoT has aged when compared to SMO. And that Odyssey is easier to climb thanks to the number of panels offered.
Speaking of satisfaction, I well never, EVER understand people who think watching someone pop a pimple or removing worms from human/animal cavities is somehow satisfying. NEVER.
I think Nintendo totally does care about satisfaction like this, because this kind of double audio reinforcement is totally a thing with the new Yoshi game when aiming an egg: there's a long "puuuuuuuuuu" of Yoshi concentrating until a satisfying egg breaking noise is there on hit. someone at Nintendo is doing homework
Maybe they do! It seems like a tried and true method to make an attack or mechanic rewarding, I think its even in Yoshi's island when you get that bantering dinging while you're aiming to throw an egg.
I think a big part of what makes the wall in odyssey more fun is the skill ceiling being higher. This is a big part of odyssey’s appeal to me in general. You COULD do it the easy way. The little baby bitch boi way. Orrrr you could do things the fast, impatient way. And that’s fun. Games that don’t provide the challenging faster option can get lame. Like any 3D platformer where your fastest way forward is holding the stick forward.
Doesn't I Am Bread control the same way as this bird? You need to press the button to stick and create tension with the bread and then with the control stick you could flop and build up momentum and release the button(s) and go flying across the map It's only hard cause it's in a constant state of control switching, relative to the player. The buttons will always be on a certain peice of bread
For me Pokio was not only the most frustrating part of bowser's kingdom, but the worst capture and most infuriating moment in the entire game. It is the one single thing i always recall as unpleasant in the entire experience This was mostly due to the unreliability of the joy cons making the controls extremely difficult to execute
I think you're attributing this to the wrong phenomena. This feels more like the enjoyment of releasing tension than the sensation of satisfaction from those videos. But other than that, I think you're spot on.
S N O O T
Give it a "boop."
Snoot Snoot
He was also my favourite character as well! I think the noise of his nose going into the wall was the most satisfying part for me. I guess it what know I was safe, it just sounded so reassuring.
No doubt man! I should have mentioned that, it does really give you some relief haha
That makes perfect sense.
I even have an unusual example for you: despite everyone, from my friends to critics complaining about climbing in the rain in BotW, once I had close to two stamina wheels and learned the 1234 jump I started to absolutely LOVE it!
Looking up a hill or pole and trying to see if I thought I had enough stamina to keep climbing despite the rain and having the nail the timing made climbing more enjoyable than normal for me.
I think it's the physical twang of the analogue stick being represented in Pokio's action that creates most of the satisfaction.
I agree man the pokio is my favourite too, the puzzles and boss fight they assembled specifically for pokio were fantastic! I never pictured the similarity between the oot and bowser kingdom puzzle, that was a great find. Great video!
Thanks man! I forgot about that boss fight! I definitely should have mentioned that haha
Basically they took inspiracion from middle school zelda (Modern school is BotW onwards) to make Mario Bosses, which is actually much better. A big reason of that is making Mario much mor versatile, and that's noticeable on the bosses. 6 of them are still standar Mario Battles with the most basic Cappy elements (Bowser, Broodals and the dragon), while on others you have bosses designed around captures in a healty mix.
By far the best boss design is the Mecha-Broodal because of you being able to use either pokios/hammer bros. or advance movement with cappy. Reimagine that boss for other Mario games: In Sunshine it would be excesively easy to cheese with hovering, in both mario 64 and galaxy it could work with a triple jump setup but there's no alternative route, in 3D land it's impossible due to the poor vertical movement this Mario has, and in 3D world the game would be forced to give you cat to make up for your poor vertical movement.
This video was great! Pokio is definitely my favorite capture, but I could never really figure out why until now. It's also pretty satisfying to stab enemies with Pokio's beak, and to use it to deflect those bombs. Pokio is just a great design all around!
Thanks for making me understand why Pokio is my favourite character in this game.
I might work in the video game industry, more precisely game design, starting in september, and I swear, your videos will help me so goddamn much.
I am very willing to help you create your videos, no matter in which way. Please continue to produce this amazing content.
