No matter how playful the setting, online cooperative and team-based games present unique challenges, especially when strangers are involved. Fortunately, we can learn a lot from our peers and the many amazing games on offer today.
This case study supplements the practical techniques discussed in Fueling Teamwork by Design by examining a variety of techniques from commercially-available titles and exploring how they encourage teamwork in those specific contexts.
How to use this case study effectively
Fostering great teamwork, especially among strangers, is an ongoing exploration. However, we can learn a great deal from the wealth of multiplayer titles available today. By observing player dynamics in live games, we can gain invaluable insights that may be used in our own games before we have the capacity for large-scale testing.
As valuable as these lessons can be, keep in mind that each game operates within its own unique ecosystem — what works in one space may not seamlessly translate to another. A successful cooperative experience requires a holistic design approach that carefully considers both your goals and your players’ specific challenges in the context of your own game.
It’s also important to acknowledge that, even with an excellent design, achieving flawless team dynamics in every game is unlikely due to the myriad of unpredictable factors at play. Instead, the techniques explored in this case study, along with those outlined in the parent article, aim to increase your likelihood of fostering high-quality teamwork. However, they can’t guarantee a frictionless experience every time.
Overwatch
Overwatch is a team-based, first-person shooter where diverse heroes with unique abilities battle across various maps to complete objectives. Note that while Overwatch 2 has since been released, this example focuses on the design of the original Overwatch to illustrate key principles.
Emphasizing meaningful contribution: Voting cards
Overwatch‘s end-of-match flow cleverly balances team and individual contributions through a nuanced approach to end-of-game recognition. By highlighting both collective achievements and individual contributions, it celebrates the efforts of the entire team while also acknowledging standout performances. The private display of detailed individual stats allows for self-reflection without the risk of public criticism or comparison.
In particular, the voting cards of Overwatch were a key element of its end-of-match flow and instrumental in broadening the definition of success within the game. This innovative system boasted several noteworthy elements that contributed to a more positive team experience:
- Inclusive celebration — By showcasing a diverse range of achievements and statistics beyond traditional kill / death ratios, the system expanded the definition of success, ensuring that players of various playstyles and contributions felt valued and recognized.
- Expanded avenues for recognition — Combining different stats into voting categories not only increased the likelihood of each player receiving acknowledgment but also emphasized the multifaceted nature of true team success. This highlighted that victories were achieved through a combination of skills and contributions, fostering a more holistic understanding of teamwork.
- Selective celebration — Selectively showcasing top performances in different categories allowed the game to celebrate individual excellence without singling out or discouraging players who may not have excelled that round.
- Participation as reinforcement — Voting serves as social validation, allowing players to publicly acknowledge their teammates’ skills and contributions, reinforcing the concept of success within the game. Unlike passive observation, active participation in voting fosters a sense of agency and investment, subtly shaping players’ understanding of what leads to success.
- Mitigated system abuse — The voting system’s limited options (positive votes or abstention) discouraged negative or ironic voting. Additionally, exposing votes to both teams reminded players of the collaborative nature of the game, counterbalancing the competitive aspect and promoting a sense of shared community.
- Cross-team voting — Sharing the voting cards with both teams served a dual purpose, subtly reinforcing the collaborative nature of the game and counteracting the intensity of competition, while increasing the available pool of voters. A wider audience helps ensure that deserving players receive recognition, minimizing the chance of anyone being overlooked.
Other design highlights
- Diverse hero roles — Tanks, damage dealers, and supports each have distinct roles and responsibilities, emphasizing the need for balanced team composition and encouraging individual players to consider team needs. While Overwatch encourages balanced teams through features like role queue, it also offers modes for experimentation and flexible hero combinations.
- Hero synergies — Many heroes have abilities that complement or synergize with each other, incentivizing players to collaborate and combine their strengths. For example, Zarya’s Projected Barrier can shield Hanzo while charging his Dragonstrike Ultimate. When successful, these coordinated efforts can have teamwide impact, helping players feel a sense of value and contribution.
- Game tone — The game’s lore and character interactions embed the importance of teamwork within the narrative. In-game callouts provide valuable information, enhancing communication and cooperation among players. This serves to amplify the game’s core values, immersing players in a world where teamwork is not just encouraged, but essential.
- Alignment via map design — Maps often feature environmental elements that encourage teamwork, such as chokepoints that require coordinated defense or health packs strategically placed to encourage players to stick together. Rather than solely focusing on individual kills, matches revolve around completing objectives like capturing points or pushing payloads. This naturally encourages players to work together towards a common goal.
