What Makes A Great Gambling Minigame In Video Games?
Having games within games is nothing new. It can be traced back to the first Final Fantasy game in 1987. Since then, for the minigames to turn to gambling scenes fits in with the storylines and worlds of many of the most popular games.
From Fallout New Vegas to The Witcher 3, if you want to find a video game with a gambling minigame you don’t have to look far. However, that doesn’t mean that all inclusions of gambling minigames are successful. They don’t guarantee popularity. Here are a few things that can make or break a gambling minigame.
Relevant to the main story arc
Game story arcs are what keeps you invested in completing the game and immersed in the experience. Adding a gambling minigame for the stake of it is not going to improve the experience. The game should feel like a natural progression and fit in with the rules of the world you are playing in.
Minigames have the chance to enhance the reality you are in and add detail to the main story arc, making it more complex than an A to B plot. You can sit down with characters and interact with them in a different way. Gwent is well known for improving the gameplay in The Witcher 3. It was a great subplot that was appreciated by most players.
Furthers your progress in the game
A way that minigames can immerse you further into the gaming world is if the gambling furthers your progress in the game. You want to feel like whatever you are doing is bringing you towards the end goal of success. A gambling game could be a great way to earn the money you need to take the next step. It gives each movement a purpose and a goal to achieve along the way.
You want to feel like each scene is created for you to achieve something, not just to tick the box of including a gambling minigame. In gambling, you are playing to win, not just because you can.
High stakes
Most games have high stakes along the whole journey of the game. It keeps you alert and involved, knowing that you could fail at any moment. What’s more thrilling than a gambling game where you could win big or lose hard? It builds tension that will have you gripped for ages.
For example, in Red Dead Redemption you play a poker game during which if you are found cheating, you are probably going to be challenged to a fight to the death. But cheating could earn you even bigger rewards. Whether you will lose big or win big, it’s a risk you have to be willing to take. It’s do or die.
Break from the main action
Gaming can be intense. High action, high stakes and a need to win spanning over a long and complex storyline can be exhausting. Having a chance to step back and focus your attention on something else can keep you engaged with the game. You’re still playing the game but taking a moment to do something else within the world.
Take a chance to sit down and see if you can earn yourself a little extra to help you progress further in the storyline. Watchdogs has poker tables throughout the game to give you the opportunity to do just that. Within the hours of play, you can afford to take some time to enjoy a minigame or two.
If the gambling in video games has got you eager for more. You can check out websites that will have some bonus offers outside of game You just playing. CasinoHEX Nederland, for example, has a good reputation for offering information on the best gambling sites. The thrill you experience in video games can be replicated outside of them.
Including gambling minigames within video games is a clever move. It makes gaming even more addictive. These minigames can propel you further in the plot or hold you back with losses but it’s a chance worth taking. Enhancing the experience and the world such as in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas with its fully developed casino, gambling minigames are probably not going anywhere soon.