Introducing the 4COOP Jam!



This jam is for the 4 player co-op games the style of Left 4 Dead, Warhammer: Vermintide, Deep Rock Galactic, Pandemic, Lovers In A Dangerous Spacetime, most of all, however, all co-op games are listed as an inspiration and starting point.





Important/"Rules":

Shared and/or Parallel Goals - Games must be win/win or lose/lose or win a lot/win a little, but never win/lose for all players.



- Games must be win/win or lose/lose or win a lot/win a little, but never win/lose for all players. Co-op Synergy Essential - Players must have some kind of limit, weakness, shortcomings that only another player can make up for.



- Players must have some kind of limit, weakness, shortcomings that only another player can make up for. Different Player Abilities - Players must have a unique, effective, specialized role in the team.



- Players must have a unique, effective, specialized role in the team. 4 Player Optimal - Games may be playable by 1 - 8 players, but games must be optimized for 4 players.



- Games may be playable by 1 - 8 players, but games must be optimized for 4 players. At Least 2 Player Playable Locally - Couch co-op feature required. Games can use any combination of keyboard/mouse, controllers, and online play as long two players are able to play locally at any time. Games cannot be fully just online.



- Couch co-op feature required. Games can use any combination of keyboard/mouse, controllers, and online play as long two players are able to play locally at any time. Games cannot be fully just online. If Video Game, Must Be Playable for Windows - Only technical limitation of the jam. Browser playable counts as Windows, but downloadable Windows build highly recommend.

Shared and/or Parallel Goals - Co-op games have a shared goal and outcome players are working towards. Players can still compete against one another in minor ways, however, the main enemy should be the system itself, or another team (refer to Team Coop point under Optional). Ranking and scoring individually shouldn't be the main goal, and if someone does try to do that, increase rewards for the whole team as well, rather than reduce.



The game should be win-win or lose-lose, not win-lose, for players. It can be a bit bigger win-bit smaller win, but win-win nonetheless. This is covered a bit more under Asymmetry point in Optional, but think of a band with a guitarist, singer, drummer, and keyboard player. When one fails, everyone fails, when one overshadows the others (for example, always trying to hog the spotlight by doing inordinate amount of solos), it often looks bad on stage.

This is on top of parallel goals. For example, in a survival game, the whole team's goal is to survive, but each have a secret agenda they need to accomplish. In Mafia, the optional executioner role is only to kill a specific player by lynching them, however, they need to survive by the end of the game, too, and they can choose to side with the Mafia or Town. Mercenaries may only have money offered to them as their goal, once the money runs out, they do not continue with the main team.



Co-op Synergy Essential - However, to encourage playing together, each player must have weaknesses, limits, or shortcomings only another player could make up for or work around. For example, a common way to do this is that players cannot revive or heal themselves, and others can. This is in the aforementioned Left 4 Dead where an immobilized player must have another player revive them after they are incapacitated by zombies. Players can't stock up on healing items and healing items are to a point rare, so players must decide to give up their health item to heal other players.



Another way to do this is to require a communication component (look at the next point). One player can be given one piece of information that another player does not. For example, in Keep Talking Nobody Dies, one player is defusing a bomb, and the other has schematics he has to decipher while relaying information to the other player, who has VR goggles. But both share a goal of defusing the bomb, just each have different communication.



Some possible limits: only another can heal you, only another can revive you, only another can reload your weapon, only one player can do one thing at a time, only another can move, only another can detect/sense/see, only another can communicate, only another can build, etc.





Different Player Abilities - Each player must have the option to specialize in some way. Whether classes, equipment loadouts, differing ability and skill sets, roles, or whatnot. Or through gameplay means (see below).



It cannot be just cosmetic. Giving one soldier a rapid firing gun and explodey grenades and another soldier a slightly slower firing gun and a rocket launcher is not that different. But if you ramp up the difference, a really rapid firing gun and stun grenades for the first and a pistol for the other and a very large explosive for the other, that might be even better. Having a sniper for one and a medic for the other might even be better. Refer to the asymmetry point and non-combat point under Optional.