- Eliminations — By choosing to combine assists and kills, Overwatch elevates the role of assists and promotes a more collaborative mindset. It also reduces team scrutiny for players who may contribute more via assists than kills.
League of Legends
(Author’s disclaimer: I was the design and project lead on the 2018 League of Legends Honor rework.)
A team-based strategy game, League of Legends allows players to take control of powerful champions and work together to destroy the enemy team’s base.
League’s (2018) Honor system: Contribution and coaching
For years League has cultivated a culture of teamwork through its Honor system, which has undergone several iterations and refinements. The 2018 iteration of Honor system can be distilled into three core elements: end-of-game voting, rewards and consequences, and long-term progression.
While all components contribute to Honor’s effectiveness in promoting prosocial behavior, the end-of-game voting specifically emphasizes teamwork as a key outcome. Several key design decisions facilitated this:
- Prioritizing teamwork — The prominent placement of the honor vote immediately after the victory / defeat screen emphasizes the importance of teamwork alongside individual skill.
- Honor categories — The categories, such as “Stayed Cool” and “Shotcaller,” highlight specific behaviors that contribute to a positive team environment. By explicitly recognizing these actions, the system encourages players to adopt them and normalizes the language surrounding team interactions.
- Easier to talk about — The system also enriches the discourse surrounding player behavior, shifting the focus away from punitive measures and problems to positive reinforcement and player recognition. This allows for a more nuanced and positive discussion in marketing and community management.
- Voting matters — Limiting players to a single honor vote enhances the significance of each decision. This prevents the system from being ignored or used indiscriminately, helping ensure that honors reflect genuine recognition. The option to abstain also prevents players from feeling obligated to honor someone they don’t believe deserves it.
- Good vibes carry forward — Highlighting recently honored players in subsequent matches primes teammates to view them favorably, fostering a sense of trust and optimism that can lead to a more positive and collaborative game.
- Balancing recognition / identity — By keeping honors private until a player receives three or more, the system ensures that recognition is based on consensus among teammates, reducing the likelihood of detractors. This also means that those without honors are more common than those with, lessening the chance of players feeling excluded or unfairly singled out.
- Aspirational — The public celebration of highly honored players and the visibility of the voting process serve as aspirational models for other players. By showcasing successful examples of team behavior, the system encourages others to strive for similar recognition.
- Honor rewards and progression — A key aspect of the Honor system is its ability to not simply motivate players in current and subsequent matches, but to also incentivize good behavior on a longer timescale. The promise of rewards based on consistency of behavior helps achieve this. Integrating Honor’s rewards directly into the game’s progression systems (offering unique skins, key fragments, etc.) significantly incentivizes prosocial behavior, making it an integral part of the player experience.
Developer note on team-only voting — Restricting honor votes to teammates ensures the categories remain focused on teamwork, which was a primary objective of the system. While allowing all players to vote might appear more inclusive, it would demand a more intricate system to encompass the broader spectrum of sportsmanship across both teams. To maintain simplicity and prioritize efficient end-of-game flow, we made the decision to limit voting to teammates, keeping the focus squarely on fostering positive collaboration within each team.
For more details about League of Legends Honor system’s design in its entirety, see: GDC Vault – Honorable Intentions: Player Behavior Today at Riot Games.
Other design highlights
- Objective-based gameplay — Matches revolve around securing objectives like towers, dragons, and Baron Nashor. These objectives require coordinated team efforts, as individual players are unlikely to succeed alone.
- Champion roles — Champions are categorized into distinct roles (top, jungle, mid, bottom carry, support) with specific responsibilities. This encourages players to consider team composition and cooperate to achieve a balanced and effective lineup.
- Interdependent abilities — Many champions have abilities that synergize with those of other champions, incentivizing teamwork and strategic coordination. For example, Leona’s Solar Flare can be followed up by Yasuo’s Last Breath for a particularly devastating combo.
- Vision control — Wards and other vision-granting tools are essential for map awareness and team coordination. Placing and utilizing vision strategically is a collaborative effort, as no single player can maintain vision across the entire map. It also affords an accessible avenue for contribution on teams.
- Ping system — The ping system allows players to quickly communicate important information to their teammates, such as enemy locations, missing opponents, or potential ganks. This facilitates efficient communication and coordinated action, even without voice chat.
- Shared gold and experience — Gold and experience are shared among nearby teammates, promoting a collaborative approach to farming and leveling up. This discourages overly greedy play and encourages players to support each other’s growth.
- Team-focused rewards — While individual performance is recognized, team success ultimately determines victory. Winning a match grants rewards to the entire team, emphasizing the importance of collective effort.
