Bulletstorm’s Scoring System: More Than Just Flashing Numbers

I finally got around to playing Bulletstorm the other day and the thing that struck me about it, which I think probably strikes everyone about it, is the scoring system attached to the “skillshots” you can perform whilst you dispose of the game’s enemies rather indiscriminately. It’s an interesting system that actually seemed to add a good bit of fun to the game, and so I started to wonder about what Bulletstorm would have been like without it.

Initially you may look at the system at face value, that it’s sort of gamifying the game by adding this additional meta layer to it. That it’s playing to the psychology of video game players, and how they respond positively to numbers going up and flashy indications that they are doing things well. Basically that it is what makes social games engaging and enjoyable for a lot of players, and adapting that a first person shooter to cover up problems in the gameplay.

However you do start off playing the beginning of Bulletstorm without the whole scoring system in place, and from that I think we can discern that it’s likely that the game would still be a fun shooter. It has good mechanics, interesting environments and set pieces, and would probably be a pretty fun and good game even without the system. Which then brings up the questions of what exactly is the whole scoring system there for? What are they trying to get the player to do with this system?

The answer I’ve managed to come up with is that this system is in place not necessarily to reward a player for being good at the game, but rather is there to get the player to think more creatively. By which I mean that because of the system the player is not to just skillfully kill all their enemies by shooting them in the head, but rather encouraged to look at the environment they are fighting and the arsenal of equipment at their disposal, by coming up with interesting and fun ways to use them.

I’ve noticed this in how I approach the gun fights in the game, where I’ll be constantly looking around the environment to pull at enemies, or kick them into. This sometimes causes me to play the game more efficiently, but often causes me to waste my time trying to do something that doesn’t end up working. But I’m not particularly bothered when it doesn’t work, because I am encouraged to try and fail. This is because there is no real punishment for trying to do something and not succeeding, aside from the battle taking a bit longer then it perhaps should have taken.

Additionally there is a great amount of satisfaction when you come up with a silly/interesting use for the weapons, and then manages to not only pull off the actions required, but discover that it was actually one of the “skillshots.” There are few things more satisfying in the game then when the “skillshot” name pops up, and there is a, “new,” tag on it.

Because of this system Bulletstorm has managed to make trial and error gameplay fun, and encouraged players to play through this game in a way that they probably wouldn’t have. This was further supported by the tone of the game, that was in line with the silly/fun arcade style of gameplay, which is reflected in how the characters act, (but that’s probably a whole other post.)