A more gameplay connected way to do this is how Lovers In a Dangerous Spacetime does it: all players can do everything any other player can, however, they can only operate one station at a time. Each station handles the ship's movement or firing or shielding and players must trek to other stations if they are low on manpower. So while maybe enemies are swarming the ship, only one player can handle the engine movement to get away from the enemies, while another player has to get in one of the 4 gunner stations to shoot them down, and another player, if they are available, to handle another gun or the shield. Because of the limit, we consider this differing player ability for this jam.



4 Players Optimal - Games can be made to be played with 1 player up to 8 players. However, gameplay must be optimized for 4 players.



This could mean in some ways, 4 players are needed to fill all roles, or some other gameplay limitation. For example, in Left 4 Dead, it is very rare for more than 2 special infected that can immobilize players to show up, as at least 2 players would be needed to revive the other two. Even a lot rarer for 4 or more to show up, and only happens in way harder difficulties.

Refer to the Single Player Finishable under Optional. Ideally, on the average difficulty, 1 player can finish with difficulty but not impossibly, 4 players can have fun and relax.



At Least 2 Players Playable Locally - Also known as couch play or couch co-op. Can be 1-4 players on one keyboard. Can be 1-4 players on controllers. Can be 1 player on keyboard, 2-3 players on controllers. Can be 2 players local, and 2 players online. Can be any combination of local and online except CANNOT ONLY be 1-4 players online only. At least 2 players must have the ability to play local at any time, whether keyboard or controller.

(Clarification: You can have 1-4+ online players as long as the game can support 1-2 local players when one wants to.)

If It Is a Video Game, It Has To Be Playable For Windows - The only technical limitation for this jam. Your game may be playable in addition for Linux or Mac, but you must have a Windows version. Browser-playable counts as Windows playable, but it is very preferable you have a downloadable build as well.





Optional/Keep In Mind:



Doesn't Even Really Have To Be A Video Game - If you want to make a tabletop RPG or board game or some other thing that has some co-op potential, feel free to do so. Notice that Mafia and Pandemic are examples listed.



Consider Having Shared Resources - Sharing resources often encourages teamwork of some sort. Shared health? Shared energy? Shared ammo? Shared currency? Shared experience? Of course, it doesn't have to be equally shared, or that anyone can dip in the pool to take everyone else's resources. For example, in Killing Floor, assist kills also gain experience points for the assist, not just the person who made the last blow against the zombie-like Zed - there are no kill steals, at least, kill stealing where it actually matters.

You can have all resources distributed equally, or almost equally (for example, those who do more kills/heals get just a little bit more, but not much), or if you want, a large resource pool anyone can dip in as mentioned beforehand. We'll let you decide how to share things.



Resource gathering can be its own mechanic. Maybe there is only one resource gatherer for the group. While others can hold just one ammo magazine and one med kit, you can hold almost infinite amounts of either. Just an idea.



Consider Asymmetry - Players do not necessarily need to be on the same "level" or possess equivalent abilities as other players. For example, games may have a remote hacker off field opening doors and networks, or a sniper just staying in one place offering support from far away while squad mates are on the ground.

This ties in with the next point, but make asymmetry as fun and rewarding as another, more traditional role. There shouldn't be a throwaway role. Ask yourself when designing, is this role truly needed or is it? If it isn't needed as much, consider adding more limitations to other roles first that require the asymmetric role, then consider adding more to the asymmetric role. Using the immobile static sniper example, make sure there are enemies only the sniper can kill or spot, such as other snipers, which limits players on the ground, before you add an ability to the sniper to call in airstrikes.

Another good example of asymmetry are bands. There's a drummer, a keyboard player, guitarist, a singer, and so on. Extremely different, but all with the goal of making music.



Consider Having Players With No Combat - Assuming your game has combat of some sort, consider having players with no combat functions at all. Usually the first thought would be some kind of medic or support supply role, but investigation roles or communication roles or espionage roles or command roles are some ideas you can play with.

