art games just seem to lack a defining property of what makes a game; gameplay (adventure games have a similar problem, but we'll get into why that's not a problem a bit later).

sure, walking around, looking at the pretty pictures, and solving a few puzzles is technically gameplay, but it's usually not engaging gameplay. most other games solve this by employing what are probably the most common game tropes of them all, abnegation and agency.

let's define these two things.

abnegation: "the act of renouncing or rejecting something" in our case, reality. as a player invests their time and energy into a game, they are willingly accepting whatever game mechanics make the game, whatever art there may be, as another reality of its own, one they can immerse themselves in, and become a part of (either by controlling an avatar, or by controlling some other system). abnegation is not something you necessarily 'design' for in your game, but an emergent property of games themselves as an interactive medium.

agency: "action or intervention, esp. such as to produce a particular effect" in our case, forcing the player to make gameplay decisions, in a manner that challenges their thought and logical deduction of a situation (most commonly done by increasing speed, or number of obstacles). the more agency, the more the player must focus on the game (which also encourages abnegation).

together, abnegation and agency work to keep the player engaged, so, how do we use this to our advantage?

both gamers and developers know that what happens in a video game, usually doesn't affect much other than the game itself, which has lead to the emergence of many developers using the medium as an outlet for our primal desires (we'll shy away from eroges at the moment).

killing waves and waves of enemies in a video game sure feels empowering, especially when my personalized character slashes their body in two, sending chunks of blood and gibs throughout the level and a little chime plays as my experience bar grows. it's a reward system, albeit a cheap and easy one to implement, but it works in keeping the player interested. abnegation and agency at work.

here's where a little question in game design occurs; how do you engage the player in a game where combat, or action oriented elements are not primary to the gameplay or are completely nonexistent (lacking agency)?

this is where adventure games come in.

to reference one of my favorite series of all time, "look behind you, a three-headed monkey!" (if you've never played the Monkey Island series, go do it)

these games have no quick time events, no combat (apart from the excellently crafted verbal retorts), and very little if any, agency. so what is it that compels the player to continue on?

the puzzles, the witty dialogue, the exploration? i would propose that it is not just a single element that makes a game engaging, but the combination of all the systems working together not just as gameplay, but as meaningful gameplay.

meaningful?

okay, okay, let me explain. i don't mean, "this game is an allegory for the post-right era of governmental suppression, this game is meaningful", (however that could be a quite meaningful game) i mean that the actions of the player holds much more influence over the game than just aimlessly slaughtering thousands of mobs, that the player can learn something from their choices, or the consequences therein.

games with combat and agency can be meaningful games, there are many, in fact.

but, when designing a game without much agency, a designer has to call upon other methods to engage the player; meaningful gameplay (things like, narrative, challenge, even discovery). this is where art and adventure games shine.

so, if it's easy to create an engaging game with combat, action, and all that glitz, why the hell am i developing an adventure game?

that's easy, beyond being a programmer, i am an appreciator of art. art is a reflection of society, art is a thought process, art is an experience, and art is something we can all learn from, regardless of how we interpret it.

i believe that games too are an art, and due to their interactive nature, i believe they can be just as influential as any novel, script, or painting, they just need to be meaningful.

so, here's my thought experiment, what is meaningful gameplay to you?