Left 4 Dead 2
Left 4 Dead 2 (L4D2) is a quintessential cooperative shooter, where a team of four survivors must battle through hordes of zombies and unique infected to reach the next safe haven. Its blend of core mechanics, strategic level design, and an AI director showcases how to foster teamwork and interdependence among players toward the ultimate goal of survival.
Cooperation via interdependence and shared responsibility
L4D2 features a number of synergistic elements that help encourage teamwork. The following design choices promote a sense of interdependence and shared responsibility among players, driving them to collaborate effectively:
- Limited resources — Due to limited supply, players must share healing items and spare ammo, creating a sense of mutual dependence. Additionally, the recipient’s health level determines the effectiveness of a health kit. Applying a health kit to a player with lower HP results in a greater health gain. This subtle design encourages players to prioritize healing those in most dire need.
- Revive and rescue mechanic — Downed players can only be revived by teammates, incentivizing players to stick together. If not revived, they’ll respawn ahead in a “rescue closet,” eliminating frustrating backtracking and preserving the team’s progress. Players naturally reunite, often with a sense of relief after having had to persist with a smaller team.
- Level design — L4D2‘s level design supports exploration and light splitting without losing forward momentum, striking a balance between agency and cohesion. Safe rooms and crescendo events (where players trigger a battle in a designated area) provide opportunities for regrouping, healing, and resupplying, reinforcing teamwork as a survival strategy. In addition, hazards like fire, witches, and collapsed structures force players to rely on each other for assistance and protection.
- Hero moments — L4D2 hazards naturally invite “hero moments” accessible to players of all skill levels. Whether reviving a fallen comrade, assisting a teammate, or defending against a surprise attack, the game consistently reinforces teamwork and that your team has your back.
- Punishing difficulty — While theoretically possible to play solo, the game’s challenge escalates dramatically without a full team, making survival increasingly unlikely. Losing even a single teammate significantly diminishes the odds of success, incentivizing players to collaborate and prioritize each other’s well-being.
- Making it easy to help — L4D2 also facilitates cooperative play through a variety of visual and auditory cues. Distinct animations or sound effects clearly highlight players grabbed by special infected, immediately alerting their teammates to their predicament. Additionally, the game’s UI displays the health status and location of each player, enabling quick prioritization of assistance for more advanced players.
AI Director as unseen coach
The AI Director acts as an unseen orchestrator, dynamically tailoring the game’s difficulty to the team’s performance, ensuring a consistently challenging yet fair experience for players of all skill levels. Unpredictable scenarios force players to adapt and cooperate to avoid being overwhelmed.
This dynamic interplay of intense action with moments of respite creates a captivating rhythm. Heightened moments force players to rely on their teammates, while downtime allows for recovery and shared stories. The game’s linear progression guides the team generally ahead, creating a shared experience as players navigate obstacles and battle hordes of infected.
The “expand and contract” map design further enhances this ebb and flow of struggle and brief relief, offering limited freedom for exploration while maintaining a cohesive team dynamic and driving the narrative forward. The AI Director is also able to lengthen or shorten the players journey to the next safe room.
Lastly, the AI Director subtly nudges players back toward the group by increasing the threat level of those who stray. This serves to reinforce the importance of sticking together without explicitly curtailing individual agency.
You can learn more about how the AI Director works in Left 4 Dead 2 from Mike Booth’s GDC talk: Development of Left 4 Dead.
Other design highlights
- Special infected — The presence of powerful special infected necessitates coordinated teamwork for effective elimination, promoting communication and strategic collaboration.
- Limited communication options — The game’s built-in communication system and context-sensitive callouts encourage efficient communication and coordination.
- Characters — Characters voice appreciation for healing and support actions diegetically, reinforcing the spirit of teamwork while emphasizing the importance of relying on each other to overcome overwhelming odds.
- Friendly fire — The presence of friendly fire, albeit with reduced damage, discourages reckless play and promotes careful coordination between teammates. Characters lightheartedly call out if accidentally shot, lessening any sense of affront. Players must be mindful of their teammates’ positions and actions to avoid accidentally harming them.
- Note that lower skill players may be more prone to accidental friendly fire, which could cause friction among the team.
- Disruptive players can exploit such design choices, so it’s crucial to weigh the tradeoffs and explore alternative options to mitigate these risks.
Final thoughts
These games showcase a range of effective strategies for fostering teamwork in online multiplayer environments. Through the nuanced recognition systems of Overwatch, a focus on positive reinforcement in League of Legends, and an emphasis on interdependence in Left 4 Dead 2, these games all demonstrate the power of thoughtful design in shaping player behavior and promoting collaborative play.
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