What exactly is "game-feel"?
Game developers will talk about it a LOT. Game design courses in college will have entire classes where the syllabus is dedicated to the subject.
Game feel is, essentially, the relationship between the player’s input and what happens in the game. Really broad, no?
I think the best way to explain what game feel is, is to look at what it’s like when it’s done poorly.
So, here are some examples of BAD game feel:
Lag between when the player provides inputs and what happens in the screen
Character movements that feel clunky and frustrating while navigating through the world
Combat that feels low impact or non-tactical
Movement in the environment that feels unnatural or stale
A UI that feels like you’re completing your taxes
Many will argue that game feel is the MOST important part of a game. I would like to argue that it is a very important part of SOME games, but not every game relies on highly complex game feel to engage a player. That is, until you get into the realm of the game feeling non-functional, of course.
The backfire you get from a gun in Fortnite contributes to the game feel. The shaking, vibrating platform from a rhythm game in an arcade contributes to game feel. How your character jumps, how high they go, and how fast they fall contributes to game feel.
Game feel is a game’s personality. It’s the way the world of the game expresses itself.
The problem with game-feel is it is incredibly subjective and wide-ranging. As a player, you are always subconsciously (or consciously) aware of a game’s feel. As a developer, you NEED to be consciously aware of it. You need to be ready to iterate on it, experiment with it, and playtest it until it feels just right.
The thing with game feel is, well, you FEEL it. You know when something feels good and you know when something feels wrong. It is, by definition, inarticulate. Unfortunately, this makes it difficult to quantify. And it makes it difficult to know when you have it right enough to release a game to the world.
The best ways, in my mind, to grasp game feel and implement it into your games as as follows:
Play a lot of games. Play a lot of different KINDS of games. Be aware of what the game is doing and to what effect. A bit like psychoanalyzing your friends, get in the habit of figuring out a game’s personality, and how it achieves it.
When making a game, playtest early and playtest often. A feedback loop is the only way to really get a grasp on how your game really feels in the hands of a player. A good play tester might hurt your feelings, but they are invaluable to getting the feedback you need to make your game better.
Sources and further reading
(Video) The Art and Science of Game Feel | How Game Designers Juice Games with Mechanics, Pacing and Effects:
(Article) How to Improve Game Feel in Three Easy Ways: https://gamedevacademy.org/game-feel-tutorial/
(Article) “Game Feel” Designers: the unsung heroes keeping unreality a reality: https://medium.com/my-games-company/game-feel-designers-the-unsung-heroes-keeping-unreality-a-reality-edeb6c36dc5