Warp (video games)

For the album by Martyr, see Warp Zone (album). For the game developer, see WARP (game developer).

A warp, also known as a portal or teleporter, is an element in video game design that allows a player character instant travel between two locations or levels. A specific area that allows such travel is referred to as a warp zone. A warp zone might be a secret passage, accessible only to players capable of finding it, but they are also commonly used as a primary mean of travel in certain games.[1][2] Warps might be deliberately installed within puzzles, be used to avoid danger in sections of a game that have been previously accomplished, be something a player can abuse for cheating, or be used as a punishment to a player straying from the "correct" path.[3]

In some games, a player can only use warps to travel to locations they have visited before. Because of this, a player has to make the journey by normal route at least once, but are not required to travel the same paths again if they need to revisit earlier areas in the game. Finding warp zones might become a natural goal of a gaming session, being used as a checkpoint.[1][4][5]

  1. ^ a b Gazzard, Alison (2013). Mazes in Videogames: Meaning, Metaphor and Design. McFarland. pp. 129, 142. ISBN 978-0786467945. Retrieved 2014-11-16.
  2. ^ Fuller, M. and H. Jenkins (1995). "Nintendo and New World Travel Writing: A Dialogue". Sage Publications: Thousand Oaks. Retrieved 2014-11-17.
  3. ^ Gazzard, Alison. Teleporters, Tunnels & Time: Understanding Warp Devices In Videogames (PDF). University of Hertfordshire. Retrieved 2014-11-16.
  4. ^ Elias, George Skaff; Garfield, Richard; Gutschera, K. Robert (2012-08-24). Characteristics of Games. MIT Press. p. 16. ISBN 978-0262017138. Retrieved 2014-11-17.
  5. ^ Grossman, Austin (2013-04-02). Postmortems from Game Developer: Insights from the Developers of Unreal Tournament, Black & White, Age of Empire, and Other Top-Selling Games. CRC Press. p. 89. ISBN 978-1136064623. Retrieved 2014-11-17.