For my critical play, I chose to play skribbl.io, an online multiplayer drawing game developed by ticedev. This game doesn’t have an official age recommendation, although I would say it is designed for 13+ simply because of the chat feature and ability to type profanity. I chose this game to play since my team is creating a multiplayer drawing game as well, called Inkling. However, my team’s game has a twist where the artist doesn’t know what they are drawing, and are relying on instructions from their teammates to guide their drawing. After playing and exploring skribbl.io, I argue that while our game concept shares some mechanics and components with skribbl.io, our differing objectives, team vs. team setup, and reversed dynamic that puts creativity in the hand of every player leads to a very different overall experience.
Similarities:
skribbl.io does share some similarities with Inkling as they are both drawing games where one or more players are guessing what is being drawn. As such, some of the components and mechanics are shared. Both skribbl.io and Inkling have cards (or virtual cards in the case of skribbl.io, and as shown below) that are chosen and that have the prompt to be drawn. Additionally, both games have a setup where one player is drawing. In skribbl.io, the artist draws digitally using a mouse, and can choose from many different colors. Inkling will also have an artist drawing in front of everyone, but it will be on a physical whiteboard using only a single black marker. Another similarity is that players take turns in order being the artist, and points are awarded for correctly guessing the word being drawn. In skribbl.io, the points are determined based on how quickly you guess the drawing, as shown in the screenshot below.
Differences:
Aside from the similarities described above, the overall gameplay and objectives of Inkling differ significantly from those in skribbl.io. The biggest differences come from the reversed role of the artist as the guesser, the team vs. team format, and the more active participation of the non-artist players to more significantly impact the game.
In skribbl.io, each player takes turns being the artist. When they are the artist, they choose a word (out of 3 possible options), and have a time limit to draw the word. While they are drawing, everyone is typing in guesses, and if correct, the guesser is awarded a certain number of points based on how quickly they guessed it. Additionally, the guessers are told how many letters are in the answer, and every so often, a letter is revealed to help nudge the guessers in the right direction. This is shown below.
Our game, Inkling, has a reversed setup compared to skribbl.io where the artist is the one guessing what they are drawing. The players (aside from the artist) are the ones who pick a word, and then these players take turns giving the artist simple instructions to guide the drawing. This shift in making the artist the guesser is a significant one, in that it changes the type of fun toward one of fellowship, as the team has to work together in order to guide the artist to draw a cohesive image and correctly guess the word.
Another difference between skribbl.io and Inkling is that skribbl.io has a multi-lateral competition arrangement, while Inkling has both a Team v. Team setup, and then among each team, a multi-player co-op dynamic. The multi-lateral competition in skribbl.io rewards the single player who guesses correctly the fastest and is able to create intelligible drawings that others guess correctly. Inkling uses a team v. team arrangement to foster a sense of competition between teams and fellowship within each team. Then, in each round, each team must work together to guide their artist in a multi-player co-op arrangement. This difference in setup creates a very different playing experience of social connection rather than strict competition between each player.
The last big difference between skribbl.io and Inkling is that Inkling’s mechanics lead to more creative participation from every player. skribbl.io relies on the artist guiding each round. They are responsible for picking the word and drawing it all on their own, with no input from the other players. The remaining players just watch and guess. In Inkling, the artist still has a creative role, as they are drawing the picture. However, much of the creativity is also shifted to the other players, who must come up with instructions for the artist to follow. With this mechanic, all team members have to contribute to the drawing, encouraging engagement and a communal sense of responsibility for the outcome of the game.
Overall, while some components and mechanics are shared between skribbl.io and Inkling–mostly as a result of both being multiplayer drawing games–the setup, roles, and inter-player dynamics are very different, resulting in a game that relies more on fellowship than competition between all players.