This is also important, but make non-combat rewarding and fun as much as combat is. In Killing Floor, medics healing others are rewarded the same as others shooting. To further improve that idea, medic headshots may count more than medic arm or leg shots, adding some skill based components to the otherwise just point and click healing.

Consider Other Genres - Much co-op video games are either of the action/shooter or puzzle variety, or if in board games, strategy. While I expect many of those entries, I encourage trying out new genres for co-op for experimentation. Other common co-op genres are survival and RPGs.



Some genres other than those have some co-op already, like real time strategy, but can be expanded elsewhere. For example, instead of having allies, players can control units on the same side. Or have have one player only able to control production and the other can control combat units. And so on.

How would a co-op dating sim work? How would a co-op tower defense work? How would a grand strategy co-op work? How would a turn-based strategy co-op work (well, not on board games, but on video games)? Just ideas.



While already being started to be explored, co-op simulations still have much potential. Star Trek Enterprise Artemis Spacebridge Simulator is a good one, where there is a captain and crew. How about an office co-op? One could be the desk workers, interns, HR, the CEO, or whatnot. It'd be interesting. Look for similar environments that can be co-opified.



Single Player Finishable - I recommend that games preferably can still be playable and finished with just 1 player, it will just be a harder time to do so. And would be a lot more fun with more people.



For example, in Left 4 Dead, you can go solo, and you can have bots playing for the other players. However, even without bots playing, it is barely possible for one to go through the game without other players. In Killing Floor, waves of enemies are considerably lower to go along with lower player counts.



For Games With More Than 4 Players, Consider Team Vs Team Coop - 2 v 2, 3 v 3, 4 v 4, 4 v 1, etc. and any combination between. And does not necessarily always have to be direct competition like a versus team deathmatch. For example, both teams can be on the same side, one team can be tasked defending a base, while the other team can be tasked attacking enemy bases.



Friendly Fire and Griefing Reduction - While Co-op Synergy enables a fun time, it may also enable friendly fire and griefing tactics. Take care not to design abilities that while may provide a lot more interaction, will reduce fun if a jerk gets the opportunity to do so. A balance can be struck. A shared goal and outcome is best to encourage this.



In Left 4 Dead, easier difficulties had no friendly fire damage, however, characters would voice their concerns if they were hit by an ally. In much harder difficulties, friendly fire was a thing, and killing your teammates will give you a very hard time. A similar punishment mechanic may be implemented.

Consider the Alpha Player Problem - One guy dominating the game often becomes a problem for many co-op games. This is called the Alpha Player problem or the Pandemic problem.



One way to prevent this is to make some crucial information not available to all players. Or have the roles so unique it's harder to do. Or both.



Another way to work with this is to actually make the alpha player an actual role in the game, a captain or commander. Maybe it is more bearable that way.



Really, the best way to do this is to make sure a single player cannot play the game for everyone. Turn-based games like board games are much more susceptible to this problem. Reactive real-time games less so.



A good example is that in football, a quarterback, the "leader" in a football team, cannot play the game himself, even though he is the leader. He cannot react in place of another player. He cannot throw the ball to himself. In an open board game, however, everyone can see what everyone can do and everyone has all the information and reaction time needed, and someone can simply replace a player by forcing them to make a play.



Encourage Rituals and Social Gestures and Communication Outside the Game - Voting in-game is one way this is implemented. Another way is to do a strategy session, like in Payday 2, where no strategy actually gets executed well, but still a fun time. DYO, which is talked about in the articles of interest, encourages players to high-five in real lifeby showing the two players high fiving after each round.







List of Coop Games for Inspiration (some aren't 4 player or even video games, but still is inspiring nonetheless):





Articles of Interest:



Use the hashtag #4coop!





FAQ:

Q. Prizes? Absolutely nothing except the enjoyment and satisfaction that comes with finishing a game.

Q. Can I start early? Starting early is cheating. But since there's no prize, I will overlook it.