Thank you for the support man! I love doing this and I think I’ll be with it for a long time. Glad to have you on board and that this is helping you :)
Hello dear fellow new game designer! I wish you good luck with your undertaking :) I'm currently working on a new game, too. But it's more a hobby project as I don't have the resources to fully dedicate my time to it. Have you seen the channels Extra Credits, Game Maker's Toolkit, Design Doc, ...? TH-cam is a great source for game design.
I was just going to say Pokio's movement is almost 1:1 to your own. You pull back and Pokio does as well. It's intuitive to do so. The Joystick wants to return to its neutral position and so does Pokio. Also it's a rhythmic movement. The zone that one enters when moving could be akin to tapping your foot to a song. It's a nice state to fall into
I didn't even think about that, but you're absolutely right! The joystick wants to do exactly what pokio's beak does which makes it feel so natural. Thanks so much for watching!
I'm sorry, did you just refer to the beak as the Snoot?
I love it, I'm gonna do it from now on. The real question is, what would happen if you boop it?
If you do that then every time you sneeze your internet connection speeds up by 20% for an hour.
@@DarylTalksGames oh sweet. Thanks for the info
finger inpale
Awww, the puncher shoot sound in Downwell :Q___
So many of these capture abilities could have been games on their own but you're definitely right that this one was the strongest contender
I think good physics also has something to do with it, cause if you make good (that doesn't necessarily mean realistic) physics it feels so god to do things, while if it is slightly off, you still have the tension buildup etc. but it feels terrible and wrong.
At first I was skeptical, thinking I had no reaction to the order vs disorder argument. Then you illustrated it with pure disorder and I immediately felt uncomfortable. Excellent work!
6:35 All I see is Bowser screaming with a damaged eye!
Hrm. Whilst I agree that Pokio is definitely a satisfying aspect to use, I do have to challenge the idea of pure enjoyment. Something like this feels more akin to, say, a Mario Party mini-game where you have to press a button after a certain amount of time has passed - the release of negative tension to a positive effect, with the ticking of a bomb being used as a pressure to play against the idea. With Pokio, I feel his advantages over the Spirit Temple wall is more the amount of movement options that Pokio provides. Going up with Pokio feels less like busy work and more like a succinct platforming challenge. For me, the joy of Pokio is WHEN I release, rather than the release itself. Which... sounds a bit more naughty than I intended reading that sentence back.
I can agree that the continual scaling can be mind-numbingly pleasurable, but I feel as if something like, say, Getting Over It gets at that concept a bit more strongly due to the more relaxed pace compared to Mario's action sensibilities. Pokio is one of the most direct translations to platforming of Mario's captures, a new way of interacting with the environment as opposed to, say, a Yoshi. I feel that's where the strength lies.
... I mean that said, liked commented and newly subscribed so mission accomplished here, regardless!
That's a great point! Pokio does give you a ton more options, especially since with him, you can actually jump across gaps of metal to get to more soft panels. Link can't really do that without the hookshot. Thanks for the feedback and the sub man!
Most satisfying resolution to a video I'll see all week!
The move-set of the Pokio is so engaging and fun that Nintendo could absolutely make an entire game from it! (oh lol, you even mentioned it in the video, haha) I also thoroughly enjoyed the fork flicking, which is based on pretty much the same gameplay. There is just something very entertaining about doing something in-game that was taken from real life, but then made more expressive. Awesome video, mate! I really enjoyed this one! :'D
Glad to hear it! The fork guys are another good example, I think they honestly go back to the springy platforms in super mario world, I think in like world 6. That springy rebound just works and always has
Yeah, that could absolutely be!
When I talked about "taken from real life" gameplay - the way you pull the gamepad in one direction and then let go of it… It mimics how it would be done IRL and I think that's what also makes it so satisfying. It doesn't feel *artificial* but rather like something that is absolutely possible.
Awesome video. I just played this level and finished the game last night and this is exactly how I felt during the Pokio segments of Bowser's Castle.
I just stumbled into your channel and you have incredible content here. I love delving into the psychology of video games and your channel is the perfect mix of the two. Keep up the great work!!!
