Understanding the psychology of needle design through contouring and visual clarity

This article is written under the assumption that you are well aware and familiar with fangames of "I Wanna Be The Guy" (fangames/aiwannas for short). Abstract ideas relating to level design contained within may be insightful regardless, however its applicability may be limited if not nonexistent. Additionally, the contents within are strictly related to designing modern vanilla needle, and do not consider more "artistic" purposes or angles of design, and any examples provided are heavily exaggerated for the sake of demonstration. You have been warned.

 The primary issue to be solved when designing needle lies in making movement feel fun; the base physics of the kid are not engaging when given a blank room with some block structures strewn about. While other platformers may have deeper physics, allowing them to remain fun even when hopping around an empty room, fangames lack this privilege entirely. That is, that which makes platforming in fangames fun are the spikes themselves. On a surface level this sounds obvious, however this is meant literally; performing the same inputs provides a different feeling based on the visual context surrounding the jump itself. Given this, receiving enjoyment from needle comes from the relationship between the visual aesthetic of needle and the psychological response that it creates in the player. Therefore, the aim of needle design is to exploit this relationship in order to create an engaging experience.

simple contouring

marginally more complex contouring

 The primary technique this is done through is contouring, which is the method of placing spikes in such a way that they intuitively communicate and reflect the path of a jump. In the above examples, take note of the usage of horizontal and vertical spikes, where the sides which face the player roughly match the jump arc: at low vspeeds (near the apex of the jump arc), sideways spikes are used, and at high vspeeds (near the start of a jump and after falling for some time) vertical spikes are used. In the second example in particular, the first downwards spike is used such that both of its sloped sides are contouring the jump arc, even if only subtly on the left. Through contouring, it is not only clearly communicated to the player how to approach the jump, but it also creates a satisfying sense of flow for the player as they perform it.

very poor contouring

approximately the same jump, but feels much smoother

 The above examples, which are almost the exact same jump, feel radically different; despite both consisting of a short stutter after a low double jump to position yourself for a fall, the latter jump is noticeably less awkward and stiff, despite being slightly tighter. This is not only because the spikes follow your general jump arc, making it feel smooth when you complete the jump, but also because the gaps and slopes in the spikes communicate to the player the structure of the jump beforehand. In the first example, the player is forced to rely on reaction to time the double jump, since it isn't clear quite where the player would make contact with the diamond-shaped spikes. Additionally, judging the positioning of the drop is also made difficult as a result of the only points of reference for the boundaries of the drop being the very tips of the spikes, whereas in the second example the slope of the spikes give a much more clear guideline for the player.

a jump stripped to its essential elements

the same jump, with poor clarity

the previous image, annotated

 To further communicate the shape of the jump of the player, it can be boiled down to its most essential pieces. Compare the two examples above—while both are mechanically the same jump, one muddies the player’s perception of the core components of the jump and raises some doubts and questions in the player’s mind with regards to how they should approach it. This is because the player starts to lose their ability to rely on past experience to judge how to approach a jump as the design becomes more granular; the signal is drowned out by noise. This isn’t to say that decorative spikes and stylings universally serve to confuse the player, only that this becomes an issue when otherwise familiar jumps are obfuscated through messy design.

contouring is effective, even when mechanically irrelevant

3 corners, effectively automated by a setup

 It should also be noted that, as a result of the sensory experience of needle being something that is created entirely in the mind of the player, it’s possible to exploit how the player perceives jumps by making them appear more difficult and tightly designed than they are in reality. In the first above example, the player doesn’t get close enough to the spikes for their shape or orientation to have any consequence, especially with regards to contouring. However, through their placement they suggest a general shape that the player imagines they are following closely, and in the player’s mind, shapes the timing and path of their jumps. Despite the spikes posing no real threat to the player and their positions being arbitrary, they outline the player's jump arc. In the second example, we can see a jump that consists of three corner jumps, yet because of the setups provided, the player can simply perform two full jumps while holding right, with zero regard for timing or positioning—mechanically, the jump is done for them. Despite this, there is a sense of satisfaction created in the player for effortlessly completing an otherwise perilous jump.

the player is forced to stutter for turning around too early

the player pausing for an unclear amount of time before turning around

the player swings out too far in an attempt to avoid pausing midair

 Taken to a less extreme level, this can be done through subtly making jumps more comfortable to perform and by reducing input complexity. Consider the drop above, performed three different ways: as it currently is, it's unclear when exactly the player should turn around to make it through the diagonal at the bottom. In the first example, the player turns around too early and is forced to do a stutter midair in an attempt to correct their trajectory, and in the second, the player stops midair until just the right time to turn around, which is very difficult to judge. In the third example, we see what is most natural feeling for the player to try, which is to never stop moving and turn around at the appropriate time (the trigger is there to visualize how far the player overshoots in this case). Because the player has no clear way to judge when to turn around, and continuing to swing further out makes the timing much tighter, a hidden layer of complexity is added to this jump, making it much harder than what may be intended. If additional spikes were used, either forcing the player to swing further out until just the right spot, or spikes were added halfway through the drop to help guide the player to turn around earlier, or if the diagonal at the bottom were raised in order to allow a smoother, continuous motion, that hidden complexity would be erased and the jump would feel much more natural.

an awkward, galloped set of stutters

the same jump, but with simplified inputs

 Additionally, we can see hidden complexity when there are small discrepancies between the timing of left/right inputs and jump inputs. In the first example above, due to the limited ground area for the player to begin the jump from, they are forced to do slightly different timings between when they press right a second time, and when they press jump a second time, creating an awkward stutter with different timings for both inputs. In the second example, despite the part of the jump where the stutter is performed being identical, the player is able to press both right and jump at the same time for both jumps, making the jump significantly easier and approachable.

 All of the techniques and theories outlined above have been incredibly useful to me in honing my needle design, however that is not to say that they should be taken as gospel. As there are many valid reasons to intentionally avoid following these ideas when designing needle, I think it is best to consider them as a set of guidelines which, after coming to understand them, their purpose, and their results, can be broken to suit what you intend to create. Ultimately, creating needle should be an expressive activity, and following convention without purpose or intent will only stifle that.