Binary morality systems in games

Many games that allow for players to make important morale decisions, especially role playing games, usually have a choice between a morally good option and a morally bad one. Games such as Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. 2003. LucasArts. otherwise known as KOTOR employs a binary morality system which influences the decisions a player can make in that game. The player can either make choices that are morally good and be on the light side, or make choices that are morally bad which would put them on the dark side. However, due to the game’s mechanics, the player is heavily encouraged to pick one side over the other for the majority of the game’s run time, as they receive immense gameplay bonuses if they stick with one side over the other without dipping too much into the other side. This aspect of the game removes some of the player’s agency as they are encouraged to make choices based on their current alignment, rather than what they truly want to do in any given scenario.

Now my game does not have any lightsaber combat or a fleshed out morality system like KOTOR does, however it does allow the player to make certain moral decisions. While I am not at the stage where I am implementing those major moral decisions into the game, I will try to keep examples like KOTOR in mind when writing them. In the plan I have outlined some paths which lead into different story paths which should allow for the player to not be forced into a certain “alignment” like KOTOR does. There also is not a binary good or evil option in my game, so players should not be pressured into making a certain decision just because they think it is the “right” one. Decisions will be framed in a way that makes each one the “correct” one in its own way, which should allow for more player agency as they should feel as though the choices they make are right for their character.