Thank you so much!
Pokio is great but my fav is Uproot from the Wooded Kingdom. Great video, really interesting that the release of tension and completing those drawings can have a similar output. Beyond that I think Nintendo knows very well how all kind of tactile sensations can give a great feel to players. First of all the animators know that because that is one of the most important parts of their work (tension is a part of what they call "weight"; I'm not a pro character animator but I do know and use weight for motion-graphics and I know the principles). It is also a fact known to marketers and graphics who can take advantage of all sort of tactile senses to provoke certain reactions in the viewer. And I suspect Nintendo also have internal psychologists who check all their software features and hardware materials, clics etc. They are too good in that sense to be "casual".
You know I hadn't thought about it from an animation perspective but that makes a lot of sense. So interesting how much can go into a single mechanic. Thanks for watching!
If disorder to order feels so good, then why do we like falling dominoes so much?
The release of tension. We KNOW those dominoes aren't supposed to, nor CAN they stay standing forever. The slightest disturbance can knock them down. But worse, we know the transition state itself is a beautiful work of art and leaving them standing denies the art it's ability to bloom fully. This creates a tension IN US instead of in the object. A tension where we desire to see the artwork be at its best while ceasing to be in a constant state of "waiting to be ruined".
If the dominoes MUST fall, we want them to fall properly so the obvious hassle of setup doesn't get wasted and we want to SEE it happen so we can feel lucky to watch what we anticipate to be moving art during the short moments it CAN be at its best.
CAAAAAAP LOCK USE FOR EMPHASIS
I love the little tweet Pokio makes when he hops.
The dual reinforcement is applied really well in sekiro. Deflect and be rewarded with a counterattack as well as the *meaty* sword clash sound, and also be rewarded with not dying from posture break!
0:47 not even lying when I say I’m playing Ocarina of Time 3D and walked into this exact room right when you said “do you remember this obstacle in ocarina or time?” Only difference is I’m wearing the red tunic. Wild.
Pokio kinda reminds me of the Game Jam theme Mark Brown had a year or two ago where everything was centered around a single mechanic. You're a bird and your ability is stretching your nose, and everything you do stems from that one action.
I'm glad you made a video just about tension and excitement! It's huge in entertainment culture
I would absolutely play a full game of Pokio, excellent video-
Thanks so much!
Excellent analysis Daryl! I absolutely love the Pokio, so I appreciated that you detailed what makes it so psychologically rewarding. I never thought it that way, but it makes so much sense. Also, I'm that friend that charges Mega Man's shot forever...
Hey thanks man! Glad you enjoyed! And don't worry, I am too haha
THANK YOU FOR RELEASING THE ROCK AT THE END. I had completely forgotten that tension was there at all, but I guess I subconsciously remembered. When the rock flew away, it felt like a sip of cool water after a workout.
Hahahaha thanks for sticking around until then! I was really hoping people would notice that :)
For the Ocarina of time comparison I think it's important to note that Bowser's kingdom has risky alternatives to waiting for a platform to get close creating a small but exciting risk reward system, whereas in Ocarina you are just forced to wait. So maybe the level design on top of the satisfaction of playing as Pokio is what makes playing him (her?) so great!
Oh no doubt about that, But I will say I think playing as pokio on the spirit temple wall would be much more engaging haha
Daryl Talks Games Definitely!
Let's make a list of satisfying mechanics! I'll go first:
Paper Mario's hammer swing. The tension of holding back as long as possible, followed by the satisfying "SMASH!" forever changed the way I experience turn-based combat!
Such great analysis, keep going, your channel will boom very soon :)
I really appreciate it, I hope you're right!
This is why I can't NoFap for too long.
6:39 Bowser - what have you done with my eyess?!!!
"...there's something,, satisfying"
me, cringing everytime pokio is being held back for tension : YOU'RE HURTING THE BIRDIE
I just like it because there;s some skill involved - which climbing mechanics usually don't have - in aiming the jumps, and you could fling yourself around pretty quickly if you practiced, but this is really interesting too.
