Analysis of Temple Run 2
Temple Run 2 is an endless runner game that I will analyze to get an idea of what a successful endless runner includes. After analyzing, I will determine what I will do in my own endless runner.
At the start of Temple Run 2, players begin by being chased out of a temple by an evil demon monkey. This immediately gives players a reason for why they are running so fast and must keep running. As the player runs, they will need to jump over, slide under, and dodge obstacles that frequently appear. The same type of obstacle might have a variety of appearances which makes the game feel more dynamic.
Controls are very simple, using swipes to choose which direction to move, and the tilt of the phone to move sideways, similar to a strafe (while still running forwards).
Failing to out-maneuver an obstacle will cause the player to die by various means, whether it is falling into a waterfall, being burnt down to ashes, or being caught by the evil demon monkey. A comedic message is displayed with a picture of the obstacle and the unfortunate predicament the player has gotten themselves into. This helps to lighten the mood immediately after the player has lost. I will consider a more cheerful/funny game over screen.
The aim is to get the highest score. Score is gained by the distance run, the coins collected, and the multiplier which the player has. Coins act as motivation allowing the player to seek a high score, as well as allowing them to upgrade abilities and buy more characters. Coins are always laid out in a straight line so they can all be collected. This is something else that I think that I should consider doing with "coins".
Abilities can be collected in a run by jumping up to collect them as you pass. Upon touching them, they will automatically be activated, and will time out after an upgradeable duration. These are a coin magnet (draws coins near), a boost (invulnerable while boosting), and a shield (invulnerable for a given time). Players must go out of their way to collect powerups since you always need to jump to collect them. My game will have powerups, but they won't be out of the way of the player. They will spawn in similar places as coins, only more rarely.
Gems can be collected in Temple Run 2. These spawn similarly to powerups, only more rarely. Gems can be spent to by very rare things, such as levels. They are also used to continue a run from the point that you died at. For each consecutive 'respawn' in a single run, the gem cost will be twice as much (1 initially). They are also used to retry a spin for a powerup/coin boost on respawning. I will do a similar thing in my game only if I have enough time remaining once everything else is completed.
There are different environments that a player may come across. For example, they might slide down in a waterfall, or ride in a minecart. There are different controls in such an environment. I feel that something like this would be outside of the scope of my project.
Difficulty increases the further the player runs, because the player runs faster. This is to make high scores harder to get. This happens in a very similar fashion to the endless runner that I recently made. This is something that I will keep.
Bibliography
Imangi Studios (Imangi Studios). (2013). Temple Run 2 (June 1, 2016) [Android]. Available from https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.imangi.templerun2&hl=en