Detective Late b
8:27 oh man... my childhood🤣🤣🤣
They also have that really cool stabbing attack that makes you feel like a ninja sharpshooter
That long bug thing on that toxic island is also very satisfying to use
Totally agree, the musical accordion notes that play each time you use it are really nice
4 years late, still loving you in 2022...
You should've mentioned something about speedrunning Bowser's Kingdom with the pokio cuz that is so satisfying
When you mentioned how you could make a game based on that form of movement alone, I remembered the game Twang, by Nitrome. It's not actually much like that, but based on the name, it (of course) involves you slinging things to move.
I lost it at "Instagram video with a beak"
Wonderful
I called it. +300 subs in 3 days. I congratulate you to your expected million followers in the near future ;) Keep it up! The quality of your videos is awesome. Your focus on the satisfactory part of order is something I would have never thought of when looking at the Pokio. A very unique idea as an explanation. I still believe that the mastery of the controls, reaching the top of a wall, is the main point that gives you the endorphines, but I get your point. Psychological aspects can be very subtle, to the point that you don't notice it anymore (as I described with "mechanics that help the player without them noticing" in the other video's comment section). ...as the video goes on I more and more agree with your argument about conclusion. Hey, you convinced me with something unusual. That doesn't happen that often. ....and yes, I tend to write many and long comments. You better get used to it xD
Haha I welcome the long comments man! You're absolutely right, the psychological aspects can be very subtle, and I think that's why they make for good topics haha. Thanks for watching my stuff all the way to the end, I genuinely appreciate the kind words and the feedback.
So far, your videos are worthy of being watched until the last second :)
Satisfying lmao wait until you have to use this bs for darker side of the moon
I beat the story so I’ll take my win
Megaman is kind of annoying because you want to always be holding your blast when you aren't firing it, so the ringing never really stops.
Needs more subs
Love your videos Daryl! I would love to see a side video to this one that goes more into possitive and negative reinforcement. The possitive/negative reinforcement/(4th part I can never remember which is why I'm making this comment) has always seemed like a critical piece of psychology, but I can never seem to keep it in my head. Relating them to video game mechanics has been the first time it has really stuck with me on how to use it in a "real world" setting for games. I would love to see a more in depth, I dunno a tutorial? Lecture? Schooling? About it.
Keep up the awsome vids!
... I am that friend who holds the charge shot for way too long, I only ever use the charge shot except for bosses where I use the special weapons, (I think those are somewhat related with me only ever wanting to use the most powerful weapon at my disposal while wanting to save the limited weapons until it is guaranteed that I no longer need to save them)
See, I don’t have any reaction to these “oddly satisfying” videos, but I still find Pokio really fun to play.
Great video! This deep dive was really interesting and this information is actually pretty applicable, especially when thinking about creating game feel. I actually held off on watching this until I finished Mario Odyssey but the wait was certainly worth it. I feel as if Odyssey barely scratched the surface of the birds utility.
I'm glad you held off! Mario Odyssey is fantastic, and it deserves the full experience. But I totally agree, at least in Bowser Kingdom it left a lot on the table. I have heard that Pokio makes a return in the postgame Darker Side Kingdom (which I have yet to play), so maybe things get a little more interesting there? Thanks for watching!
Even though it isn’t DIRECTLY related to the vid, I’m still a little sad you didn’t show his float-twirl mechanic. It lets you control your movement slightly, but not too much. It’s sooo satisfying, because you don’t have complete control, but you can do what you want.
Oddly, my thought about halfway through this video was, "oh, so it's convergent evolution applied to media."
6:28 wheres the ending can u please upload it?
9:48 :)
@@DarylTalksGames Thank you, now I can life a happy live
While Pokio has a tension and release, I don't know if it's categorically the same as the videos of work getting done. While those are, as you mentioned, disorderly things moving to order, that's not really where Pokio's tension comes from. In that case, it's literal tension, because the player has an idea of the result of the tension that's being built up, and that expected result gets more intense as the tension builds. The sound and motion that follows are the reward in that case, and it's less comparable to cleaning your room, as it is like firing a rubber band.
Obrigado Leo Inis! ótima contribuição para os brasileiros que curtem conteúdo de qualidade sobre esse mundo dos games e que não tem a oportunidade de falar inglês
yo solid breakdown of this freaking biiiiird ay
6:40 "I hope you get the point" that actually have the opposite effect
i absolutely love the mix of psychology and video game analogy's with the video essay spice to it, your videos are very well polished and i hope you can bring this work to fruition
keep em coming man
I really like the pokios, but my fav cap-ture has to go to the bonzai bill.
I've always wondered why Spider-man's web swinging was so satisfying and I believe your point works in a similar vein. Though there isn't a negative reinforcement but it relates to the timing of release in accordance to the velocity.Keeping up the momentum creates perpetual positive reinforcement. I think you missed a point where timing is involved, repoking the beak at just the right time also serves as positive reinforcement and helps with the satisfaction as the player has control over when to complete the positive reinforcement.Similar to your mega-man argument, letting go of the button also serves as a way for the play to feel in control of the positive reinforcement.
I think a video on the similarities of Spider-man's web swinging, Tony Hawk's skating, Sunset Overdrive's movement, and even CS:GO surfing would get great reception. I've always wondered how these games could feel so relaxing in just the movement. Take away the whole game and just moving around the world feels so cathartic. I think this type of cathartic movement started with Quake's strafe jumping. Just moving around in a continuous velocity is so fun, Titanfall adopted this movement to be a core gameplay mechanic. To help you with your point, I would say that the base movement in these games are very bad in comparison to the fun movement, which serves as a contrast, negative and positive reinforcement. Running around in Spider-man isn't as satisfying as web swinging, running in Titanfall is waay slower than Bunny hopping. Other games like Tony Hawk, Sunset Overdrive and CS:GO surfing negatively reinforce you from trying to use the fun mechanic by cutting your combo score (Tony Hawk, Sunset Overdrive) or just straight up dying (CS:GO surfing).
I haven't found a video on this in any channel and I was hoping you would make one since I enjoy your writing and presentation in your videos. I enjoy how you apply your lessons in other situations to conclude and it really brings the point home. Let me know if this sounds plausible to you.
Hey thank you for writing this! I really need to look into these games, I've only played spiderman and a bit of Tony Hawk, so some research is definitely needed. But I think I know exactly what you're getting at. I really like when games give you an interesting way to get around since its kind of what you spend 90% of the game doing, so it should be fun, right? Haha, I''m definitely interested in making a video on this, so when and if I do, I'll be sure to give you a big shoutout :) thanks for the feedback and recommendation!
I always hated capturing Pokio. I found him difficult to maneuver and I could never seem to get him to jab in the specific direction I wanted him too
We all have the friend who held mega man’s charge shot for too long and then we’d get mad at them
6:28 this whole segment fucking hurts
Also Ori’s charge dash (from Ori and the Blind Forest). Bash as well.
Thanks for the ending!
Glad someone stuck around for that haha, you bet!
Pokio needs its own game noe!
Either my controller was messed up (I think i was using my joycons at this point and nowadays their sticks do no work properly to a point where it is almost impossible to calibrate them because it doesn't go far enough in some directions so it thinks Im not spinning it properly) or I did not understand the controls for pokio (which I find rather unlikely given how much wall you have to climb and IK I at least understood the basics) BUT this was by far the hardest part of the main game for me. If you remember the frog and waves of poison puzzle in the lake kingdom... it was several times harder than that. Pokio would just never face the direction I wanted him to go in
is it a coincidence i saw an add for a game called pokey ball which is literally this concept but as an entire game, like yesterday on fb?
You make amazing videos 😁
bro, this was a damn fine video
Thank you so much man!
Talk about earning a sub. Great video!
Hey thank you! Glad to have you here :)
This is a super underrated channel. Keep making great vids and post them to reddit too! More views more $$$
Hey thanks for helping me get there! Appreciate the support man
But charging the blaster is HOW you MegaMan. Especially at boss gates.
Really love this! Resonates a lot with both my experiences playing and something I'm working on (will be helpful!)
One thing I'm unclear on, however, is how Pokio's two states match up with disorder and order? How is his tense state disorderly? Is it because of the tension, the shaking and the noise? And how is being flung returning to order, especially when it can be frantic and panic-inducing? Everything else I think is spot on, just seeking clarification! Keep up the awesome videos!
Hey thanks for watching! To me the bent beak has tension because it’s containing a lot of potential energy. Normally the beak is straight. But when it’s bent, it’s in a temporary state that’s not “neutral”. When it finally does release and let Pokio fly, it goes back to normal. So the flying around isn’t exactly the order, but rather the energy built up in the beak being released and reset to 0 is. Does that make sense? It’s a bit tricky to describe, it’s more of a feel thing I think.
That makes a lot of sense! Thanks :D
To me they both feel the same. The only difference is that OoT has aged when compared to SMO. And that Odyssey is easier to climb thanks to the number of panels offered.
i thinkj why pokio is so satisfying is because it is for a short period of time
Nice ending
6:00 You will never reach the ̶t̶r̶u̶t̶h̶ order!
This Actually gave me an idea for a really cool plattformer.... I mean I can code somewhat why not make it real....
There are videos of your channel I didn't watch yet. That's the tension I have to solve. ・ᴥ・
You didn't explain how Pokio is disorder at all or what in this game has anything to do with organization.
I would like it, but using it is a living hell due to Joycon drift
That's beside the point of game design itself.
Eh, it just feels awesome to be able to scale a wall in such a way, you can't really do it elsewhere in the game.
Speaking of satisfaction, I well never, EVER understand people who think watching someone pop a pimple or removing worms from human/animal cavities is somehow satisfying. NEVER.
I think Nintendo totally does care about satisfaction like this, because this kind of double audio reinforcement is totally a thing with the new Yoshi game when aiming an egg: there's a long "puuuuuuuuuu" of Yoshi concentrating until a satisfying egg breaking noise is there on hit. someone at Nintendo is doing homework
Maybe they do! It seems like a tried and true method to make an attack or mechanic rewarding, I think its even in Yoshi's island when you get that bantering dinging while you're aiming to throw an egg.
I didn't feel any tension with Pokio. It's incredibly easy to get a grip on a wall and it doesn't take any reflexes or speed either.
I think a big part of what makes the wall in odyssey more fun is the skill ceiling being higher. This is a big part of odyssey’s appeal to me in general.
You COULD do it the easy way. The little baby bitch boi way. Orrrr you could do things the fast, impatient way. And that’s fun.
Games that don’t provide the challenging faster option can get lame. Like any 3D platformer where your fastest way forward is holding the stick forward.
Even before you mentioned it, seeing you hold Pokio down was a bit irritating and releasing him relieved that irritation.
Hahaha and that's exactly how I came up with the idea for this video!
Doesn't I Am Bread control the same way as this bird? You need to press the button to stick and create tension with the bread and then with the control stick you could flop and build up momentum and release the button(s) and go flying across the map
It's only hard cause it's in a constant state of control switching, relative to the player. The buttons will always be on a certain peice of bread
9:13 well that aged...
For me Pokio was not only the most frustrating part of bowser's kingdom, but the worst capture and most infuriating moment in the entire game. It is the one single thing i always recall as unpleasant in the entire experience
This was mostly due to the unreliability of the joy cons making the controls extremely difficult to execute
I think you're attributing this to the wrong phenomena. This feels more like the enjoyment of releasing tension than the sensation of satisfaction from those videos. But other than that, I think you're spot on.
Petition to have a pokio game made
well seems like i now understand satis
Mario’s coins.
Wait! You are not Mark Brown! How come you are making such awesome videos? I think i have to subscribe.
Fyi you don't need to hold the button to stay in a wall as pokio
Anyone play Splatoon? I like playing chargers and now I know why! Haha. But seriously, it's so satisfying to get a kill with one.
I am that holding blast friend